If Your Loved One is In The Hospital, Order Your Flowers Direct

One of my loved ones is having surgery at Florida Baptist Hospital in Plant City, FL today. Every time, I always use a local florist called Creative Flowers by Glenn. They always do such a great job. I call them up on their local number (813) 754-7449 instead of their 1-800 number. And there is a specific reason I do that!

I know from working as a florist in a floral shop that if you order through 1-800 Flowers or from the florist's website, often a big company takes a fee from the small shop.

And there are many benefits for me, too:

1. I can choose a floral shop that's closest by looking at the map, which means they can probably get the flowers there faster without a bunch of fees
2. By calling them directly, I get to hear Glenn's cute raspy voice and make a specific request like a type of flower rather than going with one of the cookie-cutter designs
3. It matters to me that I support the small businesses rather than the major chains
4. I connect directly with a human about a purchase that matters to me
5. I can request a certain price point, and ask that they do their best to work within that. And because the florist keeps a bigger % of the sale they can pass a little savings on to me as well 

So I hope you'll keep this in mind next time you're looking to buy flowers. Support the local floral shops! Long live your flowers!