Lately, we have seen shortages of certain greens and foliage among the wholesale floral industry. Many florists are struggling to get ahold from their wholesaler some of their highest selling inventory such as silver dollar eucalyptus, coffee foliage, and so many more. Why is this happening and should we be concerned?
Hurricane season started full swing this June and many people are trying to get ahead of the game to avoid shortages for next year. This past year, with constant natural disaster hits, the foliage industry saw a 60 to 70 percent shortage. Many of these shortages included leather leaf, a staple among floral designers. The shade enclosures designed to protect the plants while growing were destroyed in these storms, which resulted in the loss of many crops. Many of these shade structures were old and could not withstand the powerful force of hurricanes. Many structures have since been rebuilt and new measures have been put into place to lessen the impact of future storms. High winds also uprooted many plants, destroyed the viability of young foliage, as well as break heavy branches.
As the industry is struggling to source foliage the price has gone up drastically as well. But experts project this increase to be only temporary. Prices should balance out as supply becomes more steadily available. In the meantime, there are many greens that are available and can be offered as comparable substitutions for arrangements.
Did your retail shop deal with any problems resulting in foliage shortages? Did this negatively affect your business or were you able to work around these challenges? We would love to hear from you! If you have any questions pertaining to fresh cut greens visit both our New Jersey and New York locations. You can also have flowers delivered directly to your retail location with our Flowers Express program. We can’t wait to see you!
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