Selling flowers is a big business. There are just under 500 traditional florist shops left in Ireland and countless more unregistered businesses operating. But where do we get our stock of wonderful fresh blooms from? There are three major sources of fresh flowers for retail florists, local growers, wholesalers, and flower auctions all of whom specialise in the buying and selling of mother natures most beautiful creation.
Belles Fleurs have deliveries four times a week to make sure our in-house bouquets and nationwide flower deliveries are as fresh as can be. Choose us for your next purchase of anniversary, birthday, or celebration flowers using code BELLES10 for 10% off our entire website as a small thank you to our loyal customers.
Flowers from Holland
Did you know that Holland has been at the heart of the flower trade for over 200 years? A combination of expertise, ideal growing conditions, and years of hard work by horticulturists have cemented The Netherlands place in the centre of growing, buying, selling, and shipping flowers all over the world. The Royal FloraHolland auction house at Aalsmeer, near Amsterdam, is one of the biggest flower markets in the world and it famously began in a pub when one trader asked another, ‘how much?’. Holland now exports over 40% of the world’s supply of flowers along with markets in Columbia, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Ecuador and are constantly adjusting how they sell and deliver blooms according to new technology.
From Holland to Here
Cut flowers are extremely delicate and need to be transported quickly. Using a series of refrigerated facilities from farms, planes and boats, the flowers are put into a dormant state meaning they stay fresh for longer. Time is critical and most flowers go from the field to the florist within 24-48 hours. For every extra day spent travelling, flowers lose up to 15% of their value and shelf life. When buying from a reputable florist like Belles Fleurs, shelf life is usually 12-15 days when displayed correctly. See our ‘care of flowers’ blog for more information.
Flowers in Dublin
Around 90% of flowers sold in Ireland are imported. Our changeable weather and lack of sunlight for many months of the year aren’t ideal for flower growing. At Belles Fleurs, we order our flowers online from a large professional wholesaler in Holland. Our wholesaler buys from an auction, who has thousands of blooms on display every day giving us a large selection to choose from. The flowers are delivered to our Dublin florist four days a week having been quickly transported in refrigerated trucks and stored in containers with plenty of water. We then return the containers to the wholesalers in Holland for reuse. We handpick brilliant blooms so we can ensure optimum quality and freshness for bouquets.
We deliver flowers all over Dublin and the rest of the country, seven days a week. We offer next day delivery nationwide but can accommodate same-day if you’d like a flower delivery in Dublin. Contact our friendly team for your birthday, anniversary, or new baby bouquets today.