I often get asked ‘What do you like most about being a florist?’ That’s a tough one, because there are lots of reasons I love what I do, so it makes it really difficult to whittle it down. Honestly, although I love working with beautiful blooms and I have a great team who make every work day a pleasure, I think what I like most about my job is the way people bring me their hopes and dreams and trust me to turn them into a floral reality. Planning your wedding can be an exciting and stressful time, so I’m conscious to try to make your experience of choosing a wedding florist as easy and comfortable as possible.
There are three things to consider when you look for your perfect florist:
Relationship- Humans make first impressions about each other in remarkably quick time. Some research suggests it takes as little as 1/10 of a second and that there is little change in opinion after that. So, your gut reaction counts! How you feel during your initial contact with anyone has a huge bearing on whether you can work with them, and you will need to be able to work closely with your wedding florist. Ask yourself these questions:
· Do they feel friendly and approachable?
· Are they listening to me?
· Do they seem excited about my ideas?
· Are they flexible, offering me plenty of options?
if your initial questions is ‘yes’, you’re off to a great start!
Skill and experience- It’s not a lie to say that new florist businesses pop up every few days. Often they start on a whim, someone decides they think it looks so much fun to ‘play with flowers’ and sets themselves up as a florist. In the UK you need no training and no official qualifications to do this- beware! Before you entrust your wedding flowers to anybody make sure you ask yourself, and them, a few simple questions:
· How much experience of event work do they have- do they work in a variety of venues?
· Can you see some recent testimonials-no more than 3 to 5 years old?
· What do they post on social media and what’s on their website- is it their work?
· Is there evidence of variety-being adaptable shows skill?
· Do they have an industry pedigree- many years of knowledge means you can be sure they deliver consistently high levels of quality and service?
· Are they (and their contractors) fully insured- it’s important to have public liability insurance?
If you like the answers to these questions and you still feel comfortable, you’re on the home strait.
Support- The last thing you really need to think about is support, not yours, but the florist’s. The last thing you need on the morning of your wedding is to discover your florist is unable to deliver your wedding flowers. So make sure you are absolutely sure the answer to the next question is ‘yes’:
· Do they have a supportive team who are skilled enough to capably complete and deliver my wedding flowers if there is an eleventh-hour disaster, illness or accident which renders my florist unable to?
I hope the unthinkable never happens, but planning for it anyway is the wisest thing to do. I hope this has given you some food for thought and some tools to use.
If you’d like to ask me these questions, click here! I look forward to meeting you.
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