As a company, Redbridge has been synonymous with UK wholesale for more than a century and its flower division is no different. It was not until 1996 that Redbridge Produce and Flowers was established as a distinct entity but the ethos of the flower business has been perpetuated since 1883, when it began life on the wholesale scene as Francis Nicholls. Redbridge Flowers has come a long way since then - a point testified by its Re:fresh glory last year. Yet, wholesaling is still the essence of the business, with Redbridge occupying pitches on seven UK markets - Bristol, Gateshead, Glasgow, Leicester, Liverpool, Wolverhampton and Southampton, which is now home to the recently-appointed general manager of the division, Richard Fowler.
Fowler joined Redbridge last October, with a background in relay and van sales, as part of the company’s decision to embrace, rather than resist, the inevitable transformations abounding the UK flower trade. In the last year, the division has seen some significant developments. “There has been a general consolidation in the market place in the last five or six years,” says Fowler. “Part of that has been the evolution of flowers in supermarkets and as a wholesaler we have had to adapt our business to become more focused on our customers’ needs of today.”
Trends in buying have changed, he continues. “Florists might like for their produce to be delivered as opposed to going to the markets. The early mornings are a definite constraint for some people. Of course, there are still a proportion of florists who do go, but more and more are looking for a service that is more convenient for them.”
To this end, Redbridge set about introducing new routes to purchase. First of all, last year the company launched a van sales network, which according to Fowler, has already shown signs of success. “We are currently working out of three depots - Gateshead, Bristol and Wolverhampton,” he says. “However we are looking to expand that and start working from other regional depots as well. The vans generally call on their customers twice a week and normally cover a 30-40 mile radius. We have already found that many florists prefer the delivered service, which is complimented by our internet site and telesales.”
The company introduced a purchasing facility on its website - www.redbridgeflowers.com - a few months ago, whereby orders are dispatched directly from Redbridge’s procurement centre in Holland to customers throughout the UK. And so far so good, says Fowler. “We have had a tremendous response to the site,” he claims. “So much so we have had to work on a purpose-built customer service area.”
The Southampton branch of Redbridge Flowers has been selected for this very purpose and, as we talk, the facelift is underway, with carpets up and wires out and the unmistakeable aroma of fresh paint permeating the halls. The office will become the company’s principal customer service centre and expand in size as needed, with Fowler at the helm co-ordinating the four channels of distribution.
The internet facility has also led Redbridge to broaden its horizons in terms of what to offer, namely a deeper foray into the business of sundries. Some of the wholesale outlets already carry a range of sundries, but the website will allow for a stronger emphasis in this area, which could be a useful point of difference for the company, and its customers, Fowler explains. “I think like any business there is a big need to offer complimentary products; whether it be simple things like glassware and vases, greetings cards or other gifts, these things are going to benefit florists’ turnover, but I think it is very important that the florist still needs to be a specialist and not a generalist,” he explains.
The concept of sundries is one of the many aspects of floriculture in which the Dutch industry, in particular, has made great leaps forward, Fowler adds. “There are some fantastic sundries in Holland which can be used in a very creative way.” And this inventiveness has been a major contributing factor in confirming the Netherlands as the flower capital of the world, he suggests. “Generally, the Dutch are two or three years ahead, certainly of the UK market, but we can definitely use their experience.”
However, rather than vying for unwavering supremacy, there are various Dutch organisations keen to support the UK flower industry and promote floral purchases, the Flower Council of Holland in particular, Fowler agrees. At the same time, when it comes to maintaining the future health of our florists, the buck should also stop with companies such as Redbridge, he suggests.
It was this line of thinking that two years ago prompted Redbridge to start offering training days and workshops, to ply florists with new techniques in floral design, with the help of some of the industry’s esteemed and professionally-trained designers. “These proved so successful that in 2006 we will be having branch open days with technical designers present to demonstrate different ways of using the flowers we provide,” says Fowler.
This kind of proactivity will be fundamental going forward, as the supermarkets continue to forge such a stronghold in flower sales. The upsurge in this arena is unlikely to abate any time soon, but will this unquestionably spell doom and gloom for the independents? Fowler assumes a philosophical approach. “We have certainly seen a shift in the market in favour of the supermarkets and a lot of the florists have lost a high portion of bouquet and bunch trade,” he suggests. “But I think a combination of flowers being more widely available at supermarkets, and an increase in lifestyle TV programmes and media exposure has created a bigger customer awareness of flowers and I think that is certainly growing the market place. There will always be a need for the traditional florist which can certainly cater for sectors of the market that supermarkets cannot, such as weddings, funerals, and corporate functions.”
If they are to survive the competition, florists will have to let supermarkets stick to their “pile it high, sell it cheap” rationale and focus on specialisation and preserving the distance between them in terms of quality, Fowler suggests. At the moment the quality differential between the two types of offering is often readily apparent. However, as the supermarkets make steps to up their game, this situation is unlikely to continue long-term, he agrees.
When it comes to the consumer conscience, flowers, it seems, are following in the footsteps of fresh produce, and issues such as sourcing and ethical trading have entered the fray, with retailers starting to push the concept of Fairtrade flowers in recent months. Redbridge is fully aware of this growing concern and evaluating its position accordingly. The company procures flowers from a large number of countries of varied economical standing although domestic product is far from sidelined. “A typical stock would include Dutch, Israeli, Colombian and South African produce, as well as some of the third world countries, for example, Ethiopia and Kenya - not forgetting British and there is a big market for that,” Fowler says. “There has been a consolidation of British growers over the last few years and as a company we are keen to promote British product.”
At the same time, the nature of the business dictates there will always be a demand for foreign flowers. “The local growers in the UK can’t supply the needs of every florist,” says Fowler. “The industry has become a lot more creative and there are lot more exotic flowers being used. Designs have changed and therefore so has the need for different varieties of flowers and foliage.”
With such a large range to co-ordinate, Redbridge is taking steps to introduce a greater degree of clarity for its employees and customers alike. “We have recently launched three grades of quality,” Fowler explains. “We have the blue box, for premium quality flowers at a competitive price; then the red box which is aimed at the high-volume florist who is doing a lot of events, and so needs to be more competitive on price, and then the gold box, which is our premium-plus range.” Most florists will likely choose the blue box range, while the gold range is sourced directly from specific growers and grown and packed to Redbridge’s specific requirements, which is particularly suitable for weddings or high-end corporate work, he says.
The coloured box scheme constitutes phase one in Redbridge’s grand master plan: “We are trying to create a bigger awareness of what the flowers mean and stand for and to continually add value in the product chain,” Fowler concludes. “We want to utilise our buying power as one of the major companies in wholesale to ensure that we can source premium quality flowers at the lowest possible prices. We also need to help develop our customers’ businesses by offering training days and open days and improve our distribution services to cater for florists who prefer to have their flowers delivered door-to-door.”
After just three months in his new role, Fowler may not have all the answers to the whys and wherefores of UK flower retail, but he certainly has the impassioned determination to see Redbridge remain standing for whatever the future may bring.
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