Issuu

Nov/Dec 2016

Royals

canadianfloristmag.com

the

COME TO VICTORIA

Wedding Trends for 2017 and Beyond

BAD HABITS

TO BANISH FOR

GOOD

inside

Incentives Made Easy Psychological Pricing 101 Photo Tips from a Pro

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the web host with the most.

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Vol. 111 No. 6 • Nov/Dec 2016

COVER DESIGN BY JOSEPH DELARGE

08 departments

features 08

Your life is the business. You are the owner. Your friends are your employees. As owner, you get to decide whom to hire to make your life better. If a friend fails in that position, it’s entirely your right (nay, duty!) to fire them. -Cavelle Martin

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20 24

A Royal Visit Behind the scenes preparing flowers for William and Kate Magical, Memorable Weddings for the New Year Mindsets of today’s brides and grooms Eliminate Personal Liabilities in 2017 One resolution to boost your wellbeing Psychological Pricing 101 How to justify premium prices

online Network with florists online

Have Your Say - Visit us online at CanadianFloristMag.com to share your comments on our articles, and be a part of the conversation.

Florist Spotlight

The Social Florist

By Design

Tech Tips

Rising to the Occasion

Care and Handling

Ask the SEO

On the Level with Neville

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www.canadianfloristmag.com

Reflecting on Another Year, Recalibrating For the Next by Katie Hendrick It’s a cliché but totally true: the older I get, the faster time seems to pass.

FROM THE

EDITOR

Recently, I pulled out a calendar to try to identify where 2016 went. I saw lots of high points. Among them: taking a trip to the Florida Everglades, reuniting with old friends at my 10-year college homecoming, winning a major writing award and participating in my first ever Canadian Florist Business Forum. I can’t help but smile remembering these experiences, times when I felt completely at ease, proud or filled with purpose.

Unfortunately, in between these high points, I spotted many weeks where I essentially had every hour mapped out. These exhausting periods, I regret to say, did not bring out the best in me. Way too often I turned conversations with my parents and my boyfriend into venting sessions. I berated myself when I made mistakes. I sacrificed precious hours of sleep agonizing over whether or not I had disappointed people. I bet I’m not alone. You might not have photographed any alligators, but surely, your year involved a fair amount of stress. Did you, like me, let it seep into your relationships and quality of life? Fortunately, the new year looms ahead of us like a blank slate. We have a chance to recalibrate our attitudes. So let’s take a deep breath, remember what’s really important, forgive ourselves for slipping up now and then (it’s inevitable!), and show more appreciation for the people who stand by us day in and day out. In this issue, we’ve devoted several articles to fresh starts. Cavelle Martin shares a New Year’s resolution that will have a profound impact on your mental wellness (p. 20), while Gay Smith discusses the outdated, ineffective and potentially harmful care and handling habits you need to ditch once and for all (p. 28). Eager to revamp your image in 2017? Abby Driver outlines simple ways to amass a collection of professional-looking photographs that will upgrade your website and social media presence (p. 22) and Mark Anderson reveals how to raise your perceived value and command higher prices (p. 24). You’ll also find plenty of seasonal tips, including how to prepare for the onslaught of newly engaged couples (p. 14), write a powerful holiday e-card (p. 12), give a meaningful end of year bonus (p. 26), and decorate customers’ homes for Christmas without losing your mind—or lunch (p. 34).

Vol. 111, No. 6 Editor Katie Hendrick khendrick@CanadianFloristMag.com 800-314-8895 ext 106 Advertising Manager advertising@CanadianFloristMag.com Publisher Ryan Freeman ryan@CanadianFloristMag.com Media Designer Ruby Coles Publication Mail Agreement #42919543 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO Strider Media, 6-6150 Highway 7, Suite 400, Woodbridge, ON L4H 0R6 distribution@CanadianFloristMag.com Printed in Canada ISSN 1700-5043

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e-mail: distribution@CanadianFloristMag.com Tel: 800-314-8895 ext 2 Fax: 800-755-7032 Mail: 6-6150 Highway 7, Suite 400 Woodbridge, ON L4H 0R6

mag.com

WWW.

