Episode 10: Interview with Tom Bowling: Trends to expect for 2020, Permanent Botanicals
What makes a customer stop and reach for a design? According to Tom Bowling AIFD, PFCI, it isn't the flowers or even the style — it's the color. In this episode, Vonda sits down with Tom, a past president of the American Institute of Floral Designers and a longtime collaborator on everything from vendor expos to the Oscars, to talk about the trends heading for flower shops in 2020 — and how to make them work in your market, not just on a forecast board.
Color comes first
Tom's starting point is simple: shoppers react to color before they react to design style or a particular flower. Men especially gravitate to color when they're buying for someone else — they may not know design, but they know "she loves blue." And blue is exactly where 2020 is headed. With Pantone naming a blue as color of the year, Tom sees the whole family — pale blues, medium blues, navies — showing up everywhere, helped along by an election year, when people crave colors that feel safe and calming.
The good news for buyers: blue plays well with almost everything. Pair it with orange for something dynamic, with yellows for a Provence feel, or with dark reds and maroons as the rich, royal "jewel tone" palette cycles back around. And that's the other insight Tom shares — color combinations revive faster than ever. What feels like a rerun to a 40-year veteran is brand new to a younger customer seeing it for the first time.
Texture, organic looks, and the return of macrame
Beyond blue, Tom points to the softer side of the palette — the sandy, muddier tones like the Sahara rose that dominate the wedding and event world, where texture matters more than strong color. Texture is everywhere right now: fringe on pillows, accessories on purses, and permanent botanicals designed to look gathered, organic, and brought in from outdoors.
Working with Pioneer Imports and Wholesale on their catalog and video education, Tom shot many of the new settings outside for exactly that reason — permanent botanicals imitate nature, so they should look like the outside coming into the home. He and Vonda share a laugh about the macrame and terrarium revival ("that was so seventies"), but the point stands: millennials are embracing greenery-only styling and handcrafted looks, and stores like Pottery Barn are proof it's mainstream.
Trends are a menu, not a mandate
Tom is candid about the hardest part of trend-buying from his 20 years in retail: taking yourself out of the equation. Going to market isn't about what you like — it's about what your customers will embrace. He treats catalogs like a restaurant menu: not every dish is for you, but there's something there for your client base.
He also pushes back on the old assumption that trends never reach smaller markets. Social media has made the world smaller — your customers in the Midwest see the same colors and forms as everyone else, so a shop stocked with yesterday's look reads as "old school." His practical advice: take field trips to Target and Pier 1, whose trend budgets dwarf ours, then wave the flag on social media — "look what we have, I just got back from market." Better yet, invite customer feedback on new colors so your clients feel like contributors, not just buyers.
Education is what keeps us alive
A former school teacher, Tom brings a teacher's mindset to everything — including the design videos he creates. His philosophy isn't duplication; it's internalization. He taught himself to design by studying photographs of other designers' work, always asking: what did I learn, and could I explain it if no one were standing here? He wants students to take a technique, personalize it, and know why every stem is contributing to the result.
That mindset explains his answer to what he loves most about the business after 41 years: the endless opportunity to grow. He started stuffing evergreen into Nutcracker bowls as holiday help, and today he's developing products, judging the Rose Parade, and recently collaborating on a large wedding with his youngest daughter, who is building her own floral career. "She was teaching me too," he says.
Key takeaways
- Lead with color — it's the first thing customers respond to, and blue in all its shades is the palette to watch for 2020.
- Buy for your customers, not yourself. Treat trend forecasts like a menu and choose what your client base will embrace.
- Your customers see global trends on social media even if your town "never gets them" — a trend-forward shop signals expertise.
- Field-trip the big retailers like Target and Pier 1 for free trend research, then promote your finds and ask customers for feedback.
- When shops do the same thing they did decades ago, customers quietly shop elsewhere — treat that as a wake-up call and an opportunity to grow.
Sponsored by:
Flower Clique
Flower Clique Prep School
Real Life Retail Florist