July 2010

E X P R E S S I O N S O F F L O W E R S

OWNER’SCORNERCHARLIE JORDANMATCHES AMBITION,ACCOMPLISHMENTS

MARKETINGCHRISTMAS IN JULY:LOOKING ATSEASONALDECORATIONS

ON THE EDGETHROWING AWINE TASTINGPARTY CANBRING PEOPLE IN

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Mark Nance, AAFPresident, BloomNet

PUBLISHER

BloomNet, Inc.www.MyBloomNet.net

(866) 256-6663

MANAGING EDITOR

Lisa Carmichael

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Fred RussellJohn Parkinson

ART DIRECTOR

Shane Hickey

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Mike Pucci

EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS

Lydia TothTed MarloweJerry Rosalia

floriology is published monthly byBloomNet, Inc.

Printed in the United States, Copy-right 2010. All rights reserved. Nomaterial contained herein may bereproduced without the consent ofthe publisher or editor. Permissionto reproduce portions of this publi-cation should be obtained throughBloomNet, Inc. Publications.

All statements are those of the per-son making the statement or claim.The publisher does not adopt anystatement or claim as its own andany statement or claim does notnecessarily reflect the opinion of thepublisher.

Although published material is in-tended to be accurate, neither flori-ology nor any other party will assumeliability for loss or damage as a resultof reliance on this material.

Opinions expressed are not neces-sarily those of BloomNet, Inc.

Annual Subscription Rate is $71.88(plus applicable tax) in U.S. andCanada.

4 Industry InfoCombating the “in lieu of flowers” phrase; and a previewof the Fresh Forum.

5 By the StatsForecasting sales for this Christmas holiday season.

6 Out and AboutBloomNet florists’ designs and highlights from state shows.

7 Tech TalkWill e-mail be replaced as the main means of electronic communication?

8 DESIGN CENTER: On the EdgeJulie McCann shows you how to throw a Napa Valley Style party!

10 Owner’s CornerCharlie Jordan shares his thoughts on staying up on contemporary designs andcreating newer marketing opportunities

12 DESIGN CENTER: Back to BasicsFrank Brice shows how to keep summer “cool” by creating an ice cream arrangement.

14 MarketingYankee Candle and BloomNet “meld” together.

15 Innovator of the MonthJeanie Hinton markets b-day parties for her shop.

16 Neighborhood CornerTheresa Hahn is headed to Hawaii thanks to her marketing know-how!

WHAT’S INSIDEV O L . 1 N O . 1 0 | J U L Y 2 0 1 0

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>>>Cover: One of Napco’sdecorative offerings forthis holiday season.

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Retail sales for the 2010 Christmasseason are predicted to rise nearly 4%above 2009 levels.* And that comesafter a 3.6% increase for 2009 versus adismal 2008.** Certainly, it appears that

things are going frombad, to stabilized, to dareI say “the new normal.”

With that in mind,now’s the time to make alist of ways to help en-sure a successful holidayseason. One area to con-centrate on is purchas-ing. The summer is agood time to buy holi-day product. Don’t be

afraid to negotiate hard and look fordeals where you can pay later, en-abling your Christmas order volume tocover purchase costs. Make sure to askhow to secure free shipping, too. Andspeaking of product, as home décoragain gains in popularity, think aboutcarrying more Christmas accessories.

Something else to add to your list isa Point-of-Sale system. Versatile POStechnologies can help you prepare forthe holidays very productively by au-tomating tasks such as entering orders,capturing customer information andproviding better financial reporting

Some other suggestions: If youhaven’t started social networking, whynot get the word out about your busi-ness using Facebook and Twitter? Youmight also want to roll-out local mar-keting programs (POS is a big helphere!), including direct mail, as well asconduct open houses to bring cus-tomers in and get them familiar withyour shop and your product line.

I hope you enjoy our Christmasissue, and have a wonderful summer!

Mark Nance, AAFPresident

SOURCES: *Moody’s Economy.com**MasterCard SpendingPulse

MAKING YOUR LISTAND CHECKINGIT TWICE

UP FRONT

WHAT’S ON TAP

● OHIO FLORIST ASSOCIATION SHORT COURSE (Columbus) . . . . .July 10 - 13

● INTERNATIONAL GIFT & HOME FURNISHINGSAMERICASMART (Atlanta, Ga) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .July 14 - 21

● OKLAHOMA STATE FLORISTS’ ASSOCIATIONSUMMER CONFERENCE (Tulsa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .July 17 - 18

● TEXAS STATE 97TH ANNUAL CONVENTION (San Marcos) . . . . . .July 23 -25

● LOUISIANA ANNUAL CONVENTION (Alexandria) . . . . . . . . . . . . .July 24 - 25

● ARIZONA STATE FLORIST EXPO (Phoenix) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .July 24 - 25

