A flower buyer's guide to Valentine's Day
Prices
Yep, flower prices go up around holidays. There’s nothing you can do about it and bargaining isn’t an option, so your best bet is to know your budget and know which florist can best accommodate it.
Higher-end floral shops are pricier than grocery store floral departments, but they also produce higher quality work.
If you’re willing to spend $100, a trained florist can beautifully arrange a vase with two dozen long-stem roses, but if you have only $20 to spend, a grocery store is your best bet.
So what’s the difference? The length of a rose’s stem is directly proportional to its cost, so grocery store flowers are likely to be smaller and shorter, which makes for a less dramatic appearance. The floral clerks are generally less experienced too, but that’s not to say they can’t do a good job – just remember that an arrangement is only as good as the flowers that go into it.
Floral shops are also more likely to offer delivery services and arrangement accessories, such as vase pebbles or decorative skewers.
