Ask those who work in the floral industry, “why do people buy flowers?” and you will get numerous answers delivered with great confidence.  Some of these answers may even be correct.  However, we can’t be certain which ones are the real reasons consumers buy flowers.  Turns out, asking consumers such a direct question will not reveal the most accurate answers.

All consumers have unconscious reasons for just about anything they purchase, especially something as discretionary as flowers.

We were pleased to have E. Shaunn Alderman, Floral Department Marketing Strategist at FLORAL BUSINESS / PRODUCE NEWS, attend our biennial convention, Fun ‘N Sun, a few weeks ago. She wrote an article about the event – with great photos­ – in the August issue of Produce Business, and provided us with a pdf of the article.

Please click on this link to read and/or download the article.

The design team “Inspired Design”, co-founded by Patience Pickner, AIFD, PFCI, and Ace Berry, AIFD, PFCI, recently held a three-day floral education retreat in Chamberlain, South Dakota.  The retreat started with a brunch riverboat cruise and featured several styled shoots, including one on the Missouri River.

The retreat culminated in a Field to Table dinner and Floral Couture runway show in a 100+ year-old barn venue.  The public was invited to this event, and the barn was filled to capacity, where over 175 people attended. They got to enjoy an amazing locally grown/raised dinner, locally produced wine, several speakers who touted the importance and benefits of purchasing American Grown flowers, and the finale of the evening where over 40 floral designs rocked by gorgeous models on a floral runway brought the house down!

In light of CalFlowers' recent public position on state and national legislative issues, some might conclude that CalFlowers does not support the Certified American Grown program.  That conclusion would be wrong. 

CalFlowers supports American consumers who wish to select their floral products based on where those flowers and greens are grown. We also support consumers who enjoy flowers regardless of their origin.  For the former group, programs like Certified American Grown and CA Grown are valuable programs. For the latter group, the market should provide a range of convenient choices at affordable prices year-round.