Tell us a bit about your current job.

I’m a florist! Though I actually prefer the title ‘Floral Stylist’. Reason being I think there’s a bit of a preconceived view of florists built from the old fashioned greengrocer image, fleece-wearing and an abundance of brightly coloured chrysanthemums. Not that there’s anything wrong with fleece jumpers or chrysanthemums! I see what I do more like curating flowers, and celebrating the art of nature. And generally, I prefer to wear dresses ... I set up my own floral business called Rabbit and the Rose in 2017, it will be 3 years old this July! I mostly do wedding work though as I have a little studio people can visit I also take general orders for all occasions, funeral work, I run workshops and of course the big occasions like Valentine’s, Mother’s Day, and Christmas!

What and where did you study after school?

After my GCSEs I went to college to study A levels in Textiles, Health Care and Dance. So a bit of a mix! Textiles was definitely my main interest at the time. I then continued onto an Art Foundation course and then a degree in Textile Design for Fashion and interiors in Bath. I’ve never been one of those people who knew exactly what career they wanted and the exact path they needed to take. I’m creative, and enjoy working with others, other than that I could never pinpoint my ‘dream job’, nor did that really matter.

How did you get from answer 2 to answer 1?

Whilst I was at School I did work experience in my local family run florist for two weeks. From not knowing the difference between a rose and a daffodil I very quickly fell in love with flowers and botanicals. I did not want to go back to school! I still remember those two weeks very clearly. The florist offered me a Saturday job from there after and I continued working for them every Saturday and extra in holidays, right up until I went to university. I have continued to maintain a good relationship with the family which I so value. Even since beginning my degree I regularly did wedding flowers for friends and family in my own time and involved my love of flowers within my degree course wherever possible! Cutting a long story short after working in a few different jobs after uni, including Sew Over It and Petra Jewellery (both small independent women-run businesses!) and doing a floristry course at Tallulah Rose Flower School (also run by a woman!) I bit the bullet and took the plunge into setting up on my own!

How does your formal education feed into your present career (if at all)?

Though I never did formal training in floristry or horticulture, everything I have studied has contributed and impacted the journey I’ve been on and where I am today. I have found that textiles and floristry are very much intertwined; following a brief, understanding of colour, shape, texture, composition, styling and presentation, the only difference being the medium I work in. In a way, I don’t think it really matters what you’ve studied, within reason. It shouldn’t stop you from pursuing something because you don’t have the specific certificate, or feel that what you have studied was a waste of time; I have found that every experience shapes where you end up, is valid, and will provide useful skills.

What things have you learnt outside of formal education that have been helpful to your career?

I feel very fortunate to have worked for many companies that are run by independent and inspirational women, this has really given me the confidence and encouragement to set out on my own. From the florist at school run by two sisters, my course leaders at university, it was a woman who ran the residential home where I worked as a health care assistant and activities coordinator, Lisa Comfort who owns Sew Over It, and Mitch who owns Petra Jewellery. All who I have had the opportunity to observe and learn from. Working for small companies has given me an insight into how to run a business; not just the fun creative stuff but all the nitty gritty of accounts, management, self-motivation, stock buying and marketing. Now there’s no real preparation for all these things until you have to get on and actually do it yourself, but my previous experiences definitely put me in a slightly better position. What’s also been important is everyone else who I have surrounding me from family, friends, colleagues, other Instagrammers! I’ve really tried to surround myself with people who build you up, who inspire you, encourage you in your dreams and who you can trust to bounce ideas off with.

What are the really useful skills for someone in your job to possess?

Aside from the obvious floristry skills in everything from wiring for buttonholes and bridal bouquets, hand- tied bouquet making, oasis work, larger installations and everything in between, knowledge of flower varieties and seasonality, there is a host of other skills and attributes I have found important for this job. As I own my own business and generally work on my own, I need to be able to put many hats on from financial director, stock buyer, marketing, and dealing with all the other bits that need to be considered such as insurance, everything around the property such as rent and bills, work vehicle, customer relations, right down to the house keeping such as cleaning of the floor and scrubbing buckets, well the list goes on! Another incredibly important quality to have is empathy. Every customer has a story of their own to why they’ve ended up at my door, whether it’s for funeral flowers or for a wedding it is vital I am able to really understand their needs and vision and be able to interpret them sensitively to the final product.

