With a weekday holiday and a strong economy, many retail florists had a good Valentine’s Day 2019. Fifty-nine percent of retail florists responding to a Society of American Florists’ post-holiday survey said their sales increased this year compared to 2018, when the holiday fell on a Wednesday — another day that is historically strong for holiday sales.

The average purchase amount this year was around $75, a figure that represents a slight uptick from last year’s $73.

Forty-one percent of respondents also said their sales increased this year when compared to returns from 2013, the last time the holiday fell on a Thursday.

The SAF survey was emailed on February 17 to 1,741 retail members of the Society of American Florists and had a response rate of 8.2 percent.

Sales Breakdown

Larger businesses and those in suburban, rural or small-town settings were most likely to have the best results this year:

• Among smaller shops, those with less than $300,000 in annual sales, 48 percent saw a sales increase over last year.
• Among respondents with $300,000 to $499,999 in annuals sales, 55 percent saw a year-over-year increase.
• Seventy percent of businesses with more than $1 million in sales saw an increase this year.

Meanwhile, 48 percent of respondents who described their location as urban/city saw a year-over-year sales increase; 61 percent of suburban businesses saw an increase and 58 percent of companies in rural or small towns saw sales rise.

Among all respondents who saw an increase, regardless of size or location, 36 percent said the uptick was between 6 and 10 percent.; another 30 percent categorized it as up to 5 percent. Among respondents who saw a decrease, 31 percent said sales dropped between 6 and 10 percent; 26 percent said they saw declines of up to 5 percent.

Reasons for Increases and Decreases

Seventy percent of respondents who saw an increase credited the day of the week, a Thursday, with their sales increase. (About 47 percent of respondents say Wednesday is the best day for the holiday; 29 percent said Thursday is tops.) Roughly 39 percent said the weather helped their business and 38 percent said higher price points played a role.

“We started the week with snow and ice and we’re very concerned as our sales were dragging,” wrote a retailer in the Midwest. “We had a nice recovery on Valentine’s Day itself and were prepared to fill every order. We ended slightly up over last year, which we’ve considered to be a big success.”

Sixty-seven percent of these respondents saw an increase in website sales, 62 percent saw a bump in walk-in sales and 55 percent saw phone sales rise.

Those florists who saw sales drop compared to last year named competition from mass marketers and supermarkets (40 percent), the weather (38 percent) and competition from order-gatherers (33 percent) as their top factors behind the decline.

“It rained all day on Valentine’s Day,” wrote one retailer in the Southwest. “I think this lowered my walk-in sales for the day.”

Forty-seven percent of these florists said phone orders declined, 42 percent said walk-in sales were down and 39 percent said wire-in sales dropped.

Flower and Gift Preference

On average, respondents said about 53 percent of their holiday orders were for roses, which is similar to last year (51 percent). Sixty-six percent of rose orders were for red roses, which also is on par with results from last year’s survey.

Respondents said that 39 percent of their holiday orders were for mixed flowers, compared with 40 percent last year, and that only 5 percent of orders were for non-rose monobotanical arrangements (for example, all tulips). Last year, that figure was 8 percent.

“We see a trend here towards arranged flowers, and not so many roses either, as folks get cut at the grocery store and go to a florist for specialty work, like arrangements,” wrote one retailer in Canada. “This has proven to be beneficial when planning the holiday. I think it is a trend we will see for this one in years to come and other holidays as well.”

Chocolate and candy proved to be the most popular non-floral gift item again this year (63 percent), followed by plush products (almost 11 percent) and balloons (3 percent).

“We seemed to sell more add-on items this year than last year,” wrote one retailer in the Northeast. “We also had more walk-in sales.”

Pricing and Costs

Prices for roses trended slightly up this year. On average, respondents charged:

• $83 for a dozen arranged long-stemmed roses on Valentine’s Day, compared to $80 last year.
• $66 for a dozen unarranged long-stemmed roses on Valentine’s Day, compared to $63 last year.

Respondents said they charge $66 on average for a dozen arranged, long-stemmed roses in non-holiday periods (last year that number was $65), and $53 for a dozen unarranged long-stem roses (compared to $50 last year).

Sixty-one percent of respondents said the cost of red roses this year was on par with last year; 71 percent said the same thing about non-red roses. (See graph, above, for other trends in non-rose costs, as well as novelty containers and greens.)

Order Timing

Respondents said 62 percent of their orders came in before Valentine’s Day and that 76 percent of holiday orders for delivery were delivered on Valentine’s Day. Getting orders in early remained a priority for many.

“We did a pop-up on our website in late January for a discount on any order placed by January 31st and we had a few folks order Valentine’s Day at that point,” wrote one Northeast retailer. “We also do reminder calls which always brings in orders.”

Most florists (51 percent) said they had no more than 10 new holiday deliveries the day after Valentine’s Day (including re-deliveries). About 58 percent of respondents had to stop taking orders or turn business away on Valentine’s Day.

“The last-minute nature of the holiday is a mixed bag,” a florist in the Midwest explained. “On one hand, guys are willing to pay anything. On the other hand, I could fill so many more orders if they would call just a little bit early.”

Promotions and Staffing

Eighty percent of respondents used social media to promote the holiday. Other popular methods included store signage (71 percent); email promotions (56 percent) and online ads (55 percent).

“Our email blasts reminder our customers to order, as did reminder postcards mailed out to our customers who ordered last year,” said one retailer in northern California. “It’s an old way of marketing but very effective.”

“With all the online entities, the traditional brick and mortar shops will continue to see a downturn in sales,” worried another retailer in the Northeast. “Attractive websites and social media will be the saving grace, I hope. We just have to commit to expanding the presence on social media outlets. This becomes difficult with small shops doing it all and trying to find the time for that commitment.”

Overall, 63 percent of respondents said their level of promotion was roughly the same this year.

Respondents brought in, on average, eight additional employees for the holiday.

Those extra hands proved critical to the aforementioned California retailer: “You organize yourself, get enough ‘holiday helpers,’ and it is a very profitable holiday,” the respondent explained. “My normal staff has it easier during the holiday due to the extra helpers. This allows them to concentrate on our customers and orders, so we provide exceptional service and product during this time when we see so many new and once-a-year customers.”

A separate national survey commissioned by SAF and conducted by the market research firm Ipsos immediately after Valentine’s Day found a fairly consistent number of consumers buying Valentine’s Day flowers in 2019 — and similar preferences in flower and venue selection, along with demographics of holiday flower buyers. Read more. 

Mary Westbrook is the editor in chief of Floral Management magazine.