Are there any mega-sized flower stores in the US? (Mega: to the tune
of a Wal-Mart sized building and staffing.) I'm especially curious
about individual large flower stores that have dominated the floral market
in a medium-to-large sized city. (Floral shop chains are not overly
helpful, but don't hurt to mention.)

Are there any that have failed? Why?

What are some logistical problems with starting and running such an
UberFlowerMart? (Hopefully backed-up with real statistics from the
floral industry.)

Thanks very much for your time and concise answer.

---

Clarification of Question by poormattie-ga on 14 May 2002 20:25 PDT

Thanks much for the comments! Your points are certainly valid.

To clarify based on those comments:

The intention, indeed, is to have the business be dedicated to the
"fresh-cut" flowers variety and not the garden/lawn.

In many affluent(ish) cities, there are numerous floral shops-- inside
every grocery store, or, barring that, on every few street corners.
The idea is to have a one-stop "fresh-cut" flower behemoth that gets
in early with distributers because of bulk and marketing plans, and
also builds up a streamlined delivery service (to help combat the
distributed/smaller floral shops).

Whether previous businesses have tried this and failed is a big key
element of this question. There's no doubt it'll be a tough business
(hence the question), but I'm looking for some data or sources to back
up the difficulties (being mostly unfamiliar with the fresh/exotic
flower industry).

Thanks again for the comments.

---

Clarification of Question by poormattie-ga on 15 May 2002 09:04 PDT

To kkemper (and potential answerers who may feel this is vague)-- 

My real question surrounds this:

Are there any mega-sized flower stores in the US? 
Are there any that have failed? Why?

Though I appreciate addressing the "selling flowers at lower cost"
issue very much (it's certainly helpful), I don't want to misdirect
this question along those lines. I'm looking more for examples of
"prior art".

Hi,

What an interesting concept!  As far as I've been able to find, nobody
has tried anything on anywhere near that scale. Even so, there is
other information available may be instructive.

First of all, to answer the first part of your question, the largest
flower stores in the United States apparently are the Field of Flowers
stores at about 10,000 square feet. Currently, there are two in the
Miami area.
http://www.fieldofflowers.com/fof/superstores.asp

The Intermarket Association of Advertising Agencies calls Field of
Flowers "the country's largest fresh flower superstore" and extensive
search efforts have come up with nothing to rebut that designation.
http://www.iaaa.net/affil.html

KaBloom (http://www.kabloom.com), a Massachusetts company, also bills
itself as a flower superstore.  Its stores are typically 900 to 1,600
square feet.  Although the shops are not physically all that large,
their strategy is somewhat similar to part of what you've talked
about: large volume and low prices that undercut traditional, small
retailers.  Here are a few articles that explain the strategy and how
well it's doing:

Inc. article:
http://flowerstore.kabloom.com/kore/catalog/pr7/content.html
http://www.kellogg.nwu.edu/news/hits/0204inc.htm

Forbes article:
http://flowerstore.kabloom.com/kore/catalog/pr8/content.html

Startup Journal (focusing on Internet advertising):
http://www.startupjournal.com/technology/technology/200003150927-buss.html

It is worth noting that while KaBloom seems to be operating
successfully, it's growth isn't anywhere near what company officials
were predicting originally.

What might be some of the best information available on planning a
flower shop isn't available for free. Here are some reports from
FloralMarketResearch.com:
http://www.floralmarketresearch.com/new_page_3.htm

Other sources of similar reports as well as some articles can be found
with this Google search:
://www.google.com/search?hl=es&q=%22market+research%22+flowers

The numerous excellent comments that have already been made detail
some of the reasons a superstore the size you mention may not be
practical.  Although very little seems to have been written about
unsuccessful floral shops, a lot has been written about business
failures in general, and those focusing on failed retail enterprises
may be instructive.  These Google searches should be of help:
://www.google.com/search?hl=es&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&q=%22business+failures%22+retail
://www.google.com/search?hl=es&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&q=retail+business+outlook
://www.google.com/search?hl=es&q=%22market+research%22+retail

I hope this information is of good use for you. Best wishes in your
business endeavors!

