shop’s point of sales system is integrated with the delivery, the sales associate can check whereabouts of the driver and tell the customer where he or she is on their route. (Read more about Drummond’s system at
safnow.org/moreonline.)
Rethink your space. Based in part on their experiences on Mother’s Day this year, some retailers also are reconsidering how much space they need — and even where they locate their businesses. Rakini Chinery, AAF, AzMF, of Allan’s
Flowers in Prescott, Arizona, said she had planned for Mother’s Day sales to be down by about 75 percent this year. Instead, they were up 46 percent. Like Radebaugh and Drummond, Chinery
OUR INDUSTRY IS BASED ON
PATTERNS, AND “
UNDERSTANDING THOSE PATTERNS HELPS GUIDE US IN MAKING
GOOD DECISIONS. NAVIGATING
THE UNKNOWN
IS CONSUMING.” –LENNY WALKER
70%
was struck by how efficiently her busi- ness ran. “I was surprised by the incred- ible number of orders we were able to take and fill and the fact that we did it with about 35 percent less staff,” she said. “We will continue to work lean.” Chinery is also considering moving
her business to a more industrial area. “The sales floor doesn’t seem to make a big difference in our sales, and we loved not dealing with a constant stream of walk-in clients [for Mother’s Day],” she said. Not having customers in the store “freed us up to fill more delivery orders,” Chinery added. In addition, retailers have made
changes to their spaces to accommodate COVID-related restrictions and ensure staff and customer safety. With the fu- ture still uncertain, and a second or third wave of infections possible, many of these changes are likely to stay in place for months to come, so taking time to think through the updates is important. In April, Drummond converted
unused retail space into more square footage for his designers. He disman- tled retail displays and wheeled design stations into the showroom. The change means more physical distance between employees, with designers working at every other station. He’s also imple- mented other policies to limit team mem- bers’ physical interactions. For example, at the start of their shift, designers grab pre-made bunches and product, then wheel the supplies to their station. The change means less foot traffic through- out the space: Drummond estimates designers make about three trips while producing 60 to 80 arrangements daily. At Lake Forest Flowers outside of
Chicago, Eileen Weber, AAF, turned her family business’ showroom into a design room this spring. With a smaller staff of just three, they’ve been able to stick to
of florists who were open for Mother’s Day reported an increase in sales.
Source: SAF’s 2020 Mother’s Day Member Survey. Response rate: 7 percent.
one person at each 8-foot table (which used to accommodate four designers). To avoid cross-contamination of phones, one person is assigned to the shop phone and spillover calls come to Weber’s cell phone. Although she appreciates larger retailers, including her local grocery stores, establishing one- way hallways to manage the flow, Weber said her three employees have been able to safely navigate her 1,200-square- foot shop without implementing such measures.
Get real in your messaging. One unexpected outcome of the pandemic: It may have deepened consumers’ appreciation of flowers and plants. SAF’s member survey found that 86 percent of florists who experienced a Mother’s Day sales increase this year credited the uptick at least in part to customers’ desire to bridge physical distance with flowers. That stat is in line with broader consumer trends: Homebound Americans took up gardening in record numbers this spring. Online searches for advice on plant selection and care spiked as shelter-in- place orders went into effect and people grew hungry for comfort and connection. “The past two months have proven to
many consumers that flowers make a real difference in the lives of people suffering from stress, isolation and illness,” said Drummond. “We hear it every day. We need to repeat that message in conversa- tion, on our websites, in our advertising, on social media — everywhere.” Like Drummond, Patrick Busch of Len
Busch Roses in Plymouth, Minnesota, said those are messages that industry members need to play up more often. Busch played a lead role in advocating for his customers early in the pandemic, helping to ensure they could offer
The magazine of the Society of American Florists (SAF) 27
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