Chapter 1 Careers in Floriculture 11
Freelance Floral Designer
Highly-skilled fl oral designers who prefer a more fl exible
schedule than a retail fl ower shop provides may prefer to work
on a freelance basis. Freelance fl oral designers are another type
of entrepreneur. Rather than work for one retail or wholesale
business, these designers own their own business. They
work for themselves and accept jobs from several different
companies. To work on a freelance basis, a designer must have
a strong understanding of the fundamentals in design, as well
as good oral communication skills.
Freelancing has both advantages and disadvantages.
The advantages include being able to set your own hours
and choose specifi c jobs that interest you, Figure 1-11.
Disadvantages include a lack of company benefi ts, such as
health insurance and paid vacations. As a freelancer, you are
responsible for making all of the business decisions. Also, you
take the risk that you will be able to generate enough business
to make a profi t.
Many different types of companies hire freelance fl oral
designers. For example, wholesale fl orists seek freelance
designers for educational programs. They hire highly-skilled
designers to show their customers—the retailers—how to
use their products in current ways. A freelance designer may
present programs or classes to teach applications of design
and mechanics using plants, artifi cial or dried materials, and fresh products.
Specialty gift companies and manufacturers also use freelance fl oral
designers to promote their products. They set up temporary or permanent
showrooms to exhibit product lines. A designer assists with merchandising,
or displaying the company’s products in a pleasing and effective way to
increase sales. Merchandising requires strong creative and visual display
skills. The designer arranges and displays products to entice customers to
buy them.
Even some retail fl ower shops hire freelance designers to assist with
production around holidays and at other times when a high order volume
is expected. The freelance designer benefi ts the fl ower shop by providing
“another pair of hands” to ease intensive workloads.
To work in these varied environments, a freelance designer needs to be
highly skilled in all aspects of fl oral design. The ability to work effi ciently and
well under pressure to meet tight deadlines is a necessity. Having a positive
personality and being fl exible enough to meet client demands are also critical
for freelance designers.
Specialty Florists
As explained earlier in the chapter, specialty shops focus on one type
or aspect of the fl oriculture industry. By concentrating on one area, they can
offer extended services to meet the needs of their customers more fully.
Pro Tip
Keep a bottle of high
quality hand lotion in
your tool kit. Using it
will not only keep your
hands from becoming
dry and chapped, it will
also make it easier to
clean glue or paint from
your hands.
Shestakoff/Shutterstock.com
Figure 1-11. Freelance fl oral designers have
the option to set their own hours and can even
work from home. Freelancers often put in long
hours to meet customer demands, however.