Cheap Flowers, Labour Not So Much...

It might seem strange, but steaks are a lot like flowers.

A local flyer had steak at around $6.88/lb, or $3.44 for 8 oz.

But when I go to a restaurant, that same steak (with a potato & a few veggies) is suddenly $28.99.

Why the difference? It's the time to marinate, age, cook, and present the steak.

It's all about labour.

Flowers are the same as a steak. If a florist in Canada doesn't have to pay for a lot of design time, there are more flowers in the arrangement.

Let me walk you through some examples.

This is what we call a "cut & plop". Flowers are not arranged, but rather simply cut down to fit the vase. Next to no labour, so more flowers. This item sells for $37.99 on the Simon Says Roses website.

Next, there is the "presentation style" bouquet. There is some labour time in structuring the bouquet, to make the flowers look presentable. This item sells for $49.99 on our website.

Taking another step up is the formal vase arrangement. Each & ever flower is strategically placed one at a time to give the best look to the flowers. That takes time. One of most popular flower vase arrangements sells for $69.99 to $89.99 at Simon Says Roses.

But the REALLY time consuming floral arrangements are often found when constructing sympathy designs. This sympathy casket floral arrangement is packed with exquisite high value flowers like Calla lilies, dendrobium orchids, ginger, & more. Each stem must be inserted into floral foam, ensuring that not one bit of foam can be seen when the design is completed. Time consuming to say the least!
This item sells for $799.99.

The dedication, time & skill of a trained floral designer is not much different than your favourite chef. It takes time to get it right!

Things Go Better With...Coke?

I'm convinced nobody likes me.

At least they don't like me as much as they like Coke (the soda, not the drug).

It's pretty obvious. I only have 93 people liking me on my Simon Says Roses facebook page.

Coca-Cola has 36,479,028 likes as of this morning.

Now I know I'm not that popular, but this is ridiculous.

We have got to start catching-up.

So we are going to run a contest.

Our goal is simple.

We're going to try and increase the number of "Likes" on our facebook business page.

 

And we are going to give away a $100.00 account credit in the process.

 Contest rules are simple:

Go to our facebook page at Simon Says Roses Florists & Gifts

Click the Like button.

Voila...you're entered.

Contest closes at midnight on January 31st, 2012.

For the process of picking a winner, every "like" that we have will be assigned a number...from 1 to whatever number of "likes" we end up with.

And to keep the contest perfectly fair, I'm going to go to Mrs.Glosser's Math Goodies which is a random number generator.

The software will generate a number within the range we select.

Whatever number selected will be matched to our "Like" number, the winner will be declared, and a $100.00 credit will go on your account.

Easy peasy.

Not saying we are going to match Coke...but it's a start!

Who Killed the Scent from a Rose?

We can only blame it on ourselves, so please don't blame Simon Says Roses!

Most roses have lost their scent years ago.

How did that happen you ask? (and you know if you didn't ask, you're still gonna' get an answer)

About 25 years ago, people were asked "what is important when buying roses"?

Smell wasn't the top answer. Nor was stem length. Not even colour selection.

We wanted our roses to last longer.

..and that's o.k....BUT...

In the process of gene manipulation, growers certainly have made long-lasting roses. Even the least expensive varieties with the shortest of stems should last at least seven days, and some varieties a full two weeks.

But like most things when we tamper with nature, it comes at a cost (not to mention the "rainbow" rose shown below...and yes it's real).

 

The cost is the arrival of the "scentless" rose.

In fact I can only think of two rose varieties that still have the fragrance from the "old" days when Simon Says Roses first started. Jacaranda (a purple rose) still smells wonderfully, and Oceana (a pink rose) can almost bring tears to your eyes through its fragrance. Both these types of roses have a sweet smell which is simply out of this world.

But they don't last very long. Not very long at all. Once you get them home they open very quickly, fill your home or office with a most delicious smell...and die in about three days :(

So what do you think? Is a longer lasting rose better than a fragrant rose?

Please leave me your comments.