More plants, fewer flowers sold at Royal FloraHolland
Period 12 followed the peak of All Saints' Day (1 November 2016) and ended before the Christmas season. It is striking that the bustle around Christmas seems to start earlier every year. And the demand for specific Christmas products continues to grow, which was already evident in the last week of this period. In contrast, the demand for flowers declined after All Saints' Day. The total supply dropped by 5%, and the average price ended up 7% higher than last year.
In cumulative terms, turnover rose 4.8%. By the end of the year we shall lose 1% of that, leading to 3.5% growth in 2016. Most of the increase in revenue is due to a higher average price level, and less to an increase in supply.
Share of direct trade increased sharply
The share of cut flowers sold via direct trade rose by 3 percentage-points to 32.5%. At the product level, there were few changes. The share of houseplants sold via direct trade also increased by 3 percentage-points to 80%. Phalaenopsis had a high proportion, 86%.
The share of garden plants sold via direct trade rose by 1.5 percentage-points to 66%. One striking aspect was the high proportion of helleborus; 83% of this product was sold via direct trade.
Export value increases by 3%
The export figures from Floridata for October 2016 are the latest ones available. In October the value of the export of flowers and plants increased by just 3%. The value of flowers grew more than that of plants. In cumulative terms, the growth in export is around 3%. The overall image has not changed much. Since the Brexit referendum, exports to the UK have been under pressure. In October 10% less was exported to the UK. The free fall of Russia continued with a drop of 30%. Luckily, exports to the core countries Germany and France have been doing well (+10%). And Poland continues to develop into an important market.
The growth of exports in October lagged a bit behind the growth of Royal FloraHolland in October.
Supply of cut flowers lagging behind
The supply of cut flowers declined by 6%. The most significant drops were seen for roses (-10%) and lilies (-17%). The supply of Hippeastrum, one of the Christmas articles among the cut flowers, rose in contrast by 17%. The total supply of cut flowers decreased by 6%.
In terms of price-setting, roses (-6%) and chrysanthemums (-17%) did not do especially well. It is thus striking that the price-setting of all flowers did ultimately rise by 3%. The final turnover of cut flowers ended up at -3%.
Supply of houseplants increased by 4%
The average price rose by 2%, and the total turnover of houseplants was 6% higher. Striking aspects included a smaller supply of Phalaenopsis (-6%) and the huge growth in the supply of Christmas articles, like poinsettia (+35%) and hyacinths (+25%).
Turnover of garden plants increased 20%
The supply of garden plants increased by 7% and the average price level by 12%. The greatest growth was noted for the decorated Christmas trees. The supply of this product increased by 33%. Another rising star was Christmas rose, with an increase in quantity of 24%. Garden plants also reflected an earlier demand for Christmas articles.
Conclusion
For cut flowers, period 12 was perhaps the quiet before the storm, but among plants the sales of Christmas articles was clearly starting earlier than usual. This increased the quantity of these products, and led overall to a positive effect on the turnover figures for Royal FloraHolland.
Source: Royal FloraHolland