Real Flower Business

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December 13, 2018 By Alison Ellis Leave a Comment

Jumpstart Your Business Plan

I travelled to Providence, Rhode Island over the weekend for a speaking engagement at The Floral Reserve and if I had to sum up the experience in 1 word it would be “fantastic”.

It’s so much fun to teach in-person and I was gifted with an incredible group of floral pros in the audience. Every single person in attendance was eager to learn and ready to “do work”…which is my favorite combination in a floral audience.

There were 29 florists who grabbed a seat in the seminar and we talked about planning for success in your business, pricing for profitability, and I answered as many questions as I possibly could in the time we had together…but what I’m most proud of is the fact that every florist went home with business plans in writing that they can put in motion right away.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Getting ready for my live chat today at @thefloralreserve ❤️

A post shared by Alison Ellis (@realflowerbusiness) on Dec 9, 2018 at 10:28am PST


If you want to put a business plan into motion for 2019, but you missed out on my live seminar, there’s one last chance to do some business planning with me before the end of the year!

Click HERE to get my Business Planning Basics Guide and JOIN ME LIVE on Dec. 20th at noon EST in a private Facebook group for extra support so that you can get your business on the right foot for your upcoming success!

You can Join the Business Jumpstart for just $20 and you’ll get immediate access to my 8-page Business Planning Basics pdf plus an invitation to JOIN ME LIVE on Dec. 20th at noon EST in a private Facebook group for paid members only. You must sign up before 11am EST on Dec. 20th to take advantage of this offer!

A replay will be made available after the livestream if you cannot join me live on Thursday, Dec. 20th.


Questions for me? Drop me a line @ floralartvt@gmail.com

Every course I create is designed to help move your business forward so you can keep doing beautiful work!

With love from me to you,

Alison

Filed Under: Building A Brand, Floral Industry, Flower Blog, Flower Business, Home-Studio Florists, Online Business Education for Florists
Tagged With: branding, Business Plan For Florists, floral business, floral design, floral industry, floralpreneur, florist pricing, florists, Flower Blog, real flower business

November 29, 2018 By Alison Ellis 1 Comment

4 Actions To Grow Your Business

You’re officially approaching the end of the business year and while the year may be over, this work on your path to a profitable business must continue.

So to support you on that path, I thought it would be helpful for me to lay out the focused steps I teach florists to grow a profitable floral design business.

Because the truth is, the biggest problem for most entrepreneurs is they simply don’t know exactly what action steps to focus on to grow their cash flow and scale their business with less effort.

Real Flower Business Courses For Florists

Growing a sustainable business really comes down to 4 focused action steps:

Step #1 – Price For Profit

This is the process of following industry standard markups, applying a design fee, charging for delivery & set-up, and generally just feeling good about your profit margins.

Once you’re at a place where you don’t need to worry about how much money you’re making on each sale, you start shifting to “how you can make more money with less effort.”

No matter where you are at in business, whether working from a home-studio or a brick & mortar shop, I always suggest you follow the Flower Math formulas for pricing to ensure profitability…(in fact, you can learn more about my Flower Math technique right here!).

Step #2 – Establish Your Value

Following Flower Math formulas will help you increase your income, however you must also think about the long term sustainability of the business.

That’s where building a reputable brand comes into play. The value you provide to your clients is what your brand is all about. Trustworthy and reliable is what an integrity brand is all about….(This is the real reason people choose you over other florists in your area!)

Step #3 – Monetize Your Brand

Then, once you’ve built a trustworthy brand, it’s time to tap into it to generate some more cash flow by charging premium prices for the level of service and overall experience you provide.

And truthfully, this is as simple as consistently creating beautiful floral designs and providing outstanding customer service experiences so that you develop a sought-after business!

You rinse and repeat these 3 steps over and over again until you have your cash flow where you want it to be…where it is more consistent & reliable.

Step #4 – Scale Your Business

This step is focused on the 3 key areas that allow for you to expand your income without expanding your workload. This is the stage when you MUST ditch the hustle-mentality and start thinking and working SMARTER.

These 3 key areas are: Clear Offers, Authenticity Marketing, and Streamlined Systems.

With these 3 things in place, you will be able to welcome in qualified new clients…and eliminate price shoppers….because clients already understand what you do and trust your brand so that all you need to do is lead them through the process.

