800 flowers, martha stewart

[David]

I looked at the website and half of the arrangements that are featured as drop ship are in my recipe book as florist designed pieces. I wonder if they had to go to drop ship because of participation problems???

I don't think it was participation but more quality control and profitability. I would think there lfs could have filled more then 9. I don't think many of there everyday shops could. How many of the containers do you have? Perhaps they will add more to florist filled if they don't get compalints. I do think it will be successful for 800.

 

[Chezbloom]

Resnick/Stewart heavy weight champs

Speaking of making other people rich, did anybody read the article in the New Yorker this week about Lynda Resnick owner of Teleflora? I know that TF is a privately owned company and the owners can use the TF membership money to buy whatever other companies they want, yadda yadda yadda, but....its an interesting read and she sort of comes off as a bit of a snake oil saleswoman. And her Liberace style mansion-Oy!
My favorite line of hers was when she said that she revolutionized the floral industry because every single TF floral gift comes in a keepsake vase. Um.....ok

 

[lori042499]

I don't think it was participation but more quality control and profitability. I would think there lfs could have filled more then 9. I don't think many of there everyday shops could. How many of the containers do you have? Perhaps they will add more to florist filled if they don't get compalints. I do think it will be successful for 800.

So far I have 10 but should be getting 2 more types...

 

[Eric S]

So far I have 10 but should be getting 2 more types...

Lori are you really planning on participating?

 

[Eric S]

Let me share something that happened last week.

I come into the shop and I am looking over my orders and I see that we have recieved an incoming order from Teleflora. I was little surprise that my wife let it sneak through so I decided to look into it a little more. How in the world did they get an order for Tustin and sure enough I found that Teleflora Pay Perclick campaign that was just ahead of our campaign with a nice big SAVE $10.00.

After I showed that to linh she realized again that not only was this company marketing directy against us but they just discounted the order and then had us fill it. Thats wrong and we should not of accepted it.

 

[coppercountryflowers]

Resnick TF Owner article from New Yorker

If you want to read the article that Chezbloom referred to regarding TF owner... you can see it at http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/03/31/080331fa_fact_fortini

 

[Kristine]

What??? Was that a synapses of the article or the whole thing. I really thought I was reading an elementary school report.

 

[Chezbloom]

It was a part of the whole report, mostly all about POM Wonderful, Lynda's amazing elixer. Pom has also been in the news because it was almost boycotted by Wholefoods due to all the animal testing. I had to wash my hands after reading the article as they felt kinda greasy afterwords.
They of course did not mention the animal testing bit, I found that after reading an article on the Resnicks about greedy billionaires.

 

[gabndab]

Martha...

I recently signed up for the Martha program too. I received the containers and they look good and we should have no problem selling them. I am not sure when it will officially launch...but, I did notice that at the beginning of our name now it shows MS Bell Tower Florist....which I guess is the distinguishing item to show that we are Martha Stewart qualified. Has anyone received an order from this yet?

 

[BOSS]

I did notice that at the beginning of our name now it shows MS Bell Tower Florist....

Let the RE-Branding begin.....not good...

Where did you see this?

 

[gabndab]

It was streaming across the top of my bloomnet software....usually says the name of my shop and my code and sometimes has a message (right now the message streaming across is about Mothers Day and stocking up) looks like this.....MS BELL TOWER FLORIST X3660000......and continues on.

 

[Villageman]

Villageman

Maybe I am missing something here, but why would ANYONE
allow MS to be in front of their hard earned florist name? Just asking. We give enough away, surely not our name just to make her richer.

 

[gabndab]

I do not believe I have a choice...no one aksed me about that.... I may regret doing this. Only time will tell.

 

[lori042499]

This MS blah blah blah florist only streams on interior web pages of Bloomlink...It has nothing to do with the public...It is so bloomnet knows who the MS florists are...This was seen on the purchasing or admin page of bloomlink which is something only you can see as it is password protected.


The reason for doing such a thing would be the same as carrying vera bradley bags, or precious moments statues. It is a line of product that is suppose to be somewhat exclusive. Martha has a way of selling flowers, I have a belief that this may go somewhere and I would rather be in it that saying I wish I did 2 years from now...

I will venture to guess that martha's flowers will sell better than anything TF or FTD puts out once people see it. The containers are very martha styled, the flowers are very Martha styled and let's face it she sells her style everywhere she is partnered...if not then I let it go...

 

[fashions]

This all sounds great... But you can not make any $$$ filling these orders...They are not even giving a 70 / 30 split... Do the math please ! ! !
Also substitutions are going to be highly frowned upon....

 

[gabndab]

I did not do the math yet, and that is why I say I might regret this whole thing. When you did the math, what did you end up with? It probably will make me sick.

 

[mrflowermarket]

Branding--theirs or yours

There are a couple schools of thought on this one. We have been building the WS brands for years, and still some wave the wire service banners very proudly on their vans, storefronts and advertising. Every codified item bears the Gift from FTD or shatever tag. This all makes them stronger--on our backs. Brands we carry in our stores, we build the brand for someone else. If it works for you and has been a profitable venture You go girl. But we each have to decide whether to build a brand with a propensity to betray us. Martha, Ftd, 1800 all send flowers to our customers directly from their warehouse, they even decieve the customer to believe that they will come from their local florist. not usually so. Anyway, This is not a trash the WS thread, and that is not my intent here. But as I read the messages here I get the distinct impression it is yet another attempt at the WS trying to see what a Brand can do in the retail flower market. Like I mentioned in another Martha thread, Watch for Your new Martha Floral Boutique in the mall entrance of your nearest Macy's or a Martha flower cart at your local K-mart they have to do their market research somewhere. Best wishes in your plight to figure out this Marhta thing. mrflowermarket:tunes:

 

[Chezbloom]

I don't see the Martha floral boutique opening any time soon, though I may be very wrong. They know how hard it is to deal with all the issues of running a flower shop, ordering product, moving product, paying designers etc...why would they open Martha stores when they can reap all the money and benefits by having Bloomnet florists do all the work for them?
Just my jaded little two cents!

 

[CHR]

TheStreet.com has an interesting 2 minute video discussing the Martha Stewart brand launch.

Eric Beder, stock analyst from Brean Murray, says that florist-delivered arrangements are 1800's highest margin products so Martha's bouquets should really help the company's bottom line during the fourth quarter (April-June).

Perhaps he didn't notice that most of the designs are drop-shipped.

Do you agree that florist-delivered products have better margins for 1-800 than drop-shipped cut bouquets? This thinking would seem to fly in the face of conventional wisdom.

 

[sfox]

Please explain

Please explain something to me.

If I posted that ProFlowers was signing up florists to fill their private Brand selection orders, would you sign up?

If I posted that GiftTree was signing up florists to fill their private Brand selection orders, would you sign up?

If I posted that Teleflora.Com was signing up florists to fill their private Brand selection orders, would you sign up?

If I posted that FTD.com was signing up florists to fill their private Brand selection orders, would you sign up?

If the answers to the above were no, then why is everyone rushing to fill Martha Stewart orders for 800Flowers?

Is this the same Martha Stewart that will state very clearly on her show that the consumer doesn't need a florist?

Is this the same Martha Stewart that will say on her show, that a florist will overcharge for flowers that the consumer can do themselves?

There has to be 10,000 posts bashing ordergathers and wire services because they do everything but walk in a florist shop and steal flowers, yet along comes 800Flowers, the Grand-Daddy of the OG's and people are rushing to sign up with Martha Stewart.

Did I miss something?

Hey RC, are you willing to promote The Martha Stewart Brand in place of your own?