Sincerely,

mvguy

Good answer to a partially vague question. I'd have loved to see some
failure information (and even some personal opinion thrown in), but
the pleasant researcher has already done most of the research I'd have
to do so it's worth it. I'm definitely pleased with the answer as well
as with the comments.

Are you inquiring strictly about traditional floral stores on a larger
scale, or is the question broader, including gardening/outdoor
flowers, articifial flowers, etc.?

If we are just talking about a traditional "fresh-cut flowers" floral
shop, I doubt such a concept would work on a WalMart scale because of
certain limitations, including freshness issues, market demand, etc.

I do not know many people that buy fresh flowers as a regular
purchase, but rather for special occasions. For the "special
occasions" market, the small neighborhood flower shops suit most
people just fine. They are never far away, usually have good personal
service, and I am rarely disappointed in the number of choices.

What would be the benefit of a WalMart sized floral store
(rhetorically speaking)? Bigger selection? That is the only benefit I
can think of. Poor customer service always seems proportionate to a
big-box retailer's growth.

Plus, the market demand for fresh-cut flowers would never justify a
110,000 square foot store in the same close proximity as WalMart
locations. At best, you might have 2 or 3 in the very largest metro
areas in the nation. Now, the winner of the convenience factor is
still the small neighhood florist.

For those people like me who buy flowers regularly for their own home
or office, why would I make the trip across town to SuperFlowerMart
when I can get them at the grocery store. I bought a bouquet of
daisies at our local grocery store 3 weeks ago for five dollars and
just threw them away two days ago. We kept joking, asking eachother
"Are you sure those aren't artifial?" Then I'd take a closer look at
the flowers to be sure.

Selection.
Service.
Convenience.
Price.

A big floral shop may succeed at Selection and Price and maybe even at
service if they really really make it a top priority, but overall, I
don't see how you would convince people to change their flower-buying
habits.

If it were a more encompassing idea, consisting of fresh flowers,
garden flowers and plants, gardening supplies and artificial
flowers/plants, you might have a success.

Thanks for clarifying. I know I'm getting off the subject now, but I'm
very curious about the idea. I guess I'm still a little confused about
the benefit of a brick-and-mortar variety floral superstore. There are
already so many 1-800-FLOWERS type companies that network with
neighborhood florists to fulfill/deliver product, but under the
umbrella of the big-company's name. It's a proven and successful
concept.

I'm curious how one would convince the flower-buying public to support
a superstore to make it viable. It's like if someone who really loves
gum inquires about the feasibility of a gum superstore; the idea
being, there's not a good enough selection or price point at the
supermarket. In a retail environment that is becoming increasingly
"convenience" driven (just look at the pre-prepared food industry at
the supermarket, or the "wipe" industry, e.g. Old Spice perspiration
wipes, Tempo auto wipes, Armorall wipes, Arm&Hammer antibacterial
wipes, etc.), I don't know how many people will go out of their way,
spending time and extra money on gas and so forth, just in order to
save a few bucks on flowers.

I think maybe I've misunderstood or perhaps taken you too literally at
the term "walmart sized", and judged the idea unfairly. I definitely
think there is room in the market for a Walgreens size floral shop,
that improves selection and price without compromising service or
convenience. Best wishes.

Hi poormattie-ga,

bignose-ga raised most of the questions I had for you. You seem to
envision a flowers super store to replace traditional wholesale flower
markets. As a consumer, I don’t see a point to such a store. I don’t
tend to buy flowers in quantity. Cut flowers tend to be either an
impulse purchase or something for a special occasion. I need
convenience for this type of shopping instead of the price breaks
offered by a mega store. I’d love to hear more about your concept and
why it would make sense.

