The Organized Chaos of Valentine's Day - An Insider’s Perspective

As the owner of a 4th generation, family-owned flower company with retail stores in 10 states, I've never celebrated Valentine's Day until after it ended. I often say that Valentine's Day is the floral industry's Super Bowl. Nearly every year on February 14th, consumer demand for flower arrangements exceeds supply.

Almost every florist experiences this limitation, working hard to balance how much they can successfully produce and deliver while meeting the customer’s - and recipient’s - expectations. When customer demand for a product increases by 30x or more for a single day, it’s hard for any business to keep up. Behind the scenes, February 14th is not just a day - it is the grand finale of months of meticulous planning, and a testament to the power of love and the lengths we go to celebrate it.

Imagine a symphony, every instrument playing in harmony, creating a masterpiece. That's what it takes for Family Flowers to deliver tens of thousands of arrangements every Valentine’s Day, each bouquet telling a unique love story. From the flower farm to your doorstep, it involves a global orchestra of efforts.

But here's the catch: just like in any symphony, one missing piece or an out-of-tune instrument can throw everything off. Power outages, underproducing flower farms, quality issues, delayed freight, severe weather, or miscalculations in predicted demand for a specific flower can unravel the hard work - not just impacting our business, but more importantly, the heartfelt message of our customers to their loved ones.

In many ways, Valentine’s Day is a case study in battling entropy. Despite the best efforts of florists to get pre-orders, the vast majority of Valentine’s purchases are last minute. With over 25 locations in our company spread across a large geographic area, we are statistically more likely to experience one or more issues every holiday. No matter how much we plan, we cannot prepare for every contingency. In addition to variables outside of our control, there are physical limitations that simply restrict capacity as well. Despite hiring hundreds of seasonal team members and booking dozens of 53-foot refrigerated trailers for extra cooler space, we still face restrictions such as finding talented designers and the availability of flowers from farms around the globe.

There have been years where snowstorms prevented nearly every delivery on Valentine’s Day. Refrigeration catastrophes caused hundreds of already-made bouquets to freeze over. Power outages that left us unable to take new orders or fulfill existing ones. A burglary on at least one occasion. And, my personal favorite illegal side-hustle: enterprising courier drivers who sold the flowers they were supposed to deliver on the side of the road instead. The stories are endless - sometimes so absurd that they have become comical in the years since. But every year we learn how to prepare better. Every year our team gets stronger and plans better. But that doesn’t mean we control what happens. It’s a reminder that we can only sway a handful of variables - and a reminder that we can only control how we plan, react, and respond.

Yet, this annual challenge is well worth it. I love the excitement and rush of a holiday. I love the creative problem solving. I’m energized by my passionate team members. Most importantly, I’m driven by the thrill of serving tens of thousands of customers. What keeps me going is the thank you letters from clients. The 5 star reviews. The customers that bring in coffee and donuts for our team when they see how hard they’re working. Those who have trusted our team to deliver the perfect Valentine’s arrangement each year for decades. My team and I are fueled by the desire to tell a unique love story, to be a part of a moment that expresses deep emotions and fosters connections. It is a tremendous honor and deep responsibility.

This Valentine’s Day, we’ll again deliver tens of thousands of bouquets to help people share their love stories. Of course, none of this would be possible without our incredible team members. It's their dedication and talent that make this complex logistics dance happen every year. From those who predict trends and order flowers, to our designers who craft each arrangement with love; from the diligent processors that prepare the stems, to the salespeople and delivery drivers who ensure they reach their destination – it's a collective effort.

As we approach this Valentine's Day, I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to our team and to our customers, for allowing us to be a part of the most important moments in your lives. And here’s to all the florists out there who work behind the scenes tirelessly every year. It’s an honor and a joy to see how a simple gesture of giving flowers can express so much. Happy Valentine's Day!