Why our process is different from most retail florists
Because of our exceptional product and unbeatable, below-retail, prices, we book up completely every season. With this success came a challenge – appointments were booking up 10 – 12 weeks in advance. This seemed an unreasonable length of time to wait for those clients who were serious about working with us.
So we came up with an answer to this challenge – why not utilize the Internet to showcase our work and give people the opportunity to receive an estimate without leaving the comfort of home. Currently we have over 900 photos uploaded to the database and we are one of the only Bay Area florists to offer a complimentary online estimate service.
Different services for different needs
Online estimates take about an hour to work up and email out. We provide this service at no cost or obligation – much like the complimentary one-hour consultation offered by most retail florists (the difference being that you don’t have to leave home or schedule an appointment.)
Private consultations can take anywhere from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours as they are quite detail-oriented. Because of the significant amount of time involved and because we do not “pad” our pricing to cover this time, (our prices are typically about 1/2 that of our retail competitors with comparable experience level and quality of product) we do ask for a $75 deposit at the time of the consultation. This deposit is fully applied towards your flower order but is not refundable in the event of cancellation.
For those clients who would like to comparison shop and such, the free online estimate is the more appropriate choice.
Private consultations are designed more for those clients who have already done some comparison shopping and/or those who like what we have to offer and are serious about utilizing our services. Providing two different types of estimate/consultation services allow us to keep our overhead costs down and pass that savings on to our customers in the form of lower prices.
Reserving Private Consultations for those clients who are ready to make a commitment allows us to accurately track our availability for requested dates and also cuts down significantly on the wait-time to book an appointment.
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