The Supply Chain Disruptions Continue to Plague the Floral Industry
The supply of fresh flowers and supplies continues to be a problem for all flower shops throughout the globe. This is especially true for our fresh flowers coming out of South and Central America, as well as supplies and items originating in the far east. Much of our stock is being held up in airports leaving us without important items for creating a variety of different floral designs. On top of the delays in shipments, we are also experiencing a large increase in the price of items as well. Our costs are running at least 25% - 45% higher on many items due to an increase in demand and a drop in the level of supply. Items such as floral tape, wreath frames, design molds, silk flowers, artificial items, ribbons, are just a few of the supply items that we struggle to obtain. In addition, we are also experiencing either delays in the shipment of fresh flowers or the total absence of many flowers that we always used to consider staples. White flowers are a special challenge now, as many growers have had to furlough their help due to COVID-19 issues, which meant there was no one to harvest the crops when they came time to reap. This left growers with the unthinkable choice of merely plowing under crops due to a lack of labor to harvest. In addition to the labor shortages and struggle with shipments, weather has plagued South American this past year. With storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, and even drought many growers lost their crops before harvest even arrived.
Local florists are also having to compete with large corporations and chain stores for product, which puts us at a great disadvantage. Some large chains have actually gone in and bought out entire farms, leaving the local small flower shops without any product to purchase. Once the larger chains have deleted much of the product, what is left is costing us much higher prices because the supply has been cut so dramatically that everyone is competing for a much smaller pot of blossoms from which to choose.
We are hoping that things will begin to level out and come back into balance within the next year or two but for now, we will have to contend with shortages and a lack of product guarantee. Our number one priority will be our customers of course, but flexibility in selection and choice will be the key to customer satisfaction during the short run when it comes to floral designs.
At Angle's, we will continue to prioritize our customers first as we have for over 70 years. We encourage you to consider the following as you contemplate ordering:
- Order early in order to guarantee selection is available. Consider at least 10 days ahead of time if you need to place a special order or need specific flowers.
- Be flexible and have alternative selections in mind. Having more than one flower selection, or one color will help alleviate stress in the event your first choice is not available.
- Call and discuss special requests in person with your florist. While online ordering is convenient and easier, it does not always lead to you receiving something you specifically want. Call first if a substitution is not desired.
- Be patient. Often times it take a few days or even a week or more to get an answer from a grower. Your patience is imperative during this critical time.
- Understand that your florist does care about your desire for certain flowers or designs, but he/she can only do what he/she is able to do. Your understanding is more appreciated now than ever before and rest assured that your professional florist will work hard to satisfy your request. And if he or she cannot, it will hurt them as much because they are unable to help as it will you because you cannot get your initial choice.
With all that said, please know how much your patronage and business is truly appreciated by the management and staff at Angle Florist, We have been preparing local designs and flowers for people for generations and hope to continue to do so for many more to come. Your support means much to us and we want to say "thank you" again for always trusting us with all your floral design and flower needs.