● SOUTH CAROLINA FLORISTASSOCIATION CONVENTION (Columbia) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .July 23 -25

● BLOOMNET FRESH FORUM (Jacksonville, Fla.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .July 31 - Aug 1

● NEBRASKA HEARTLAND FLORAL CONVENTION (Omaha) . . . . . .July 31 - Aug 1

● TENNESSEE STATE FLORIST 58THANNUAL CONVENTION (Franklin) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Aug 6 - 8

● WESTEXAS NEW MEXICOANNUAL CONVENTION (Lubbock, Texas) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Aug 6 - 8

● NORTH CAROLINA STATEANNUAL CONVENTION (Greensboro) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Aug 13 - 15

● INDEPENDENT GARDEN CENTER SHOW (Chicago, Ill.) . . . . . . . .Aug 17 - 19

● ARKANSAS FLORISTS CONVENTION &FLORAL GIFT MARKET (Hot Springs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Aug 19 - 22

● SOUTHERN RETAIL FLORISTANNUAL CONVENTION (CONCORD) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Aug 27 - 29

Visit www.MyBloomNet.net to find industry links floral trade shows!

THE COFFEE POT

THANKS DONALD!I got the new floriology. The information is great! I love it so much. All thephotos and articles were fascinating! I really enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing.

DONALD YIM, AIFD ~ Creative Director at West Van Florist,West Vancouver, BC

YOU TOO MICKEY!Petal Pusher Diva’z has been with BloomNet now for about 2 weeks, and we arehopeful it will be a blessing to us in the summer months. I have taken a peek ofyour archived articles, and can honestly say “Petal Pusher Diva’z lovesfloriology.” I personally love all the great tips that other florists share with themagazine, and somehow feel connected with them. Thanks for providing such agreat and wonderful publication! We will sign up for the magazine sometimenext week.

MICKEY LONG ~ Owner of Petal Pusher Diva’z, El Cajon, Calif.

The floriology team wants to hear from you! Send your opinions and commentsto floriology@bloomnet.net. We want to know if we’re doing a good job!

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Losing business due to miscommunication is probably a lotmore common than we think. Take for instance the phrase,“in lieu of flowers, send your donations to XYZ.” For thosewho may only be slightly familiar with the phrase, the “inlieu of flowers” phrase is language used by funeral direc-

tors for death notices to appear in newspapers. Often the phrase iswritten innocently as a way to honor the family’s wishes to make adonation to a favorite charity or research foundation.

While this may be done for innocuous reasons, it can hurtflorists, partially because this particular language suggestsmourners send donations in place of flowers—even though mourners may still wish to sendflowers. Clay Atchison, owner of McAdamsFloral in Victoria, Texas, says this ambigu-ity is cause for concern. “There are a lotof people that have confusion aboutwhat ‘in lieu of flowers’ means,” ex-plains Clay.“ When I talk to peoplehere, they ask, ‘does that really mean Ican’t send anything?’”

He has decided to take on the phraseand the greater issue associated with it bydeveloping a website, www.inlieuofflowers.infoto provide some information and resources formourners who Google the term; funeral directors who write thedeath notices; and florists who are looking for alternative phrases touse. There are some replacement phraseson the site, and examples include:“memorials may be made to the charityof your choice” or “Should friends desire,contributions may be sent to…”

The idea, according to Clay, is to getaway from the use of the language, “inlieu of flowers” and for florists to workmore closely with their funeral direc-tors. Clay takes it upon himself to keepan open ongoing dialogue going withhis local funeral directors and have thegive and take that is needed in anybusiness relationship. “It’s like a mar-riage. You just have to work withthem,” explains Clay. “When we haveSunday deliveries, I’ll deliver it myself,and it gets me a little face time withthe funeral director.”

INDUSTRY INFO A W A R D S , S H O W S , A D V O C A C Y

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

IN LIEU OFTHIS PHRASE,PLEASE USE...Finding alternative language and solutionsto the “in lieu of flowers” phrase

VALUE SAVER

PREPARING FORA GREATADVENTURESix Flags amusement parks offer adiscount to BloomNet florists

CONFERENCE PREP

FRESH FORUMDesign, Best Practices, Shopping & Community

For those who are in need to get away and have a working vacay, BloomNet issponsoring the Fresh Forum, which is being hosted at Napco’s Jacksonville, Fla.,headquarters. The informal yet informative educational seminars will give you a

chance to learn from industry leaders and network with peers in this weekend extrava-ganza. Fresh Forum will be held on July 31 and August 1. Napco’s design team will giveinsights into the Spring and Garden trends including the season’s colors, textures, andcontainer shapes. Bill Taylor, AIFD, will demonstrate some designs for Valentine’s Day,Spring, and everyday usage. There will be a seminar on gift basket trends andcustom print solutions as well as VIP showroom shopping. For more info, you cane-mail BloomNet at bloomnetproducts@bloomnet.net or call 1-800-322-2421 Ext. 553.

