- Roses are red, violets are blue, and with Valentine’s day ahead, flower shopping is in full bloom.
- Despite the cheesy poem, florists around Bakersfield share how this floral tradition flourishes.
- 23ABC neighborhood reporter Avery Elowitt met with local florists, who shared how they prepare for the big day.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
It’s time to wake up and smell the roses– as flower shops prepare for the big day.
“Over the years, as it gets closer to Valentine’s Day, people wait till the last minute, later and later I find each year,” said Melanie Johns, owner of Dearly Beloved Floral and Gifts, who has been in the floral industry for more than 13 years. But in August of 2024, she opened up her own flower shop.
Now, she prepares for the store’s first Valentine’s Day.
“We’ve had a nice flow of people so far pre-ordering. We have had incentives, so it’s like, you get 10% off if you order before the fifth or you order at least a week before Valentine’s Day. So we have quite a few orders already, which is really nice,” said Johns. “There’s only three of us, but we’re doing it.”
While Dearly Beloved Floral and Gifts prepares for its first Valentine’s Day, another shop in town reflects on their day one– opening their doors on the holiday, nearly 17 years ago.
“That Valentine’s Day was a shot in the dark. Valentine’s Day just in general is a very last minute holiday, and not having a lot of numbers and experience to go off of,” said Amanda Klawitter, co-owner of House of Flowers.
She says over time, the shop has found its own rhythm when it comes to the Valentine’s Day rush, adding that this year is on track to beat the amount of pre-order sales from last year.
“... I would say we’ve got at least 40 right now,” said Klawitter. “Usually the day of, the day after, between those two days, we get up into the hundreds. So it’ll be over 200 deliveries for the day.”
Back at Dearly Beloved Floral and Gifts, Johns is in a similar position, nearing 50 pre-orders so far.
A common concern both stores run into when it comes to Valentine’s Day shopping is spending a lot of money on a big bouquet.
But both shops say that they strive to keep flowers affordable, offering arrangements in different price ranges.
“Valentine’s Day a lot of times has a bad rap for being a very expensive holiday, but we’ve taken very special and intentional efforts to make sure that you can come in and you can literally purchase a small plant,” said Klawitter. “... Just a small sentiment can be really effective and intentional.”
Johns said, “Whether it’s $5, $10, $300, I wanna be able to help them celebrate the love of their life.”
In case you're still looking for some last minute flowers, here are the links to both flower shops:
Dearly Beloved Floral and Gifts
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