What does a wedding florist do?

What is a Wedding Florist?

Wedding florists specialize in designing and arranging florals for weddings, from traditional and romantic to modern, minimalist, and avant-garde. They work closely with engaged couples to understand their vision and preferences and wedding theme, then use their expertise and keen eye for design and detail to craft personalized floral arrangements, including bouquets, boutonnieres, centerpieces, and venue decorations.

As weddings are time-sensitive events with little room for mistakes, these specialty florists must be able to work under pressure.

What does a Wedding Florist do?

Duties and Responsibilities
Wedding florists perform a range of tasks related to designing and creating floral arrangements for weddings. Here is an overview of their primary responsibilities:

• Consultation – The florist meets with the engaged couple to discuss their wedding vision, theme, color scheme, and budget. They listen to the couple's preferences and offer expert advice and ideas based on their knowledge of flowers and design.
• Designing Floral Arrangements – Based on the couple's preferences, the wedding florist designs and creates various floral arrangements. This often includes crafting bridal bouquets, bridesmaids' bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, and other personal floral accessories for the wedding party. The process often involves trimming stems, removing thorns and leaves, and placing flowers in water to hydrate.
• Venue Decorations – Wedding florists are also responsible for decorating the ceremony and reception venues with floral displays. This may involve designing altar arrangements, aisle decorations, floral arches, table centerpieces, and other decorative elements.
• Flower Selection – Wedding florists choose the appropriate flowers for each arrangement, considering factors like the couple's preferences, seasonality, color coordination, and theme. Flowers can hold special meanings and symbolism, convey emotions, represent cultural traditions, or honor loved ones, so wedding florists may be asked to incorporate specific blooms that hold significance to the couple. To fulfill these requests, they may have to visit various flower markets or suppliers. Wedding florists also ensure that the flowers are fresh, high-quality, and in peak condition for the wedding day.
• Floral Installations – In some cases, wedding florists may create elaborate floral installations, such as flower walls, hanging floral arrangements, or suspended floral chandeliers, to add a touch of grandeur to the wedding venue.
• Sourcing and Procurement – The wedding florist is responsible for sourcing the necessary flowers, foliage, and floral supplies for the event. They maintain relationships with suppliers and ensure that the flowers are delivered on time.
• Flower Care and Preservation – Wedding florists handle flowers with care and ensure they are properly hydrated and preserved, so they remain fresh and vibrant throughout the wedding day.
• Delivery and Setup – On the wedding day, the florist delivers all the floral arrangements to the designated venues and oversees the setup to ensure that everything looks perfect and is arranged according to the plan.
• Coordination with Other Vendors – Wedding florists often collaborate with other wedding vendors, such as wedding planners, photographers, and venue staff, to ensure that the floral arrangements seamlessly integrate with the overall wedding setup.
• Tear Down and Cleanup – After the wedding event, the florist may also be involved in tear-down and cleanup, ensuring that any floral arrangements and decorations are removed efficiently and without any disruption to the venue.
• Administrative Responsibilities – Wedding florists also need to dedicate some time to office tasks, such as confirming flower deliveries, responding to client inquiries, preparing floral proposals, managing orders, and handling invoices and payments.

Types of Wedding Florists
Now that we have a sense of a typical day in the life of a full-service wedding florist, let’s look at some specialists in the field, or different types of wedding florists:

• Boutique or Niche Wedding Florist – Boutique or niche wedding florists cater to specific styles or themes. They may specialize in a particular design aesthetic, such as rustic, bohemian, vintage, or minimalist weddings. These florists are sought after by couples who have a distinct vision for their wedding and want a florist who can expertly execute that specific style.
• Cultural or Ethnic Wedding Florists – Florists who specialize in cultural or ethnic weddings are well-versed in the floral traditions, customs, and symbolism of various cultures. They can create arrangements that honor specific cultural practices and aesthetics.
• Luxury Wedding Florist – Luxury wedding florists are known for their high-end designs and use of premium, exotic, and rare flowers. They often work on extravagant weddings with larger budgets, where the focus is on creating lavish and opulent floral displays.
• DIY and Wholesale Florists – These florists offer a more budget-friendly option for customers, catering to couples who prefer to create their own floral arrangements. They offer bulk flower purchases and DIY floral supplies.
• Destination Wedding Florist – Destination wedding florists specialize in providing floral arrangements for weddings held in specific locations, often far away from where the florist is based. This may involve liaising with a partner florist at the destination or, in rare cases, handling the logistics of transporting and setting up flowers in different destinations.
• Eco-Friendly or Sustainable Wedding Florist – Eco-friendly or sustainable wedding florists prioritize using locally sourced and organic flowers, as well as implementing environmentally friendly practices in their floral design. They may avoid using floral foam and other non-biodegradable materials.

What is the workplace of a Wedding Florist like?

Wedding florists can work for different entities or as independent professionals. These are among their most common employers:

• Floral Design Studios or Flower Shops – Many wedding florists work for established floral design studios or flower shops. These businesses specialize in providing floral arrangements for various occasions, including weddings. Wedding florists employed by such establishments are often part of a team of floral designers and work under the guidance of the shop owner or manager. Flower studios and shops are equipped with all the necessary tools and floral supplies needed to design and create floral arrangements. They often have spacious work areas, refrigeration facilities to store fresh flowers, and a wide selection of blooms to choose from.
• Event Planning Companies – Some wedding florists are employed by event planning companies that offer comprehensive wedding planning services. These companies may have in-house florists who handle all the floral aspects of their clients' weddings.
• Wedding Venues – Some larger wedding venues, particularly luxury resorts, hotels, or event spaces, may have their own in-house team of wedding florists. These florists work exclusively for the venue and create floral arrangements for all the weddings hosted at the location. Their workplace is typically within the venue itself, allowing them to be close to the event space where they can streamline the setup process on the wedding day.
• Freelance or Self-Employed – Many wedding florists are self-employed or work on a freelance basis. They run their own floral design businesses and offer their services directly to engaged couples. Freelance wedding florists have the freedom to take on projects as they choose and often work with multiple clients at a time. Their studios are often home-based and set up with worktables, refrigerators, and storage space for floral materials.
• Destination Wedding Planners – Some wedding planners may employ or collaborate with wedding florists who specialize in providing or sourcing floral arrangements in specific locations.
• DIY Wedding Platforms – Some wedding florists may partner with online DIY wedding platforms that allow couples to order pre-designed floral packages or a la carte items.