Today, independent flower store owners are all asking themselves the same question: “How can I compete against the large chain-stores, which sell their flowers at close to wholesale prices?” Well, I believe it’s still possible for the ‘small guy’ to compete, but to do so your flower store must constantly strive to be unique. Large supermarkets…are dull, uniform places – same uninspiring décor, lighting, displays, musak. But your store should be an organic place that’s free to grow and change with the seasons, new trends and styles.
Traveling around the country, I do visit some fabulous, individual flower stores, but still, too many independent flower stores look blandly the same – as if they themselves are part of a chain! Yet, the small stores’ great advantage over their chain-store rivals is the freedom to change and offer customers variation. At this summer’s AIFD convention, the Flower Council of Holland’s exhibition focused on this idea of variety. We created four different rooms, each with a different theme - country, hot pink, autumnal and white. Of course, regularly redecorating your entire store is expensive and time-consuming. So, instead, simply start by giving a part of your store a ‘new look’; for example, create a ‘country corner’, as we did at the AIFD convention. With some old wood and a few coats of wood-grain paint, we created a charmingly rustic display for less than $100.
Good ideas for changing your store’s ‘look’ can be found in the commercial world around you – study store catalogues, magazines, note what colors and styles in fashion, design, home furnishings…are ‘in’ and then incorporate them in your store’s decor. Also, when creating your store’s ‘new look’, remember to appeal your customers’ particular tastes. Different types of people in different regions of the country have different style preferences. And don’t forget to appeal to the younger generation, who are largely an untapped market and especially love all that’s trendy and fun.
I like to imagine a flower store as a theater stage, a space that – by adding a few different props: decorations, dashes of paint, lights, designs…– is transformed between acts. When the curtain goes up on your ‘new look’ store, your customers will be pleasantly surprised. After all, price isn’t the only part of the shopping experience that matters. Variety is indeed ‘the spice of life’. Everyone loves variation and new sensations – that ‘Oh, wow!’ feeling we get when entering a charming store for the first time. By using your freedom to create and recreate, by focusing on offering your customers a variety of looks and feels, your store will become a special place that customers want revisit again and again. Remember, your ‘unique selling point’ is your store’s uniqueness, against which the bland mega-stores simply cannot compete.
Questions or Comments
Please send your questions or comments for Els to: info@flowercouncil.org
