Announcement Help needed - urgently !!!!!!!!!!

RWK

RWK

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Jun 3, 2007
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I have hit the proverbial stone wall here in Austin, Texas. I have been to shop after shop after shop and NO ONE seems to be in a hiring mood.......even shops that are advertising for a designer seem to be disregarding the advantages that an AIFD member can bring.

IF ANY OF YOU AT ALL.....Have any pull or influence in the Austin Texas area......I sure could use that pull to land a floral job. It is getting to the point where I am hunting for ANYTHING.......even looking at places like Burger King and the like to try and find some kind of employment.
 
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Ricky- It seems you got a bit of money from your accident- Why not do your own thing?

I know a very successful designer who started just 3 years ago doing just weddings. Major thing she had to do was a wedding expo and she soon had tons of clients. She now can be choosy with what weddings she does.
Most big expos happen right after the first of the year, that gives you 2 months to get it together.
Just a thought.

On a side note-
What you are going through is why I don't see much value for me financially to ever persue the AIFD distinguishmet.
 
The monies from the accident were used primarily to remodel and renovate my home......which due to the housing market slump, is taking forever and a day to sell.....however, when it finally does sell, the monies from that is the final peice needed to begin the medical clinic. The problem is between now and then.....

Additionally, it seems that here in at least the Austin area...........AIFD means NOTHING !!! Otherwise, why would a shop hire a untrained novice designer over a trained, educated, accredited professional?
 
I would think the only reason to hire a novice over an AIFD designer is money. Oh and some owners are a wee bit jealous if the employees are better than them. Good luck with your search. With holidays coming I would think you could get some freelance temp work at a shop or two. I have a freelancer I bring in each year for that type of thing. Keeps my overtime expenses down and we aren't as burned out if we aren't working until midnight.
 
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Really Ricky- I don't think AIFD means much to anybody except the people who are AIFD.

The general public has no idea what AIFD is or means or that is affliated with the floral industry. RARELY (and I hate to say this) do flower shops either! I had a boss who gave an interview and she told the interviewer AIFD stood for Affiliated international floral designers. I was like OMG! This cannot print this way. There were a lot of other stupid things in the interview, but whatever.

Anyhoo- someone (another florist) told me a while back that AIFD may as well be EIEIO as far as the general public is concerned. Also another thing to think about is Some shops may think of AIFD designers as prima donnas. Even if they aren't that may be the perception

What you need to do is go into lots of shops and find the worst looking one and then apply there. They may welcome the help and expertise.
OR find the "big" shop in Austin and apply there.
OR think outside the box- Are there fancy resorts or casinos with gift shops?
How about Hobby Lobby? or Michaels?
 
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Try to find contract work. Everyone needs help with weddings and floral events. You will get paid more money, and there will be no deducts (taxes and such)from the money you get.

Make the rounds of anyone doing florals for events and you should pick up work for couple days a week easy enough. The more you have your name out there the more calls you'll get.

Being out there, involved with people in the business will land you a job when the economy gets better.

Look at this as an opportunity to become better known and make new friends. You'll be surprised what it will do for you just talking and asking about work. Also, wedding coordinators hire contract people all the time. Doing contract for wedding coordinators will also bring you into contact with florists and event services. The best part is... you won't be sitting around the house worrying. Get out and see people with a positive attitude. You'll be surprised that will do you more good than all the credentials you have.

If you go in looking for employment most people already have it set-in-stone in their minds they cannot afford to hire anyone. You won't get past your nose. Go in talking about doing design contract work on weekends, evenings, etc. It won't knock you out of job opportunities either, because if someone is looking to hire a full time designer conversation can work that way. Afterall, you are looking for work in the business and you are a qualified person.

Don't let this beat you down. You have great credentials and no one would dare ignore such a qualified person to help on a contract basis.

Serious talk here... My wife does a very big wedding floral business and she would hire you on a moments notice for contract work. Every weekend she is doing weddings and only uses contract help for the event. She has a card file and arranges with all her designer contract workers weeks in advance to help with jobs. It is very rare for anyone with your credentials to want contract work. You would be a premium person anyone using contract workers would love to hire.. There is no time to deal with inexperienced people when you are time limited to produce a large floral event. Qualifed people are always a first choices.

So, you are actually in a sweet spot. You'll have to get out and meet and talk with anyone doing events, but it will pay off.

Go to bridal shows for sure. It doesn't usually cost much to get in and you can talk to all kinds of people that are doing events about doing contract work for them. There are many florists at these shows as well. You can talk with everyone on a very favorable basis, because the show atmosphere is upbeat and sales oriented...especially vendors.

