Every stem that doesn’t make it out your shop door in an arrangement represents lost money. From sourcing to storage, small missteps in care and handling can add up fast.
“If you can really control your supply chain, that’s a huge piece of controlling your shrink,” says Jim Daly, AAF, of FloraLife, a division of Smithers-Oasis, in the September/October issue of Floral Management.
Shop owners who make consistency a habit see the payoff.
“Our product goes straight from the truck into the cooler,” says Russ Griffin of Griffin’s Floral Design in Columbus, Ohio.
He enforces strict cleaning schedules, tracks product freshness with a dating system, and ensures every stem gets proper hydration treatments.
“We tried skipping them years ago, but we did our own test, and it was clear — the treatments work,” Griffin says.
Read “Care and Handling Habits to Protect the Bottom Line” in the September/October issue of Floral Management to learn how florists like Griffin use sourcing discipline, daily routines, and customer education to keep shrink under control.
Amanda Jedlinsky is the senior director of content and communications for the Society of American Florists.
