Not to scare you but it’s 936 hours, 56,160 minutes, and 3,369,600 seconds till you can put your feet up … slightly less if you decide to take Christmas Eve off!  But don’t worry … you can be as sparkly as your designs at the end of it!

No, Christmas will never be a walk in the park (just make sure you have time for those!) but you can do things that make it easier, safer, more profitable and more fun.

We’ve trawled our archives, scoured the net and spoken with other florists to put together our top tips. 

So, whether you’re an old hand who wants to double check yourself or just starting out and don’t know where to begin, grab a coffee (or something stronger), pen and paper and get yourself really Christmas ready.

Check your website is perfect!  It’s your digital shop window ... it needs to be as fabulous as any window display and should create a totally slick buying experience.  Get someone unconnected with the business to test it and see what they say. You know how it’s supposed to work but a new user may struggle or there might be a glitch in the system you haven’t noticed.

If you are closing between Christmas and New Year, make sure everyone knows and that your website is set up to show availability.

Is your out of office reply still relevant or is it out of date too.  We get loads of out-of-date ones when we send out our newsletters.  Check it now and make sure it has a big, bold link to your online ordering page, so you never miss an order. Check how you respond to DM’s on social media too … make it clear you need to be phoned or emailed to avoid missing something. 

Are your social media accounts all working as they should.  We see lots of broken links and missing information. And it’s vital you have a backup account holder on all your channels … you do NOT want to be locked out of your channels at the crucial last moment.

Check your vehicles are clean (they are your mobile advertising), serviced and that the MOT and insurance are up to date. All delivery vehicles should carry ‘while you were out’ cards, gifts for neighbours who take said delivery and spare adds on in case some got missed in the last-minute dash to load the van.

Check your delivery area and expand/reduce as required. Even if it doesn’t make a profit, delivery must cover the costs and if that means adding £1 or so do it.  The customer won’t notice … you will! 

Have you enough cards, envelopes, order pads etc.  Order what you need now ... printers will do their best but even they have limits.  However, where possible, go for a simple design that can be used after Christmas too.

Check the shop electrics and don’t use extension leads for things like microwaves or kettles.  It’s dangerous and you do not need a fire at this stage!

Work out your capacity on each line you are going to promote and stick to it.  Use words like Limited Offer, VIP Collection and Exclusive to show customers these are not going to be available forever and certainly not at 4.30 on Christmas Eve!  Once you’ve reached your capacity take the product offline or at least put Sold Out in big letters!

Make sure the packaging – sustainable of course – looks fabulous.  You are the Tiffany and Christian Dior of the flower world ... not the Lidl or Aldi

Never underestimate plant power but stock more unusual varieties not just Phalaenopsis or red poinsettia by the mile.  Keep it special, not necessarily expensive.

DON’T EVER compromise on quality, bloom size of stem length.  Customers will notice.  As a bespoke florist you need to look luxurious and special to show your point of difference – not be a supermarket copycat.  Whether it’s a humungous bouquet or a high style simple vase of two or three flowers, make it look special.

When it comes to hand tieds always spend a few pennies extra to get longer blooms so you can immediately create a bigger, lusher look because you are not constrained by a courier box – ie 60cm or so.  Use social media to show yours next to an online offering so people can see the difference. Yes, you need to buy one to do a real comparison, but it could easily recoup the investment because pictures on a post simply don’t convey the size, lushness or impact a bespoke, hand delivered bouquet has.

Create a collection that has some low-priced items as well as the big-ticket items. Not everyone is hard up and shows you can and do cater for everyone never mind the fact someone may want a range of gifts at different price points so you should be a one stop shop.  

You cannot and must not sell a £35 bouquet for £25 just to try and match the supermarkets or online players ... however you can sell a stunning plant or trio of bottles at a lower price point.

Think about changing your style and experiment with the loose, airer style of hand tied. It takes a bit of getting used to but looks fabulous and is deffo not something a supermarket or boxed delivery company can easily do.

