Our Journey To Sustainable Floristry
You only have to look at the fresh produce aisles of the supermarkets to understand how something so natural can be so very unsustainable. Avocados shipped internationally and wrapped in plastic; ripe mangoes, sliced, chopped and put in plastic tubs.
Flowers are no different.
So while we are all making tracks to reduce our bottled water drinking, exotic fruit eating habits, it might do us all good to pay attention to our floral consumption too.
Lily Loves is on an ongoing journey to reduce our negative impact on the environment. The supply chain of a florist can be large if you consider not just the flowers, but the packaging and hardware too. We have tried at all points of our supply chain to reduce waste, and use socially responsible practices.
“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it”
What have we achieved so far?
Our packaging uses zero plastic. We wrap all of our flowers in recyclable paper, glass bottles, and paper bags.
Our event hardware is all reused event after event. We use metal stands and chicken wire for our large installations, and either reusable wire or biodegradable string for our fastenings. If we no longer use hardware or vases, we always pass them on or sell them to other florists to reduce waste.
We are proudly ‘foam free’. We have banished foam from all of our event and farewell floral designs.
Whilst some of our flowers still come from Holland, we have established a great partnership with a local flower farmer who provides us with a plentiful supply of locally grown flowers throughout the UK growing season.
This year, we chose not to sell valentines flowers. For roses to grow in February, they need to be grown in artificially regulated conditions where environmental impact is sky high (energy, pesticides, water). The ethical impact of working conditions and poor pay is also something we consider when we choose our suppliers.
Sometimes large events means surplus stock. We never put this to waste, and instead, make up Friday Flowers to sell at a reduced rate to our local customers.
We will always encourage our clients to re-position wedding flowers throughout their wedding day in order to get the most from their designs. This not only reduces the amount of floral designs necessary throughout the day, but also saves them money. Win win!
It’s great to see how far we have come over the last few years. We are on a constant journey though and learn new practices all the time. We would like to continue to be at the forefront of sustainability and challenge any practices we do not see fit. We will continue to share our journey here in the hope to inspire the rest of the industry, and our customers in the quest for a more sustainable floral industry.
