At Work With Einhorn's Florist
October 10, 2008

Name: Einhorn's Florist

Type of business: Florist shop

Address: 2015 Westfield Ave., Scotch Plains

Telephone: (908) 322-9500

Web site:
www.einhornsflowers.com

Hours: Monday-Saturday
8 a.m.-6 p.m.

Number of employees: 5

Founded: March 1998

Chief officer: Ken Einhorn, owner

How would you describe your business?

"We are a retail florist shop taking corporate and individual retail orders for flower arrangements and gourmet gifts to corporate and individual customers," said Ken Einhorn, owner.

"We deliver flowers and gift baskets for all occasions including birthdays, anniversaries, new baby, sympathy, and weddings. Our flowers can be ordered on the Internet at www.einhornsflowers.com that opens us up to a larger base. You can be in contact with our shop 24/7 place the order on line, and get email confirmation."

What makes your business special?

"We have a greenhouse attached to the florist store, which allows us to stock 46 to 50 different cut varieties of cut flowers at one time. One wall of our shop displays a large assortment of dish gardens with up to six plants in assorted and different ceramic and wicker containers with 75 to 100 pieces on hand at one time."

What goals do you have for the business?

"This is a challenging time now. Our goal is to continue to service our loyal customers."

How has your business changed?

"The merchandisers out there have changed the structure of our business. Venders will set up a sale of flowers at gas stations and that affects our business. Mass merchandisers like Home Depot are selling the same products we sell.  Two issues have impacted our business: the mass merchandisers and changes in the use of flowers as decoration for a holiday.

"In years past at Thanksgiving there would be a flower centerpiece at the holiday table  or a bouquet for the home. Corsages for specific occasions aren't used as much as they once were. Today a florist has to diversify in order to grow the business."

What was your most important deal?

"Moving to a larger location when the building our first store was in was absorbed by a health care facility -- Complete Care on Second Street. We were in a location that had 500 square feet. The new location gave us the opportunity to build a greenhouse and now have an area of close to 3,000 square feet between the two floors containing the florist shop and greenhouse.

"Moving to our present location on Westfield Ave. enabled us to grow quickly, with space for larger retail environment. The overall lot size provided off-street parking, extra storage, and room to put the greenhouse in. It gives us the ability to store larger quantities of different items. For instance, we can sell 8,000 to 9,000 poinsettias during the Christmas season when we need to store them for a short time. If we didn't have the greenhouse we couldn't broker so many."

What is the most important thing you've learned in your business?

"The most important thing I've learned is how to adjust to what we need to do in order to meet the needs of the retail customer. The customer is always looking for variety and different things at a good price. Some florist owners will make arrangements the way they have been accustomed to doing them. My philosophy is, you got to give the consumer what they want -- the arrangement tailored to their taste. That is something we want to do. It's only common sense. But many florists don't change their ways and don't apply, don't practice in that fashion, and that's why after a few years they go belly up."

What advice would you give to someone considering your line of work?

"Despite the product it takes dedication and tenacity to make any business work. You need to stick with it. You also need to be well organized."

Is there anything else you would rather be doing?

"I don't know. I started this out of college, where I graduated with a degree in business. Sometimes you wonder if I didn't do this, what would I be doing now? I wouldn't say it hasn't crossed my mind, but right now my business is pretty self-sufficient. At this point I wouldn't know what I would go into."