It is Women's Day today, and in Italy, this holiday is called Festa fella Donna and is celebrated with Mimosa. Men give the women in their lives a bunch of Mimosas or a bouquet of flowers that should include Mimosa. At Flora Toscana's bouquet-making department, they have been working several nights in a row to supply supermarkets. The busiest day was Monday, and yesterday, they finalized the supply. How was this year? Flora Toscana's Export Sales Manager, Luca Quilici, explains.
Lower production, higher prices
The demand is similar to last year, but the production is lower, and the prices for Mimosas was higher. "The production was about 15% lower, and the prices about 20% higher", he says. The reason for the lower production is that the part of the Mimosa that was produced in the hills wasn't flowered on time, but the ones produced at sea level were. "Mimosas are mainly grown in the Sanremo region and mainly outside, so good weather conditions are highly important."
Lower margins
Although Quilici is pleased with this year's results, this year is not one of their best years. "The main challenge was to repeat the performances of the past year. We did, but in the end, the marginality was lower, mainly due to the prices of the supermarket chains that were already fixed some months before."
Busy season
Since 1946 Mimosas have been the symbol flower dedicated to Women's Day, especially in Italy and Eastern countries. Flora Toscana is a cooperative in the Italian horticultural sector, and only during this time of the year they sell Mimosas. "We sell boxes of mimosa to wholesalers and bouquets to supermarkets all over the country," says Quilici. The bouquet-making department of Flora Toscana starts its preparations usually about 1,5 weeks in advance. And Monday was the busiest day this year. After Festa della Donna, Flora Toscana's Spring season will start.
For more information
Flora Toscana
Email: info@floratoscana.it
www.floratoscana.it