Price Check Alert - Boxwood Tree

Status
Not open for further replies.
CHR

CHR

Design matters
Nov 28, 2002
8,951
8,442
113
Anaheim
www.avantegardens.com
State / Prov
CA
Expect an onslaught of incoming orders for boxwood trees. TF is offering them through their affinity clubs for - no kidding - $38.21 http://www.15.flowerclub.com/product.asp?id=34624 Here's the photo:

HW0_34624.jpg


The 'regular' price is $44.95 including delivery. You have got to be kidding. :faint: I'm completely convinced the marketing department is running the company and the real florists (the few there are) have been banished from product pricing meetings.
 
You're kidding right??

So far I have made 5 today, largest 18" tall... $95.00 deco'd...

$33.21 ?? that does not even cover my labor...and I'm fast!
 
Looks like the folks' driveway boxwood hedge bushes is going to be clipped this year.

That is another item I don't like doing. Tedious!


BTW: If any of you have to give a Christmas Design demonstration, these boxwood Christmas trees make for an excellent presentation.

Joe
 
Boxwood Fantasy

Boxwood trees here start at $65 before anything is added. This price and presentation is a poor representation of even a below average designer's abilities. TF; what do we expect!
 
There’s nothing like a little holiday tree to liven up the holidays, and this one’s decor will definitely rouse the room.

A 22" manufactured boxwood tree decorated with berries, balls, apples, stars and ribbons arrives in a red jardiniere.


Could manufactured mean silk? The price is right if it's not a real boxwood...we found these at the market for around 16 bucks awhile back....
Sher
 
Well...I sure hope Teleflora plans to manufacture them and not send the orders my way for this price. Our fresh boxwood trees begin at $55.00, I have never had a request for a silk boxwood tree, but wouldn't consider the price quoted! Sher...$16? That's incredible!
In years past, we always had at least a dozen of these to make between 12/22-12/24...oh the moans and groans when those orders surfaced and had to be filled! Last year was the first year that we started a new "boxwood tree rule"...all orders for this item had to be be filled by 12/20! We have at least 20 customers who want this item every Christmas!
 
Sher said:
A 22" manufactured boxwood tree decorated with berries, balls, apples, stars and ribbons arrives in a red jardiniere.
Click to expand...
You are the manufacturer since it's not a live tree with roots and all.

I'm with Dianne. They take a horrendous amount of time but I understand certain markets in the US have them available as pre-mades through their wholesalers. Even then, TFs price is way, way, way too low - even for 100% dollars.
 
So what will you do when you receive an order for this insanely low price for a tedious boxwood tree from TF? Will TF give us the regular price of $44.95 including delivery? (and eat the discount?) I would definitely refuse an order like this, you know they will all come for 12-21-24. Maybe we can get a good response as our refusal for over the Dove. For example , when TF sends me an order at 4PM for an intricate order or one that has special order flowers for delivery same day, I look it up and figure out how much the customer has paid and refuse the order adding " The customer paid $75 for this order and you sent us $45, I think the customer deserves much more from Teleflora" I know no one probably ever sees my comment but I feel better!

BTW Did you notice that all the prices on that website were discounted 15-20%? What price will TF send us? Do any of you have any success with a price change from TF They never budge for me, the most they have ever given me is $1 and I was scolded by the operator for that.
 
floralane said:
and I was scolded by the operator for that.
Click to expand...

Talk about adding insult to injury! This is the point at which I would let loose my ladylike composure and yell at that operator! Who in the world does she/he think she/he is???? GRRRRRRRRRRR :fdevil:
 
floralane said:
So what will you do when you receive an order for this insanely low price for a tedious boxwood tree from TF? Will TF give us the regular price of $44.95 including delivery? (and eat the discount?) I would definitely refuse an order like this, you know they will all come for 12-21-24. Maybe we can get a good response as our refusal for over the Dove. For example , when TF sends me an order at 4PM for an intricate order or one that has special order flowers for delivery same day, I look it up and figure out how much the customer has paid and refuse the order adding " The customer paid $75 for this order and you sent us $45, I think the customer deserves much more from Teleflora" I know no one probably ever sees my comment but I feel better!

BTW Did you notice that all the prices on that website were discounted 15-20%? What price will TF send us? Do any of you have any success with a price change from TF They never budge for me, the most they have ever given me is $1 and I was scolded by the operator for that.
Click to expand...


This order would be bounced to the great unknown in the WS.

