Local florists increase sales this weekend
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Valentine’s Day orders at the Ivy Green in Washington were up 25% to 35% as of Friday morning, according to the shop’s owner Melissa Mega.
The Ivy Green in Washington is delivering several types of Valentine’s Day bouquets this year.
Local flower shops stayed busy this weekend with Valentine’s Day bouquets being home-delivered this year.
Melissa Mega, owner of The Ivy Green in Washington, said Friday morning that their orders were already up by 25 to 35%.
“A lot of times, prior to the pandemic, the holiday was usually a one-day thing,” she said. “This year, it’s spread out over the whole weekend.”
Mega said they’ve been delivering flowers to people’s homes this year instead of offices or workplaces, as so many are working from home. She said folks who usually go out to eat to celebrate Valentine’s Day might not feel comfortable doing that this year, and flowers are a nice alternative.
“Valentine’s Day is a big delivery day,” she said. “We have lots of arrangements to moms and daughters. I think the spending average is up this year because people are adding on chocolates and strawberries to their orders.”
Megan McFarland owns Fragile Paradise at The Shoppes at Quail Acres. She’s a wedding and events florist, but when the pandemic began, she had to “switch gears,” she said, as many events and weddings were postponed or canceled.
“I was fortunate that in the spring, when weddings could happen, they still proceeded, just on a smaller scale,” McFarland said. “Most of my brides that were planning a 200- or 300-guest wedding decided to keep the same floral budget and really decorate.”
She started marketing her business for other things like bouquet deliveries and gifts for holidays like Easter and Mother’s Day. She also sponsored an ad for Valentine’s Day. Some of the couples who hired McFarland for their wedding flowers have reached out for Valentine’s Day, she said.
“People started calling, and it just worked out naturally,” McFarland said. “I’ve gotten more Valentine’s Day orders than I normally do. Everyone wants to support a small business as well.”
By Thursday, her Valentine’s Day orders had doubled from what they were last year.
“It’s a man holiday, and they are very last minute,” she said. “I’d say a majority of the orders will come in Saturday afternoon.”
Larry Jones, owner of Washington Square Flower Shop, also suspects many of his Valentine’s Day sales will occur Saturday and Sunday. He said he probably won’t know if business was increased this year until Sunday.
“We were affected with the other holidays,” Jones said. “We did more business for Easter and Mother’s Day because of the pandemic. Valentine’s Day is a very strong holiday on my end. People are sending flowers more than anything else.”