Several shops chose to send multiple employees to SAF’s 1-Day Profit Blast in Seattle, so they could collaborate on how to use the information gleaned from the event.
Several shops chose to send multiple employees to SAF’s 1-Day Profit Blast in Seattle, so they could collaborate on how to use the information gleaned from the event.
A new partnership between SAF and some if its wholesaler members is making high quality education even more affordable — and bringing it even closer to home — for many retail florists.
On Nov. 14, SAF will host its 1-Day Profit Blast in Des Moines, Iowa. The packed program will include expert insight on business, technology, trends and design, along with a supplier showcase.
To offset costs and keep the registration rate low, the Bill Doran Company is underwriting the program.
“This is really a win-win for us,” said Bill LaFever, president of the Bill Doran Company. “We can give our customers access to a great program, but we don’t have to be the ones to develop and coordinate the content and logistics — which takes an incredible amount of time. That’s SAF’s expertise, so we can leave the content and logistics to them, and we can work on getting our retailers to attend.”
SAF launched its 1-Day Profit Blast two years ago as a way to make the kind of “high quality education” floral industry members enjoy at the organization’s annual convention more accessible to more of its members, both from a cost and time perspective, said SAF CEO Peter Moran.
“Our annual convention continues to grow, and it gets rave reviews from everyone who attends, but we also know that many of our members simply cannot afford (the time and/ or dollars required) to attend it,” said Moran.
SAF’s annual convention spans four days, includes 25-plus educational sessions and costs between $775 and $850 to register, plus travel and hotel. The most recent convention, SAF Amelia Island 2015, had close to 500 attendees. The SAF 1-Day Profit Blast, by contrast, features four programs in a single day and costs $139 for SAF members ($189 for non members) and $99 for additional attendees from the same company and draws between 80 to 120 attendees.
Moran said he sees the smaller audience at Profit Blast as a strength. “It’s small enough that we can have each attendee stand up and introduce themselves at the beginning of the event,” he said. “It also makes for a very interactive event, where attendees feel comfortable asking questions and sharing their ideas, which basically adds to the content provided by the speakers.” Thirty-minute breaks between each of the four sessions, plus breakfast and lunch, allow for even more attendee interaction.
Since fall 2013, SAF has brought its 1-Day Profit Blast to Atlanta (October 2013), Baltimore (January 2014) and, most recently, in January, to Seattle, where DV Flora, DWF and Frank Adams Wholesale helped subsidize the cost.
The new effort to partner with wholesalers means SAF can potentially expand the programming and bring it to even more cities around the country, Moran said. The Bill Doran Company is sponsoring an additional 1-Day Profit Blast on February 27 in Austin, Texas.
Featured speakers from the Des Moines program:
- Derrick Myers, CPA, CFP, PFCI, president of Crockett, Myers & Associates, Inc., will present practical tips on how to find hidden profits. He’ll touch on tricks for formulas and worksheets and dole out time-tested advice on controlling costs.
- During an always-popular program, Tim Huckabee, AIFSE, president of FloralStrategies, will make live calls to real flower shops to help attendees hear the good, bad and awful of customer service — and learn how to retrain staff to increase sale sizes.
- Marketing guru Art Conforti, PFCI, owner of Beneva Flowers & Gifts, will share his advice on how to market like a pro — including the difference between a “pretty picture” and profit-generating image. He’ll also talk about ad-buying mistakes and how to invest wisely in both print and online campaigns.
- Jacob McCall AAF, AIFD, FSMD, design and marketing director of The Elite Flower, will dish out tips on how streamlined designs can actually lead to higher profits. And, just in time for Christmas, he’ll show attendees five profitable holiday designs that will fly out of coolers.
SAF’s 1-Day Profit Blast in Des Moines is from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Nov. 14 at the Des Moines Downtown Marriott. (Hint, hint: Bring your manager, your lead designer, your most promising sales associate; there will be something for everyone.)
Jacob McCall AAF, AIFD, FSMD
Art Conforti, PFCI
Tim Huckabee, AIFSE
Derrick Myers, CPA, CFP, PFCI
