Title: The American florist : a weekly journal for the trade
Identifier: americanfloristw4917amer (find matches)
Year: 1885 (1880s)
Authors: American Florists Company
Subjects: Floriculture; Florists
Publisher: Chicago : American Florist Company
Contributing Library: UMass Amherst Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Boston Library Consortium Member Libraries

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igi7. The American Florist. 279
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OMAHA AND COUNCIL BLUFFS FLORISTS' CLUB OUTING, LAKE MANAWA, lA., AUGUST 9, 1917. nue of publicity is almost invariably follo%Yed by a business failure. We all know, I say, know, because anyone will admit that flowers are na- ture's advertisement, that flowers have given more joy, have done more in helping to lift ■ the burden in time of distress and sorrow than any one other agency that the Almighty has estab- lished on this earth. Knowing these things, if we fail to do our duty in bringing them to the proper use of our fellow-man, we have not done or ac- complished our part. I am sure that with this audience I could find sympathetic listeners to al- most any amount of sentiment and poe- try that I might bring to your atten- tion, but there is another side to this business of producing flowers and that is the profit for those engaged. I am not personally engaged in the business of growing flowers. I wish I were, for I was born and raised on a combined nursery and greenhouse establishment, and though I have always kept in touch with it, I still look back on those happy days as the flower time, of my life. We have given 5'ou no half-baked publicity, neither 'will we give you some half-hearted bunk that will do lit- tle or no good. We have, however, spent the year making a careful survey and study of the needs of the craft, and now after consultation with the other members of the committee, we come to you with a definite programme and plan, a concrete something that is worked down to hard cold figures and facts. We present it at this time for your careful consideration either to re- ject or adopt. This plan brings us face to face with a condition that has been a real prob- lem or problems for us all. The rising cost of fuel, labor, everything that goes to make up the requirements of the craft, is one problem; the lessened use of flowers, in an effort on part of the populace to economize, on account of the war, is another, and very serious one. Flowers, because of the lack of edu- cation on the part of the public, all our fault, have always been considered a luxury. Why? Because we have al- lowed them to think so. We have not shown the necessity for flowers. Flow- ers are no luxury; they are no extrav- agance. They are a necessity and we know it. The sick must be cheered and you cannot do it with candy or other eatables, for that would either kill or do other bodily harm. How can they be cheered then? Why, by flowers, of course. It is very necessary to remem- ber wife's birthday, or Mothers' day, or daughter's birthday or sweetheart's, or graduation day or friend neighbor's opening day, etc. You cannot give jewelry in these times of trouble and economy, and besides it is not suita- ble for every use, but flowers express every beautiful thought and sentiment on every occasion. We believe this to be true. How are we going to m.ake the public believe it? By advertising. We know that we have a demand for flowers by reason of a natural love in everyone for their beauty. How are we going to stimu- late and increase this demand? By ad- vertising. We can impress upon the public the necessity of flowers, just as surely as the paintmakers will tell (in their coming campaign) the necessity of paint. We can sell flowers by advertising as surely as Uneeda Biscuit, Cream of Wheat, Victrolas,Corn-Flakes, Shredded Wheat Biscuit, Dutch Cleanser, Wrig- ley's gum and a thousand other things. All of you are familiar with these great successes, for which there was no nat- ural demand, but which have made end- less millions, because people have been led to believe them a necessity, because they are before them day and night. Are we going to make a real busi- ness of the florist business? Are we going to enter the ranks of live merchants, or are w^e going to be content with what comes to us with- out effort? If so, we will have to be content with less than we have had in former years. You have advertising successes in your midst. I could name many of them but I will use "Penn" for my illustration. I do not need to say much, the lesson is before you and plain as day. From "Newsboy to Wealth," no fairy story is better. All done by live advertising. So we offer a complete plan, diagram, schedule, sketches and even slogan for a real live campaign to put flowers on the commercial map. W. F. Theekildson, Chairman. Gut W. French. Joseph Heacock. Thomas H. Jot. Edward P. Tracet. Election of Officers. At the election of ofiicers, Thursday morning, the vote for president re- sulted as follows: Charles H. Totty, Madison, N. J., 198; A. L. Miller, Ja- maica, N. Y., 122. Jules Bourdet, St. Louis, Mo., was chosen vice-president, and John Young, New York, secretery, and J. J. Hess, Omaha, Neb., were re- elected. National Flower Show Committee Report. In submitting my report to the con- vention, I wish briefly to touch upon its objects, which it is understood by the committee from instructions re- ceived at the various conventions are to promote horticulture in all its branches and to make same self-sus- taining—the idea of profit being a sec- ondary consideration. The committee has also taken the stand that they must work equally hard for the interest of the exhibitor, to provide for him rec- ompense by bringing to the exhibitions enough of the public to encourage him in making his exhibit the last word in floriculture. This also applies to our exhibitors in the trade section. While our charges for foot space have been more than double that charged at the conventions, yet the exhibitors at the national shows have always said that it paid that much better to exhibit at the shows than at the conventions. This can be readily seen as making a decid- ed change pertaining to the conventions of our society, and in my opinion the time is very soon at hand, if not now, when there should be a national flower show in the spring of every year, and at this time the convention should also be held. Statistics kept by the secretary show that the attendance at the national flower shows by the members of our society is three times as great as at the conventions. It is also a natural buying season, and the exhibitor finds the florist visitor at the convention in a mood for buying. The attendance at the conventions held during the sum- mer the last few years has decidedly dropped off, and this is not to be won- dered at, as most people prefer to en- joy the taking of a vacation during the summer mor*"hs, and as the business of the society by the increased mem- bership, on the board of directors, by the afBliation plan, has gone to this body for their consideration, it also should be taken into consideration by the members that these national

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