Florist Industry Concerns Answered Thread

I hope those facts include the fact that you are an Interflora & Petals member. 

It always amazes me how some people can be so hypocritical, and quick to put themselves on a pedestal. There is no need to make people feel dirty for doing something you yourself does aswell, or degrade something that you are a part of, if they are so bad why are you a member?  All other Interflora members are not able to operate out of a house either, so even though they have been kind to you and accepted your membership, you still write them off.

Maybe it is an identity crisis that is effecting your business, which one are you? Tates Florist, EFlowersAlive, AAA Florist of Albany Creek & Strathpine, Tates Kallangur Flower cottage, Kippa-Ring Flowers by Tates or 800Flowers, maybe you competed yourself out of the picture, as most know in this dog-eat-dog world if you put too many dogs in one yard they start to fight with each other, customers are not stupid, and if I was looking for a florist and came accross one with 6 different names, I would think there is something shakey going on there, but then we have already established my customers are different to yours.

Not against a united friendly family of Florists, but it needs to be founded by a truely honest, non biased figure that is respected all over Australia as an innovative, up to date and open-minded leader.

Sorry but there is no nice way to put these things (or maybe there is if I wanted to sugarcoat it and beat around the bush) but the fact is I am tired of reading misleading statements and lip service that just confuses people and tries to shame them for not being born more than 50 years ago. Fact is the new breed of Florists are not full of doom & gloom, they are on the same learning curve you were when you first started out (find it hard to believe you knew everything there was to know about Floristry & Business before you had your first shop) and believe there just is no need to sit around and bag everything because it's not the same as it used to be. I understand your remorse, your generation started all this (if only they didn't invent computers) but hey let's not point fingers, and place blame, a lot of things started out as a good intention but have taken an alternate course, take Cane Toads for prime example, fact is they are here, in plague proportions and until there is a fair, humane solution they will stay. Same as relays, until there is a fair, equal, non-biased alternative they will stay.

Cheers,
Annette
Flowerfusion - Flowers & Gifts

Yes, and it should be addressed with those relay networks, not ignore them completely. We can get those networks to work for us again, not against us, but it doesn't mean that you are a bad florist, stupid or are ruining the industry because we as real florists use them (as most feel they are being accused of when reading these posts). It means we have to set the standards and not let them dictate to us what is reasonable. It has already started happening, I have recently had an order come through one of them that was obviously undervalued, it got bounced around to a few different florists in the area, all rejected it. So the next day we get a phone call asking if we can do the same order but more value had been put onto it. In addition, the relay also had to add a box of apology chocolates for the late delivery. This added cost basically took away the profit margin the relay network would have recieved from the order, as it is them that pays the $15 for the chocolates, if this happens to them more often I think they will need to rethink a little bit about what they are doing. It may be a small step but imagine what could come about if we ALL actually verbalized what we are saying on this site and got together to approach these networks, they can't operate without us, so why not try fix this before calling for abandonment and complete disregard.

Yes, I would prefer the commissions go to real florists but at least those Mechanics are helping get flowers into every home by attracting customers that usually don't buy flowers. You can't tell me that any serious and regular flower buyer goes to the local mechanic to order flowers instead of the local florist (unless related to them). In my opinion these are customers that would not normally buy flowers. We all offer discounts for various reasons, RSL members, Pensioners, affiliated businesses, corporate accounts etc, it really is no difference to the till at the end of the day, as to whether it was an order placed via relay, funeral director or corporate client, they all get a piece of my pie in some way or another, they all have my logo & business name attached, they are all treated in the same way, an oportunity to expand awareness of who we are and what we can do.

Cheers,
Annette
Flowerfusion - Flowers & Gifts

Once again our thread has been interrupted when it was promised not to.
We have a number of very good long-standing local customers as solicitors. One of who gives free legal advice on the Business World, the Internet Industry and the Laws of what can and can’t be said and published about people’s personal character, and their business. As customers of ours they know of our reputation of caring for our local community with flowers for years and have deep concerns for the survival of the Florist Industry. 
Their advice to the whole Florist Industry is that unless the whole Industry co-operate with one another, i.e. the Genuine Real Live Florist, the ones that stock fresh flowers and the necessary accessories, there is no hope for their survival, legally or otherwise.
Unfortunately, because Florists do not have the finances to defend themselves in Court from the thousands of cases of Order-gatherers who are NOT CERTICICATE and GENUINE FLORISTS, it is a lost cause and time with no benefits. It is time to stop and rethink of who you are, researh your product, and renew your committment of service to the customer. 
The Law does not have anything to defend at the moment, as the flower ordering process offered to the public is labeled with a legal term of fraud. Florists are NOT producing and delivering what the consumer ordered but are collecting monies for the order.  This practice cannot be defended because the florist is part of the transaction.  
The absence and lack of business management skills by the florist operator is an obvious and easy target for the un-ethical operator (order-gatherer) Because of the support that the florist gives in their eagerness to get an order and part with their profits, the order-gatherer in their greed and deceit have increased in numbers to the thousands on the Internet as “ghost shops”. There are too many to trace to take proceedings against. 
 Another failing in the Florist Industry is the lack of People Skills. This is the most important aspect of our Florist Industry. As quoted before on this forum, “people can do without the Florist, but Florists can DEFINITELY NOT do without the Customer.” In this very unique Industry  “a customer in your shop is a customer in my shop and in the interest of the Industry should be treated with respect”. It is wise to remember that all other florists are treated equally with respect as your customer.  
We draw your attention to the topic Florist Industry Concerns Answered, (above)and our  researched answers to our florist colleague’s questions. They are willing to learn and have respect for the forefathers of the Australian Florist Industry, the florists who created the Florist Industry promoting Friendships not only with customers but linked other florists together with respect for one another and one single purpose.  
We refer the readers of this forum to the reply to our answers to the topic. This has been referred to the solicitor. His reply was a definite winnable defamation case. 
Because we are Genuine Caring Florists for our customers and our colleagues with a passion for floristry, we send to the writer of the reply a Bouquet of Opportunity to retract the unfounded statements and replace them with the honest truth. If the truth is not known, do not fabricate lies. You are welcome to ask the suitable question and we will answer truthfully as we are proud of our reputation and dedication to the Flower Industry..We will defend the Industry in every way possible. We did not give half a life time building the industry to see it heading towards its demise. 
Our Industry is in so much turmoil being labeled with deceit, dishonesty, and fraud we can do without defamation being added to the list. The advice we have received is that until we have a Real Live United Body of Florists with an honest ordering system for our customers, as in the days before “order-gatherers” we do not have an alternate ordering system to offer to our customers for the Law to defend.
How many florists measure up to the mark and are ready to learn to defend and return this Industry to its former glory days.Interested parties please reply to support@eflowersalive.com.au Remember…..Mothers Day is only 7 weeks away….Cheers ………EFlowersAlive…Ron 

