This week, I’m answering one of my fabulous Twitter followers, @SistersFlowers, who tweeted this question to me: “What do you say to a bride who asks what percentage of her wedding budget she should spend on flowers?”
Dear @SistersFlowers,
Yesterday I wrote here that I would be blogging about wedding jobs all week, so your question couldn’t have come at a more perfect time. However, I might not be the right person to answer your question, because, as a lover of flowers, I think brides should be spending 50 percent of their budgets on flowers! And why not? After all, when you think of weddings, what’s one of the first things that come to mind? The flowers, of course!
Nonetheless, I know that’s not exactly practical. So, when a bride asks you this question, ask her about her priorities. What’s most important to her? The food? The music? The wedding dress? Whatever her answer, that’s where she should invest the most of her budget.
A lot of brides love flowers but know that flowers aren’t their top wedding priority. So, here are three of my favorite wedding floral tips for small budgets:
1. Invest most of the floral budget in one great statement arrangement. This could be flowers for the escort card table, which is one of my favorite spots to do something grand, because it’s the first thing guests see when they arrive.
2. If you don’t have a big budget for centerpieces, use lots of candles. A single votive can cost as little as 50 cents; put 20 votive candles on each table, and you’ll have a beautiful glowing room for very little money. Instead of big centerpieces on each table, place smaller arrangements at each place setting that can double as favors. 4 roses should only cost you about $2, more or less. And small vases, which guests can take home, should only cost about $1.50 each.
So for a table of 10, you’ll spend $10 on 20 votive candles, $20 on 10 bunches of roses, and $15 on 10 small vases. That’s $45 at cost plus $30 for labor (remember you don’t work for free!!) Double this, and charge your client $150 per table.
3. My last tip can be tricky, especially depending on location, but always try to reuse ceremony flowers at the reception. Just make sure you set aside some time to add more flowers or new accents like crystals so guests don’t realize the arrangements are the same.
Dear Readers, what are some of your floral tips for small budgets? And what do you tell brides when they ask you about their flower budget?
PREVIOUS
George Bernard Shaw once said: “You see things and say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were and say, ‘Why not?’” That quote embodies how Preston Bailey approaches every event.
YOUR NAME
February 7, 2012
Ummm…and now all our brides knows our costs…
nix
February 7, 2012
agree with above comment… I thought the question was what percentage of the budget should they spend… not what should our mark up be… we already know how to do that!
Mindy Rossignol
February 7, 2012
Great advice as always Preston!! It is so imporatant to find out how important Flowers and other decor i.e. Linen’s, Chairs etc. are to a client, in the begining of the planning process, and then give them an estimated cost for what they want. All too often I see clients leaving flowers till the end when they are almost out of money and then they have to sacrafice the “look” they really wanted.
Design By Gilda
February 8, 2012
I would like to know how do you calculate the labor, before doubling the cost?
julie
February 8, 2012
Roses have been 1.09-1.99 each for the past 20 years. I guess New York is less expensive??We base floral budget 20% of overall budget.
YOUR NAME
February 8, 2012
It runs all over me when I read on sites like Wedding Wire, Eventective, and other wedding blogs when they tell brides that their wedding flowers will cost between $800-$1,000! I think they gather most of this information from brides who purchase their flowers at supermarkets.
I would like to know where to purchase roses for .50 or small vases for $1.50, because I can’t find any cheaper than $.88-1.10 each, and more if the shipping and box charges aren’t included in the pricing. I don’t have a big flower market to go to and select my flowers. I have to rely on wholesalers, or in rare cases, the growers themselves. Please share some resources, if you would be so kind.
holly turville
February 8, 2012
Right… your pricing seems a bit off to me.
As a floral designer in Nevada, I purchase everything wholesale and am no way, no how able to purchase roses at that price- anywhere. Box charges, shipping fees, etc. are astronomical. Additionally, 20% labor is the norm here and 50% markup is nowhere close. More like 30% locally, to remain competitive and not lose clients to the next designer who is practically giving away her product just to stay in business. I always give brides the advise of looking at their whole budget and figuring anywhere from 10-20% of their entire wedding budget should go towards flowers. Any additional details (and we all do way more than just flowers) are additional components of the budget.
Savannah
February 8, 2012
Beautiful tips, Preston. Always so delightful to hear tips from the master.
I personally, most definitely, agree that recycling the ceremony flowers at the reception is a brilliant idea. I’ve seen a lot of brides opt for this and I think it’s great. Why kiss beautiful blooms goodbye when they’re perfectly reusable? Adding crystals to them or even grouping them together into a larger arrangement, if possible, is a great way to “create something new.”
And brilliant answer with asking, “What’s most important to the bride?” Absolutely! If the bride’s a food or wine connoisseur, she should allocate most of her budget there. If she’s a flower bride then making a grand statement at the reception, or even ceremony, entrance is a perfect idea!
The French Bouquet designs some breathtaking eight-twelve foot trees, sometimes draped in crystals or covered in Cherry Blossoms or flowers. Shine beautiful lighting on them, dim the ceiling lights and voila! A magical entrance!
Thanks for expanding on this tweet, Preston!
-Savannah
The French Bouquet: Wedding & Event Florals
Angela
February 8, 2012
preston. I love all tips particularly the candle tip. Really good tip. The last tip is such a great idea too…bravo!!
Anonymous
February 8, 2012
I am located in a very rural area in the MIdwest, most of my brides come in with a budget of $500.00 to spend on their wedding flowers. Centerpieces are usually diy, either candles, rose bowls, petals, or artificial pieces that Aunt Snazzy put together from the local Dollar General Store, (no I am not kidding, I wish I was….lol)
Grand weddings in this area are few and far between.
People are broke right now, when I meet with a bride and she is on a tight budget, we start with her bouquet and work down from there. When someone comes in with a very modest budget, we sit down, and figure out what flowers we can get the most bang for their buck out of.
People without money want their day to be just as special as people with an endless budget.
Also you can’t judge a book by it’s cover, I’ve had people come in that look like they don’t have 2 nickels to rub together and they’ve spent more money then the people that you know have the budget to spend, but just won’t because they think flowers are a waste, just saying you should treat all people the same.
Nicky
February 10, 2012
Rent vases for the reception so the bouquets can be a feature and not just laid on the table
Sandra
February 11, 2012
Hi Preston, I honestly think 50% is quite high. Though I like the idea of having more candles on the table, which are definitely better, and sounds more reasonable.
Reusing the ceremony flowers for reception is definitely a good thought, it can save a lot of money, though as you said it’s tricky but if the new flowers are added well, but it is worth the effort, as it is going to save a lot of money.