10TV ordered flowers from three different national retailers designed by local florists.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Mother’s Day is just around the corner, people everywhere flock to flower shops or place orders online, so we test our local florists and national retailers by ordering flowers at three different flower delivery services designed and delivered by three local florists.
“Mother’s Day is probably the biggest holiday in the flower shop of the year, that’s it. It’s our biggest week,” said Christy Bogs, owner of Villager’s Flowers in Western Columbus. She says her sales triple every year.
“It’s nice to deliver them to people and just the surprise on their faces and how glad they are that someone sent flowers. That’s what you don’t do for yourself, “says Boggs.
First, we ordered “Flower Hugs” from 1-800-Flowers, supplied by Hillard’s Exotica Floral Shoppe.
Flowers cost $ 69.85 after service and tax.
These flowers were similar to an internet display, but not quite as pictured.
The statement 1-800-flowers states:
“1-800-Flowers.com works with thousands of professional florists across the country to deliver floral arrangements.
Sometimes, due to the limited availability of some flower stalks in some local markets, flower substitutions may be made.
At 1-800-Flowers.com our mission is to deliver smiles. If there ever is a case where a client has an unsatisfactory experience, we guarantee that we will do it right. ”
An Exotica spokesman said they encourage customers to order directly from a local florist if they have problems with online systems.
The second test was the online retailer Teleflora. These flowers were similar to an online display, the only noticeable difference being the replacement of yellow flowers instead of orange. God’s store is the one that designed and delivered these flowers.
“So we didn’t have the orange lily that is in the picture, so we used yellow. It also has Viking palms, which we didn’t have, so we used yellow daisies instead, and I think everything else is the same! ” Said Bogs.
This set of flowers cost $ 79.52.
She said that if you want the highest customer service and maximum benefit for your money, order directly from a florist.
“So they take from you probably $ 14-15-20, $ 25 just for accepting your order. So they’re not even florists, they don’t know anything about the industry, ”Boggs said of what she calls“ online flower collectors ”.
“Many times roses come very densely and they open up when they sit in the air, but they never show you that, they only show you fully exposed flowers,” explains Bogs, national sites can sometimes be misleading.
The third test was flowers from FTD, designed and supplied by T. Bears Flowers & Chocolatier. The flowers looked more rare compared to other orders. T Bears declined to comment, but the FTD sent us an additional display that was more like an online display.
The FTD note read: “After further study of the arrangement you received, we have made your arrangement in accordance with FTD & T Bears standards. Please enjoy. ”
Flowers with FTD cost $ 80.83 after shipping and tax.
All the flowers from each store arrived on time at 10TV.
Finally, Bogs says you order in person or online, be sure to get orders for Mother’s Day before Friday.