What does an average day at work look like for you?

Now there really isn’t an average day for me, every day varies such a lot and is one reason why I love what I do – I’m always kept on my toes! As I mostly do weddings a ‘typical’ week for me may be easier to explain (even then it varies week by week) So my week tends to begin on the Tuesday if the wedding is on the Saturday; working through admin, emails and quotes, planning the stock I require for the week and placing my floral order. Wednesday is when the flowers arrive and I can spend the whole day just preparing and organising them! As well as prepping any vases and containers. Thursday marks the start of making, usually table arrangements and any venue décor that can be done in advance. Friday is for the bridal flowers; so bouquets, buttonholes, any other final arrangements such as gift bouquets and prepping everything ready to set up at the venues for the following day. Then it’s the wedding day! This is usually a day that starts rather early, perhaps 5:30am (sometimes earlier!) to finish any final wiring bit such as hair pieces or buttonholes, any tweaks to the other arrangements and finishing the bouquets with beautiful ribbons and final touches. The car gets packed to the brim and I head off to the venues, delivery of the bride’s flowers tends to come first as I like to make sure I hand over the bride’s bouquet personally. And then setting up any venue flowers. The work isn’t over even after everything has been delivered as usually my studio then looks like a bombs hit it! So back there to clear up the aftermath before collapsing in a heap! And then very often I have to go back to venues to take down and collect any décor on Sunday morning. Phew!

What’s the best thing about your job?

The joy of flowers season to season never gets old, the varieties are endless and the appreciation of what beauty nature possesses never seizes to amaze! When that amazement fades, that’s the time I need to hang up my apron! As well as my own personal enjoyment of the medium I get to work in, it’s also the opportunity to bring joy to people’s lives, whatever the occasion. Happiness is never a guarantee but there is always room to inject some joy, that’s got to be what flowers are for? I especially love transforming couples’ ideas and vision into their dream wedding day, it is a real privilege.

What’s your least favourite aspect of your job?

Interestingly this is also what is great about my job... As I run my own business I GET to make all of the decisions; have creative control, being my own boss is great, all of the successes are mine and I’m fortunate to have the flexibility of working to my own schedule. However, on the other hand I also HAVE to make all the decisions; the finances, stock predictions, any criticism or failures is on me, there’s a lot of pressure in that. Oh and I also hate admin... For someone who just wants to create beautiful things, talking money is never comfortable and working out quotes must be my absolute least favourite task!

What (concrete) advice would you give to someone seeking a job like yours?

Experience. Formal courses like what colleges offer are fab, though that’s not the route I went so I can’t necessarily recommend them. For me there’s nothing better than trying it out for real. If I had a pound for every person who tells me they’d love to be a florist, I’d be pretty wealthy! The reality of any job isn’t the idealistic view it usually has, to work in floristry is genuinely hard graft and not as glamorous as the beautiful end product would have you believe. Don’t get me wrong it is a fantastic industry to be in, but give it a try first before spending lots of money on a course, whether that’s doing workshops as a taster and volunteering or doing some experience with a florist, I encourage you to try it out first. Knowing the skills is one thing, but the problem solving and day to day grind of the job can’t be taught on a course. On the flip side, the other advice I’d give is to keep learning! I’m very conscious of avoiding becoming a business that gets ‘stuck’ in their own ways. It’s great to have your own style of working, but important to keep evolving. It is impossible to know 100% everything about flowers and floristry in an ever-changing industry, and that’s okay. Keep refreshed, updated with new styles, trends and techniques, rejuvenate your skills and re-inspire yourself regularly. Whether that’s through specific skilled workshops such as wired bouquet making, or a workshop on Photoshop or Mailchimp to help improve your marketing, or perhaps a conference about business planning. There is always room to improve and there’s no shame in it. I try to do at least 1 ‘learning’ activity a year to keep me refreshed but also motivated, it’s also fun!

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