Website Closers® presents a rare opportunity to acquire an Event & Floral Supplies Brand that has been in business for more than 100 years, and today operates across multiple sales channels that include Retail, Wholesale and eCommerce. This thriving business brings to the table long-standing relationships with major wholesalers and well-earned brand recognition as one of the oldest wholesalers of Floral Supplies in the country.
With multiple large warehouses stocked to the gills with their branded products, they are able to provide every item conceivable to weddings, bar mitsvahs, funerals, and many other business and special events.
This company is the perfect fit for any prospective buyer eagerly looking for an historic brand with thousands of wholesale accounts and a growing digital presence. The company demonstrates high profit margins, a loyal customer base, and an experienced team efficiently managing daily operations. Speaking of loyalty, 80% of their wholesale customers return with repeat buys.
A Century Old Brand
While this company started out as a retailer back in 1915 (the 2nd year of the 1st World War), it made a smooth — and enormously profitable — transition into eCommerce in more recent years. And throughout those 100 years, built up a massive treasure trove of wholesalers that carry their lines.
The business maintains a vibrant presence on Amazon, with 500+ listings that are almost entirely their own brand, and those SKUs continuously attract an impressive number of 5-star reviews. This is a healthy and well-oiled commercial operation that provides a buyer with impressive annual profits exceeding $5M, giving the new owner the luxury of focusing on scaling the business with plenty of cash flow available for growth.
There are numerous ways of aggressively growing this brand, including by marketing to new wholesale accounts across all 50 states and Internationally, launching new online sales channels (including Walmart.com), and using digital marketing to expand the customer base of its Direct-to-Consumer Website. With more than 20 employees, the buyer can rely on that experienced team to keep the customers happy while shifting management’s focus toward higher growth. With such a lengthy track record, this company has demonstrated it can reinvent itself as both the economy and consumer/business trends shift.
This company still maintains warehouses and a presence in the New York metro and Tri-State area, selling its branded products directly to regional shops. But the largest segment of the business today is their eCommerce storefront on Amazon. The consumer shift toward online shopping has been tremendously beneficial to this company, which has demonstrated a sharp talent for finding new customers in the digital age.
The company operates in an evergreen industry that remains an immensely lucrative one. In the U.S. alone, the flower market is valued at $7.9 billion, and this country has led the world’s cut flower market with a CAGR of 5.8%. In comparison, this company has enjoyed a significantly higher 23% CAGR over the past few years. With the U.S. floral gifting market expected to reach $18.99 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 7.58%, there is a consistent demand for flowers for various occasions, including Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, weddings, and funerals. Studies show that 90% of Americans can recall the last time they gave flowers to someone.
Considering that this company is no small florist retailer but a leading national wholesale provider and one that has successfully transitioned to eCommerce, a buyer is looking at a phenomenal long-term investment here. This company has a durable and lengthy history, matched with an ability to adapt to changing economic conditions.
Even today, after 100 years of successful business operations, they continue to guide to growth for 2023 and 2024.
The Company
Launched in 1915, the company’s goals over the years have primarily been to sell a wide range of common and specialized floral supplies, virtually everything that a flower shop or event planner would need. They have grown their catalog to a massively diverse 10,000+ SKUs, and those items include vases, artificial flowers, décor for weddings and parties, and specialized products for funeral parlors.
Virtually all of their sales are from branded products, and they market 500 SKUs on Amazon. The company is not reliant on any individual product to generate profit, and while sales remain strong throughout the year, certain seasons always include big spikes in sales, including around Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day – their largest sales holiday – and Christmas. During each of these times of the year, the company remains very busy.
Their B2B accounts include 2,000+ wholesalers, retailers and online shops that provide them with an 80% Repeat Customer Rate.
The trend today is that consumers who used to buy flowers or related supplies from local shops or big box stores are increasingly shopping for related products online, and this brand’s Amazon store is growing quickly to support that audience. The company maintains a healthy mix of repeat customers and new ones.
Recent Enhancements
The company continues to evolve and to implement significant enhancements to improve operations.
They have recently implemented a much needed Inventory Management System to improve their working capital position and to ensure that order fulfillment is no longer done on paper but through digital pick routing and product scanning using handheld devices. The result has been a significant reduction in human error, by up to 90%. The majority of order pickings can be done using new U-boats during the pack and shipment process, giving them greater control over their orders.
The brand transitioned its Software to ODOO, a business management software that provides enhanced tools for eCommerce. Now, every item in their warehouse is scanned and matched to a specific shelf location, while every sales order is digitally picked with a scanned matching control, enabling them to match orders to available stock levels. These changes have significantly improved the brand’s inventory and operational accuracy.
At their expansive facilities, stock and fulfillment operations have been segregated into specific areas that include receiving, order staging, picking stock, and replenishing stock. This helps maintain a much-needed separation in key inventory categories. These changes have helped minimize errors when selecting smaller items, enabling faster retrieval.
Operations & Marketing
With their inventory handled by a business software solution, the packaging of products is done by their suppliers and delivered to the company in boxes that get stored at their three third-party warehouses, while Fulfillment By Amazon is used for their online orders. All boxes are branded with the company name and logo.
There are 23 employees that handle daily operations, including 3 in the main office, 3 in the Amazon division, 7 warehouse workers, and 3 drivers.
While the company has traditionally advertised its products through print and digital catalogs, today it also employs email marketing and digital ads on Amazon to expand its customer base. Enhanced digital marketing tools, including a blog on their website, a video marketing campaign on YouTube and TikTok, and a social media marketing campaign that includes the use of affiliates and influencers would boost the company’s profits even further. The same is true if the company uses those marketing tools to target new wholesale accounts across the 50 states and expand their online sales onto new platforms such as Walmart and Target.
The enormous growth potential of their wholesale accounts, including by expanding into the live flower business, would likely send profit skyrocketing since the company has a proven and experienced sales team ready to market new products.
The company’s impressive longevity gives them immense tools that most competitors simply don’t have, including high repeat orders, an outstanding reputation for quality, an expert knowledge of this niche market and what buyers are looking for, and a team that keeps their customer service and reputation sky high. A fast-grown eCommerce sector is yet another reason to recognize what a rare and outstanding offering this is.
