What does a live 24/7 order desk REALLY mean?

Do we really answer the phone 24/7 at Simon Says Roses Florists?

Really??

Yup, actually we do.

We created our website in August of 1998. We didn't have a shopping cart to begin with, so our customers couldn't order online. They had to phone to place a flower order.

But we want our customers to have access to us any time, day or night. We want to be TOTALLY dedicated to customer service. The customer decides when they want to place an order, so we better be there.

So we promoted a live 24/7 order desk on every single web page, on our letterhead, and of course on our business cards. And we have the catchy phone number of 1-800-705-ROSE(7673) which is great to have as a florist.

But we didn't realize what 24/7 meant in the internet age.We thought the majority of orders would come between the hours of 9:00 am and 5:00 pm Pacific Time. But that didn't always happen.

The internet is global. So when our customer wants to place an order going at 4:00 pm on Friday from Singapore going to Toronto, it's actually 1:00 in the morning my time. Germany going to Vancouver? They're 9 hours ahead. When it's 5:00 in the afternoon in Berlin, it's 2:00 in the morning for me.

The problem was without any answering service, 24/7 meant me!

For years, calls were forwarded to my cell phone. I had a "mini-desk" next to the bed, which had the phone, pen, order pad, and lap-top.

When the phone rang I had three rings to wake up, give my head a shake, and sound halfways intelligent in the middle of the night.

When I went to the washroom, the phone, pad & pen went with me. The plastic garbage can made a great desk.


I did that for the first seven years, until we finally decided the online shopping cart had to be implemented.

Although the cart did take some pressure off of early morning calls, there were many customers who still preferred a live body to an online order form.

I can remember watching my daughter's softball game. I tethered my smartphone to my laptop for instant wi-fi. Taking calls AND processing orders from the stands. Other parents thought I was nuts.


It was only two years ago that we hired an answering service for "off-peak" times. The lack of sleep was literally killing me, having a heart attack at 43.

I just couldn't do it any more.

So we schedule some down time. Dale & I want to Las Vegas for a week at the end of August. Although the answering service was available to take calls and orders, we still have to process credit cards and verify addresses & card messages.

Up at 7:00 in the morning, process until noon. Only then was there time to relax at the pool.

 Are we still customer responsive? You bet!

But at least now I get a solid six hours of sleep every night, even in Vegas...

3 Ways Oil Prices Affect Flower Delivery

The price of oil seems to go up & down like a yo-yo.

But the TREND with oil prices is on an upward slope.

The Canadian economy, the Middle East, the US economy, and now even the economy in China all impact on prices.

It's a global marketplace in today's world.

But the bottom line is that we're dealing with a finite resource. Prices will continue to increase over time regardless of short term economies.

So oil prices down the road will impact florists in Canada in 3 ways:

1. 85% of flowers consumed in Canada come from South America, mainly Colombia and Ecuador. It takes a lot of gas to fly flowers to Miami, haul them up north in reefer trucks, and then have them delivered by a wholesaler. 
2. The few types of flowers that are still grown in Canada are field crops, and oil prices would have minimal impact. But those flowers that are grown in greenhouses require heat, and that heat is supplied by oil or gas.
3. Those local delivery vehicles don't run on air! "Free delivery" won't be free when the price of a litre of gas hits $1.50.

It would be a simple solution to simply grow more flowers locally. But that requires planning. Two to three years from planting to first harvest. And not every flower can grow in a field here in Canada.

So just like buying food at the grocery store, prices aren't going down.

I guess the price of flowers and flower delivery aren't likely to be decreasing either...

Helium shortage kills balloon industry?

As florists in Canada, we are having trouble getting helium to fill balloons.

Apparently there is a worldwide shortage.

With a limited supply, medical requirements are taking priority.

You see, liquid helium is used to cool MRI scanners. Clinical trials rely on helium as well. It is dispensed into the lungs and tracked on a monitor, allowing researchers to directly measure the impact of different treatments for the first time.

Which means that helium isn't available to florists or party planners for balloons.

So what happened?

Until recently, helium was easy to get a hold of.

Helium is a by-product of drilling for natural gas. Once the drill hits the gas field, the top layer in the field is helium with the natural gas lying below.

It was easy to extract the helium first, and then suck out the natural gas.

But the old ways of natural gas extraction have virtually come to an end.

The new way of natural gas extraction is fracking. It's the technique which involves the injection of millions of litres of water and thousands of litres of unidentified chemicals underground at very high pressure. This process creates fractures in the underlying shale rock formations and they can then extract the natural gas below the surface. 

But using this process dissipates the helium.

It can no longer be captured.

We have to rely on previously extracted helium which is currently stored in underground caverns.

And that supply is limited.

Unless things change, the death of the balloon industry may be coming soon.

And that wouldn't be fun at all...

 

The "joy" of international flower delivery

At Simon Says Roses, we co-ordinate hundreds of international flower delivery orders every year.

Sure we can deliver to 160 countries worldwide, but some countries are easier to deliver to than others.

Case in point was a recent order going to St. Maarten or Sint Maarten, as the locals would say.

