One flower shop owner tells her story of how silk flower rentals became the hero of her wedding work. Weddings are indisputably one of the most stressful undertakings for florists. Often working with a client who is not well-versed in flowers and their prices, serving wedding clients takes a great deal of education, communication, and time. While wedding work can create a customer for life, and a high-volume transaction, floral designers struggle to find the right balance with weddings. Investing time and energy comes at a cost. And this customer can be most discerning and stressed. 

That’s why after nearly a decade owning her own shop, Alaina Olive of Olive + Gene of St. Louis, Missouri, began renting silk floral pieces for weddings with immediate success.

“Brides are beyond stressed and this is the way to lessen the stress,” said Alaina. “As a professional, I take on a lot of their stress too, because I want to make their day! Today, we need a way we can all be less stressed and enjoy the beauty of flowers.”

“Nearly every time I meet with a wedding client they are surprised, they have no idea how much goes in to doing fresh flowers, and the process is overwhelming to them,” continued Alaina.

“On top of that, the best answer I can give to a client is ‘I’ll do my best,’ because literal disasters can impact us… fires or a hurricane can wipe out a flower field. Poor transportation can lead to issues when they arrive. There are so many things out of our control, and brides and grooms have a hard time being comfortable with that when it is such a pivotal day and investment.”

“Clients want to know what they are getting – and that’s hard when you’re doing fresh! When I use silk, what they see is what they get, and people really love that.”

In addition to the peace of mind it provides clients, Alaina says the time savings brings peace to the couple -- and herself! Alaina has seen the joy in a bride or groom checking something off the long list of wedding planning needs. 

“They see the options, place their order, tell us if we are delivering or if they have a wedding planner or family member picking them up, and it’s done. It’s off the list. No stress, no worries.”

“There is much less back and forth when I’m renting silk flowers for an event. Because they can physically see it, they understand that’s what they’re going to get.”

Fresh flowers have also become especially stressful to wedding clients recently because of increasing costs.  “I didn’t like breaking the news that fresh flowers cost so much. They are stressed by the price and don’t understand it. I needed a budget-friendly, beautiful option for them.” 

“Even though I have been in this industry for years, my biggest surprise is how pretty silk flowers are,” said Alaina.  “When I took this leap to rent silk, one of my biggest worries was clients being concerned with the stigma of something ‘fake’, but they are so pretty and so real now. At my first photo shoot, my photographer even exclaimed ‘These look real! These look great!’ This outside perspective from someone looking with intense detail was a huge relief.” 

“Honestly, Pioneer is the whole reason I could bring this concept to fruition -- because of the high-quality silk product that’s available.” 

Finally, even if a bride chooses fresh product, and is thrilled with their designs, often wedding days turn bittersweet at the end because they know, and sometimes even see, the flowers being thrown away.

“I didn’t like that clients were sad at the end of their day,” “They poured their hearts into all these details, and would say things to me like, ‘I spent all this money and now it goes away.’ That’s another reason I was motivated to offer silk rentals. Not throwing it away at the end of the night has strong appeal.” 

WANT TO TRY IT? 

Here’s a few tips from Alaina.

1. Photography is key on your website, social,… everything. Clients have to see the beauty of these flowers in a realistic wedding location
2. Mix three different designs of centerpieces. “I recommend this in fresh too,” points out Alaina. Having three styles of centerpieces creates a collective feel and elevates the experience of the rentals. It’s not cookie-cutter from a box, it’s still a curated look and feel.”
3. Start with a few color palettes that can be used alone or blend together. “Our white, pink and green collections can be used alone for a monochromatic look, and also create a cohesive look together.” Don’t try to pre-make silk collections for every style and color out there!”
4. Encourage wedding clients to go all-in on silk. “I don’t do her bouquet fresh if the rest is silk because cohesion is important. I don’t want them looking at their photos later and seeing one is slightly different in color or texture.” 
5. Because doing silk flower rentals isn’t commonplace yet, explain it clearly to your customers.  Alaina sets it up like this:

One:

View each faux collection and select the color tones that best fit your wedding. We have five beautiful options!

Two:

Fill out the order form with all the items you'll want to rent. From there we will make your custom flower proposal.

Three:

It’s official with a signed contract and payment. Everything will be done using our online system. It’s a very easy ordering process!

Four:

Your wedding flowers are sent out the week of your wedding and you will return the following week.

Visit Olive + Gene and Pioneer Imports & Wholesale to see the possibilities!

A Collaboration from Sarah Botchick of Pioneer and Blog Writer Laura Vitale.