These truly are 4 CRITICAL focused action steps you need to grow and scale your business. Work smarter, not harder as you grow.

Hopefully that makes your next steps clear and if you have any questions, please let me know…

To ask me a question or drop me a line e-mail:  info@floralartvt.com

xo. -Alison

P.S. The Flower Math course I mentioned in Step #1 is an easy to follow technique that is making me and my students a lot of money on every order…simply by applying the Flower Math formulas…and there’s no technology required….other than your computer and a calculator.

By following Flower Math…

  • I make a consistent 70% profit margin (or more!) on the cost of flowers & supplies.
  • My clients tell me they make more money on every order they place.
  • Susan made back the purchase of the course in just 1 wedding and said, “I can make a career out of this (and not only be a hobby florist!)”.
  • My client in England said, “I’m not a natural with maths and found it very helpful and easy to understand. I spent £2,000 on a recognised floristry course and am annoyed that they did not cover this amount of detail!!”
  • Canadian designer, Larissa, told me she was happy that she “had to pay taxes for the first time” because she turned a profit in her business after taking Flower Math!
  • Heather signed up in mid-November and she said, “I actually felt the light bulb come on in my head.”

In fact, on average the floralpreneurs who follow the techniques I teach are making more money and feeling more confident on the very first order they quote.

So, if you want to get in the loop on exactly how they work, then click here to learn more and SAVE $100 Off Flower Math Today!

With love from me to you,

Alison

Filed Under: Floral Design, Floral Industry, Flower Blog, Flower Business, Flower Math, Home-Studio Florists, Online Business Education for Florists, Pricing
Tagged With: floral business, floral industry, floralpreneur, florist pricing, floristry, florists, Flower Blog, Flower Math, real flower business

November 9, 2018 By Alison Ellis Leave a Comment

Join me Live at The Floral Reserve

I’m doing some end of year business planning live and in person at The Floral Reserve in Providence, Rhode Island on December 9th,….do you want to meet me there?

In honor of their 1 year anniversary, The Floral Reserve invited me to present an educational seminar for their wholesale customers and fellow florists as part of their end-of-year celebration and I am so honored and excited to be a part of it! There’s room for up to 45 floralpreneurs so space is limited!

And after the educational portion of our day, you’re invited to the Flowers By Semia studio for a meal catered by Gracie’s restaurant. You will be treated to a lavish tablescape and candlelit room for dinner, as a thank you for an amazing first year of business at The Floral Reserve. (I will also be joining you for dinner, of course!) Limited to 25 attendees.

You can click HERE for details to register to join me and reserve your seat today!


education for florists, floral education

I will lead two 45 minute presentations with breaks for questions in between, from 3pm-5pm on Sunday, December 9th.

The first will be a discussion on the on the basics of business planning so that you can update your business plan and grow your brand. You’ll have access to the slides from this presentation afterwards for future reference as well.

The second presentation will be on Pricing and Profitability and attendees will get a special discount on my online pricing course, Flower Math, if you’d like to dive deeper into the pricing lessons.


From The Floral Reserve:

“While there is always room to improve and grow in your designs, growing your business is just as important. On December 9th, we are so excited to invite our friends in the floral design community to something truly special. We will be hosting the lovely Alison Ellis of Real Flower Business at The Floral Reserve, a floral designer and business guru, as she shares her knowledge to educate and empower fellow “floralpreneurs” to achieve their business goals and build long-lasting brands….read more here.

Keep doing beautiful work!

xo. -Alison

Filed Under: Floral Design, Floral Industry, Flower Blog, Flower Business, Marketing, Online Business Education for Florists
Tagged With: floral business, floral design, floral industry, floralpreneur, florist pricing, real flower business

August 15, 2018 By Alison Ellis Leave a Comment

Sample Preview Of Flower Math

I’ve just updated the free sample preview of my Flower Math course.

You can click HERE to sign up for a free sneak peek at what’s included inside the course.

If you’re not sure if Flower Math is right for you, then this free preview is the perfect first step.

Click HERE to get a look at the course now!

xo. -Alison


Pricing & profit margins are not a mystery.

The goal is to make 70% profit on the cost of flowers & supplies….the rest of your COGS will come out of that 70% profit.