Always have a BBB (Bally Big Bouquet) on your website ... or better still 2 or 3!  You should start at £10 (available in store only) – end at £250 and have all price points in-between.  Not only might you sell the BBB’s but it makes the rest of the collection look awesome value too.

If there are ways you can create more sustainable options, do it ... customers will notice and are increasingly expecting it – especially amongst younger buyers. An even better solution is to create a separate Eco range so you can promote it accurately and make a thing of it.  Because you must never claim you are doing something if you are not ... greenwashing is a no no. If customer’s think you are pretending that can backfire big time.

Gift vouchers are an excellent way of forward selling and are perfect gifts for the person who has everything!   Just make sure you keep this revenue in a separate account.

Source containers and packaging in neutral colours and add the festive look with ribbons, picks and baubles.  It means anything left over is useable straight away rather than storing bulky items for a whole year! 

If you can, organise a vase reclaim day … anyone bringing in a vase or usable container will receive a free flower or similar.  You’ll get some tatt, but it is also a way of bringing people into the store and engaging.  

Keep in touch with your suppliers and until the import rules change build in some time for unexpected delivery delays.

You can save time and money by having a fixed core collection as it’s a great way to manage a busy peak especially if you have bought at fixed prices.

Alternatively build in some flex by offering Designer Choice so you can duck and dive and have fun working with different products and colour ways.  If you explain to customers that you are going to choose what is best value and quality, they will be OK.  Yes, you may get the odd fussy fanny but in the main they trust you to know best.

Do not change wholesalers at this stage however tempting price offers may be – you need to be absolutely sure about supplies and if it sounds too good to be true it probably is!! 

It’s OK to start prepping greens and foliage-based items – keep them outside in the cold and they’ll be fine plus it will save you time when it really does start to kick off. And make sure you’ve plenty of bows, care card packs etc made up too … in the last couple of weeks you’ll be grateful.

Go through the cupboards and see what you have that can be repurposed.  Spray colour is a fabulous way to revitalise containers ... being creative with the glue gun and ribbons … covering them with foliage can transform tired looking stock into something new, save money and be fun!

Don’t overbuy but look out for offers.  A few baubles can be cheaper than flowers and will make a design look fabulous.  When the sales start on December 29^th buy any bargains.

Twigs – glittered or plain are a fab way to add volume.  We know they aren’t cheap cheap, but for adding perceived added value they are fabulous.   However, if you are going to forage make sure you are abiding by the rules – it is illegal to just go out into the woods and pick and then sell for profit.  Instead put a shout out to customers to see if anyone is pruning – good, content, engages you’re your customers, saves money and is environmentally friendly.

Market and promote like never before! 

Recheck your current database is clean and ready to use and start sending out newsletters every week with offers/ideas and general chit chat. 

Host a special Open House for your VIP customers and a general one for everyone else. Invite/entice people to the shop with special offers or give aways and make sure you get everyone’s details for newsletters etc.  They may not buy on the night (although they might!!) but data capture now can be used over the coming months ... a database is not just for Christmas.

As sales pick up make sure you are collecting everyone’s data for future email newsletters because they are your best route to generating business … tedious but oh so important.

Plan your window displays and keep them changing.  You can have a static framework or art around the edges but keep the content fresh every few days.  Personally, we think one gorgeous design standing proud can have far more impact than a cluttered window and is easier to replace.

Organise your social media so you have a vault of content planned and ready-to-go and then intersperse with ‘in real time’ content quickly.  Make sure you have all your hashtags in one place so you can copy and paste and always include local groups, so you are seen by customers in your area.

Work with other vendors in the area on joint promotions.  It’s not too late and collaboration will get you all into new customer minds ... and wallets!

Think about early ordering discounts or incentives ... people may want to spread the payment this year so now is the time to market.  Be careful though you don’t give too much away ... a free gift can sometimes be cheaper than 10% discount or £5 off.

Get out from behind the counter and be seen.  If there is time and a place to do it offer a free dem for a local charity or parents’ group.  Again, it may not show an instant return, but you need to make sure it’s YOUR face and shop name in the headlights!

