Owning a floral shop is an opportunity to enjoy a really creative career. Owning any kind of business involves considerable hard work and a lot of hours on the job. To run a flower shop, you need experience not only with arranging flowers but also good business sense and maybe even a background in how to plan events. If you run a smaller-sized shop, your hands are involved in every aspect of running the company.
Arranging And Delivering
The most logical job duty of the floral shop owner is putting together flower arrangements. You may have a natural eye for artistically arranging buds and baby's breath or need to take courses to fine-tune your skills. Either way, a majority of your day is likely spent reading customer's orders, deciding what types of flowers look good together and creating something beautiful that people are proud to display. After the masterpieces are created, most end up being delivered, which you either do yourself or hire a staff person to transport.
Hiring Employees
As a floral shop owner, you are in charge of hiring employees to help you run your business. You may need someone to answer the phone and take orders or help customers as they visit your shop in person. During hectic times like Valentine's Day and Mother's Day at the least, expect to take on staff to help you make the arrangements as well. In addition to hiring new employees, you also train them to perform their job duties up to your standards.
Ordering Supplies
Floral shops have numerous supplies it needs to keep on hand. As the owner, you'll place new orders for materials. Obviously, the most frequent order placed is for flowers because they are perishable. Fine tune your skills for determining just how many flowers you need to have on hand and for keeping them fresh so that you cut down on waste. Floral shops also need supplies like vases, wire, foam, ribbon and gift cards that are necessary to make beautiful arrangements as presents for others.
Marketing
Without enough customers, your floral shop will not stay in business for long. Therefore, marketing is one of the most important job duties you'll have as a floral shop owner. You may want to hire someone to create marketing materials for you or design fliers yourself that get the word out about your business. You can also look into taking out advertisements in newspapers and place coupons in mass mailings. In addition, pro bono work is a good way to advertise your company so inquire about donating some free arrangements to hospital patients or retirement community residents.
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Writer Bio
Based in the Midwest, Gina Scott has been writing professionally since 2008. She has worked in real estate since 2004 and has expertise in pop culture and health-related topics. She has also self-published a book on how to overcome chronic health conditions. Scott holds a Master of Arts in higher-education administration from Ball State University.