Flower Clique's Summer of Petals, Plans & Productivity
Mother's Day is in the rearview, summer is wide open, and Vonda and Lori have a lot to cover: a surprisingly encouraging holiday recap, a candid rant about whether our technology is quietly making us dumber, and a summer calendar so packed it's going to require an uncharacteristic amount of Diet Coke. Special guest Ralph Giordano — the Flower Clique member other members call their favorite — jumps on with nine minutes' notice to preview the Florida State Florists' Association Convention.
Mother's Day recap: the pre-calling payoff
The monthly Shop Talk brought good news: most shops had a solid Mother's Day, and many were pleasantly surprised after bracing for a down year. Some were flat — up around 3% — and a slow start early in the week had plenty of owners nervous before Thursday and Friday kicked in. But the standout pattern was the shops that finally took the advice Vonda gives every single year: pre-calling customers before the holiday. Those shops were over the moon with what they booked, and the wins helped production and delivery planning too. One smaller shop's newer employee volunteered for the job and made 250 calls on her own. Every year, more shops try it and discover how easy it is.
Are we choosing to get dumber?
Then Lori airs what's been bothering her — prompted by an article she read (a real one, not TikTok, she swears): by choice, we're outsourcing our brains. Exhibit A: she tapped a "your prescription is ready" text, followed Google Maps without a second thought, and confidently walked into the wrong CVS four miles from the right one — because she trusted the button instead of reading the address with her own brain, the way the atlas-and-MapQuest generation used to. Exhibit B: ChatGPT. As a former reading and language arts teacher, Lori now assumes half the emails and posts she reads weren't written by the person sending them — and catches herself second-guessing her own writing, wondering if she should run it through AI first. Vonda relates: even email now pokes at you with that little "want us to rewrite this?" pencil. The hosts aren't anti-tool — Lori uses ChatGPT daily — but the point stands: it's okay to sound like a human, errors and all. They also worry downstream: do kids still learn to read a map? (Vonda's quizzing her granddaughters.) And for teachers battling AI-written assignments, Vonda floats a fix — have students present their findings on video, where borrowed words don't flow like your own. Lori's youngest just had exactly that option for a college final.
Ralph Giordano on the Florida State convention
First stop on the summer tour: the Florida State Florists' Association Convention, June 6–8 at Margaritaville in Orlando — beachy chic instead of black tie (Ralph's planning a tan linen suit), a lazy river, and a jam-packed schedule of stage presentations, breakout sessions, and hands-on classes, including a bonus hands-on session before the convention even opens. Two details florists should steal from FSFA's playbook: the schedule is built so nothing overlaps, so attendees can see everything, and hands-on classes are included in registration at no extra fee. Ralph's advice for first-timers is some of the best in the episode: go open-minded. Much of what's on stage isn't retail-friendly in most markets, but the techniques, styles, and color combinations absolutely are — go in thinking "I could never sell that" and you'll miss the education entirely. And do the hands-on classes, especially if, like Ralph, you learn by doing rather than watching. The convention is open to anyone from any state (or country — Florida State has international members), membership is just $100 a year, and the "heavy hitters" on the roster — Ian Prosser and his daughter Zoe, Deborah De La Fleur, Jackie Lacey — are famously approachable teachers. Modeled on AIFD Symposium at a smaller scale, it's a taste of the big leagues.
The rest of the summer lineup
The calendar barely pauses from there. June 4 brings a Flower Clique webinar on profitability and pricing, with Vonda designing live (the link went out in the newsletter). Mid-June is the week-long photo shoot in Des Moines with Vonda, Lori, Ellie, Julie, and Tim Farrell — shaped in part by a member survey on colors and product gaps. June 27–29 is the Texas Floral Expo in League City, where Vonda and Lori present their business session, "Service and Synergy." July 9 is a customer service and sales webinar giving away secrets from Sales Prep School 2.0. July 10–16, Vonda heads to AIFD Symposium in Palm Springs, with Ellie joining for the expo days. And August 11–14 is the SAF Convention, where Vonda and Tim Farrell present on sympathy design. The closing charge applies to every florist: sign up for something this summer — educate yourself, motivate yourself, and be prepared for what's coming next.
Key takeaways
- Pre-calling customers before Mother's Day works — the shops that finally tried it booked big and smoothed production and delivery.
- Don't outsource your brain to the button: double-check the map, and let your emails sound like a human wrote them.
- At conventions, go open-minded — stage designs may not be sellable in your market, but the techniques and color ideas are.
- Prioritize hands-on classes when they're offered; doing beats watching for most working florists.
- Put at least one educational event or webinar on your summer calendar — state conventions are affordable, friendly, and open to everyone.