BloomNet has teamed with Six Flags, Inc.on a great program that will allow Bloom-Net florist’s substantial savings off themain gate prices with “print and go” tick-ets so you don’t have to wait in line to pur-

chase tickets. Start planning your Summer Vacationsnow, this offer is for all Six Flags Parks nationwide!

• To access your special tickets go to:shopsixflags.accesso.com/clients/sixflags/affiliate/index.php?m=13991

• Simply enter username:1800FLOWERS and the

• Password: SixFlags15 butplease remember the passwordis case sensitive.

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have a large gourmet department and we do a tremendousamount of fruit baskets,” he explains.

Christmas accessories are also expected to be solid sellers thiscoming holiday season. Pine arrangements, wreaths, trees, figu-rations and other decorations will likely make up a large percent-age of 2010 holiday revenues for retail florists.

AMBITIOUS PLANSNaturally, promotional activity will be an integral part of theChristmas 2010 sales push for most florists. Again this year, as away of widening exposure for his business, Skip and the RutlandBeard Floral Group will get heavily involved in decorating forlocal holiday parades, festivals and tree lightings.

“We are also planning to continue our ‘Mystery Gift Card Pro-gram’ which has been very successful in the past,” adds Skip. “Wehave a Santa Bag full of gift cards in our store, and people pull out

a card with a mystery value between$5 and $50.” They then sign-up forRutland Beard’s mailing list, providingtheir name, email address and date ofbirth. During their birthday month theycan redeem the card. “We get a lot ofcard redemption and a lot of leadsfrom this promotion,” declares Skip.

Mr. Alan’s The Original Florist willmake its annual holiday open house apromotional focal point. The event isscheduled for the weekend beforeThanksgiving. “A lot of people saythey start their Christmas spirit bycoming to our store,” exclaims Alan.The shop is beautifully decorated withall the trimmings. “Many peoplecome and take pictures and use themas their Christmas card.”

At Schaaf Floral, Marcia will concen-trate on direct mail and newspaperadvertising. She will also emailcoupons to customers. Above all forthe 2010 holiday selling season, shewill emphasize what differentiates heras a local retail florist. “We have qual-ity products for the money, we havegreat value, we have great customerservice...and all that serves us well,”says Marcia.

by Mike Pucci

BY THE STATS

by Mike Pucci

H O L I D AY F O R E C A S T I N G BY THE STATS

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Could the upcoming holiday season be minus the Scrooge men-tality we started seeing nearly three long years ago? The generalfeeling is yes, things are definitely im-proving and the outlook for this year’sholiday period comes complete withthe statistics to support such optimism.

POSITIVE VIBES“Last year, for the 2009 Christmas sea-son, we saw a 6% increase in sales ver-sus 2008,” states Skip Paal, owner ofRutland Beard Floral Group based inBaltimore, Md. “We’re hoping to seeat least a 6% increase for 2010.” Goodnews, to be sure. And there’s more.

We all know that unemployment hasbeen a major culprit fueling the stub-bornness of this recession. However,things are perking up. “We’ve seensome staff being hired back at corpora-tions here,” says Marcia Schaaf, ownerof Schaaf Floral in Fridley, Minn. “I’man optimist, we plan for the best...weplan for increases every year. I thinkthis will be a better year than last.”

IN-DEMAND PRODUCTSMost economic experts would agreethat consumer purchasing attitudeshave shifted during this economicdownturn. “People are buying morefunctional products,” continues Marcia.“Our gourmet baskets, especially food,are selling well.” Marcia anticipates that gift baskets will continue tobe high on her customers’ buying lists for the 2010 holidays.

“Our Yankee Candle line is very, very popular,” says AlanCohen of Mr. Alan’s The Original Florist in Brick, N.J. Additionally,similar to what Marcia has seen at Schaaf Floral, Alan has also ob-served an increase in demand for food-related products. “We

Holiday Stats❋ Sales for the 2010 holiday shopping season

are forecasted to rise about 4% vs. 2009*

❋ U.S. retail sales overall are predicted to in-crease 2.5% in 2010 compared to 2009**

❋ Americans’ perceptions of their financialsituation rose to 82.9% in June 2010, thehighest since March 2008.***

SOURCES: *Moody’s Economy.com **National Retail Federation*** University of Michigan “Guage of Current Conditions”

❋Take advantage of the latest retail sales trends this holidaywith BloomNet products NEW Yankee Candle, Gift Baskets

& Custom Print Programs! Go to www.mybloomnet.net, e-mailBloomNet at bloomnetproducts@bloomnet.net or call1-800-322-2421 Ext. 553.

