Does your labour charge include the cost of the vase?

Honestly, no one here can answer that without knowing a whole lot about your business - overhead, costs, labor percentages, etc....

Did you crunch the numbers both ways? What's the net affect?

Would changing the calculations increase sales? They'll decrease your profit per arrangement sold.

This is one of those decisions that needs handled on your end through number crunching - and not really influenced by quick opinions on FC.
 
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I don't know if it's the "right way", but we do 30% and it includes a standard vase and std greens with a min of $12. So any arr with a retail of $40 or under is $12 for vase and a few greens. Std vases usually cost in the $1-$2 range for anything less than $50.... $60-$100 maybe $2.50-$3.50 cost. It just simplifies the process. For a $40 for example... they start "counting" their flowers at $12.... and go up... $28 in flowers. For a $60 they start at $18 and go up - or $42 in flowers.

Just seems like a quicker way to me. We've always done it that way, although it used to be 25% which was more difficult. We increased it about 8 years ago to 30%.
 
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lil_goldie said:
We've had some debate on this subject here at the store recently.

We charge 25% labour on the retail price of materials and hard goods. My mum thinks we shouldn't charge the 25% on the vase.

What are you thoughts?
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twenty five percent of a $2 vase is 50 cents.

why would you want to waste your time debating that? just round up to the nearest whole dollar a be done with it.
 
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I stopped using the percentage model 20 years ago...seemed to me that just because we used a 75.00 vase to make an arrangement didn't warrant an extra labour charge versus if the arrangement was made in a 15.00 vase. So now, we use a different model, based on what we make. For example, a standard vase arrangement requires 15.00 for the vase and foliage, with an additional 15.00 for the designer to finish it up. A casket spray...50.00 A wedding bouquet, well that is a different story.
The point is, I made a list of what various arrangements cost TO DESIGN, over and above the base price of the container and the foliages that are used as a base.
It has been easier for the designers, including me, and I think it is fairer to the customer.
 
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I still use a percentage, and yes, I have no qualms about including the vase in that calculation. I had to order the vases, pick up or pay delivery on the vases, unpack the vases, wash the vases, store the vases in inventory, dust the vases ... all of this required my time and ... labor.
 
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We charge a vasing fee based on the size of arrangement. That fee includes a standard vase for each size. If we use a more expensive vase, we add that to the fee. So, no, we don't add extra labor for a more expensive vase.
 
Carverflowers has the right idea.......a labor amount SHOULD be charged on the containers. You spent time to buy them, spent time to unpack them from the box, spent time putting them on the shelf, spent time getting the vase and filling it with foam or water, spent time taking the vase to your table and getting your materials....and so forth.

Whether you use a fixed rate, a percentage, or other method is up to you and your business model........but a labor charge there should be.
 
RWK said:
Carverflowers has the right idea.......a labor amount SHOULD be charged on the containers. You spent time to buy them, spent time to unpack them from the box, spent time putting them on the shelf, spent time getting the vase and filling it with foam or water, spent time taking the vase to your table and getting your materials....and so forth.

Whether you use a fixed rate, a percentage, or other method is up to you and your business model........but a labor charge there should be.
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Isn't that what your mark up on the vase is supposed to cover? Why would you charge more labor on a $20 vase than a $5 vase when the amount of time/labor is exactly the same? Your already making more profit $ simply because the vase costs more. Doesn't make any sense to me.
 
Sandy, That's my Mum's train of thought: The vase is already marked up to cover labour, etc.
So I said the same holds true for the flowers.
The amount of labour we would charge on a stock vase would be negligible, $1-$3 labour. That's not turning anyone away.

I figure that pays for the unpacking, the shipping on the vase, heck, even the water!

What we don't charge labour on is if someone purchases a premium vase of, say, $50.

Where we differ is middle of the road stuff, like a funeral container that's $20.
The labour just on the container is $5. I think we should charge this because we spend a lot of time with the family
 
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sandytf said:
Isn't that what your mark up on the vase is supposed to cover? Why would you charge more labor on a $20 vase than a $5 vase when the amount of time/labor is exactly the same? Your already making more profit $ simply because the vase costs more. Doesn't make any sense to me.
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The way I was taught and understand things......maybe why I have never had the desire to open a shop btw.....is that your markup does indeed cover all you mention....however....your markups should be what covers your fixed and variable expenses and your labor is your profit.
 
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lil_goldie said:
Sandy, That's my Mum's train of thought: The vase is already marked up to cover labour, etc.
So I said the same holds true for the flowers.
The amount of labour we would charge on a stock vase would be negligible, $1-$3 labour. That's not turning anyone away.

I figure that pays for the unpacking, the shipping on the vase, heck, even the water!

What we don't charge labour on is if someone purchases a premium vase of, say, $50.

Where we differ is middle of the road stuff, like a funeral container that's $20.
The labour just on the container is $5. I think we should charge this because we spend a lot of time with the family
Click to expand...


You're right...it's the same with flowers. That's why we went to the vasing fee. Why charge a customer 25% or 30% labor on two hydrangeas that may cost $12 vs. two daisy stems that may cost $4 and actually take a lot longer to place by the time you cut off some of the laterals? It just doesn't make sense to me.

I agree it doesn't add up to much on a $2 or $3 vase, but we use a lot of $5-$15 vases. That adds up for the customer.

As far as funeral designs....what about the orders that come in over the phone that aren't family pieces? I think those are about the most profitable orders we ever do because they are higher $ and we can mostly use whatever we want or are long on.

I boils down to what Cathy said in the beginning of the thread....it depends on so many different things.
 
Going with this train of thought, we are struggling with handtied pricing. We started doing handtieds 10 years ago to combat the grocery stores. Before that we just laid the flowers on the greenery, wrapped, and the customer had to design it when they got home. We then started doing laced handtieds, but not charging labour to attract people. We should be charging labour now, but find it hard when most people only want to spend $ 20 - $ 25.00 . By the time you take off 25% labour and charge for greens, you really only have enough for 3 carns, and 3 stems of daisies or mini, etc. They can get that amount of flowers at the groc store for $ 8-$ 10.00. I need to charge labour on the handtieds and more labour on our vases (now only 15%), but knowing our customers, I would lose more customers that way. I know the other way is to go very different, more groupings etc, to attract the eye, but you can't do that with 3 carns, and 3 stems of daisies or mini. We only charge 15% on vases and 25% on arrg in oasis, because it takes very little time to do vases compared to Oasis designing.
 
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