Subscription Rates Canada - 1 Year $25.20 (includes GST) $27.12 (includes HST/QST) (HST - #840509202 RT0001) U.S.A. - 1 Year $ 40.00 Cdn Occasionally, Canadian Florist will mail information on behalf of industry-related groups whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you prefer not to receive this information, please contact our circulation department in any of the four ways listed above. No part of the editorial content of this publication may be reprinted without the publisher’s written permission. ©2015 Strider Media. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher. No liability is assumed for errors or omissions. All advertising is subject to the publisher’s approval. Such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised. Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication.

Dedicated to the memory of Bill Martin, and all those who gave of their time and resources to build up our industry.

www.canadianfloristmag.com

We hope you enjoy it all and that new year brings you happiness, good health and prosperity.

@CanadianFlorist 4 CANADIAN Florist | Nov/Dec 2016

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14SM

My design captures the childlike wonder of the holidays.

The holidays are pure magic when seen through the eyes of a child. My playful centerpiece arrangement embodies this youthful anticipation with fun textures, brushed gold garlands, and the repetition of curled glitter sticks and sparkling ornaments. I also used red rose sprays and assorted pines to balance the design with natural, elegant beauty. Give your customers the gift of creativity this season, and get inspired at oasisfloralproducts.com/inspire.

Inspire florists worldwide! ‘Tis the season for thanking floral designer Shonda Cunningham from Ogden, UT, for this magical inspiration. Enter our Inspire Design Showcase on Facebook for the chance to have your design featured! Nov/Dec 2016 | CANADIAN Florist 5

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bloomin’

Photo By David Kesler, AIFD, PFCI, FDI, of the Floral Design Institute.

Canada Hosts 2016 Gateway to the Americas Cup

Canadian designers Hitomi Gilliam, AIFD, and Heather De Kok, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, hosted top floral designers from seven countries in North and South America Sept. 9-10 at United Floral Inc. in Burnaby, British Columbia, for the Gateway to the Americas Cup. The competition, founded by Gus and Debora De La Flor, AIFD, PFCI, serves to identify the most advanced floral designers in the Western hemisphere. Competitors qualified for the prestigious event by winning preliminary contests in their home countries. They created pieces in a variety of categories in a quest to be the grand champion.

The winners are as follows:

Photo By David Kesler, AIFD, PFCI, FDI, of the Floral Design Institute.

biz Brenna Quan, AIFD, of Burnaby, British Columbia took second place in the international competition.

Gordon Fulton, AIFD, CAFA, of Didsbury, Alberta, was among the Canadian competitors.

OVERALL First Place: Juliana Hames — Brazil Second Place: Brenna Quan, AIFD — Canada Third Place: Brooke Raulerson, AIFD — USA BRIDAL BOUQUET First Place: Jorge Uribe — Colombia Second Place: Juliana Hames — Brazil Third Place: Brenna Quan, AIFD — Canada TABLE CENTERPIECE First Place: Brooke Raulerson, AIFD — USA Second Place: Juliana Hames — Brazil Third Place: Doris Dvorak-Helfrich — USA INTERPRETIVE DESIGN First Place: Ian Whipple — USA Second Place: Aniko Kovacs, AIFD, EMC — Canada Third Place: Juliana Hames — Brazil GRAND OPENING DESIGN First Place: Brenna Quan, AIFD — Canada Second Place: Sue Tabbal-Yamaguchi, AIFD — USA Third Place: Brooke Raulerson, AIFD — USA FLORAL FASHION First Place: Brenna Quan, AIFD — Canada Second Place: Jorge Uribe — Colombia Third Place: Aniko Kovacs, AIFD, EMC — Canada

Aniko Kovacs, AIFD, EMC, of Vancouver, designed this floral fashion piece. Photo By David Kesler, AIFD, PFCI, FDI, of the Floral Design Institute.

