Chain Stores vs. Mom and Pop Florists

Tomcat5251

Would the chain stores be a better price than a mom and pop store? Thinking a chain may have cheaper prices because they buy in bulk.  Thinking that a mom and pop store may have better pricing because of profit margin.

Advantages? Disadvantages?

Opinions? 

thesummersky

A lot goes into pricing for flowers.

1. Are the flowers that you're requesting in season?
   
   If not, chances are they will be more expensive than when they are in season. Choosing in-season flowers should reduce cost.
   
   
2. Are they grown locally? If not, where are they being shipped from?
   
   If you want flowers that are out of season here, but are in season somewhere else (or if they just don't grow where you are), you are making up for the cost of shipping them out to you with whatever you pay. Choosing local, native flowers that are in-season at the time of your wedding will reduce costs.
   
   
3. How many flowers are you requesting?
   
   Typically, the more you order, the more expensive it will be. Ordering in bunches of 10 can be cheaper than ordering by the stem in some cases, however.
   
   
4. Do you want the flowers to be arranged by professionals? 
   
   You can arrange flowers yourself, but if you haven't done it before, you can be asking for a lot of stress and things to do on the day of. If you do decide to have the professional arrange them for you...
   
   
5. How many arrangements/bouquets are you asking for? 
   
   Typically, the more you ask for, the more you will pay. In this regard, a chain store may be cheaper since they have more product at any given time and will be likely to offer discounts to ship out slowly moving product. However, this may not always be the most fresh or of the best quality. Mom and Pop florists tend to care more about the quality of their work and the reputation of their business - so you may be paying more, but you are paying for the time of people who know you and your event and are skilled with their craft.
   
   
6. And how many flowers do you want in each arrangement?
   
   More typically costs more.
   
   
7. How many middle men are between the grower and you?
   
   When buying from a large, warehouse-scale buyer, prices can be cheap. Buying directly from a farm or grower can also be very inexpensive. The fewer middle-men there are, the better. I suggest looking up growers and farms in your area and asking for a quote from them. I'm sure they'd appreciate the business and take extra time and care to ensure your event goes smoothly. 
   
   Of course, it would be the most wise to gather quotes from different florists you like (whether at chain stores or from Mom and Pop places), then go from there. My experiences working on a flower farm, and the community I've experienced from buying and selling at farmers' markets makes me partial to buying from Mom and Pop florists, but flowers cost money. Get your quotes, see some sample work, then consult your budget. I hope this was helpful!

Maggie0829

I am unaware of any florist chains.  Typically florists are individually owned with one location.  Or are you speaking towards something like Wegman's or something similar?

thesummersky

@Maggie0829 Costco and ProFlowers do flowers for weddings. Some Whole Foods stores do wedding bouquets as well.