Rockcastle Florist encourages customers to upgrade birthday orders with a delicious, artfully-decorated cake.
A New York florist has discovered a sweet idea to fatten birthday and holiday sales.
CAKE!
About two years ago, Wendy Rockcastle connected with a local bakery to start selling some sugary treats at her business, Rockcastle Florist, which has locations in Rochester and Canandaigua.
“They have a great quality product and it’s close to the shop,” so it’s easy to pick up goodies as needed, she said.
“We keep it simple, with just chocolate or vanilla options,” she said. The 9-inch round cakes come decorated with frosted flowers (naturally!) and a “Happy Birthday” message — details that convey thoughtfulness the same way professionally designed flowers do.
Rockcastle sells the cakes for $30, twice what she pays the bakery, and markets them both as a standalone gift and a way to upgrade an order.
The convenience of getting two special gifts in one sale motivates a lot of customers to add on a cake, she said: “Where else can you have these items delivered?”
In addition, she purchases seasonal cupcakes for Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. “They’re a hit!” she said, noting that pretty and tasty items seem to be especially difficult for people to resist.