I didn't mention a key thing - Make sure you leave every possible contact method to reach you possible. You also want to get the email address and contact information for everyone you talk with as well. Asking if it will be OK, if you contact them every now and then to see if they have any work.
You want to get some control, not alot, just enough that you aren't counting on them to keep your contact information in a priority place. Business cards are bunk for the most part. I would say the life of a business card decreases daily, until it's worthless within a few weeks of the initial meeting.

You stay in touch with someone you regard well, and believe me your efforts will not go unnoticed.
 
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First of all, AIFD has opened a tremendous amout of doors for me...but, that being said, the customers do not know what it means and the owners sometimes are leery of hiring an AIFD designer because they heard some are prima donnas, or that they expect way too much money because they are AIFD.

Ricky, feel free to give potential employeers my email for a reference. Let me know if I can help further. Don't forget to check the positions open with Time Warner.

I just left a Michael's and if I was looking, I would certainly look into applying there. They are such a busy store and do silk arrangements.
 
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Ricky,

I have a few more suggestion for you, too. Leave your name and contact info with local wholesalers. Ours keep a list of free-lance designers for shops who have emergencies come up and need an experience person for a short time. It pays much better, too, because it is only for a short time and the shop owner is in need.

I agree with Carol about Michaels, btw. They are busy and do the permanents, you should have no problem getting a job there. I worked for them when I first opened my store, I worked in the evenings producing huge amounts of Christmas wreaths and centerpieces. I also made bows for them at home and they paid quite well 12 years ago.
 
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I'm sorry to hear about your troubles, Rickie. I well remember being without work, and having to take a job outside what I love, just to pay the bills. ( I ended up in a toy store for one Christmas season...the worst 8 weeks of my life. All those whining kids and nagging parents and rude customers...OMG I had forgotten about it till now!! It was awful.)
That being said, a couple of things came to mind when reading your post.
Some employers simply will not hire a designer with "letters". I worked for a couple of them. One was convinced that they would cost more per hour, and that would be too expensive, (false economics, we both know, but they do not.) The other had an ego too big to allow anyne else who may have greater knowledge, for fear that his superior position would be challenged.( again, we know that is not necessarily true, but....)
So from my perspective as an employer, in addition to so many great suggestions already posted here, most of which I suspect you would have already tried, I offer a couple more thoughts.
It might be worth a try having "calling cards" made up with your contact information, but without your various credentials. I must admit that I do not use my AIFD and CAFA letters on all of my correspondence, and even though my husband is an architect, he does not use his BA and BArch on all of his stuff either, because some people are just turned off by it, thinking that the letters automatically bring bragging rights.
I also would be really careful about revealing your ultimate goal of moving out of the area, to start your medical business. I would not ofer a job to anyone if I was aware they inteded to leave me once their house sold.

If you were in my area, I would hire you to help us get through the next three months...and I'd do it in a heartbeat, knowing that your skills would easily offset the extra hourly wage. Maybe some people just can't make a long term committment to you, and don't know if you would be willing to accept a short term solution? Have you tried offering your services at a reduced rate, with some sort of performance bonus? Or possibly offering to work for say 6 hours, and then have a discussion about your pay? That may settle down some employers who have fears about your skill and speed.

I'm intruigued by your situation. I don't get it. Is the economy really that bad in your area? Or does your gut tell you it could be something else?
JP
 
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Ricky,

Have you tried contacting wholesalers, specifically sales reps, to see if any shops have changed hands recently? The new owner might be in need of someone with the talent and experience to create a new identity and style for the shop.
 
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Oh- I thought of something else- How about interior designers or decorators or whatever they call themselves. Or is there a floral design school that you could maybe find a position?
Or big department stores (Dillards, Foleys, Neiman Marcus,etc..) hire people to decorate their windows and trees for christmas....Just a thought.
 
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I did move intially to Portland......Out of ALL the contacts I made.....only ONE gave me any kind of return opportunity. Kim Foren at Geranium Lake used me as a freelancer. When it became clear that we were slowly self-destructing in Portland, My companions and I decided to move to Texas where it was hoped that his family's social/political/economic influences would help us gain employment. So far, this has not been the case.
 
Ricky there is really no help i can offer apart from what the others have said but i really just wanted to say i sincerely hope you find something soon, you really deserve a break!! Thinking of you dude :)

If you walked into my shop with your credentials and work ethic I would snap you up....
 
I know of a wonderful shop in Florence, AL. Pretty cool place to live (I used to live in Amsterdam.) Very busy shop with lots of high-end parties and weddings. No country about this shop!
 
What's the name of the shop and the website URL? Also, is there a private contact e-mail and phone I can use to talk with you further?
 
I've thought about it.
 
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