CHRISTMASCHEER?RETAILERS EXPECTED TOWRAP-UP HIGHER SALESFOR 2010 HOLIDAYS

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BloomNet was a sponsor for the ThomasHartman Foundation for Parkinson’s Disease“Cure for Sure” dinner held June 22nd at theCrest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury,N.Y. Pictured from left to right is SteveBozzo, CIO of 1-800-Flowers.com, MarkNance, AAF, president of BloomNet andMarc Cole, key account manager at 1-800-Flowers.com.

BloomNet sponsored Brita Edlbauer’s, AIFD, FSMD, “FloralArtistry” at the Florida State annual convention heldJune 11 – 13 at the Palm Beach Gardens Marriott inPalm Springs, Fla.

OUT AND ABOUT B L O O M N E T TA K E S T O T H E R O A D

This beautiful holiday arrangement was used for a holiday house tour. It was sub-mitted by Jenna Lloyd from O’Malley’s Floral Expressions in Woburn, Mass.

BloomNet Regional Vice President, Monica Vaccari andMarket Area Consultant Russell Belshe at the President’sDinner Gala and Awards Ceremony at the Florida Stateannual convention.

Stephen Lenzovich,general manager of retailand franchise operations,of the 1-800-Flowers.comBethpage Facility gives a

tour to UndercoverBoss star Jose Rosado.Jose is still on pace tobecome the youngest1-800-Flowers.comretail store owner!

This picture was sent in by Melissa Green from Village Florist inMiami, Fla. She says she made six of these for a customer who was throw-ing her Maltese a “puppy shower.”

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What’s Newin ChristmasDecorationsWHILE IT IS JUST JULY,IT’S NEVER TOO EARLYTO THINK DECORATIONS

by John Parkinson

It may be sunny and hot outside your shop rightnow, but before you know it, the seasons willchange and the holidays will be upon us. Inthinking about the Christmas holiday season,your shop along with many others will be stock-

ing their stores full of complementary decorationsand items to go wih their floral purchases.

“Christmas is the holiday for decorations,” assertsRobert Keith, design manager for Napco Marketing.Robert believes this year will be a return to traditionalholiday themes with nativities, angels, and the Ameri-can style Santa Claus ornaments. “It’s a move awayfrom ‘high-fashion’ themes, and a revival of the‘classic-American’ Christmas.”

In terms of colorschemes, Robert sees richreds, golds, and choco-late browns being one ofthe major color schemes.The products themselveswill often have writing onthem using expressions ofseason’s greetings, and theywill have graphics likesnowflakes, Christmas tree silhou-ettes, and patterns of gold and reds.Jewels and sparkle will also figure heavily inthis year’s Christmas colors themes. “We see a re-newed interest in jeweled and ‘sparkly’ accents (as or-naments) for this season,” says Robert. “Rich colorsaccented with jewel-tones will be very popular.”

For florists who are decorating their shops for theholidays, Robert suggests using the walls to displayholiday items and seasonal scenes to tell the story.“Make use of more accessories, wall art, ornaments,and signage to ‘brand’ your displays,” says Robert.“Use every available space in your store to ‘creativelysell’ your displays. Remember that good signage,and graphics help to bring a theme or display to-gether, and tell the customer what the story is. It’s allabout additional sales.” To find out more aboutNapco’s seasonal decorations and holiday orna-ments, go to www.Napcoimports.com.

MARKETING D E C K T H E W A L L S — R E A L LY

TECH TALK

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According to Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.com), a technol-ogy research and advisory company, by the year 2014social networking services will replace e-mail as theprimary communications vehicle among 20 per-cent of business users. Indeed, social media

sites including Twitter and Facebook are changing theway the world keeps in touch – a trend supported byThe Nielsen Company (www.nielsen.com), a leadingconsumer research firm. Nielsen has reported thatthe number of social media users jumped 31%between 2008 and 2009.

And it doesn’t end there. Exciting new technolo-gies, such as Google Wave (www.googlewave.com),are enabling users to exchange richly formatted text, photos andvideos in real-time simply by dragging and dropping from theirdesktops into an online “Wave” space.

Let’s also not forget about the mobile revolution. These days,we’re all connected wherever we are. In addition to delivering on-

the-go access to social networks, smart phones offer the con-venience of texting and instant messaging. Which may be

another way of saying “why wait for an email when themessage can come almost immediately?”

What do the above developments mean for retailflorists? Simply put, opportunity. Yes, e-mail couldeventually be headed for the great cyber restingplace in the sky. However right now, it’s still veryviable...so continue using it. Most important, com-plement your email marketing efforts and power-upthe visibility of your business by adding a social

media presence. And, further increase customer contact with thelatest mobile apps. In other words, embrace it all...and you’realmost certain to generate more sales potential.

E-mail: Losing its FootholdWith new technologies taking over, the old standby is waning

>>> This year’s decorationswill be a return toclassic themes andlooks.