In the meantime, here are some sites to get you started on scoping out
the industry:

http://www.aboutflowers.com/about.html
The Society of American Florists (SAF) represents 15,000 growers,
importers, wholesalers and retailers of flowers and plants. Check out
the topics under Press Room. They offer information and statistics on
the size of industry, industry segments and consumer trends.

http://www.endowment.org/marketingarticles.htm 
Check out the Marketing Articled from the American Floral Endowment a
non-profit, non-governmental organization dedicated to
floricultural/environmental horticulture research.

http://www.retailowner.com/floral_ind.htm
Outcalt & Johnson: Retail Strategists, LLC,  offers a list of key
resources under their Floral & Nursery Industries: Links

http://www.flowerweb.com/
This is a Dutch site that has an extensive Company Index as well as
other resources.

http://www.floral-classifieds.com/
This is a portal offering a directory of floral resources.

http://www.floralmarketresearch.com/
Prince & Prince, Inc specializes in floral industry research and
consulting. They offer some free report on their site.

http://www.libsci.sc.edu/bob/class/clis748/FloricultureWebpage.htm
This is a Web page compiled by a student at the University of South
Carolina summarizing Floriculture Web Resources.

http://tropical-seeds.com/tech_forum/flowers_orns/floricult_world.html
This is a site by the Vietnamese Green Seeds Co. The article on 
Floriculture Worldwide: Trade and Consumption Patterns gives you a
good overview of the global flower industry and competitive market
place.

I was in Costco on Saturday and practically every shopper bought
flowers. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that Costo is now one of
the top floral retailers. Just wondering.

Good luck with your explorations of the possibilities for a flower
mega store.

czh

Very good comments (and pleasant commenters at that).

This part below isn't intended to be part of the question, otherwise
it will appear that I'm trying to explain away flaws that could be
presented in response to part of my above question (which I'm not
looking to do).

Currently, the medium-sized city I live in supports a few dozen floral
shops, with more opening periodically. The city is fairly affluent,
and the floral shops all seem to be doing well enough to stay in
business. Many valid points are made in the comments, but I disagree
regarding the "gum-shop". Floral stores and kiosks appear everywhere
in a city, making profits, earning good pay (which can't be said for
gum). It's already a stand-alone industry from production to retail.
While it's already successful in its current form, that's even more
sign that the demand and market is there.

This is, unfortunately, where a super-duper flower store would change
that. Putting lots of pressure on the smaller floral shops. The
business would, itself, do an impressive amount of local marketing.
The intent of that marketing would be to:
(a.) Locally synonymize our store with "Flowers".
(b.) Drive up demand for flowers (especially to become an everyday
business investment).
(c.) Set trends in consumer tastes that we can prepare for (Buy "mums"
for this Mother's Day! Zillions to choose from at Wacky Bill's Flower
Barn.)
(d.) Attract publicity. Every flower holiday, spotlights stream into
the sky (drawing attention and reminding forgetful folk).

Disregarding price (as I'm unsure how one could make flowers cheaper),
if the business has local name recognition, an excellent, affordable,
and wired delivery business, a knowledgeable staff, great first
selection from distributors, and a central location, it should be able
to drive smaller floral companies out of the market (unless demand is
increased enough to house them all). The market is already around--
the intention is merely to reorganize it into a one-stop flower
extravaganza. By buying fresh-cut flowers in such large quantities
from distributors, this store would be able to leave the smaller
companies with fewer pickings-- especially of those items we are
creating specific demand for (e.g. "mums"). Take all the business for
two "flower" holidays in a row, and it's my belief that you'll have
sustaining customers for many years.

Currently, though, it appears to me that the profits are being gained
mostly by the distributors in the flower market. The idea is to get so
stream-lined and bulky with distributors that the prices come down to
the point where we can move a little more of that money to the retail
end. (Certainly distributing to lots of smaller shops is harder than
to one big one. In the end, though, perhaps it will be necessary to
get more vertical and purchase/start a distributor to get the most
profits.)

Once again, my main Google question is asking for examples of this
working and/or examples of this failing. With enough money, I see a
store like this has a chance. If other stores have tried this and
failed, it will definitely be a good thing to know. If other stores
have tried this and succeeded, it will identify competitors that we
can learn from.

Thanks again so much for the comments and information given thus far.
I'm quite impressed to the extent at which each of you has thought
about this problem, and I truly appreciate your comments and
suggestions.