Thanks to worldatlas.com, it's that tiny island between Puerto Rico and Antigua, in the middle of the Caribbean. The island is actually two countries, split in half. The north is French speaking St. Martin and the south is the Dutch speaking St. Maarten.
The total population of St. Maarten is slightly over 37,000 people.

So far so good, but the "joy" starts now with various issues:

1.  The language spoken in St. Maarten is Dutch. Our international department is based out of Chicago. They don't speak Dutch is Chicago. So the order must be sent through Interflora Holland for translation & processing. Result is a day lost.
2. The order is relayed to the florist in St. Maarten, but the recipient is a patient in the hospital. We request a Delivery Confirmation but in the interim, the patient has been discharged. The hospital will NOT provide a forwarding address.
3. We inform the sender in Tampa, Florida of this situation, and find out that the person is now staying at a hotel awaiting test results. Further, the last name was spelled incorrectly. We forward this information back through the international department, to Holland, and back to St. Maarten. Another day goes by.
4. We request a Delivery Confirmation
5. We get the reply that the patient is not at the hotel.
6. We ask that they check the hospital once again.
7. They confirm the patient is back in hospital, and will be delivered later today.
8. We ask that a Delivery Confirmation be provided.

The original delivery date was for September 1st and it apparently will be delivered today, September 11th.

Bottom line is that we just wouldn't quit. We could have said to he** with it & refund our customer, but that's not in our nature. Sure, some orders are easier than others, but it doesn't matter.

Thankfully it works out in the end, and eventually we'll get it done!

UPDATE: The recipient was discharged once again from the hospital. Knowing the delivery was coming however, she contacted the filling shop and arranged for delivery to her home. It was finally delivered yesterday!!

I have a bad case of flower envy...

I have to admit I'm a floral nerd.

Most people go to Vegas for the shows, the gambling, the pools, and of course the summer heat. Generally, Vegas is known for its glitz & glamour.

But in my mind, I prefer the style & class on display at the Bellagio Hotel.

 I always go to the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, because their flower displays blow me away every time I go. It may be flower envy, but I prefer to think of it as my inspiration as a florist.

It's not only one of the largest hotels in Vegas with over 3900 rooms, it also has the famous hourly fountain display, home to the world's largest chocolate fountain, and the largest of the Cirque du Soleil shows, with "O" seating 1800 people for each performance.

So you get the idea. The hotel is large, famous, and classy.

But from a florist's perspective, what really makes the Bellagio stand out are the flower and plant displays.

Where else can you go to to see a framed living flower mural, looking like a 3-D picture?

And one of my favourites, this gorgeous display of Asiatic lilies, roses, and calla lilies randomly displayed on a table in a sitting area.

Even the plant display is fabulous. I looked hard, but could not find a single dead bloom on any plant!

The displays are totally changed for the Holidays, Chinese New Year, spring, summer, and fall. And according to their website at http://www.bellagio.com/attractions/botanical-garden.aspx  they employ 140 horticulturists to maintain these immaculate displays throughout the year.

Now that I've had my dose of inspiration, it's time to incorporate these ideas into our displays of flowers in Canada at Simon Says Roses Florists & Gifts!

4 Reasons I Love, & Everyone Else Hates Carnations

Talk about a bad reputation!

Everyone has a favourite flower. Some like lilies, tulips, even daisies.

And of course almost everyone loves roses.

But the most misunderstood flower of all is the carnation.

I've heard all the reasons why people hate carnations:

• they're common, grocery store flowers
• they look ugly
• the petals look deformed

Always the contrarian,  as a florist I love carnations because:

1. The darn things last forever. It's not uncommon for a carnation to last 2 to 3 weeks in a vase.
2. They come in a huge variety of colours. Red, white, yellow, hot pink, soft pink, lavender, mauve, dyed green, dyed blue just to name a few.
3. The carnation still has scent. With all the cross-breeding done to increase the life of flowers, most have lost their scent in the process. In particular, roses have become subject to this phenomenon. In trying to increase longevity and colour, the scent has disappeared with most roses. The carnation still has that spicy scent which I love!
4. Preparation. Simply remove the leaves that would be below the water line in a vase, cut the bottom of the stem on an angle, and voila...the carnation is ready to use.

Next time you order your flowers, please give the carnation a second chance.

It needs your love...and like a puppy...gives you unconditional love in return!

3 Best Long Lasting Flowers

You want flowers that last a long time.

Once cut, spring flowers like tulips, iris, and daffodils have a short lifespan.

Roses need to be re-cut every day or two, and kept as cool as possible. If your house is at 34 to 38 degrees Fahrenheit or 2 to 4 degrees Celsius, that can work. Now add in 87% humidity, and your roses could last forever!

After 20 years in the industry, you have told us that the following three flower types are THE best choice for long lasting flowers:

Alstromeria

Spray or mini-carnations

Standard Carnations

A floral arrangement of carnations, mini-carnations, and alstromeria can last from 14-21 days.

This mix provides you with excellent value, in a wide range of colour themes.

For my video on what goes into a long-lasting flower mix...

To order a long-lasting floral mix, please call Simon Says Roses Florists & Gifts at 1-800-705-ROSE(7673) for Canada wide delivery.