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In last month’s Out & About section of floriologyyou saw a couple images of a wine tasting party 1-800-Flowers.com hosted at the Carle Place, N.Y. re-tail store. In the pictures you could see everyonehaving a grand time and those responsible for throw-ing the party made sure there was plenty of enter-tainment. It was equally as fun, when floriologyvisited with Julie McCann, senior vice president ofproduct development-photography, Laraine D’Elia,visual manager, Andrea Anzo, floral stylist, and Mon-

ica Fleming, studio assistant—the ladies responsiblefor the fresh floral presentation for the event.

For the party, the first thing the ladies had to dowas decide on a theme for the party. Since it was awine tasting event they decided to use rustic vi-gnettes to create that vintage look and feel of asunny afternoon in Napa Valley’s wine country.

The ladies only had a short time to prepare andstarted pulling things from their garages and base-ments to start creating the landscape for the festivi-

ties. Many of the materials like the soda crate andbarrel (pictured on the next page) came from fleamarkets across New England and had that weath-ered, country look to complete the settings. Theyused fabrics to coordinate with colors of the flowersand the props and even picked out foods like redonions to complement the surroundings.

“The more fun you have putting all the elementstogether, the better it will turn out,” says Julie. Toadd to the ambiance they hired a musician. They ac-

complished just what they set out todo—everyone felt like they were in anorthern Californian vineyard. “Onceyou have music, wine, food, and flowersit becomes a party!” adds Julie.

Julie recommends making sure youhave plenty of help. Have your employ-ees and some family “work the floor”and engage customers in conversationsso they feel welcomed. It will also giveyou the time to mingle. After throwingsuch a party, you now have deepenedyour relationship with your customersand they will feel like they’re coming toa friend when they see you. Julie says

it’s viral marketing at its best. They go home and tellall their friends how much fun they had and howgreat your store is. Julie recommends throwing atleast three parties a year, and channel it towards anupcoming holiday. This way you can educate cus-tomers on all of your products. Also, get other busi-nesses involved. Talk to your local bakery, cheesecompany, and wine store. It’s a great place for themto reach customers and you can provide them withthe space to hold it.

Wine-tastingMarketing your store through an open house type celebration

DESIGN CENTER O N T H E E D G E

by Fred Russell

HOSTING A

>>>(from l-r) MonicaFleming, studio assis-tant; Laraine D’Elia,visual manager; ErinMaestas public rela-tions associate man-ager; Julie McCannsenior vice presidentof product develop-ment/photography;Teresa Madtes, StudioManager; and AndreaAnzo, floral stylist

EVENT

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Glass vase with cork filler andwild colorful garden varieties

Soda box arrangedwith BurgundyDahlia, Godetia,and Leucadendron.

Barrel filled with Lilac,Hydrangea, Viburnum andHanging Green Amaranthus.

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ness, because I’ve been able to get ajump on what color trends will bepopular.” By being involved andworking with the interior designershe has been able to gear his productpurchases to what he knows will bepopular with his customers. By beingassociated to the events twice a yearCharlie’s customers know they willhave access to most cutting edge,forward-looking products.

Some of the trends Charlie is bank-ing on being all the rage this Christ-mas are peacock designs andornaments. Also jewel tones mixed inwith the greens and blues of the pea-cock feathers will be popular. “We’realso doing a lot of chocolate tonesthis year and adding in copper tones,especially in our tree designs,” saysCharlie. He also does a lot of Christ-mas tree design for his clientele.

Charlie’s work has also been fea-tured in Veranda magazine and hehas designed for Elizabeth Taylor,Joni Mitchell and Prince. He servedas President of the North CarolinaState Association and is on theSouthern Retail Conference board.

Besides his passion for staying ontop of the trends, Charlie has beenable to run a very successful businessso floriology decided to chat withhim to find out what he’s beenup to.

Ambitionand Accomplishments

Matching

Whether it is going into business “cold turkey” orproviding the floral arrangements for a major furnitureexpo, Charlie Jordan, AIFD, NCCPS, stays creative as adesigner and courageous as a shop owner.

The High Point Market Authorityhosts the International Home Furnish-ing Mart twice a year in High Point,N.C. each spring and fall. It is theworld’s most comprehensive furnish-ings selection and includes moreproducts than all other markets com-bined. Major home furnishing manu-facturers assemble from all over theworld to showcase their furnishings inmillion dollar showrooms to presenttheir merchandise in the best lightpossible. To accent the artistry, floralarrangements are brought in to com-plete the masterpiece.

That’s when Charlie Jordan, AIFD,NCCPS owner of Jordan House ofFlowers & Interiors in Greensboro,N.C., steps into the picture. The Martsearches out designers with certainstyles such as European, tropical andEnglish garden styles. “The flowersmust match the era and elegance ofthe room impeccably to achieve theperfect ambiance,” says Charlie. Eachroom usually contains three to sevenarrangements and must be spot on toaccomplish just what the manufactureris looking for. Charlie has been work-ing the marts for 22 years now.

