Merel... Making it easier to buy better...
Merel van den Burg is probably one of the best-known wholesalers in the UK. Not because her company is huge … it’s a small tight team that literally does everything … but because she actively gets out there and networks with her customers and the industry at large.
Because Merel, and her work and life partner Ronald, the founders of Flowering Direct, reckon transparency, honesty and information are key to any company that aims to sell flowers online. We caught up with the couple to find out more.
Making it easier to buy better
She started her career as a florist in Noordwijk in the Netherlands before closing the shop to concentrate on event floristry and exhibition work. But even back then, when auctions and traditional cash and carries dominated, Merel knew that buying direct from growers was best.
Nearly 30 years later she is using that lifelong experience to not only make sure sales grow but that her florist customers are getting the best they possibly can - even though they will never see the flowers and plants until they arrive at the shop.
“It’s all about support, help, transparency and trust as far as I am concerned. Yes of course we want to generate sales, but we also want to make sure it works for our customers too. Not every order will need an 80cm, large headed bloom … for some an A2, 50cm is perfect and makes the profit margin better but unless a florist understands how things work it can go horribly wrong. Like the customer who bought 1 -3 stage Peonies on a Thursday for a Saturday wedding and then wondered why nothing was open.”
It’s not that buying online is hard, it’s just different. Especially from Merel’s company. Because this isn’t about choosing from what is in a warehouse but from what growers on the platform are able to offer straight from the nursery. There is no stock as such … just hundreds and hundreds of flowers and plants YOU choose to buy which are then delivered to the central warehouse, checked, packed and delivered to you within hours.
Which means that not only do you have all the usual lines but often things you might not see otherwise. Like the luscious and very limited supply of Rosanne Emerald Lisianthus that was on the platform the other day. Horribly expensive compared to other Lisi (yes, we know it’s all been expensive, but this was very!!) some wholesalers wouldn’t have risked offering such a high-priced item but being on the platform meant florists could – and did – buy it.
Ronald with just some of the products the company showcase every week
And that's why a lot of Merel’s time is spent making sure florists understand the system and can buy to suit, (see some of her top tips below) why they’ve just launched their ‘Buy like a Pro’ videos, why there’s a private group to help answer any queries and why Merel is permanently on hand to help where needed.
There are grade sheets that show exactly what to expect for each variety and when it comes to filters on the buying platform a florist can see exactly what is in the bucket, who the grower is and even if they have any social and environmental accreditations.
The fact that as a brilliant florist herself she can also help on design ideas and practical floristry advice is an extra added bonus that meant a growing customer base and a loyalty second to none.
But that is not to say it’s been easy, that there haven’t been some hiccoughs along the way or that Merel and Ronald have sailed through the pandemic unscathed. Far from it.
A 35% drop in turnover is scary for anyone. But that’s what they had to cope with as weddings and event business dried up. “Sure, there were increases in other areas of floristry but it wasn’t enough to counter the losses we took on the wedding side of things. We had some customers who simply stopped buying, indeed have only just started again 18 months down the line as weddings in the UK are allowed.”
That said she reckons they were luckier than some wholesalers. “We were still relatively small at the time, so we could, and did, do everything ourselves. Up at 4 every morning to check, pack and load and like many haven’t had a break for nearly two years but we just had to get on and do it; there was no choice – we couldn’t let florists down and we had to survive too.”
Brexit and the changes in the importation rules have also been a HUGE cost. In the first few months, and as they found their feet, additional costs to cover paperwork, agency costs and extra staffing were running at around €1000.00 a WEEK!
It has improved as they and the customs side get a better handle on it but it is by no means easy or cheap and Ronald admits he is not feeling good about the flower side when that kicks into play in January 2022. “I’m praying it will work but going to be honest and say I am pessimistic. It’s been hard enough on plants and that is a fraction of our business so I am just hoping that they (the UK side) will have sorted it out in plenty of time as everyone will struggle if they don’t”.
