- Advertisement - Christmas and Hanukkah floral facts; last-minute sales and marketing tips November 18, 2014 What is the No. 1 floral-buying holiday, based on consumer purchases of fresh flowers and plants for holidays at all outlets? Most people assume it’s either Mother’s Day or Valentine’s Day but it’s actually Christmas/Hanukkah, according to data collected by Synovate eNation’s national online poll, IPSOS-Insight Floral Trends Consumer Tracking Study and Paul Ecke Ranch. Over 30 percent of adults purchase flowers or plants for the Christmas/Hanukkah season, amounting to 30 percent of the total yearly holiday floral dollar volume. The majority of people buy fresh flowers for centerpieces and home decoration or as gifts for relatives, friends and neighbors and the most popular choices are mixed flowers, roses, miscellaneous single flowers and carnations. More than 50 percent of consumers purchase Poinsettias for the holiday season, with other flowering houseplants and green plants also proving popular. “One of the most beautiful seasons in supermarket floral is Christmas,” said Alice Grazziani, director of floral at Gelsons in Commerce, CA. “It is also one of the most hectic holidays since we are busy every week for almost an entire month. Communication is key when planning the fast-moving holiday.” Grazziani believes floral department managers need ongoing support and that daily communication with supervisors via phone or email will help them succeed during the holidays. “They need to know that we are near to help them in any situation,” Grazziani said. “With a late Thanksgiving, we only have 27 days to promote and sell our Christmas items,” said Rita 1 / 2 Peters, assistant vice president for floral operations at Hy-Vee in Des Moines, IA. “We have to be on our game and promote flowers as a great gift to give.” One way to do this, Peters told The Produce News, is to be "example setters," such as: • “We should have flowers and plants in our offices all the time. It makes flowers visible. Co-workers will take notice of beautiful flowers. • “We should give bouquets and plants as gifts every opportunity that we can to promote our product. • “Ask other departments to promote flowers with their items. Beautiful flowers can set the tone for the whole season and be the reason customers will shop with you.” “Learn the trends and execute them for the holiday season when people spend more discretionary dollars on themselves as well as others,” Rene van Rems, floral designer and educator in Carlsbad, CA, said. “Mixed metals, as in gold and silver combined, work really well. Mix them with pre-painted silver eucalyptus or other greens. Your favorite greens vendor most likely has gold, silver and even bronze finish on all their greens and the best thing about painted greens is that they last till February — no shrink.” Print Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) 2 / 2.