21/01/2025
Have you ever thought “BEING A FLORIST LOOKS LIKE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL JOB IN THE WORKD!?” Well, while I can hand on my heart say I love it so much, the truth is… even if you love flowers, you might not love being florist…
Here are the top five reasons I see people come and go from this job:
1. Yep, number one is the pressure. It’s someone’s wedding day, flowers to a best friend after someone important passed away, an anniversary, a 40th birthday.. Every piece you produce means so much to someone and as a result it is also heavily scrutinised - by the sender, by the recipient, by the person who works on the front desk of your where you deliver subscription flowers, the bride, the mother in law who worked in a flower shop 30 years ago… it’s ALOT of pressure.
2. The diabolical hours. The 2:30am alarm is not for the faint hearted and during wedding season, it’s usually the kick off of 3 x 12 hour work days that are also early or crazy late. Sometimes at the end of all of that, you’re back at a venue at midnight removing flowers after an event or wedding. The worst bit? The anxiety that you’ll sleep through your alarm so you can’t sleep well the nights before.
3. It hurts. Carrying buckets all day long and big days on your feet is one thing but another is a labour intensive event day. Loading and unloading. 90% of the time, the space is up the stairs or via a tiny lift if you’re lucky. We’re rarely given a car space and the coolest venues are the hardest to get into. “Yep so you’re parked half way down the street - and it’s just going up those five flights of stairs. The ceiling installations is 4m high - don’t fall!”
4. The stress of the unknown… Some flowers just aren’t there for you when you ordered them. So you’ll go to pick them up and at 4am before you’ve even had a coffee, you have to start problem solving. You call everywhere and hope someone can help you fill the order for the wedding in 36 hours time. It is HELLA stressful and requires very good relationships with multiple suppliers and growers.
5. The seasonality. Most florists take May - August off because it’s so quiet - the busy season often just pulls you through the winter.
THOUGHTS!?