“Every market is ahead of thegame in color, they are showing thelatest trends and are about a yearahead of everyone else,” says Char-lie. “Its certainly has helped our busi-

OWNER’S CORNER F U R N I S H I N G F L O W E R S

by Fred Russell

● HOW DID YOU GET STARTED?I was trying to find a career path in col-lege and started out studying phar-macy and switched to German, whichdidn’t take, which spurred me into thefloral industry. I paid for school byworking in a flower shop and the

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Owners:Charlie Jordan, AIFD, NCCPA

Shop:Jordan House ofFlowers & Interiors

Location:Greensboro, NC

Year Established:1979

Employees:5 Full Time

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FAST FACTS

owner’s wife really took me in and Isoon fell in love with the industry. Iopened my first store cold turkey and Iwas very young. I didn’t know all the el-ements of design, but it was in myblood. My friends and family pushedme through it and I’ve been in busi-ness for more than 30 years now.

● WHAT’S BEEN YOUR BIGGESTCHALLENGE AND HOW DIDYOU OVERCOME IT?

The biggest challenge was gettingstarted and to get known in the indus-try. I was 27, but looked like I was 20and the whole staff was young so it

was hard to get people to take us seri-ously. I even grew a beard to lookolder. It was hard to pull a customerbase together, but it eventually allcame together. I now have a muchmore diversified staff and the wholedesign team is AIFD certified andwe’re dedicated to put out qualitywork to people.

● DISCUSS PARTICULAR BUSINESSSTRATEGIES THAT HAVE BEENSUCCESSFUL.

One of the best things we do is actu-ally go out to local businesses and of-fice buildings and pass out hundreds

of roses with business cards attached.The phones start to light up within anhour, plus we get calls from ladieslater in the day or a few days laterthat are so thankful—it’s the smallthings that can really make someone’sday and future customers. We alsostarted a program with a local bankchain with 20 locations. We providedthem with different silk arrangementsand each month we pick them upand rotate them to the different loca-tions so they always have somethingnew. We did this for free starting outto get our name out there andeventually made it a very profitableprogram.

● WHAT HAVE YOU ACCOMPLISHEDAND WHAT WOULD YOU STILLLIKE TO ACCOMPLISH?

The thing I am most proud of is thatafter 30 years in business we have alevel of respect from our communityfor our floral designs and the way werun our business. I would also like toget my PFCI certification through SAF.I’ve traveled all over the country doingdesign shows and want to become abetter public speaker.

● WHAT MAKES YOURBUSINESS UNIQUE?

I think our designers make our businessunique. Everyone comes in wanting a“one of a kind” arrangement andsomehow we continue to come up withthem. We stay on top by attending allthe state shows and AIFD symposiums.A lot of it comes naturally, but withoutthe education you can only do somuch. Everything is always evolvingand it’s a good way to keep up witheverything that’s on the market.

PHOTOGRAPHYBY BILL BROERE

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Frank Brice of Raos Mattydale Flower Shop in Syracuse, N.Y. says, “eye appeal is buy ap-peal.” This ice cream cone arrangement, which uses real cones unquestionably, draws atten-tion from clientele.

Frank’s intention with this arrangement was to get away from the “roundy moundy” styleand do something different and lighthearted. It has a playful, whimsical element, which cre-ates a cheerful mood that anyone would love to receive and the best part is that its “lowcalorie,” jokes Frank!

“The hot pink and green color combination is very popular and fun. The contrast between thepink polka-dot bows and plaid green container creates an interesting dynamic,” says Frank.

Frank suggests the arrangement could be sold as a standalone throughout the sum-mer as a party favor. It would also be a great gift to give someone hosting a summer

barbecue or afternoon get together. It would be great for a kid’s birthday party orfor a girl’s sweet sixteen party.

It’s an arrangement a designer could use a lot of imagination and have fun with.“Instead of using the button poms you could use an artificial cherry or straw-berry,” adds Frank. You could also use adhesive and add real sprinkles or use glit-ter or confetti to enhance. “Take it a step further and add mini candy bars or

lollipops,” boasts Frank.In the construction of the design, it’s important to use a container that has some

weight to it. “You could even use a clay pot,” says Frank. He adds that if you know therecipient is a big fan of certain flavor or brand of ice cream, you could use an empty car-

ton and place a liner inside to create a container. Just make sure to place something insideto weigh it down. The carnations are kept on their natural stem, wired from under the calyx tothe bottom and then the stems are placed into the wet foam to draw water. The wire goesthrough the bottom of the cone into the foam. The hardest part of the whole arrangement, be-sides not eating the cone is cutting the hole at the bottom without breaking it. The bow is mul-tipurpose as it not only adds the design element, but also has a mechanical purpose because itdisguises the wire and also holds the cone in place so it doesn’t slide.

Once your customers get a taste of this arrangement they will definitely be back in line forseconds!

