Flower Pot Man indeed..
So on a very busy street in Shoreham by Sea Walter Smith’s Florist Shop proudly have their own Flower Pot Man – a four foot high character made from various sized terracotta flower pots, who welcomes customers to the shop. And there’s plenty of people to admire the work, being right by the railway station it’s great for commuters drivers and pedestrians alike – all of them have to regularly wait for the level crossing gates to lift.
Today, we are meeting Andi and Chris who took over the shop in December 2009. We ask Andi and Chris why they chose this particular shop as their first joint venture “We were looking to take over, an ‘up and running’ business, ideally from someone who was retiring, where someone had loved the shop and the business, not one that was failing or unpopular,” Chris adds that he had spent quite a lot of time observing the footfall past the shop and also researching how long the level crossing gates were closed-would this be a bonus or a pitfall? From his vantage point from the pub opposite, having people mill about when the gates were closed was a distinct advantage. During his research he also got to know some of his potential customers at the same time!
Andi and Chris have already started to make the shop their own – not least their Flower Pot Man which has quickly become a local celebrity! This friendly addition to the flowers has caught the attention of many customers, and the shop now also sells smaller replicas – cult status already. As you enter the shop you can’t help notice Andi’s Paper Mache sculptures around the walls alongside a very large Husqvarna Chain Saw – this is no ordinary flower shop!
And you get a distinct sense that these additions are just the start. Chris has great plans for developing the shop’s forecourt, which in the past has just been used as a car parking space. It has the potential for adding an extra dimension to the shop, a new blind and possible planting areas could dramatically alter the whole look of the corner shop (who knows maybe Little Weed might make an appearance after all)
Andi has been in floristry for over twenty years since leaving college and has enjoyed working for other local florists. Chris has recently left his job as a manager for a wholesale green grocery business and has joined Andi in the shop. So Chris is obviously on a steep learning curve learning the floristry industry at the moment.
Andi and Chris appear to be a very close business team already, complementing each other’s skills – there’s even lots of laughter and the atmosphere in the shop is a light hearted , as well as very efficient. We ask them what it was like working as well as living together; “I love it, it’s really great. I couldn’t have imagined that it would be so good” says Andi straight away. Chris then adds “I now have great respect for what Andi does. Her style is pretty much a one off, it’s quite different: its traditional, but she also has her own vision, it’s nice because she’s having to teach me so much, It’ll obviously take me years to learn everything” here Andi interrupts “floristry is something that takes years to learn…. and you never stop learning, I’m still learning, that’s what I enjoy about this profession: you meet new people with different skills and you then learn from them” . Andi then adds “it’s easy working with Chris” because she can just be herself with him. They can work and speak to each other without worry about professional conduct and niceties “I can be matter of fact with him and order him about” they both laugh at this.
Whilst the experience is all quite new we ask “What’s been the hardest aspect of owning your own business?”
While Andi thinks about this question Chris says straight away “I would say dealing with all the financial pressures every month. There’s no real security, It’s not knowing what’s coming through the door and if you’re going to meet your overheads every month”. We ask if they can ‘shut off’ from the business when they go home in the evenings, “most of the time” is the reply from both of them, although they both agreed that if there is an important order or event coming up they can’t help but discuss it at home, because the business is still new and they want to do well.
Andi adds ”when you’re working for someone else, you‘re not responsible for sourcing the flowers and stock, you’re not involved in quality control and prices, or the relationship that the shop has with the wholesalers and suppliers-it’s very different when it’s your business and your reputation and your good name that hinges on providing the best quality that you can-the dynamics change”.
Another aspect of the job they’re still learning is the preferences of their customer base: what people want from their local florist – at the moment every day can be very different. “Were willing at the moment to chop and change until we see what goes well, were not going to be set in our ways” says Chris. At this point Chris adds that building a good rapport with their customers is crucial, he says that giving a good service and that first impressions are key-that’s why developing the front of the shop is so important to them, people judge you by their first impression of the shop and its frontage displays.
So as new owners of a Florist what do they think the future holds for the high street florists?
Chris comments “Supermarkets will always sell bunched flowers, and the independent florists can’t compete with their prices. ,But the key point is that the Supermarkets don’t offer the specialist skills that florists provide or the personal touch that is required in truly inspirational floral arrangements, funeral tributes and wedding work. “ Chris adds “we feel that all the time there are florists on the high street, florists will continue to training and new blood will enter the market bringing new creativity and innovation – florists still have a lot to offer”.
Andi also remarks that it is the personal touch that florists and other specialist retail shops provide that the Supermarkets can’t compete with, it is a strength to build on , “after all you can’t go into a large Supermarket and ask for a specific flower or bespoke arrangement and there is no one to ask for advice, or any privacy to discuss an order, for example a funeral tribute. ..If we didn’t feel we could offer more than a supermarket we wouldn’t have taken this opportunity to run our own business.”
Where will you be in five years time?
Chris starts “In five years time we hope people will have come to know us and Andi’s style. The shop will have come into its own, with Andi’s artistry, sculptures, floristry and personality being part of the whole package. We want to change the front of the shop to reflect Andi’s style, we’re already building on the good reputation that the shop has, people are coming back, were getting repeat sales : after all we want to be here for a long time.”
What keeps you sane?
The list is still long “Chardonnay, Chardonnay, Kick Boxing, the children, running and horse riding, mountain biking. Oh and Beer and football”. We wonder just how much time they will have in these early days of a budding business – well there’s plenty of options when time is limited.
If you won the lottery what would you do, would you still keep the shop?
Andi is quick to respond “Oh yes, we’d still be here; we could do all things we want to do with the building and forecourt. We’d learn to relax more, have more quality time for our hobbies. We would employ someone so we could have a day off once week together – At the moment we can only take time off separately.”
Chris and Andi - keep smiling
So how is it being together all the time at work and at home? “We don’t resent being at work all the time, it’s taking a lot of everything, time, effort and money!” Andi goes on ” Working together isn’t an issue because it’s for both of us, were very focused, we both want it to work.”
Good luck or is it “Flobadobs” to Andi and Chris from all of us at Workbox Direct!
