Episode 15: Pursuing Sustainable Luxury Event Design with Annie Pertes of Wildbird Flowers
Floral Guild Radio
Today we're getting to know Annie Pertes of , a farmer florist in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Annie gives us a candid look at what it's like to be in Year 5 of building a floral brand. She's found her groove and is pursuing luxury events with a sustainable approach. And she expects to get paid well, as she should! Lots of golden nuggets in this conversation. Enjoy! And be sure to follow Annie on Instagram . This podcast is brought to you by the , a collective of flower farms in the mid-Atlantic region selling together to florist and other...
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Selling Wholesale Flowers as a Micro Urban Flower Farm with Elise Hanks of Terra Luna Herbals
Floral Guild Radio
In this episode you’ll get to know one of the talented and dedicated farm members of the Elise Hanks owns and operates , a microfarm located in the very urban Norris Square neighborhood of Philadelphia. Elise has been working in flowers for over a decade, both in florist shops and at farms. In fact, she was an employee at my flower farm all the way back in 2012 so this conversation and the way we work together now as peers feels beautifully full circle to me. Elise launched Terra Luna out of a small community garden space in 2015, at first focusing on homegrown,...
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Quality Control in the Local Flower Supply Chain
Floral Guild Radio
This episode is all about quality control in the local flower supply chain. To share some insight on this topic, Katy Beene, market manager for the joins us. Founded in 2011, the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market is really a frontrunner in the local wholesale cooperative model that has inspired so many flower collectives like the Philadelphia Floral Guild. With 18 growers, thousands of florist customers, and an annual sales volume topping 2.5 million, the SWGM is moving a lot of stems! To help educate their growers and foster consistent quality across all their products, they...
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Growing a Floral Event Business Through Friendships with Jessica Cummings of We Are Wildflowers
Floral Guild Radio
Today we are hearing the story of how Jessica Cummings built her floral event business, . Jess has had a unique approach to growing her business slowly through friendships and now does 80+ weddings a year with a merry band of floral freelancing friends. The We Are Wildflowers crew is committed to sustainable floristry that highlights locally-grown stems and uses zero floral foam. Lots of great tips for event design workflow in this episode! Jess is also a musician and finds being in a band () a great way to release stress from flowers and recharge her...
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How Retail Florists Can Sell More Local Flowers
Floral Guild Radio
Attention Florists! We’re back with another episode on how to sell local flowers, this time with a closer look at building a retail customer base who understands what local is and helps you tell the story of the stems. Unlike events, retail is all about building a relationship that lasts for life. A handful of dedicated customers evangelizing about how awesome your business are what you need. Not droves of social media followers. Guest , owner of in Baltimore, has a and a . Check them out! This podcast is brought to you by the , where...
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How to "Sell Local" to Event Clients with Ellen Frost from Local Color Flowers
Floral Guild Radio
, owner of in Baltimore, joins host Jennie Love for a lively chat about how to "sell local". As a florist working exclusively with locally grown stems for the past 17 years, Ellen has valuable insights into how to find the right customers and get their buy-in. In this episode, the conversation is focused on selling local to event clients, namely weddings and corporate. Come back again soon to listen to the next episode coming out, which will be about how to sell local to retail customers. Ellen and Jennie both teach online courses that may be valuable...
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Flower Camps for Kids and Other Community Building Ideas from Grace McDonald at Flower Clvb
Floral Guild Radio
In this episode, I’m chatting with a fun little floral studio in West Philly. Grace is a builder of strong community and an advocate for the earth. She's put a unique spin on educating the next generation about flowers and nature. This episode is packed full of gems to apply to your own business! Be sure to check out Grace's Instagram feed . It’s a great spot to see all-local designs and get inspiration. This podcast is brought to you by the , a collective of flower farms in the mid-Atlantic region selling together to florist and other wholesale buyers....
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On Growing Up In a Flower Shop and Three Decades in the Biz with Rose Oland of Mullica Hill Floral Co.
Floral Guild Radio
In this episode, I’m chatting with Rose Oland from , a florist shop that has been in business for 37 years. Rose and her mom who founded the shop are dedicated to supporting local flower farms and approaching floristry with sustainability at the forefront. Rose’s perspective of the industry is unique in that she literally grew up in the flower shop and has seen just about everything in the past three decades, including how the industry has shifted from guarded competitiveness to supportive collaboration. Be sure to check out Rose’s Instagram feed It’s a great...
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Being an Eternal Novice and Defining Your Sustainable Floral Business with Emalee Lally of Bird Seed Florals
Floral Guild Radio
Today we're chatting with Emalee Lally, owner of . Emalee has been a stalwart supporter of the since day one. Her design style and story are unique, including her attitude towards being an eternal novice. Three years in the biz, she’s still stretching her designer legs and has found being a beginner has some serious perks. Like coming up with a really clever way to enhance designs in pin frogs! Get a look at her singular design style on Instagram . This podcast is brought to you by the , a collective of flower farms in the mid-Atlantic region selling together...
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Tips for Selling Flowers Wholesale with Scott Shepherd
Floral Guild Radio
We’re back on air with a conversation about selling flowers wholesale. This episode is geared more towards flower farmers, but might be a fun peek behind the scenes for florists as well. Many of you are already familiar with today’s guest, . Scott is the host of . If you haven’t checked out that podcast yet, be sure you do. Scott has such a unique position in our industry. He studied horticulture in college and has been a producer of specialty stems like hellebores. But his main job over the past three decades has been working in sales and sourcing at...
info_outlineAttention Florists!
We’re back with another episode on how to sell local flowers, this time with a closer look at building a retail customer base who understands what local is and helps you tell the story of the stems. Unlike events, retail is all about building a relationship that lasts for life. A handful of dedicated customers evangelizing about how awesome your business are what you need. Not droves of social media followers.
Guest Ellen Frost, owner of Local Color Flowers in Baltimore, has a YouTube channel and a valuable weekly education email. Check them out!
This podcast is brought to you by the Philadelphia Floral Guild, where we're building community around sustainable local flowers. If you're a florist in the Philadelphia area, we'd love to have you shop with us! Click here to learn how.
Sign up for PFG's newsletter to get regular updates about what's in season.
Not a Philadelphia area florist? Look for flower farms near you on the Rooted Farmers website or through localflowers.org.
Why use local flowers? In addition to give your shop or studio a unique value proposition that will galvanize and inspire your customer base, local stems mean:
- Less Shrink: Without the stress of a long ride in the global supply chain, our stems are superior in quality with much less breakage and far better hydration.
- Less Labor: Our growers do all the work of a studio assistant, stripping stems and making fresh cuts on stems that go directly into water and never leave a water source. This means you do not have to process anything!
- Less Trash: There are no boxes, packing paper, bubble wrap, box straps, plastic sleeves, and all the other usual trash that comes with a flower delivery from the traditional wholesaler.
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Less Carbon Burned: Imported flowers in the US typically travel 2,500 or more miles in refrigerated planes, trucks and boats to reach you.