Frank Brice, AIFD PFCI designs one ofthis year’s coolest arrangements

DESIGN CENTER B A C K T O B A S I C S

by Fred Russell

DAIRY NICEArrangement

Ice Cream Carnations❋ FRESH Green Carnations, Pink Carnations, Green Button Poms,

Yellow Button Poms, yellow Daisies, Baby’s Breath and Myrtle

❋ HARD GOODS Pink and White Polka Dot Bow, Purple Ribbon,Sugar Cones and plaid fabric textured container (NAPCO item 63749)

❋ RETAIL PRICE $44.99

Designer:Frank Brice,AIFD, PFCI

Experience:40 years

Exposure/Awards:Design work featured inProfessional Floral De-sign, Modern Bride,Florist Magazine, Michi-gan State Florist Maga-zine and John Henry’sHot Display and Wed-dings as well asnumerous wire serviceselection guides.

One of BloomNet’s fea-tured designers in manystate association showsand the design council.

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Our “Undercover Boss” superstar PaulineLodato came up with a creative way to in-corporate the Yankee Candle product withfresh floral. She says it a great gift, in factshe’s partnered with a local real estate com-pany for housewarming presents.

MARKETING I L L U M I N AT I N G O P P O R T U N I T I E S

by Fred Russell

Napco and The Yankee CandleCompany begin a partnership

Future Together

A

Sun and Sand™, Clean Cotton™ andMidsummer’s Nights™. Margot sug-gests “having several of each fra-grance in your store is a good idea soyou have something for everybody.”

Candle displays can be a destinationin your store, bringing an added ele-ment to your business.

For more info on Napco’s exclusiveYankee Candle program for Bloomnetflorists go to www.bloomnet.net or call1-866-BloomNet.

This month Napco and TheYankee Candle Companyannounced an agreementmaking Napco the exclusiveprovider of Yankee products

in the retail floral category. “It’s a bigadvantage to our BloomNet florists be-cause it allows them full access to theYankee Candle lines through Napcowithout worrying about minimum quan-tities, and allows them to apply thecosts to their BloomNet clearinghouseaccount,” says Ted Nelson, BloomNetvice president of product and services.Point-of-Purchase materials, as well ascustomized postcards and brochuresfor direct mail marketing are available.

Yankee Candle Company FounderMike Kittredge was 17 years old andfound himself without enough moneyto buy his mother a Christmas present.

He decided to melt crayons togetherto create a candle for a present. Aneighbor saw the candle and con-vinced him to make one for her—fromthere is where Yankee Candle wasborn. After 41 years, the company has44% of the market share. Just like flow-ers, one of Yankee’s busiest times ofyear is the holidays. Some of the new

fragrances hitting forthe holidays this yearinclude Holiday Garlandand Winter Wonderland. “ChristmasCookie is an iconic fragrance andSparkling Cinnamon, SparklingSnow, and Balsam & Cedar areholiday must haves,” exclaims Mar-got Williamson, national account di-rector for Yankee.“For each season,we come up with a new line of scents.Forty-two percent of our customersare looking for something new so stay-ing on top of trends is key.”

Margot mentions that customers getinterested in buying candles as theseasons change. People want fra-grances that they associate with thattime of year. “Our Fall 2010 new fra-grance line-up is built upon Americantraditions, like baking apple pies with

Mom and warm cran-berry orange muffins andweekends at the lodge inthe mountains,” saysMargot. “When theleaves start turning andthe air gets cooler, they

light their Spiced Pumpkin candle andit completes the feeling of the sea-son.” Some of the new fragrances forthis fall are Apple Cider, Cranberry Or-ange, and Mountain Lodge.

Margot says they categorize the fra-grances into four groups, which arefruit, food and spice, floral, and fresh.Fresh would include scents such as

BRIGHT

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“For each season, we come up witha new line of scents. Forty-two percent of

our customers are looking for somethingnew so staying on top of trends is key.”

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MARKETING

BOOKINGBIRTHDAY PARTIES

With the economy rebounding, cor-porate gift giving will likely gainrenewed momentum for the 2010holidays. And that means gift bas-kets will be on many lists. “A gift

basket makes a statement, yet it’s practical, the foodcan be shared with others in the office, the containeror basket can also be used for other purposes.” saysNancy Hamlin, vice president of marketing for 1-800-Baskets.com®.

The choices in gift baskets run the gamut fromcheeses and meats, to baked goods, chocolates andnuts to specially-themed baskets targeted at everyonefrom sports fans to wine aficionados. There are alsomany non-food-relatedbaskets to choose from.

Nancy recommendslisting each basket’s com-ponents, so your cus-tomers know what they’regetting. Also, becausemany people can be un-sure in selecting an ap-propriate corporate gift,it’s a good idea to offersuggestions about whomwould be the best recipient for certain baskets. Forexample, you might suggest: “this basket is perfectfor the client who’s a ‘gourmet foodie,’ and thatone’s ideal for the hard-to-impress executive whoalso enjoys baseball.”

