Why every florist is different, what to look for and how to find the right florist for you.
It doesn’t matter what you are shopping for, in this technological age, our first reaction when we want/need something, is to jump online and start Google-ing. Usually our searches look something like, “mechanic brisbane”, gift ideas”, or “florist near me”. What usually follows is a long list of potentials under sponsored listings or Ads. Then, what seems like endless scrolling begins…
So when we want to send a beautiful gift of flowers to a loved one to brighten their day and won’t just end up as clutter in their house, people often turn to florists for a lasting personalised service.
Why Choose A Florist & Why Are They All So Different
Unlike supermarkets, florists offer fresh custom designed, shaped, coloured and textured flower arrangements and gift collections specifically designed to be given as gifts. Fresh flower gifts often come with tailored card messages, optional extras such as vases, balloons and chocolates, and delivery options, all presented in a gift wrapped packaged with a water source to help them last as long as possible.
Usually most florists near you will offer similar products and services such as cut flowers, bouquets and floral arrangements, however, not every florist offer the same designs, services such as weddings & formals, funeral flowers, same day delivery, same flowers, or styles. Why is this?
Florists are in fact artists, floral artists to be exact.
Like sculptors, illustrators, painters and silversmiths are all artists which have preferred mediums and styles which they use, florists are no different in how they style and use flowers as their medium to create art. You can ask these artists to re-create something you have seen, however, the final products will all probably look slightly different.
Only the original artist can re-create the exact piece that looks the same, as that is their creative essence reflecting in their work.
Decide whether you want to pick up the flowers yourself or whether you would like them delivered for you. By adding “delivery” and the location of the person you want to deliver to, to your search you can help rule out florists that don’t deliver or deliver to that area. We might start to have a search query that looks a bit like this:
“birthday bouquet delivery d’aguilar”
Relays & Order Gatherers
Order gatherers or “relays” are companies that don’t make or produce products themselves but collect orders for goods and pass them onto businesses who can fulfill those orders for a fee. You can generally tell “order gatherers” apart from actual florists as they don’t normally have a physical store or have an address listed on their website, they offer worldwide or Australia wide delivery, and generally have 1800 or 1300 phone numbers or online only chat/messaging. Many “order gatherer” companies pay for advertising on Google search, thus, you will most commonly see them as “Sponsored” listings at the top or bottom of Google search pages.
Understanding what these services are and what they offer can help individuals decide how you want to make purchases and how much you want to be involved of the process.
The perks of “order gatherers” as a customer enables you to order flowers nation wide or to a totally different country in Australian dollars, see roughly what the flowers might look like, (though often subject to availabilities in that country as not all countries grow the same flowers), and have someone take care of the process for you. Many florists even partner with “order gatherers” to fulfill orders and also enable them to offer this nation and worldwide service to their customers, if customers contact them or walk into their store directly to order.
The downside can be that you may not know which florist near the recipient is fulfilling your order, you can’t often customise designs, speak to a person directly to ask questions, you can’t pick up orders, and there are often fees to “relay” the order such as “processing & handling fees” that are either added on top of the flower and delivery costs or deducted from the order, equaling less in product.
So, this is all something to consider when you want to send flowers for a loved one.
Ethics
We live in a world of choice. There has never been so many options to think about when purchasing items and services from a company, no matter what you are buying. Unique cutomisations, product/services features and options make every business a uniquely perfect option for each and every one of us out there. With so much on offer we have to consider if there is anything additional we want ethically, when purchasing a product or service. This can include options buying from florists near you or businesses that offer:
- Environmentally friendly or sustainable practices
- Cheap or competitive prices
- Australian or locally made & owned
- Supports locals
- Products not tested on animals
- Freebies & discounts
- Subscriptions, loyalties & memberships
- Supports charities & care organisations
- Accredited, fully qualified &/or trained professionals
- Businesses that have been operating for a long time
- Products that are tried & tested, lab or field tested
- Have good/positive feedback & reviews
- Diverse or large range of products in the one place
- Multiple locations/franchises
- Disability or wheelchair ease of access
- Holistic
- Plus, so many more new ideas & exciting offerings appearing every day!
Adding some of these desired aspects, for example, “environmentally friendly affordable florist near me”, to your search can narrow down the listings shown when searching, hopefully making your choices easier. I say hopefully, because making decisions aren’t always that easy 😀
Style & Design
As mentioned at the start of this article, florists each are unique in their styles and artistic spin when creating floral art, thus, when visiting a florist’s website you can generally get a feel for their individual style and design.
Some may have a vintage and antique vibe, modern or classy, retro, country, woodland or cottagey style, 70s fun colour pop, boho, beachy or oriental style, just to name a few. It will depend on what you and/or what you think your recipient might like.
Other than styles, there is structural designs and shapes in which you would like the flowers arranged into. These designs can include:
- Cut flower quick market wraps/bunches
- Bouquets round & sheaf
- Boxed & pot container arrangements all-round or front facing
- Vase arrangement
- Presentation/display boxes
- Wreaths
- Casket & Coffin sprays
- Arbor, A-frame & pedestal arrangements
- Corporate, formal or wedding arrangements
- Living plant arrangements
- Hampers & gift collections
- Florist’s choice & free-style arrangements (leaving it up to the floral artists creativity to see magic happen!)
No matter what you choose, this is a good time to consider if there is anything in particular you would like in your order such as colour schemes, meaningful flower types or above mentioned designs and styles.
Pick Up or Delivery
The great perk of small, locally owned florists is the ability to choose if you would like to pick up your order or have it conveniently delivered, and be able to choose preferred AM or PM delivery timeframes majority of the time (excluding busy periods). Many are also quite flexible in when you can pick up or have your order delivered organised by simply speaking to a member of the friendly team, especially if you order ahead of the desired delivery/pick up date.
This option can add that personal touch or element of surprise that can truly brighten someone’s day that little bit more.
Placing Your Order
Hopefully, but this step you have found that perfect business that ticks all the boxes. The next step is placing your order.
Some of the things you will often need on hand when ordering are to make the process simple and easy are the following:
- Desired delivery/pick up date and time (AM/PM)
- Recipient name
- Recipient phone number
- Recipient address
- Order details & any preferences/exclusions (allergies)
- Card message
- Delivery instruction/instructions if recipient is not home, has dogs or property is gated
- Your full name
- Your phone number
- Your payment method
Some florists also offer the additional bonus services of confirmations of delivery, photos and receipts of purchase, so don’t hesitate to ask if they offer these services, if you require them, upon ordering.
Hopefully, this guide has been helpful to navigating your way through the endless playground and sidetrack-central of the web and online purchasing of flowers and gifts for yourself or a loved one. If you have any questions or would like to know more, feel free to talk to our friendly team at Dippety Flowers & Gifts today on 04 3848 0080 or contact us here, or email us at dippety.inc@gmail.com.
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