Why are wedding flowers so expensive. Can we talk about this, please?
This is something I see and hear, a lot, along with the notion ‘say ‘wedding’ and the price goes up’. On wedding Facebook groups, real-life conversations, and even in emails. Every time I see or hear it, I get more hurt. Because it’s not true – the price quoted for wedding work reflects the time and labour for that work.
Wedding flower pricing variations – how it works
A wedding bouquet might well be more than the price you’d usually pay for a bouquet at your local florist, and that’s because:
1) More planning and research is involved in achieving your colour palette, which means speaking to several wholesalers to source specific varieties of flowers to ensure that you are over the moon with the final result
2) It may contain higher grade flowers or varieties such as Garden Roses and Hydrangea
3) Wedding flowers involve multiple trips/deliveries from different wholesalers as it takes flowers different amounts of time to open, which can be tricky depending on the weather. We need to ensure those flowers are in perfect condition (no wilting, browning or disease), which involved daily monitoring.
4) You’re paying for a design service and our time, and the pressure to ensure it is absolutely perfect is much higher for weddings, these flowers will be immortalised in your wedding photos, after all, and we want to create spectacular work for you
5) Wedding flowers need to be arranged as close to the big day as possible, which can mean 16 hour days sometimes if not, more.
6) The price quoted also includes delivery, set up, cleaning and returning to the venue (if needed) to pack down. Sometimes, depending on the size of your wedding, we will require freelancers to assist us on site, we will always let you know if more than one member of staff is needed at the time of quoting.
7) COVID-19 and BREXIT have both severely impacted the cost of flowers – if you would like to read in more detail the impact both have had on the flower industry.
Wedding flower costs explained
We endure the long hours, full-body aching and forgetting to eat all day whilst working because we adore what we do, and our sole purpose is to bring a little extra joy to your day in the form of our flowery creations. We really do care, but if you’re looking for a premium service, this will be reflected in the price.
We’re not trying to pull a fast one on you, many wedding florists have a second job and aren’t rolling around in their cash, we just want to be doing this for a living and pay our bills.
Saying that it is also our job as wedding florists to inform and educate couples when it comes to prices to build trust and to provide transparency – which can never be a bad thing.
I hope the above sheds a little insight into this common myth and the question why are wedding flowers so expensive. Learn more about wedding flower costs here.
If you have any questions about wedding flowers or want to run an idea past me, just pop me an email or a DM on Instagram and I’ll be more than happy to help!
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Header image: Lauren Knuckey Photography
Lover of bakeries, pretty fabrics and Etsy. When I’m not planning gorgeous wedding flowers for my beautiful couples, I’m doting on my little rescue dog, attending a gig, eating pizza or I’m glued to my laptop working when I should probably be relaxing.