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coast to

COAST

COMING

EVENTS

Ethiopian Rebels Burn Down Flower Farm Rebels attacked a flower farm in Ethiopia owned by Esmeralda Farms in late August. According to a statement on the company’s website, the rebels set the farm on fire and caused damage estimated in excess of 10 million euros.

the entire company of Esmeralda Farms in Ethiopia was set on fire “By a political demonstration, the entire company of Esmeralda Farms in Ethiopia was set on fire,” the statement read. The statement reported that there were soldiers on the farm when the attack happened, but they fled the very large group of rebels. Tensions have been brewing between the Ethiopian government and the population in the area for some time, but this is the first time flower farms had been targeted. Shortly after the attack, Esmeralda Farms shuttered its Dutch importing branch, which was in charge of European distribution. Up to 40 percent of the company’s stock came from Ethiopia.

JANUARY

29-February 2: Toronto Gift Fair Toronto, Ontario Cangift.org

FEBRUARY

26-March 1: Alberta Gift Fair Edmonton, Alberta Cangift.org

MARCH

3-5: Great Lakes Floral Expo Grand Rapids, Michigan Michiganfloral.org 10-19: Canada Blooms Toronto, Ontario Canadablooms.com 12-14: Vancouver Gift Expo Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouvergiftexpo.com 26-29: Quebec Gift Fair Montreal, Quebec Cangift.org

Organizing an upcoming event readers should know about? EMAIL khendrick@canadianfloristmag.com

A FULL EVENTS LISTING IS UPDATED REGULARLY AT www.canadianfloristmag.com.

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Royal R

Visit

When you walk into any of the three Brown’s The Florist locations in the greater Victoria area, you enter a secret garden buzzing with productivity. Apron-clad ladies look up from their work to offer a warm smile and word of welcome, then resume gathering and arranging stems with expert dexterity. Buckets of fresh British Columbia blooms make the shop feel like a giant bouquet, with a tasteful blend of modern and Victorian-era decor reminding you that you’re standing in a heritage business.

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Photo By Kathleen McLeod Brown’s the Florist provided flowers for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s visit to Victoria.

In late September, the company was selected to design three unique floral arrangements for the British Royal family’s visit to Canada: a welcome bouquet for the Duchess of Cambridge, a wreath for the Duke and Duchess to lay at the cenotaph of the B.C. Legislative Buildings to honour Canada’s veterans, and a farewell bouquet. Crowds of thousands gathered along the streets, local and international news crews had cameras focussed and ready to witness the presentation of each, but this was nothing new for the ladies of Brown’s. Since the first shop opened in 1912, the business has seen patronage from royalty, celebrities, dignitaries, politicians, and more. “We don’t flaunt or talk about it,” said owner Natasha Wasyliw Crawford of Brown’s prestigious clientele, “but I bet we know more about what goes on in Victoria than the local postmistress does. Being a professional florist means we didn’t spend too much time overthinking this order. We took the same pride in this design as we do every day for all our customers.” From start to finish, the royal flowers were a team effort from all three locations. The “downtown divas” worked hard to handle what turned out to be a very busy day with customers. The “Westshore wizards” came to the rescue just in time for the happy hour rush with arms full of bouquets they had made that morning and the “Sidney sweethearts” sent designer Courtney Hawkins to help balance the workload.

The Wreath

The Office of Protocol coordinated with downtown manager Tammy Candela via e-mail with simple parameters for the order. Other than the size of the wreath (a 24-inch hoop), Brown’s received

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Photo By Kathleen McLeod William and Kate present a wreath to honour Canada’s veterans.

