So why do wedding flowers seem like they are more expensive than I think they should be? Well, there's a lot more than you think that goes into it. Here's a great article by Snippet & Inc on how to budget for you're bouquet.
1. The Flowers
Let’s start with the most obvious thing: the flowers themselves. For all flowers, there is the cost of labor and resources required to grow and transport them, which can fluctuate based on things like weather and the cost of gas. And of course some flowers are easier to grow and/or transport (in-season sunflowers, for example), while others are more difficult and delicate (say, cattleya orchids).
Just like with fruits and vegetables, seasonality affects both the quality and cost of flowers. If you want peonies at the tail end of the season, they won’t be as full or lush as their peak-season counterparts, so you’ll need more stems to get the same effect. You might be able to get peonies in November, but they have to be shipped from around the world, meaning you pay extra transportation cost.
2. The Florist
Sometimes called a FLORAL DESIGNER, the florist you hire will play a role in what you pay for a bouquet. The more experienced, skilled, and in-demand the florist, the more they may charge for their work.
In addition to their time and talent, and the retail mark-up on materials, florists have overhead expenses you might not expect, and that gets factored into what they charge: rent and utilities (retail space or work space), transportation costs (to and from market, to and from venue), and supplies (tape, foam, tools, buckets), to name a few. And as with everything else, their costs depend on location (overhead will be higher in San Francisco than in Milwaukee), which results in a higher or lower mark-up on their product.
Florists may also have to purchase more flowers than they’ll actually end up using in your bouquet. Even if a bouquet will only include six tulips, the florist might need to buy twice that many to guarantee they have enough stems open the right amount at the right time, and can discard any that are damaged or bruised.
3. The Bouquet
And then there’s the bouquet itself. A large bouquet of tulips will obviously cost more than a smaller bouquet of tulips. If your bouquet includes more delicate flowers that require refrigeration, you may end up paying more. And what about the size of each flower? Garden roses and lily-of-the-valley might cost $10 a stem, but you’ll need far fewer garden roses to make an impact.
Something we see a lot in wedding magazines and blogs is bouquets tied with beautiful ribbon – not something that immediately comes to mind as an expense! Though some brides prefer a simple ribbon wrap, a more elaborate ribbon embellishment will cost more – and that cost goes up depending on the quality of the ribbon, which can run anywhere from $4 to $20 a yard.
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