The ‘High’ Cost of Flowers for Weddings

Today, I would love to talk about the ‘wedding tax’.

 There’s a common belief that as soon as the client mentions the word ‘wedding’ the price goes up three times.

 However, the truth is that if you mention the word ‘wedding’ then the workload for me as a florist goes up by about six times.

 The expense starts with our initial long wedding consultation, often hours spent face to face, on the phone or back and forth emails.

 Every wedding is bespoke, there’s no cheap package I take off the shelf and sell instantly with no effort.

 No matter the budget, every one of my brides gets every question answered, every worry or potential problem sorted out on the spot, and all the guidance they need.

 Most people planning a wedding have never done it before, and very few people know the ins and outs of flowers, so it’s my job to guide each couple through the process.

 It’s a necessary cost of the wedding business but small business owners are always short of time, and this does add a lot to my working day.

 Brides send me an average of 60-90 emails in the years and months leading up to their wedding. A few brides have sent me over 150 emails!

 I’m here to calm their fears, or keep making changes. I may start again from scratch with a change in themes or types of flowers, or a change in budget, or to accommodate additional bridesmaids, flower girls and pages needing to be included for family harmony, or smoothly add a corsage for a mother-in-law. You name it, I do it — and I’m happy to!

 That’s just the planning phase, then there’s the construction phase. Flowers for weddings usually take our team four days of intensive preparation. Flowers and foliage are prepped, pinned, buttonholed, wired, etc. Bouquets are created, vases filled and intricate floral arrangements built. Cake flowers are delivered to the bakery.

 On the wedding day, bouquets, buttonholes and corsages are delivered.

 We’re up at 5am transporting flowers and installing arrangements at the wedding ceremony venue and then going on to the reception venue. I nearly always need at least one to four staff members to build the arbour flowers on the spot, and they need strength to work above their heads, up ladders, and kneeling on the ground for an hour or more.

 Half of our venues are outdoors: forest, beaches, vineyards, wherever the bride wants to marry. The challenges we need to overcome include rain, high winds, and extreme heat. It often comes down to improvising on the day, and then being prepared to improvise again.

 We’re often staying till the ceremony is over, and me and my staff are the ones reinforcing the arbour and holding umbrellas over the floral pillars.

 I’m the one whizzing over to fix the flower girl’s bouquet because she destroyed it doing a cartwheel and now she’s very upset. Or going back to the groom’s house because someone sat on a buttonhole and we need to construct a new one.

 Brides need a perfect wedding day and I want to work very hard to give them this — no matter what’s required to get the job done.

 This is all very different from putting together a $60 ‘happy birthday’ bouquet in 10 minutes.

 So the cost needs to reflect this effort — otherwise I can’t afford to stay in business.

I get it right on the day, and I spend the countless hours before that setting it up to be right — and to be perfect. So I, and other suppliers, do our very best for you.

That’s why weddings flowers do cost more — you’re paying for the work and for the worth. And it’s worth it!

 Thanks for taking the time to read this, hope you have a fab day!

 Kate