Edited by: EFlowersAlive

Which part is not true? Are you not a member of relay networks, do you not operate out of a house, are you not listed as 6 different business names all with the same address, did your generation not start the relay networks as claimed before, are Cane Toads not in plague proportions, am I not tired of reading misleading statements or are other new florists not full of doom & gloom? These are the facts stated, if any of them are incorrect I will remove it, but the rest is my opinion, which I am entiltled to. Defamation is when something said is stated as fact but is not actually true and the said something has a detrimental effect to your income/ earning capacity, not just because you don't like what someone says or their opinion on something.

Cheers,
Annette
Flowerfusion - Flowers & Gifts

Edited by: Flowerfusion

Relay Companies are old news.

No, really. I don't actually see the need for them in this day and age ... We don't communicate by morse code anymore.

Maybe we should take some responsibility for our own businesses and invest in quality, aesthetic and secure web design. This might bring customers back to us...

maybe there is no need for relay companies....intertesting concept.....however, there is a difference between them all.
some are purely order gatherers - in it for the money.
others are quite reputable & do offer education, competitions, advice etc.
I suppose you have to use what you believe is in your best interests.
there are good & bad points to everyting.
I do believe you need a way to send orders to other towns, countries etc.
we are a member of 2 well known relay services & find this serves us quite well. 1 we use more than the other.
in saying that we have had some bad experiences using these services.....any complaints we have had to deal with (there haven't been many)  have been inferior workmanship....some florists seem to think because the order has come thru the relay company that the customer who ordered it will never see it...these days with email, camera phones etc that is not the case.
some "florists" are not really "FLORISTS" if you know what I mean.
there needs to be stricter entry requirements & much more follow up...eg test orders etc. 

Gloriosa - I had a look at the Lily's Florist website - HOW deceptive!!! My gosh, I wouldn't be too pleased about that - I'd also invest some time into sorting out your Search-Engine-Optimisation...

Mushy - I agree, there are positives to relay companies, and there can sometimes be a confusion between order-gatherers and relay companies, however if I wanted to get something sent in another country or town... I would... simply look up the businesses in that town that offer the service I need?

 I wouldn't expect to be able to go into a Bunnings here in Victoria and organise delivery of an Item in Queensland by Mitre 10. That's an extremity, and I realise that you can oragnise generic products through different stores of the same brand, but I wouldn't expect to go into a Bunnings here and chance that a different company would deliver my item at the other end.

Why do Florists operate with this system? It's outdated. (Yes, I realise not everyone has the internet or is comfortable giving their credit card details online, but I'm certain the Relay Companies do just as well with their call centre)

In regards to the variance - anyone can purchase a florist because we all know the specialised skill involved in peoples perception of this industry is almost non-existant. Many of you, I'm sure, employ casuals to simply attend to customers and wrap cut flowers... which can be tricky at times itself, but it's this perception that brings non-florists into this industry.

just my two... or fifteen cents

haha, true true - Sorry, there was a point to my last paragraph...
 
What I meant was, because of the retail-every-day-aspect of this industry, there is a fair proportion of time spent doing relatively low-skill intensive tasks - such as wrapping cut flowers for Susie because she's got friends coming over and she only wants to spend $15 on a bunch of Asiatics, rather then helping Meredith who wants to send something personal to Susie in hospital after her poor cooking poisons everyone and they all end up in hospital... You're going to spend more time with Meredith and knowledge is more important here, but, I'm sure we've all noticed that across the board, there are more Susies then Merediths (hopefully not in poor cooking skills... fictionally, of course!) and as such, Susie's experience with Floristry is that it's a low-skill, easy-to-do occupation, rather then Meredith who can now appreciate the knowledge of flower choice, service and quality of design you've just put together for her...

You'll have to excuse the analogy, I think we're all prone to fictional stories for a bit of fun sometimes.

What I was trying to put across is that one day Susie or Meredith might buy a florist... and their perception from each time someone got sick or needing that bunch of asiatics, will determine the calibre of business they run.

I'm hoping there's more Merediths out there, although Susie does provide great neighbourhood goss!