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In This Issue ...
- CalFlowers Board Election Results for 2019
- CalFlowers Strategic Plan 2019 - 2022
- Welcome Ginger Tulley to CalFlowers team
- Transportation
- New Members
UPCOMING 2019 EVENTS:
World Floral Expo (WFE)
March 20 - 22, 2019
Dallas Market Center
Dallas, TX
International Floral Expo (IFE)
June 18 - 20, 2019
Miami Beach Convention Center
Miami, FL
2019 Fun 'N Sun Convention
July 24 - 27, 2019
Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort
Santa Barbara, CA
SAF
September 18 - 21, 2019
Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island
Fernandina Beach, FL
Flower Of The Month:
The December birth flower is narcissus.
The paperwhite narcissus is the December birth flower. Legend states that after Narcissus died, Apollo turned him into the flower narcissus. Paperwhites are grown from bulbs and are native to the Mediterranean. They are very fragrant flowers and are frequently given as gifts at Christmas.
The paperwhite narcissus is a cousin to the daffodil flower. This flower is easy to force bloom indoors. The strong scent is either loved or hated. The paperwhite is the only narcissus variety that does not require a cold and dark period to bloom. The paperwhite is the most popular variety of narcissus. This flower means that the recipient of the paperwhites is sweet.
CalFlowers News
Our goal is to communicate on a monthly basis with the membership and interested parties about recent, past, and upcoming events, program updates, and general information about how CalFlowers is engaging in the industry on behalf of the membership.
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CalFlowers Board Election Results for 2019
Thanks to the 69 Floral members who cast ballots in the recent election cycle, we reached quorum and are pleased to announce that each of the three candidates received 80% of the ballots cast -- a strong indication of membership support for the ballot. There were no write-in candidates and 3 abstentions. The three board members are: Frank Biddle (FBI International), Ivor Van Wingerden (Ocean Breeze Int.), and Jeanne Boes (SF Flower Mart). Each of these directors was elected to three-year terms.
Jeanne Boes and Jens Williford (Kendal Bouquet) are the two newest members of the Board of Directors. Williford, whose term ends December 2019, was appointed to a vacant position in September by the Board of Directors.
 
Your board officers for 2019 remain: Ben Dobbe, President; Frank Biddle, Vice President; Marc Robinson, Secretary / Treasurer; and Mike Mooney, Immediate Past President. Click here to get to know the CalFlowers Board.
CalFlowers Strategic Plan 2019 - 2022
As many of our members know, the Board of Directors and staff recently gathered to update the 2014-2018 CalFlowers strategic plan. Many thanks to the members who participated in interviews by our facilitators, and to the 127 member representatives who completed the important member survey (see highlights of these results)
On October 2nd and 3rd, the Board of Directors and staff reviewed the results of the interviews, as well as an environmental scan with input from industry leaders (both members and non-members) and the results of the membership survey. The plan is being treated as a living document and will be evaluated at each board meeting and modified as necessary. The current goals and objectives can be found here.
 On the subject of surveys, member input is crucial to delivering value to our membership. Therefore, members will be asked for their input more often in 2019 than in the past. We commit to asking only when it's important, and we'll keep the surveys as brief as possible. Watch for the next survey before Christmas when we ask for member input on public policy and legislative matters. We will be in Washington and Sacramento in March getting involved in those issues that matter to our members.
Welcome Ginger Tulley to the CalFlowers Team
We are pleased to have Ginger Tulley take on the responsibilities of Director of Marketing and Communications for CalFlowers. Ginger began on October 1, and on October 2-3 participated in the strategic planning retreat with the staff and the Board of Directors. That's "hitting the ground running!"
 Ginger fills the open position created in August when our previous hire left the position.
While not from the floral industry, Ginger brings a varied professional background that includes high tech and business services marketing.
Ginger has also held a variety of volunteer roles on boards of directors of nonprofit organizations. She will be developing and managing the CalFlowers marketing plan and guiding a number of the organization's important marketing and promotional initiatives.
Feel free to reach out to Ginger, who is located in San Francisco, along with Michael LoBue and Chris Freed, at [email protected] and 415-561-6116. Ginger's staff bio...
Transportation
As a reminder, new shipping rates and program information for 2018 is up on the CalFlowers website. Members can use their login to access this information anytime. Rates on FedEx, GSO, OnTrac, and airlines can all be found, as well as other handy information. For questions or comments on any of our programs, please contact Chris Johnson at (760) 533-5580 or [email protected].
With the new year, many carriers typically adjust their shipping rates up. We can expect to see some minor changes to FedEx, GSO, and OnTrac rates, as we do every year. We will be sending information about these changes as we get them in December, so please keep an eye out for them. New program rates and information will also be posted on our website after January 1. If you have any questions, please contact Chris Johnson for assistance at (760) 533-5580 or [email protected].
For members wanting to learn more about the FedEx holiday schedule click HERE.
For information on the Holiday Money Back Guarantee policy, click HERE.
We’ve been seeing an increase of gifts packaged with flowers in FedEx shipments, so we want to remind member shippers that FedEx requires special documentation for the shipment of alcohol. Shipping alcohol without this documentation is not allowed. If you have any questions about the documentation required, please contact FedEx at (800) GO-FEDEX or visit FedEx.com.
 Recently, Golden State Overnight added Utah to their network, and now GSO is expanding services to Montana. CalFlowers members now have access to Montana, but please note that this is a 2-day service. Visit gso.com for a handy map tool that can show you new transit times into Montana and neighboring states from YOUR location. If you have any questions, please contact Chris Johnson anytime at [email protected] and (760) 533-5580.
 OnTrac also has a very nice “Time and Transit Map” under Zip Tools on their website. This handy map loaded from YOUR zip code really helps understand OnTrac’s overnight commitment areas. To download your map, please visit https://www.ontrac.com/servicesareas.asp
Airlines:
Check out our updated airline contact website page, a handy reference offering contact information for our California Air Cargo representatives. Members, please visit www.cafgs.org for a copy of this list.
 If you haven’t yet heard about the new CalFlowers/Alaska Airlines shipping program, this exclusive offering is available now for CalFlowers members. These new Priority Rates are the best we have seen in years and with the Virgin merger completed, Alaska Airlines has an extensive network servicing major popular destinations across the U.S. However, to get linked to this exceptional program, interested members must sign up. Please contact Chris Johnson at [email protected] or (760) 533-5580 to get started.
 For members shipping into Canada, we have a brand new member carrier who has put together some aggressive shipping rates. WestJet is Canada’s second largest airline, and we are pleased to have them as one of our newest airline partners. WestJet has extensive service throughout Canada, and these new rates promise to be an excellent option and value into Canada. Look for more details next week on WestJet.
NOTE: Transportation Rate information and documents are viewable/downloadable (as PDFs) on the CalFlowers Members Only site. Please note that these documents are considered sensitive material and are available to the primary contacts for Ag Buddy, Associate Floral, Associate Grower, and Floral members.
To access the Members Only site, simply log in using the Member Login button in the top-right corner of our website.
Click here if you don't know or don't remember your username and/or password. This document will help you login.
New Members
In November 2018, we were pleased to welcome the following new CalFlowers members:
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