Grocery Store Flowers or Florist Flowers? There's Room for Both

As a florist, you'd probably expect me to tell you that you should buy all your flowers from a flower shop. And of course, we'd love it if everyone bought their flowers from The BloomBox all the time. We are running a business, after all. But there's something we'd actually like to see happen even more, and that's for people to simply buy more flowers, regardless of where they get them.

I think flowers are something we tend to associate with occasions. Birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, weddings and all the other moments when we have a particular reason to give someone flowers. And while those occasions are certainly an important part of what we do, there really doesn't need to be a reason to have fresh flowers in your home.

If you're doing your weekly grocery shopping and happen to see a bunch of flowers that catches your eye, why not grab them? Put them in a vase on the kitchen counter, the dining room table or somewhere you'll see them throughout the day. You don't need to be celebrating anything, and you certainly don't need to spend a fortune to enjoy having flowers around.

We'd much rather see someone pick up a $15 bunch of flowers at the grocery store every week than decide flowers are something they should only have in the house a couple of times a year. They're a wonderful way to bring a little colour and life into your home, and the more people who discover how much they enjoy having fresh flowers around, the better.

There's also more to having fresh flowers around than simply making a room look nice. Various studies over the years have examined how flowers affect our mood and general well-being, and some of the results are quite interesting. A 2005 study from researchers at Rutgers University found that receiving flowers produced positive emotional responses, with participants reporting improvements in mood even several days later. Another study examining the effects of having flowers in the home found encouraging results relating to stress and mood. Now, I'm not suggesting a bunch of carnations is going to solve all your problems, but I don't think anyone needs a scientific study to tell them that walking into a room with a beautiful bunch of flowers can make them smile. It's just nice to know there's some research supporting what many of us have experienced ourselves.

Besides, grocery stores make that kind of purchase incredibly convenient. You're already there buying milk, bread and whatever else you need for the week. You walk past the flowers, see something you like and toss a bunch into the cart. There's nothing wrong with that, and we're certainly not going to suggest you should make a separate trip across town to a florist every time you want a few flowers for the kitchen.

Where we hope you'll think of us is when the occasion calls for something a little more special.

Maybe it's your wedding anniversary, your mom's birthday or Valentine's Day. Perhaps you're hosting Christmas dinner and want a centrepiece for the table, or you're celebrating a graduation, retirement or another milestone. Mother's Day and Father's Day are good examples too. Not everyone thinks of flowers for Dad, but there's no reason he can't enjoy them just as much as Mom.

These are the occasions when you may want more than a bunch of flowers to put in a vase. You might want something designed specifically for the person receiving it, something that reflects their favourite colours or flowers, or an arrangement that suits the occasion and makes a bit more of an impression.

That's where a professional florist can offer something different.

When someone comes into The BloomBox looking for flowers for a special occasion, we generally start by asking questions. Who are the flowers for? What's the occasion? Are there colours or flowers they particularly like? Is there a certain style you're imagining? What's your budget? Sometimes customers have a very specific idea of what they want, and other times they simply know they want to do something special for someone and need a little help figuring out what that should look like.

Our job is to take that information and create something appropriate for the person and the occasion. That might be a large, elaborate arrangement with unusual flowers, or it might be something relatively simple with a particular colour or flower that means something to the recipient. Spending more doesn't necessarily mean getting something physically bigger, and spending less doesn't mean the flowers can't be thoughtful or beautiful. It's about choosing the right flowers and creating something that fits.

There's also a difference between buying flowers for yourself and sending flowers to someone else. When you're buying for yourself, you can see exactly what you're getting, take it home and put it in your favourite vase. When you're sending flowers for an anniversary or birthday, you may want them professionally arranged, presented nicely, accompanied by a personal message and delivered directly to the recipient. Those are all things we take care of, and they're part of the service you're buying from us.

None of this means the grocery store flowers are somehow less worthy of being enjoyed. In fact, I'd argue that making flowers a regular part of your life makes those special occasions even better. If you already enjoy having a few stems on the counter every week, imagine how nice it is to receive something designed especially for you when your birthday or anniversary comes around.

And I think there's something to be said for getting away from the idea that flowers need to be justified by an occasion or a price tag. We don't wait for a birthday to buy ourselves a nice coffee or a favourite dessert. Sometimes we buy those things simply because we enjoy them. Flowers can be exactly the same.

Of course, no matter where you buy your flowers, there's one piece of advice I'd give everyone, and it's probably the most important thing you can do to help them last.

If you wouldn't drink the water your flowers are sitting in, they shouldn't be drinking it either!

Change the water daily. Bacteria can build up in the vase, particularly when leaves or other plant material are sitting below the waterline, and that bacteria can interfere with the flowers' ability to take up water. Use a clean vase, give the stems a fresh cut when needed and keep the flowers away from excessive heat and direct sunlight. Flowers are a perishable product, but a little care can make a considerable difference in how long you get to enjoy them. You can also find our general flower care instructions on The BloomBox website, and those tips apply whether your flowers came from our shop, the grocery store or your own garden.

Ultimately, we don't see this as a competition over where every bunch of flowers should be purchased. We'd love to see more people enjoying flowers more often, whether that's a few carnations on the kitchen counter on a Tuesday afternoon or a beautiful arrangement delivered for a fiftieth wedding anniversary.

And when you do have one of those occasions that deserves a little something extra, we hope you'll think of us.

Fresh. Unique. Flowers. It's What We Do!