Florist Finds Out The Hard Way

Roses come with thorns. The same goes for every flower shop. Florist businesses have ups and downs.  Are you prepared for the down days? You may not know it, but florist business insurance could save your business from going under.

So you’re thinking of starting your own florist. Will it be all sunshine and roses? Of course not. But, if you’ve done your homework, or been in business before, you know that there’s a lot you have to put in place before you can enjoy the advantages of being an entrepreneur and a small business owner.

A Beautiful Business Arrangement

These are some of the things you will have thought about before opening your florist business. If you haven’t, you really should. For instance:

•  Apply For Your Business Licence: 

Find out whether your municipality requires your florist  shop to have a business licence before setting up shop.

• Compare Credit Card Costs:

Be sure to compare credit card vendors before setting up your merchant account. A small business like a florist shop can lose hundreds of dollars a year in high rates without even knowing it.

• Prepare for Holidays:

Special days of the year mean extra business for a florist. You’ll experience an upsurge of orders on Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. Be prepared. Have a game plan in place weeks before. This includes marketing, staffing and buying. It’s smart to employ part time staff for these busy periods, instead of over-staffing all year round.

• Put Florist Business Insurance In Place:

Whatever you do, don’t forget insurance coverage. Why? Read some of the horror stories from Gina F, well-known florist owner in Dover, Delaware.

Florist Shop Fail

“My customer had her heart set on freesias. Of course, I was sure that even though they hadn’t yet been delivered to my florist shop, her freesias would be ready. But how wrong I was!  Just days to her walking down the aisle, freesias suddenly became scarce. I contacted every florist’s supplier that I know, and went extra miles trying to get her favorite flowers.”

The last thing a florist wants is the bride to disappoint her on her Big Day. “There I could do nothing but offer alternative flowers, but this didn’t go down well. She threatened to sue me. ‘You ruined my wedding!’ she yelled at me.

That could have been the end of Gina’s florist business, because without the money to meet legal and general liability costs, she would lose everything she had worked so hard to create. “Thankfully, I have my florist business insurance to take care of the legal fees,” she says.

Florist Business Insurance Shouldn’t Be Sneezed At

You shouldn’t joke with florist business insurance. Insurance policies such as professional liability coverage can come to your rescue as a florist. There is so much to worry about as a florist when you are preparing for a special event. It could be business interruption from weather patterns, or spoilage from a heat wave or a storm. Your suppliers could run out of stock. Your driver could crash the van. Worse still, you could lose your source of business income.

Some days can be crazy with bad-tempered clients raining threats and deadlines looking impossible. There is also the threat of accidents that result in bodily injury with medical expenses for staff or customers. With a florist small business insurance policy (like a business owner’s policy that includes workers compensation insurance and commercial auto coverage) in place, you’ll have one less thing to worry about.

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