When you purchase flowers from Lilium, you are getting a product that is of the highest quality. From the time the flowers leave the growers until they are delivered to our customers, Lilium oversees every step in the process.
A Lilium flower begins its journey at one of our carefully selected growers. We have chosen sources world-wide based on the quality of their products, shipping practices, and the care with which they process their flowers. When you deal with a perishable product, these details are critical. Before we establish a business relationship with a grower, we test their products and procedures to make sure they meet our standards. Currently, we source from growers in California, Florida, Hawaii, Holland and Ecuador.
Variation Among Retailers
Quality varies widely among florists, and customers should be aware of differences in price versus quality. For example, Lilium offers Rio Roses from Ecuador with stems measuring 60 centimeters. “Long-stemmed” roses from online mass floral services average less than 40 centimeters.
When we receive our flower shipments and deliveries each week, we give them a fresh cut and put them directly into our cooler. You may have noticed that grocery stores and mass markets will have flowers sitting out in buckets in a self-serve format. Once a flower is out of the cooler environment, it begins its decline. In addition, flower stems sitting buckets of water at room temperature grow bacteria, which speeds the deterioration process. Lilium does not carry over flowers from one week to the next. We start fresh each week with new deliveries and shipments of seasonal product.
When we take an order, we make every effort to obtain all the information we need to create an arrangement that will meet and exceed our customers’ expectations. As a custom florist, we design to our clients’ specifications. We have no unsold arrangements sitting in the cooler at the end of the week, and, because we order product judiciously, the waste at week’s end is minimal.
Educating Consumers
Although our product is perishable, extending the lifespan of our products increases their value and increases customer satisfaction. Lilium believes that educating consumers about properly caring for their arrangement or plant is an important step. On every Lilium arrangement, potted orchid or plant, a care card is attached. In addition, care instructions are printed on the back of our message cards.
We also like to educate our customers about the attributes of specific flowers. When we began using Rio Roses from Ecuador, our customers were not immediately sold on these unique roses (see our January 2016 blog: We ❤️ Corazon Roses). They have sturdy heads that don’t droop, open 4″-5″ across, have more petals than any other red rose, and are long-lasting. What’s not to love? However, when the roses opened quickly, customers thought they were getting old roses. We decided that they just needed a little information so that they could fully appreciate these beautiful roses and their unique qualities. Arrangements going out that include Corazon roses also include a printed information card that lets recipients know what to expect from this Lilium favorite. We also set up a display in our studio so that customers could see firsthand the progression from bud to full bloom. Within a short time, our customers were specifically asking for Corazon roses, and now they are among our best sellers.
Lilium has been recognized as Best of the Best in our area five times and won the 2015 National Retailer Florist of the Year award. Most recently, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce named Lilium a 2016 Blue Ribbon Small Business Award winner recognizing the top 100 small business in the United States. We feel that we owe much of our success to our ongoing commitment to offer a quality product and top-notch customer service to our clients. Rest assured, we will continue to seek out the most beautiful flowers of the highest quality for all of our customers.
