Last year in Lafayette, Colorado, DWF Wholesale Florists donated product to help the team at Lafayette Florist, Gift Shop and Garden Center offset costs. Shown: Dave and Laura Gaul of DWF, and Lori Wheat, AAF; Brian Wheat, AAF, PFCI; Jessica Beard and Sandi Yoshihara-Sniff, AAF, AIFD, of Lafayette Florist, Gift Shop and Garden Center.
For the second year in a row, the Society of American Florists is spearheading a feel-good effort to promote florists and get flowers into the hands of more people and is encouraging industry members from coast to coast to hold events in their communities to make Petal It Forward a nationwide phenomenon on October 19, 2016.
“The goal is to have these events happening on the same day — October 19th — in every state,” said SAF Vice President of Marketing Jennifer Sparks. “This could greatly enhance the industry’s chances of generating national news coverage with positive messages about the benefits of flowers. Not only is this effort good for the industry as a whole, but the benefits to members’ individual businesses are great.”
Now is the time to lay the groundwork for your local Petal It Forward event. Call your wholesaler to see if they’d like to join you in the effort. Invite staff, regular customers or family members to participate as volunteers; they’ll lighten your load and help promote the effort through their own connections. Ask area nonprofits and civic groups if they’d like to participate.
For Petal It Forward information, resources and advice to easily implement your own event on October 19, 2016, go to safnow.org/petalitforward.
SAF is compiling a list of local Petal It Forward events to show national media that this event is happening all over the country. Please complete the Petal It Forward Participation Form at safnow.org/PIFform and submit it by October 3, 2016, so that SAF can include your event on the list it gives national media.