creative freedom in terms of flowers, colours, and design. When designing the wreath, Candela considered the construction and mechanics carefully. The wreath had to be light enough for Kate Middleton to carry away from her body without strain, sturdy enough to hold together over time, and Candela could only hope that the colours would complement whatever the Duchess chose to wear that day. Once a simple and elegant sketch had been created, she handed the reins to one of the shop’s most experienced designers, Harriet Carter, to bring to life. Over the next six hours, the hoop slowly but surely became a wreath. Harriet meticulously wrapped Salal leaves around the foundation to ensure the wreath would look visually appealing from both front and back. The next step was to individually snip and pin leaves in a style that resembled a Roman Laurel. When finished, it truly looked regal. Carter chose 74 deep red roses from Eurosa Gardens in Brentwood Bay BC, knowing that roses always last a long time and open beautifully when cut short, especially in Victoria’s cool, misty autumn climate. Wispy lily grass looped in and out of the roses, held in place by pearl pins. Crawford expressed her hope that all passersby would pause to consider why the flowers were there in the first place: “to honour and cherish the freedom we have as Canadians and the sacrifices our men and women in uniform have made on our behalf.” When Candela saw the finished piece, she gasped with delight at seeing her vision so masterfully made real. Then she realized they had a problem. They didn’t have a container large enough to store and transport this delicate giant. With true artistic resourcefulness, she scavenged cardboard from the shop’s recycling and made a beautiful box to compliment the wreath—all in a day’s work at Brown’s The Florist.

The First Bouquet

Candela started the European hand-tied bouquet for the Duchess and finished within an hour. She was busy multitasking, helping customers and walking around with it as she normally would. In choosing the perfect blooms, she decided to arrange flowers in groups of fours to represent the Duke, Duchess and their two children. The final bouquet held cream dahlias grown locally at Mt. Newton Floral in North Saanich, cream and purple roses from Eurosa Gardens, mauve freesias, green button mums, and fountain grass all grown in the province. It was finished in soft pink tulle. “I wanted the bouquet to be soft and pretty, fit for a princess,” Candela said about her design process. “I wanted it to show up in photos and made sure I had big face flowers and not a whole bunch of little flowers that will look too fussy in a photo.”

The Farewell Bouquet

“Like so many others on September 24th, I was glued to my TV watching the Royals arrive in our beautiful city,” said Westshore manager, Amanda Lumley. “When they stepped off the plane and Prince George waved, I waved back to him.” She said it felt like “waiting for Christmas morning as a child” to see both the first bouquet and the wreath presented on national TV. Lumley was asked to create the final bouquet for the Royal Family. Her research for the design included watching what Kate Middleton wore all week, hoping she might somehow figure out what colours she would wear when she received this bouquet. “The flowers from our local growers were picture perfect as usual,” she said. “It never ceases to amaze us that nature can produce such perfect blooms and we have the pleasure of working with them. Their vibrancy matched our excitement.”

Once again, Eurosa Gardens provided the ‘Maritime’ roses and white mini roses that graced the farewell bouquet. Lumley chose to contrast colour and texture with BC-grown sedum and Fair Trade silver brunia for a pretty combination of fall flowers. When faced with the dilemma of how to properly wrap a bouquet for a princess, she asked her co-worker, Ashley Evans, for help.

Wrapping It Up

Lumley watched the local news channel once again as the Royal Family departed Victoria. She squealed with excitement to see her bouquet presented to the Duchess and thanked modern technology for the ability to rewind live TV so that she could watch it again. She said she couldn’t help but think how lucky they had been—lucky that the bouquet complemented the Duchess’s attire swimmingly, lucky that the moments with each set of flowers were caught on TV, and lucky to have such photos capturing the moment a young Princess took the time to smell the roses. When you hear Crawford and her team speak of flowers, it is easy to see how Brown’s has made it to 104 years of service in the competitive floral market of Victoria. Their product knowledge, creative talent, and passion for their work is evident in everything they do. But it’s more than that; it’s also a feeling you get when you walk through the doors. There is always a fun song on the radio, bright colours and fresh scents; each woman wears her own unique style and there’s never a shortage of laughter as they work. Even at the busiest of times, they are always willing to stop and lend a hand. In a world of everincreasing speed and disconnect, this flower shop is still connected to its roots: community. Katrina Crawshaw is marketing coordinator for Brown’s The Florist

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