For Better Service, Go Wholesale

What may be "elementary" to some retail florists was be brought to the attention of others through the introduction of an advertising campaign featuring an image of Sherlock Holmes, proclaiming, "It's in the details," magnifying glass in hand. This phrase fits perfectly with a comment from Jim Haley, Chairman of the Marketing Committee of the Wholesale Florist and Supplier Association. "If you aren't detail oriented in this industry, you're just a mistake waiting to happen," he said. "Wholesalers know about the details."

The campaign was created to highlight the fact that wholesalers provide more consistent quality and better customer service than direct flower suppliers. The results of a recent random survey of 365 retail florists help to reinforce this fact.

The majority of the survey's responses demonstrated greater overall satisfaction with wholesalers than with other supply sources. This is thought to be due to wholesalers' extensive knowledge of flowers and the industry and their distinct focus on customer service.

The florists rated wholesalers significantly higher in than farm direct, importers and wire services as cut flower suppliers. And this was not simply a local trend but spread across all florist sales categories and regions of the United States.

Wholesalers dominated a good number of additional categories on the survey as well, including but not limited to the following:

Better Customer Service
Seventy-two percent of florists said they were either satisfied or very satisfied with their wholesaler's ability to handle complaints - one of the top criteria looked for when picking a supplier. They handily beat out direct sources in this category. And, most likely due to their longstanding business relationships with retailers, they surpassed all suppliers in responsiveness.

Proven Reliability
Wholesalers were voted the most reliable source of supply. They provide accurate fulfillment and on-time delivery - both more important to retail florists than simply having the lowest price.

Greater Ease of Ordering
Retail florists ranked wholesalers as by far the easiest source from which to order product, perhaps due to the consistency of having one point of contact.

Higher Quality of Merchandise
And, most importantly, wholesalers offer the best flowers available. Most retail florists ranked their quality of flowers better than farm direct, importers and wire service programs. And, as all retailers know, price may bring people in initially but quality keeps them coming back year after year.

This is why the ad campaign maintained that focus - to keep retail florists with their eyes on the prize so to speak and not distracted by price cuts which could damage their businesses in the long run.
Haley commented to this end, "We hope that through this campaign retail florists have a better understanding of the value the wholesalers bring to them and I hope that their focus stays beyond price."

So far, that strategy of quality and integrity over bottom line seems to be working, since 38 percent of retail florists said they intend to increase their buying of cut flowers from wholesale florists. But a little help from Holmes is sure to reinforce the trend and remind retail florists that, yes, the details matter.