Pro Tip: Do you calculate your profits on flowers and supplies? If not, why not start now? It’s easy.

Here’s how it’s done:

Remember: Your additional COGs (the cost of doing business!) will come out of that 70% profit on flowers & supplies.

Check out a FREE PREVIEW of Flower Math here.


You’ll love Flower Math if you…

0.1  Have a talent for design, but don’t have a firm grasp on the business-side.

0.2  Make a profit that’s less than 70% on the cost of flowers & supplies.

0.3  Don’t charge a design fee (or labor fee) on each arrangement.

0.4  Wonder if you can give up your day-job (or bridge-job).

0.5  Overfill orders and struggle with feeling guilty about charging for your time.

0.6  Need help with floral recipes. (I share 20+ real recipes that you can easily use, copy or adapt!)

0.7  Are a home-based florist who’s never worked in a profitable flower shop.

0.8  You’re a flower farmer who’s expanding to offer wedding and event work.

0.9  Don’t feel 100% confident when you send a quote.

It’s easy to get started. Click here to enroll in Flower Math today.


Flower Math is the florist’s roadmap to profit clarity.

I’ll teach you how to make more money & quit over-buying. 


Satisfaction Guarantee: I am certain you will love my course, but if you don’t, I’ll give you a full refund and you can keep the downloadable pdfs included in the course (including the bonus with my list of starting prices!)

To request a refund just shoot me an e-mail and we’ll set up a time to chat so you can tell me why Flower Math didn’t work for you.

Remember: I’m happy to answer any questions you may have along the way.

You can contact me with questions at any time before, during or after taking a course.

Have a question for me? Don’t hesitate to be in touch! floralartvt@gmail.com


Filed Under: Floral Design, Floral Industry, Flower Blog, Flower Business, Flower Math, Pricing
Tagged With: floraculture, floral business, floral design, floral industry, florist pricing, Flower Blog, Flower Math

August 7, 2018 By Alison Ellis Leave a Comment

Master Your Pricing Series on Botanical Brouhaha

Hey Floralpreneur®! Have you seen my Master Your Pricing Series on BotanicalBrouhaha.com?

florist pricing, Flower Math, courses for florists

It’s a 4-part series I created to help you push through some pricing obstacles and actually get results! These are pricing changes and adjustments you can easily make in your business so I hope you’ll make some time to check them out.


You can catch up on all 4 parts below:

Part 1: Pricing on the spot. botanicalbrouhaha.com/master-pricing-pricing-spot

Part 2: Set a minimum. botanicalbrouhaha.com/master-pricing-set-minimum

Part 3: Stay in the driver’s seat. botanicalbrouhaha.com/master-pricing-stay-drivers-seat

Part 4: Give yourself a raise. botanicalbrouhaha.com/master-pricing-give-raise

It’s been a joy and an honor to share my Real Flower Business stuff with the Botanical Brouhaha readers. Thanks so much to Amy McGee for allowing me to guest post on her incredibly beautiful and inspiring corner of the internet. 

With love from me to you,

Alison

P.S. Have you checked out the Botanical Brouhaha Podcast yet? Click HERE for a link to an episode I sponsored! You’ll be glad to made the time to listen.


More Pricing Resources:

  • Click to watch: 3 Pricing Tips (a live chat from my Facebook group.)
  • Flower Math: The Florist’s Guide to Pricing & Profitability (the 1st online pricing course for florists; Save $100 Off Today.)

 

Filed Under: Floral Design, Floral Industry, Flower Blog, Flower Business, Flower Math, Home-Studio Florists, Online Business Education for Florists, Pricing
Tagged With: Alison Ellis, blogging, floral business, floral design, floral industry, floralpreneur, florist pricing, floristry, florists, Flower Blog, Home-Based Florists, real flower business

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Welcome, floralpreneur®. I’m Alison Ellis. I teach floral designers how to increase profits, book better gigs, type fewer emails & build awesome websites. I’m a featured business contributor in Florists’ Review Magazine, Flirty Fleurs, Mornings With Mayesh, and Botanical Brouhaha. Learn more about me here! Learn More →

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#4.  4 Actions That Grow A Business

#5.  5 Actions To Take When Biz Is Uncertain

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