Some very good points have been made here about the feasibility of
this idea.  I would like to suggest that this idea might have more of
a shot if the concentration was not the everyday customer (for whom
proximity and price are major considerations), but wedding, party, and
corporate customers.  People planning events are in a position to
place much larger orders, will often prefer more expensive
arrangements than individual customers, and will place orders in
advance.  Event planners will value the increased selection (and
presumably the price breaks) you will be able to provide.  And as far
as pricing goes, I know for a fact that a bouquet at the supermarket
costs less than the same bouquet at a florist, so apparently there is
some wiggle room as far as price.  Bearing in mind, of course, that
the supermarket is still operating on a much larger scale than you
will be with one store, however large.  You will want to check with
local distributors to see if the supply of flowers you envision will
even entitle you to bulk pricing.  You shoud also consider that
driving the small florists in your community out of business might not
exactly foster the warmest feelings in the flower-buying public --
you're going to have to offer something more compelling than square
footage to draw in customers who have good relationships with local
florists.  This is a very interesting idea, and you definitely have a
challenge ahead of you.

I read a lot of good answers to a "vague question".  I wrote the first
automated inventory
control program for this industry 25+ yrs ago.  

Your query HINTS at your real question.  I INFERRED that you are
wondering about discounted
flower prices but you did not state that was your question.

There are simply 2 ways of getting discounted flowers, negotiate with
a supplier [read that
grower] that is having financial problems, or GROW THE FLOWERS
YOURSELF.

Verticle restrictions [growing and selling] in the flower industry has
not yet bothered the
Fed.

AS land prices have increased in some areas exponentially, the value
of that land
and its COSTED price have increased too.  The salaries for planting
responsible staff and the
cost for the hardware needed have not increased as much.

THE main way that FLORISTS are trying to keep their costs down and
margins up are through
chain stores.

But again, infer your question to be, "how can one buy or sell flowers
below current
market costs?    The wholesale costs are your big part and the only
other way to
get a smaller cost of goods is to guarantee a grower a minimum amount
of sales.  I would
guess some florist chains do this automatically.

My final though is, the LONG-term easiest way to get the lowest cost
in growing is to
use inexpensive hydoponic systems and CHEAP land [and some cheap land
does exist].

Interesting discussion! Poormattie’s comment on “I'm unsure how one
could make flowers cheaper” is the key. Flowers are a global business
and they are getting cheaper to the point that U.S. growers can’t
compete.

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/sector/papers/ctflower/
The world cut flower industry: Trends and prospects
This working paper from the U.N.’s International Labour Organization
provides a broad-based picture of the international flower industry
with lots of tables and statistics. It makes clear the U.S. growers
are competing with growers in Russia, Ecuador, Kenya, India, China,
the Republic of Korea where costs are lower.

The cut flower market has also been greatly impacted in the past
decade by free trade legislation. The Andean Trade Preference Act
(ATPA) of 1991 ( http://www.mac.doc.gov/atpa/webmain/intro.htm )
expired in 12/91 but is likely to be continue in effect since
President Bush is committed to its renewal and expansion (
http://www.uspolicy.be/Issues/WTO/factsheet.032502.htm ). Where have
all the flowers gone? (http://www.progressive.org/pmpmf08.html )
discusses some of the issues involved with the ATPA.

Good luck on making a go of your flower super store.
czh

There's obviously been a lot of thought put into some of the answers
(and it has turned into a surprisingly interesting debate).

I just wanted to make a quick comment.

While most flower stores are small locally owned businesses, many of
them must benefit from being part of a network such as Interflora. I'd
expect that this business model may be why there are few large scale
flower retailers. To be able to combine local knowledge and expert
staff with the geographical reach and buying power of an "umbrella"
organisation seems to be quite efficient.

Also the search term "Flower Superstore" on Google returns the
following link to a Florida based company with two 10,000 square feet
flower stores:

http://www.fieldofflowers.com/fof/index2_new.asp

Good luck with your business.

Nick