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The Expo Keynote
P. Allen Smith will offer strategies for encouraging repeat purchases.
    by Cynthia L. McGowan

     Just about everybody loves flowers, P. Allen Smith points out. But that love of flowers doesn’t mean they are buying them regularly, a challenge that the garden design expert, author and television host will address in his keynote speech at this year’s International Floriculture Expo, June 22-25, in Miami Beach, Fla.

     “I don’t know that I’ve ever met anyone who doesn’t love flowers, but we have to ask, ‘Why don’t they have them in their lives on a daily basis, and what gets in the way of that?’” says Mr. Smith, who is the host of the public television program P. Allen Smith’s Garden Home and the syndicated show P. Allen Smith Gardens. His keynote, “Do You Really Know Your Customer? Consumer Trends in the Market Place,” will offer insights into the barriers that keep people from purchasing flowers regularly, as well as solutions.

 listening to customers
      Mr. Smith says the floriculture industry must listen to its customers—who are mostly women—and offer products that are relevant to their time-pressed lives. “It’s got to be convenient, it’s got to be stylish and she’s got to be wowed by it,” he comments.

     Retailers, whether grocery store floral departments, traditional retail florists or Internet companies, play a crucial role in cultivating those everyday purchases, Mr. Smith reminds. Merchandising with presentation, accessibility and that wow factor in mind will determine whether customers take home floral products.

     Flower marketers also should seek to establish an emotional connection with customers. “Our messaging, whether it’s verbal, print or visual, has to be evocative,” Mr. Smith urges. “We have to strike the emotional chord of the customers,” and make them realize they must have the products in their homes.

     He adds that to fuel repeat purchases, the products must last and be hassle free. Such positive experiences will spur customers to buy flowers for themselves and not just for special occasions.

 a team effort
      The industry as a whole must work together to raise awareness among Americans about flowers and their benefits, Mr. Smith emphasizes. “If we can instruct and inform and inspire, we’re going to find more of what we do becoming a part of their lives on a daily basis.”

     After the keynote, Mr. Smith will sign copies of his newest book, Bringing the Garden Indoors. He also will be available to meet with show attendees at his company’s booth, No. 526. “We’ll have a lot of the products we’ve developed,” Mr. Smith says. “We’d love for people to come by.”

For details about attending The International Floriculture Expo, please go to www.floriexpo.com.

 
 

keynote breakfast

  
 


Presenter: P. Allen Smith, garden and lifestyle designer, author and television host
 When: 7 a.m. Thursday, June 24
 

  
  guide to Miami Beach  
 

While at the show, pick up a copy of Welcome to Miami Beach, published by Super Floral Retailing, at our booth, No. 507, or at the show’s information desk. It has information on nearby restaurants and entertainment venues in Miami Beach.

  
  we'll see you at the show  
 

Super Floral Retailing staff will take part in the Keynote Breakfast and the exhibition at the International Floriculture Expo:

 Wednesday through Friday,
June 23-25
 Please stop by the Super Floral Retailing booth, No. 507. Share ideas, visit with magazine staff and take a look at the extensive selection of publications in the Florists’ Review Enterprises, Inc. Bookstore.

 THURSDAY, June 24
 At 7 a.m., during the Keynote Breakfast, representatives from Super Floral Retailing and Börgen Systems will announce the winners of the 2010 “Merchandising Award of Excellence” contest.

  
  key facts  
 

WHAT International Floriculture Expo
 WHEN June 22-25
 WHERE Miami Beach Convention Center Miami Beach, Fla.
 INFORMATION Visit www.floriexpo.com, or call (207) 842-5424

  

Reach Editor in Chief Cynthia L. McGowan at cmcgowan@superfloralretailing.com
or (800) 355-8086.

Photos courtesy of the International Floriculture Expo.
 

Super Floral Retailing •• Copyright 2010
Florists' Review Enterprises, Inc.