"French and British florists mainly sell Dutch flowers"

Florists still buy a lot of flowers and plants from Holland. That goes especially for France and the UK. Germany is a little more self-sufficient and uses mainly home-grown products. These are some of the conclusions we can draw from the Royal FloraHolland Quarterly Florist Survey, held in 2016 in the Netherlands, France, Great-Britain and Germany.

Market researcher Tine Niezink explains the data as they're shown in the Big Data article in GROW 1, 2017. According to the research, German florists don't buy as much Dutch flowers and plants as the other countries do. This is because the Germans are more self-sufficient and grow more floriculture products themselves. "As Germany produces a lot of flowers and plants within its borders, it's fairly easy for the Germans to respond to trends like 'local products for local people' and sustainability." The United Kingdom and France still purchase a lot of Dutch products, as they are less self-sufficient. These florists mainly buy their flowers from wholesalers, cash and carries and mobile wholesalers.

Click here for a large image. Source: relation magazine GROW/Bloemisten Kwartaal Scan Royal FloraHolland

Florists of the future
The research has distinguished six types of florists and checked to see how often these types occur. "As there are six types of florists, the supplier can adjust his stock depending on the type of florist he provides for", states market researcher Tine Niezink. These six segments are expected to be the six most common types of florists in 2020. At the moment, Conny (concept florist), Sara (specialist) and Dorien (wholesale florist) are the most common types in the four countries. "And we expect the three other florist types to become more prominent in future."

Value-driven florists
Robbert (mobile florist) and Sara (specialist) are value-driven. This means they really add value. Sara had a permanent shop where people go to when they want something special. Robbert has a van, a mobile flower shop, and drives his shop to where the customers are. He too can create something special for you, and if you bring your own vase, you'll be done and dusted. Victor (fresh products shopkeeper) not only sells flowers and plants but other fresh products as well. Conny (concept florist) has a shop in which she sells flowers and plants, but other products too, all fitting in with one concept ('Healthy and Green', for instance).

Cost-driven
The type we call Dorien (wholesale florist) is often situated next to a supermarket. Here you can easily pick up a bunch of flowers at an affordable price. Oscar (online florist) has an efficient website where people can buy their flowers and plants. Both Dorien and Oscar are cost-driven; they aim to keep the costs as low as possible.

Unbranded
Florists spend but little time on marketing activities. Why is that? Tine: "Florists usually run their businesses on their own, so the workload is pretty heavy. Another problem is that flowers are unbranded products, so it is difficult to stand out with those." But florists have a special ability too, says Tine: their creativity. "They should take much more advantage of that skill! And they could explain more about the products, tell their clients about the origin of a flower or plant, the story that it has to tell."

Sourece: FloraHolland.com