Eight out of 10 respondents to a recent Society of American Florists economic survey classified business as either “good” or “excellent”— and more than two-thirds said they are “optimistic” or “very optimistic” about 2020 sales. Among the key concerns noted: Uncertainty about the longer-term economic outlook, and the potential effects of next November’s presidential election, worry over the developing threat of the novel coronavirus, and the long-standing challenges for industry members across segments of an extremely tight labor market and increasing competition.
The survey, which was emailed to SAF members of all segments on Feb. 21 and had a response rate of 15.2 percent, seemed to highlight that the current labor crunch is an ongoing challenge and barrier to future growth to industry businesses of all sizes — no matter the segment or geographic location.
Overall, 62 percent of respondents said the availability of labor is affecting their business. Fifty-six percent of respondents are planning to spend more on labor in 2020 than they did in 2019 — even though about 50 percent said they have no plans to add full- or part-time staff to their rosters in the next six months. Roughly 38 percent said they plan to increase salaries in that same time period; 20 percent said they plan to give more hours to existing employees.
Read more at the Society of American Florists (Mary Westbrook)