I used to get boxwood tree orders from the UK via FTD... they were all 120.00 plus. I felt that was a fair return for the effort. :)

V
 
floralane said:
So what will you do when you receive an order for this insanely low price for a tedious boxwood tree from TF?
Click to expand...
I would treat it like any other irresponsible, underpriced, insane request for my services with a ASK message stating MY price for the item, with this note:

Your order has been received, and while we would sincerely like to assist you with this order, we will not put our reputation on the line for you. The price we have requested is the minimum including delivery that we can do this item for. This is the only communication you will receive from us on this request, we anticipate receiving either your price increase or cancellation. This order will sit unfilled until we hear from you.

Stating it something like this, put's the ball back in their court, making it their problem. Should we receive the price change we fill the order, otherwise it's their responsibility to cancel...not at my expense.
 
CHR said:
You are the manufacturer since it's not a live tree with roots and all.

I'm with Dianne. They take a horrendous amount of time but I understand certain markets in the US have them available as pre-mades through their wholesalers. Even then, TFs price is way, way, way too low - even for 100% dollars.
Click to expand...

I was just noting that they can be purchased at an inexpensive dollar amount...not including the container etc...I looked at their ad and thought they were drop shipping them...they will not get them filled at our shop...as florists, we are going to have to work even harder to stay ahead...SA and even Miami have companies that are churning this type of crap out...and the saddest part is that many of the items look ok to the consumer.
Sher
 
Maybe next year, sfox - but not this one. It's a florist delivered item. We received an order via Dove yesterday from TF.com for the item at the $44.95 price. That's what prompted me to start this thread.

Here's PF's $39.95 direct ship tree
Complete with 12 mini-ornaments for you to hang
Click to expand...

And FTD's $36.55 drop ship tree. IMO it looks to be artificial but I don't see that anywhere in the description.
 
The PF one is a live mini cypress, the FTD one is most probably done in artificial for "looks". Either way, 800 has been selling their "Flower Tree" for years but we have refused them many times for underpricing. We make ours mixed with boxwood and fir/pine/cedar starting at $45......all boxwood average around $60 and are standard sized at about 17" high (done in design bowl) over height if done in a compote style container. Yes, labor is very much the factor in these and prompts refusals here especially from "headquarters" orders. When I was Teleflora, it was stated, what was discounted on their home site, came through to us at the "normal" charge, the discount was on their end not the filling florist. Interesting to see if that had changed. Didn't Teleflora promote a drop shipped item last year, to much disapproval of their members?
 
TEL Flower Club tree COULD be florist delivered - but is it? Does it say it is??? Notice the $11.99 service fee... - they will no doubt keep that for themselves, and use it to off-set the discount.

800's Hol. flower tree is the same thing as last year...$59.99 incl. deliv. (then add the $11.99 service charge...). Insane people are... Wasting $11.99 in fees when they could add that to the product with a local florist and get a BEAUTIFUL item......any who...

We had mass-produced the Flower Trees (about 24-36 of them) with pre-made boxwood trees - bought for something like $11 each. The thing is (and SOOO true for many of these "trees" shown in ads/on the web) is that all the decor. is shown on the FRONT...#$%@*! So...what do we do? We have to follow the recipe...and we did. When customer called saying that the tree we sent did not look like the picture, we explain the WHOLE scheme to them - how the photos are taken, the OG process, etc. We then encourage them to call a LOCAL FLORIST next time who won't short change them on what they REALLY want...

- H.

PS - ours START at $60 and go up...we still buy the pre-made trees...18" size and custom-make ones for $100 and up.
 
Sher said:
I was just noting that they can be purchased at an inexpensive dollar amount...not including the container etc...I looked at their ad and thought they were drop shipping them...they will not get them filled at our shop...as florists, we are going to have to work even harder to stay ahead...SA and even Miami have companies that are churning this type of crap out...and the saddest part is that many of the items look ok to the consumer.
Sher
Click to expand...

You know, if it looks ok to the consumer than that is the market.. sometimes I fear we think we know what is right and acceptable and forget that it is the consumer that gets to make this judgement not us.

My biggest complaint with the WS pictures is they doctor up the photo to make it look way larger and fuller than it is for the price..kind of like 'bait & switch' advertise it for a lower price and then expect (and many times get) the filling florist to take the discount. Until we the filling florists refuse to do this it will continue because the customr gets what it wants and the ws gets its money.. and we get scr***..

It will be very interesting to see what happens if the FCC really does step in and investigate this fraud part of the floral industry. At the very least it will hamper the next sale of FTD as it is very public today and not many investment companies will be willing to jump into the mud
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom
Back