Weddingbee PRO

Dear Nancy

…Not to be snarky, but can you please explain why my florist charged $250 for a bouquet of peonies when I found an eight stem bunch at Whole Foods that very same week for $12.99?

Lisa

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Dear Lisa,

This question can be answered in so many ways.

Perceived Value

Let's assume that this is about “perceived value” which is defined as a consumer's opinion of what a product (or service's) value is. Often, this unique perception has little or nothing to do with the actual product (or service) price, and is dependent on the product (or service's) ability to satisfy the needs, expectation and requirement.

After consulting with floral designers, Audrey O'Brien of Studio Stems and Amy Marella of Hidden Garden Flowers for their input to this question, I realized that no matter what we collectively came up with to explain why the florist charged what she charged, ultimately Lisa didn't see the value of a $250 bouquet of peonies.

Sometimes it's hard to see value especially when many of it is “hidden” or behind the scenes.  It's difficult to see:

- the florist has other expenses like overhead, production, office expenses, and nonoperating expenses that might factor in.

- the time that the florist probably spent finding just the right flowers, processing each stem, picking flowers up in the wee hours of the morning (except yours truly here!), and nursing them so that they would open just right.

- the experience, years of practice, and knowledge that the florist and his/her staff have acquired.

- the art and creativity that goes beyond just the flowers themselves. That there is an art in selecting the right flower and designing them. There is creativity in even the simplest of arrangement. There is a talent in being able to combine different ingredients. There is creativity in designing a wedding from start to finish with taste, polish, and style.

- the stress and pressure that many florists and vendors must go through given the importance of the day. You can't redo!

Bottom line: It's up to us, floral designers, to find the clients who will understand and appreciate the art that we are creating. It's up to us to educate the clients so that they can see the value and difference.

The Price Strategy - Is it due for a change?

This is something that I touched upon last week (very briefly). In our small wedding world, the traditional method of pricing, which I am completely guilty of using, is the cost-based pricing.

The cost-based method of determining price is such that a fixed sum or a percentage of the total cost is added to the cost of the product to arrive at its selling price.

Example: For simplicity’s sake, if the recipe called for 15 stems of pink peonies and we assumed that one stem is around $5.00***, then the direct cost is $75.00 not including any other factors like overhead, production, supplies, utilities, and on and on.

If the cost is $75.00 and the florist decided that a 330% markup is needed to then cover overhead, production and labor costs, utilities, etc., then the bouquet would be $250. This is probably and possibly how the florist determined the price of this bouquet.

However, I get it when consumers question pricing, especially if they can find a similar product in a grocery store like Whole Foods Market. If I were not in the floral business, I, too, would be concerned and question the price of an all peony bouquet at $250 given that 2 bunches at Whole Foods totals less than $30.00. The difference between the final retail and the cost is $220+. On top of that, if I can find peonies at the grocery store, I would feel that the flowers were not very special and unique thus further diminishing the value. How then should we price if consumers are so savvy and can find out our costs? How do we make our designs worthy when they don't seem so hard to find?

Here is one idea from the dynamic, thoughtful, smart, honest, ballsy, Sean Low of The Business of Being Creative. His practical advice for those in our creative field is unparalleled and I'm starting to believe that the way we price might have to change in order for us to be valued.

Below is a wonderful excerpt from his recently article entitled, Thoughts on Pricing.

“It all leads back to my fundamental presumption: the value of any creative business is in the creation of the art, not its production. This is not to say that production is not valuable or should not be valued, just that clients will not pay for it as Nancy so eloquently lays out. My answer: be transparent and sell your art. That is why your clients are hiring you and what they will pay for. “

So…

Bottom line: floral designers, this is a wake up call. Our clients can find out what our products/materials costs. They don't even need to search the internet, they can go to a local grocery store and see how much our flowers retail for. Floral designers - we have got to move on. We cannot continue to price merely on our materials and production for that matter. If we do, we are going to continue to get brides who cannot separate the cost of the goods with the finished piece of art.

Thank you Lisa for opening thoughtful discussion. Stay tuned.

Enjoy! Nancy

***BTW:

The price of the peonies came from my direct wholesale resource, Torchio Nursery, whose average price for a 5 stem bunch of peonies is $25- this will vary from city to city, from season to season. So please do not take this as the final word on pricing.

Image above of Pink Peonies bouquet by Nancy Liu Chin Designs

Photo Credit: Richard Wood