Relax! This isn’t a post about a national franchise notorious for bashing flowers in its advertising.
I’m focusing instead on a sweet subject.
Cupcakes!
Twice this week, florists in my Facebook newsfeed have posted photos that very nearly made me abandon my diet and drive to the bakery down the street. Instead, I closed my browser window to avoid the tempting photos and emailed the florists to learn how and why they sell sugary snacks in the shop.
Tiger Lily in Charleston, South Carolina, recently added assorted boxes of cupcakes to its offerings.
“One of our designers started a bakery in home and makes fabulous treats,” said owner Clara Gonzales. “She keeps them in our cooler in an air tight container and rotates them out weekly.”
The shop is starting with a low inventory (5 boxes). The designer charges $14 a box, and the shop sells them for $17.50. “It’s not a huge markup, but it’s a little additional revenue and we like supporting a staff member in her new endeavor,” Gonzales says. So far, it seems Charlestonians share my affection for desserts and appreciate the edible add-on option.
In Princeton, N.J., Georgianne Vinicombe of Monday Morning Flowers and Balloon Company partners with a local bakery, House of Cupcakes, to provide cupcakes as an add-on gift with her customers.
“They were winners of the Food Network’s Cupcake Wars, so they’re well known,” she says. Vinicombe orders them from the bakery, picks them up, and repackages them.
“We sell a few boxes each week,” she says, adding it’s an additional service that resonates with customers “and a nice way of cross-marketing with a well-known company.”
Do your shop sell snacks? Fill us in with the details!