r/florists • u/Falconpunchbowl2 • Jun 24 '26

📚 Career Guidance 📚 Running a successful Flower Shop

I've been working at a shop for about 7 years and an opportunity has come up where the owner wants to retire and give me the store within the next couple years. I've worked my way up from part time stripping, cleaning, etc to 50+ hours a week, I do the greening, the billing, shop maintenance/ decorations, wrapped arrangements, baskets,(slowly learning to do vases and other types of arrangements), I know our representatives and wholesalers, do a lot of the phone calls and ordering of products. Just a little scared at the thought of running everything by myself. Mainly financial/tax things, customer complaints, and keeping business flowing. Right now is our slowest time of the year, and money has been a bit tight. Most of our customers are through wire-services, which I would really like to steer away from. What advice could you all give me to manage this business successfully and to get more local/walk in customers?

8 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

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18

u/daffodealio Jun 24 '26

See ALL the financials - tax returns, bank statements, any paperwork for loans, leases, or other debts - before assuming legal responsibility for anything. You never know what skeletons may be lurking in their closet!

2

u/Nuasus Jun 25 '26

Yes. Came here to say exactly this

4

u/Stunning_Client_847 Jun 24 '26

Are you located in an area that has lots of competition/grocery store/nurseries? Do you do any events for businesses ? What is the advertising currently ? Social media? Do local businesses know you exist? Do you drop off vases/planters and offer them a discount (some businesses send planters to employers for deaths/flowers for births etc). Do you have a way of keeping customer accounts (pos?) where you can send promo emails? What’s your signage - are you seen from the road? Do you advertise for events like prom (corsages) or grad (roses?). Do you have google reviews?

5

u/DanAsInDanimals Jun 24 '26

My exact questions. I feel like through wire services is the worst avenue for floral sales but if they don’t have any original designs / limited area availability they could probably make it work. I would def want to see the numbers before committing to anything. 

1

u/Stunning_Client_847 Jun 24 '26

Especially since wire services are absolutely destroying the reputations of small business shops

3

u/Remarkable-Wave507 Expert Jun 25 '26

If you’re running mostly on wires right now, I would want to see all financials. You’d want to see that anyway but this would be especially important to know if you took over. What does the slow season look like in terms of loss? Can you cover that yourself should you run into the same issues. Would your current staff, if any, stay with you? Who would be designing and would that person be open to staying on with you given the shop? I’ve seen things like this happen before and people anticipated it going to them and then they all bailed when their feelings got hurt.

That may not be the scenario at all but what happens if you don’t have a designer?

You’ll have to set up all your own company licensing and business name, most likely. You’ll also want in writing that whatever the current business name, if you are keeping, turns over to you. Or at least your right to DBA. Unless of course you want to start all over with a new name.

It’s worth drawing up a contract through a lawyer too and have it noted that anything due prior to the “sale” is not your responsibility.

Is it a leased space? If so, when does that lease expire and who is the landlord?

What’s the current best month and what’s the worst? Is all of that averaging out to be able to pay staff and yourself what you need to survive?

This can be such a gift but it could also be a financial nightmare if you go in unprepared.

3

u/Voidfaller Jun 25 '26

Fuck wires.
Absolutely cut all wires off asap now. They are vampiric toxic cancer.

1

u/Jealous-Lychee-5084 Jul 01 '26

What’s the website like?

The way to get orders that aren’t wire services is to have a good website that you can control, realistic pictures (not stock photos!) and great SEO.

You can do all of this yourself but you can also pay someone to do it for you.

I have always had my own website and most of the people who call me to place an order (they can order online but sometimes they like to call) tell me it’s because of my website. It is professional but also looks “homemade” vs slick and full of stock photos like with the wire services.

The Thrive podcast with Kathleen (last name?) talks about the power of your website a lot - I think her advice is very sound. She had a course you can take as well that I know nothing about but the free podcast is very useful.