You may hate having your picture taken or talking to the camera on a reel or video, but people buy from people, so YOU and your team must be seen as much as the flowers and plants.  The world and his friend are selling flowers - use social media to promote yourselves as THE experts.

Keep pushing the shop local message.  You don’t want to seem ‘beggy’ but you do need to emphasise that buying from you is important and good for your town/village/community.

Keep saying thank you as well.  Show customers you appreciate their support.  Be it a quick text message to the person who ordered, or a handwritten note to a big corporate client always say thank you – again it makes you stand out from the crowd.

Hold a planning meeting with your team and rethink what happened last year.  It won’t be an exact template but there may be things that could be improved on; be it how you lay out the shop to get best productivity or products you were asked for you hadn’t thought about.  Engage ALL your people because they will often have really brilliant ideas especially if you are a cross generational team. 

Decide in advance who is doing what and when.  Try to rotate jobs so no one gets bored and takes their eye off the ball.

Organise staff rotas and make sure everyone is on the same page in terms of expectations of hours and throughput.  Tidying the shop at the end of each day is non-negotiable in our book … makes the next day far better!

Make up a planner for pre- and post-Christmas (this year the auction closures will impact on supplies) so you know exactly what needs to be done and what can be done after the big day is over – especially important if you do a lot of funeral work. 

Always make a menu for each of your core collection designs.  Overstuffing with the odd extra flower here and there can lose you a fortune but if you don’t spell it out what’s to go in each design it can all go horribly wrong ... especially when people are working at speed.

Think about introducing a commission scheme or bonus package to encourage the team to sell up where possible and always have a decent play list on the go ... music can seriously improve productivity!

Bring in extra help … even if just someone to answer the phones and check the website orders.  It can free up your design team to focus on make-up, not admin.

If you are the boss, make sure you are mentally and physically in a good place.  Stress is the biggest risk for a business owner ... you need to look after yourself too especially as Christmas is such a loooooong drawn out affair.  With all the uncertainty in the world no one can really predict how this Christmas will pan out.  We reckon people will want to celebrate if only to try and forget the gloominess but whatever happens it will be a lot easier if you are feeling strong. Make time for R&R as much as work … we know it’s not easy but it is essential.

Be prepared for even tighter credit controls from your suppliers ... they are wholesalers not a bank!  Stash the cash and keep on top of the bills because you don’t want your account stopped at the last moment.  Keep a pot of money to cover you for January/early Feb … and, if applicable, tuck the VAT on a different account so it doesn’t come as a shock either.

Work to proper mark ups.  Unless you are doing HUGE - and we mean HUGE volumes - we reckon you should be working on 3/3.5x mark up on fresh and a minimum of 2.5x on dry goods whilst labour should be charged out at a minimum of £25 per hour (42p a minute) to not just cover wages, NI, pensions, uniform sustenance, parties, bonuses, etc but a contribution to all the other running costs as well. Delivery charges should cover the WHOLE cost of running the vehicle and depreciation.

Keep doing the numbers ... keep monitoring the margins.  You can tweak them if you need to but equally always make the most of it if prices are good – i.e. don’t automatically drop prices because you got something cheaper. Instead use that increased margin to compensate for when things get more expensive.

Always view sales as an all-year-round affair not just what happens at Christmas.  Yes, it is important, but your business should be a 52-week project not just what happens in December. 

Are you making a real profit on your work or is it marginal?  Cut anything that is marginal and focus on the real money earners.  Better to work smarter than harder and 10 x £50 bouquets is a lot easier than 20 x £25.  Oh yes and don’t undercut other retailers (especially fellow florists) just to get sales.  It won’t help you and is where madness lies.  If you can’t make money at the right price you need to think if your business is viable.

Never forget you are in business to make a profit.  It may not be as big this Christmas but there must be a profit.  You are not put on this earth to make other people’s dreams come true at your expense.

And finally

Enjoy it.  We know personally just how hard running a florist is but we also know it can be the most fabulous job in the world too.

Just make sure you have time to revel in the magic you create.

We'll be rooting for you. x