But whilst Covid and Brexit may have caused unbearable challenges, and Merel has desperately missed seeing and meeting florists, there were opportunities as well. Because back in June 2020 Florismart, a company Merel and Ronald had previously worked with, approached them to see if they could join forces to share sourcing, back office, and logistics.
From that small, but momentous gear change, June 2021 saw the formal merging into FlorismartDirect with Ronald becoming Chief Operating Office and Pieter van Leeuwen of the former Florismart Chief Exec.
Above: It started with a joining of forces in June 2020 ... it's now a full merger with Ronald as COO and Pieter van Leeuwen as CEO
“It wasn’t how we had seen things panning out” says Ronald, “but I firmly believe that if we can harness back all the good things about Florismart and blend them with the strengths of Flowering Direct we are going to have a very powerful platform. There is total trust and mutual respect between us and I feel really confident that we are in a good place.”
And that is already evidenced in the reduction of claims, the number of new customers, the fact that Merel and Ronald are talking with other UK wholesalers and the interaction on their social media channels.
Because if there is one piece of advice Merel would give any florist (well other than buying from her!!) it’s get yourself totally in tune with social media and use it to the hilt.
“We were early adopters of social media even before Covid so were able to use it to the full to connect with our clients and make sure they knew what was happening and what we could do to help. If you were not visible on social media or didn’t have an up-to-date website when COVID-19 started, you were 2 steps behind. The florists that were web savvy could directly take advantage of it and it really showed the importance to be online and “out there”.
It’s all about connecting with customers and showing them you are the expert when it comes to flowers and plants … telling them the back story of where their flowers and plants come from, how to look after them, why colours mean different things, what emotions each flower conveys … showing your passion and expertise in a way no supermarket or online player can’t do so well. You may not be able to beat them on price but you can certainly beat them on knowledge and skill.”
To find out more about the Florismartdirect service 2021 style visit their website or email
1: Suss the site
Not all websites are the same so if you are buying from several suppliers you need to make sure you understand the system before pressing the button. This isn’t like Amazon … you can’t return it if you get it wrong.
2: Know your needs
When it comes to wedding and event work really think about what you need. If you are making a wall or close packed arch you don’t need long, more expensive stems, for pedestals you will. See what the price difference is between a 50 and 80cm as it could make a big difference. Equally if there is a special price on a longer stem then it may make more sense to buy those for everything.
3: Stems or bunches
We’ve known florists buy what they thought were 50 stems only to discover it was 50 bunches or 50 stems when they wanted 50 bunches! Either way it’s been wrong. Yes, you can make a special buy if you’ve overbought but if you’ve under bought you could be in trouble too, especially if you don’t have a wholesaler nearby to get you out of trouble.
4: Weight matters
Some flowers, like Chrysanth and Tulips, as well as fillers like Limonium and Gyp and foliage’s are graded as much by weight as length. The heavier the weight the bigger/stronger the product. Florismartdirect have a grade sheet at hand to help you buy the best product for the job.
5: Alphabet Soup
The most important short form for buying is NPU’s, which means number per unit (basically how many stems in the Dutch auction bucket) and which is another indicator of size. More relevant if you are buying a product that can come in many different sizes (like roses) 40 in a bucket means they will be pretty darned big! If they can get 100 in a bucket they’ll be fairly small.
6: Ripeness matters
1-3, 2-2, 3-4 … the higher the number the more open the bloom. You can buy tight but if you need the flowers open for a special event, like a wedding or funeral then make sure you order it in early enough to get the blooms open. Buy too tight and you could end up in trouble… there is only so much forcing open you can do.
7. Head size
Another important thing to be aware of is to check the head size, particularly when buying flowers like roses or hydrangea. The bigger the head, the greater the coverage in the design. Make sure you take this into account when ordering as too few and you won’t have enough coverage, too many and you’ll simply be wasting money.