As for the coming season’s trends, Nancy explains,“We see a preference for quality food products thatmight be recognizable to the recipient, such as Go-diva® chocolates, Brown & Haley® candy, FannieMay® chocolates.”

Jeanie Hinton is making these anincremental part of her business

It was a cold day in January 2007 in Mankato, Minn.,when Jeanie Hinton of Flowers by Jeanie had anunexpected request from one of her customers.A mom walked into her store and asked if shewould host her daughter’s 7th birthday party.

“The thought of kids running wildly through my storewas a little more than bone chilling!” says Jeanie. After acouple of slow Saturdays and some thought, she convinced herselfto give it a whirl. “We snacked on birthday cake and each childarranged flowers in a terra cotta pot,” says Jeanie. She was able toshare her passion for flowers with the future designers and had agreat time! A second request came and a third and then a fourthand now she has booked more than 30 birthdays! Jeanie promotesher birthday parties with innovative radio spots and creative win-dow displays. She also tries to do as many “career days” at schoolsas possible and promotes her birthday parties while there. “We feelthis has become such a hit that for all the school fundraiser dona-tions we donate an accessory package for a birthday party.” Jeaniewill receive a $250 check from BloomNet, designer’s kit, and is en-tered into a Luxury Included® vacation for two to a Sandals Re-sort! Submit ideas to innovator@bloomnet.net.

Innovatorof the

July 2010MONTH

INNOVATOR OF THE MONTH

HAVE A GIFTFOR GIFTBASKETSPUMP UP YOUR SALES THISHOLIDAY SEASON

Marketing Tip of the Month

�GET AN EARLY START Most people start thinking about Christmas and the holiday season in the weeks between Halloweenand Thanksgiving. That’s when your holiday displays should be put up and your promotions should be posted on your website.

We’ve all walked into businesses in early fall and think “Christmas already?” The truth is retailers are just catering to the shoppingpatterns shown by consumers over the years. So don’t wait because you think it’s too early; start displaying your Christmas items andspecials when shoppers are looking for those first deals of the season! Share your tips with us by sending them tofloriology@bloomnet.net.

July2010

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�According toone study doneby gift basketconsultants SweetSurvival, the giftbasket industry inthe U.S. reached$3.3 billion insales in 2008.

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A HAWAIIANHONEYMOON –20 YEARS LATER“Theresa, how would you like to go to Hawaii?” asked MarkNance, AAF, president of BloomNet, calling to congratulate TheresaHahn and her husband, David, for winning the Mother’s Day Spot AMom sweepstakes and an all-expenses paid trip to Waikiki beach. Ittook a few moments of letting the news settle into Theresa’s brainand then she became very excited and very vocal. “I started scream-ing and jumping up and down, and the girls in the shop said, ‘whatis going on?’ Yeah I thought I would love a trip to Hawaii, but I neverthought I would win,” says Theresa on receiving word she won.

The contest had been set up so flower shop customers wouldsend in their entries to BloomNet telling stories about how much their moms meant to them, andin doing so identify the flower shop code, so individual stores would get credit for the stories. Atthe end of the contest, Theresa and David had been chosen as the winners.

In recent years, Theresa and David had been taking vacation trips, and with their 20th anniver-sary coming up next year, they were planning to go somewhere really special. They decided upon,ironically enough, Hawaii. Yet, they still had to save for next year, and they were just beginning todo that when they got the call from Mark.

Theresa attributes her winning to her ongoing relationship with a local restaurant franchisee and acontinuous marketing campaign through his restaurants. Theresa and David’s shop, The FinishingTouch in Fredericksburg, Va., have an agreement where every 10 days they design the floral for thesmall vases that sit on the tables of the franchisee’s four local restaurants at cost. In return, Theresaand David attach their own personalized marketing message for the shop.

Not only has it brought in everything from wedding and funeral arrangement business,Theresa says this type of high-visibility, low-cost marketing campaign helped her get to theAloha state. Because of her existing relationship with the franchisee, she was in theprocess of developing a flyer for the shop, so she decided to add in-structions for the spot a mom website along with her shop code, andrestaurant employees handed them out at the drive through. She esti-mates there were 5,000 flyers designed with the contest infoon them. Thanks in large part to their ingenuity, Theresa andDavid are packing their bags to celebrate their 20thanniversary as they are planning to go Waikiki thisSeptember. Congrats to Theresa and David!

One Old Country RoadSuite 500Carle Place, NY 11514

PRESRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDRIPON, WI

PERMIT NO. 100

B L O O M N E T I N T H E C O M M U N I T Y

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>>>Theresa Hahn and herhusband David plan tomark their big anniversaryon Waikiki beach.

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