How To Start A Flower Business In India? [Step-by-Step Guide]
Table of Contents:
2. Things To Do Before Opening A Flower Business
FAQs On How To Start A Flower Business
1. Flower Business In India
When was the last time you ordered a spectacular bouquet of roses to let the love of your life know that you have been thinking about her? Few things in life pack as much visual punch as florals. If you have a passion for art, creativity, and floral design, starting a florist shop just might be the right small business idea you have been looking for.
A florist shop sells flower arrangements, plants, even gifts. It is one of the few retail stores that you can also open in your home. It will not require a heavy capital investment, to begin with.
There is a wide scope of floral business in India due to the rising demand for flowers. But starting and operating a profitable florist shop is tough, and many people are not fully prepared for that reality. In this article, we will guide you on how to start a business in flowers.
2. Things To Do Before Opening A Flower Business
Check out the following steps before exploring all the Flower Business Ideas:
1- Volunteer to work in a flower shop
If you work at a flower shop before starting your own, you will get to know the business and design part of the business. To become a successful florist, you have to learn things like arranging flowers and how a florist shop operates. Look for a shop far enough from where you plan to open, so you are not a threat to their business. Network with people in the floral industry. This will be a great opportunity to learn from their successes and failures and get advice on what you should be focussing on. You can also attend a horticultural trade fair where you will get to meet vendors dealing with flowers.
2- Develop a business plan
The first step before you start a business is to develop a plan. Write down your business plan on paper to get the ideas out of your head. There are free and paid business plan templates online. Or, you can take the help of any non-profit organisation that offers free mentoring for small businesses. You can share the plan with your friends who can check whether there are any flaws in it.
Check whether the shop would be financially viable. Do some research about the location where to set up the store. It should be spaced out from other competitors as much as possible. Find out how you would do the delivery within a specific area. Flower shops tend to be very busy during special days like Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. You need a plan to get temporary people who can help when things get too busy. You can ask your family or friends to help you out on these extra-busy days.
3- Decide on a name
Decide on a suitable name for your florist shop. For example, if your flowers are organically and sustainably grown, an appropriate name could be “ABC Sustainable Florist”.
4- Educate yourself
Florists not only love working with flowers but should also have a keen eye for detail. Educate yourself on the floristry business, efficient production, and inventory management before you get started. Learn how to care for flowers.
5- Do you have good interpersonal skills?
Running a florist shop means running a retail store-you have to deal with customers. Good communication and people skills are necessary for this role. Remember, people when they come to you for wedding requirements or a funeral are often stressed out-you have to handle them tactfully.
6- Find a niche
Competition between florists is fierce. To stand out from hundreds of other florist shops, you need to have a special small business idea. It can be your amazing customer service or the quality of your flowers. Don’t let low price be your only USP. It will be a race to the bottom, and someone can always undercut you. Target a niche for your florist shop. For instance, you can decide to specialise in events, weddings, or gifts.
7- Choose your business model
As a florist, you can choose three types of business model-a retail shop, a home outlet, or a designer studio. As a floral designer, you will have to activate a place by creating a theme through floral arches or floral chandeliers.
8- Plan your budget
Floral service costs vary widely and depend on the seasonality of the flowers. Off-season blooms will cost more, as will certain special displays. Find out about the costs involved in procuring flowers. You might have to buy a cooling chamber to keep the flowers fresh. Other accessories that you might need are vases, ribbons, pruning equipment, etc. Running a florist shop is not always a bed of roses. Margins can be less on certain flowers. Since flowers are perishable, those getting spoilt will mean a financial loss. To finance your shop, you can either spend from your savings or take out a small business loan.
9- Get A License
You will need to get a sales license and registration for your flower shop, just like any other business. A GST license is also mandatory.
10- Manage Inventories for Flower Business
You can purchase fresh flowers from local farmers or wholesalers. Flowers are perishable and their lifespan is short. Once they start to go bad, they are not saleable, and you won’t get your money back. Make a plan for managing inventory and balancing the need to order for big events, but also not have too much leftover to spoil.
11- Get your Flower Business marketing plan in order
Think, why are people going to buy from you? What will make your shop better than the other shops in your locality? How are people going to find you? Many new store owners don’t want to budget much money to advertise and expect the sign on the store-front to be enough to draw in customers. But, those days are gone. If you want to draw good business, you must undertake some promotion on social media. Start talking with a digital marketing company to find the options and costs. You can run special promos around events like Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day. If you are offering some special prices, announce it on Facebook or Twitter.
Instagram has significantly changed the flower industry. It is a great marketing tool and you can show pictures of your best work here. For example, if you have done some weddings, show the full gallery here.
12- Work Your Connections For Flower Business Ideas
Do you have connections with wedding planners or wedding-related businesses that your competitors don’t? Weddings typically account for nearly 30% of sales for most flower shops. So, if you want a larger sales volume and be more profitable, you have to connect with the right people.
13- Start an Online Flower Business
Like most retail businesses, technology has changed the way people buy flowers. Online-only stores continue to take sales from retail stores. If people can’t find you online, you will be missing out on a considerable amount of online sales. You can create a website for your shop and sell it at discounted rates. Put all your floral products and service-related information on it.
Florals change the environment, and the investment that you make in them will dictate how your customers feel. People buy flowers throughout the year-for anniversaries, birthdays, to funerals. So, if you can scale it up, starting a florist shop will be a most profitable business, and fulfil your dreams.
Also Read:
1) How to Start a Composting Business in Easy Steps?
2) How to start tours & travels business?
3) How to Start a Wine Business? Investment, Tips & More
4) How to Start a Car Repair Shop?
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FAQs On How To Start A Flower Business
Q. Who can be the target market for my flower shop?
Ans. A large portion of your target market can be people who want to buy flowers for gifting. People who are getting married are another prospective group.
Q. How can a florist shop be innovative?
Ans. Being innovative can help you to have an edge over others. It can be in the decoration of your shop, or how you display your flower bouquets.
Q. What can I do to tap into the lucrative wedding market?
Ans. You can place ads in bridal magazines or rent a booth at a bridal exhibition.
Q. What are the usual timings of a florist shop?
Ans. As a florist shop owner, you have to work long hours from early morning to late night. In the morning you have to collect fresh flowers from the market. And, your customers can walk in at any time of the day or night.
Q. I want to start a florist shop at my house. Which part of the house would be ideal for this?
Ans. A garage or a basement floor would be perfect to start a business. But, it should have access to daylight.