There are many normal reasons why some flowers are more expensive than others, this is simply how easily available they are to the florists. The harder they are to source, the more expensive they are to buy. In March 2021 the Worlds biggest flower auction recorded an increase in the price of flowers of 48% compared to the same time last year, with no signs of stopping!
Why is this? There are many contributing factors including the Seasons, COVID and BREXIT….
SPECIAL EVENTS
One of the most obvious cases of this is Valentine’s Day, during the days leading up to Valentine’s Day the demand for Red Roses grows exponentially, often this demand is larger than the supply of Red Roses, meaning that they have to increase the price of the Roses.
Three of the biggest flower events in the year are, Valentine’s, Mother’s Day and Easter. In 2021 these all lie in a 5 week period. Demand is high and therefore the price of flowers is higher than usual.
Suppliers, therefore, have to limit their supply to ensure that they have enough for all three events and minimising the number of wasted flowers. Selling off too much at Valentine’s may mean that they would not have enough to sell at Easter.
SEASONS
All flowers have their prime bloom, where they will be their largest, most vibrant and of the highest quality. However, this window is usually limited to a few weeks to a couple of months per flower. Such as daffodils growing in Spring.
Because of the cold and wet Winters, we have in the UK we have a smaller variety of flowers during these months. Meaning that if we want flowers typically seen in Spring and Summer, we need to buy them from abroad where the conditions are better for growing. This means that additional costs are incurred by shipping the flowers to the UK. If these foreign growers have had a poor harvest due to poor weather or a natural disaster, this means that the price of flowers will grow even higher.
The Spring and Summer Months are the best time to buy British flowers as they are usually in abundance!
You can save money especially during Winter Weddings by choosing more seasonal flowers for your bouquets and table arrangements. Such as roses, lisianthus and gypsophila which are present all year round (but are still subject to price fluctuations), but consider putting pinecones inside your winter bouquet to offer a beautiful filler which will look brilliant in your pictures but can also be used throughout your wedding décor, from table and venue decorations, not to mention an affordable choice!
You could also choose artificial flowers for your wedding day, in the last five years alone the quality and affordability of artificial flowers have grown immensely, making them a wonderful alternative for your flowers, the best part is that they last forever, providing your and your bridesmaids with a touching tribute to your special day!
BEING A LOCAL BUSINESS
While you can get your flowers from the Supermarket, you do not get the same service, compared to shopping with a local florist.
These large Supermarkets are able to charge their lower prices because of buying in bulk from a supplier. But many florists do not have the facility to do this on the same scale, meaning that our prices can be higher than a Supermarket. However, buying from a Supermarket may be cheaper but it does not mean that you will be getting the same quality of flowers compared to buying locally.
As florists we know how to care and look after the flowers we buy. Ensuring the best quality for you, our customers. The flowers you buy from us, are put together with love and care; whether they are a gift for your partner or they are a parting tribute to a loved family member.
When working with a florist you are buying so much more than just flowers, you are buying an experience!
COVID
It isn’t hard to believe that the Pandemic has helped increase the price in flowers, Mid-March last year, when the Global Lockdown started, millions of flowers had to be destroyed as businesses, wholesalers, economies and buyer’s shut down. Flower supply was touch and go in the UK even before the lockdown as suppliers in Holland did not know if their shipments would be able to leave the country or enter the UK.
In order to protect their businesses, long term many growers had to lay off/ furlough workers and scale back on production as they would not know when the demand for flowers would return.
Because of the massive variations in Global restrictions and infection levels and a range of other factors, flower supply has not returned to pre-covid levels where the demand for flowers has grown during the pandemic.
But more family members are sending flowers as Birthday, Christmas and Thinking of You gifts the growers and suppliers cannot keep up.
However, it is likely that as restrictions ease and more people are vaccinated, the supply of flowers globally will increase meaning that the price of flowers will fall. To what, it is impossible to say.
BREXIT
Whether you voted to Remain or Leave, BREXIT has caused some problems for the Import and Exports of the UK, as well as increasing costs for UK buyers through bureaucracy.
The world’s largest flower grower, The Netherlands, is a member of the EU. Meaning that some flowers from Dutch growers are having an additional 10% surcharge placed on them to deal with the additional paperwork and checks that are placed on the flowers.
These additional costs could go up or down as we progress further down the BREXIT road and the true costs of the checks are discovered. However, it is likely that in time as people get used to the new policies and procedures the cost of exporting will fall. But only time will tell.
Because of this many Wholesalers are sourcing flowers from new sources in Africa and around the world in the attempt to find cheaper prices with the same great quality we florists expect.
For the medium long term the higher prices are here to stay. At least until the pressure from COVID and BREXIT eases.
Thank you so supporting small local florists like Posies, if you are wanting help pricing your flowers, get in touch.
You can read more on this on the florist.co.uk