Romance gets the lion’s share of attention for Valentine’s Day — but it’s hardly the only type of love worth celebrating. At Allan’s Flowers in Prescott, Arizona, Rakini Chinery, AAF, AzMF, devotes a few hours during her busiest week of the year to encourage parents and children to bond over flowers.
For the past few years, she has hosted a “Daddy Daughter Party” the Sunday before Valentine’s Day. The free event includes snacks she purchases in bulk from Costco, such as cookies and juice for the girls and beer for the dads, as well as supplies (glittered carnations, alstroemeria, daisies, cellophane and ribbon) to create a small bouquet to take home. There is also a photo booth to provide attendees with an additional keepsake from the event.
To encourage fathers to order a Valentine’s Day arrangement for their daughters, Chinery offers a 15 percent discount, which works pretty well. “Last year we had 60 dads come in and took about 35 orders for Valentine’s Day,” she said.
The overall costs are minimal: $50 for snacks and $3 per bouquet. She promotes it exclusively on social media for free.
“We’re all here working that day anyway, so there’s no extra staffing costs,” she said. “Basically, it’s a two-hour window for goodwill and fun that pulls in a few extra sales. It’s really cute too because the girls come in all dressed up for the occasion.”
Katie Hendrick Vincent is the senior contributing editor for the Society of American Florists.
