Administrative professionals. Secretaries. Assistants. Receptionists.
No matter which name you apply to these all-important support people who keep businesses running smoothly (and are nearly 9 million strong, according to the U.S. Department of Labor), the truth is, fewer of them have received flowers in recent years – at least not during the week that’s supposed to be all about them.
Administrative Professionals Week, April 20-26, the holiday started in 1952 (then known as Secretaries Week), has not been the boon to the floral industry that it was once.
According to the Society of American Florists’ post-holiday surveys, 40 to 60 percent of florists have experienced sales declines for APW every year since 2008.
Some florists attribute this to the holiday’s timing. It falls too close to Easter and Mother’s Day, and consumers are reluctant to purchase flowers for multiple occasions in quick succession. In northern states, APW often corresponds to schools’ spring breaks, as well.
“The assistants are usually on vacation with their kids,” so their bosses skip the flowers, said Helen Halloran of Concord Flower Shop in Concord, Mass.
Others say bosses have moved away from gift giving since the recession.
“They take them to lunch and are done with the holiday in about an hour,” said Tim P. Lawing, AIFD, of Tim’s Touch Flowers and Gifts in Lexington, S.C.
And then there’s name confusion, cited by 43 percent of responders to SAF’s survey as the reason for declines.
Bosses don’t know who exactly qualifies as an “administrative professional.” The name is also a mouthful, though some handle this by abbreviating it to APW. (“Everyone is into acronyms these days and shortening it makes it easier to talk about without stumbling,” said Cheryl Bakin, of Parkway Florist in Pittsburgh.)
“When the name changed, about the same time the economy crashed, it really hurt us,” said Tony Medlock, AIFD, of PJ’s Flowers in Phoenix. “When it was Secretaries’ Week, our first day would be 90 pieces, then 60 pieces,” and so on. “Now we mainly just send flowers to CEOs’ assistants.” The upside: while APW volume has shrunk, those CEOs are splurging. “We’re seeing much higher ticket prices ($50-100),” he said.
To clarify the purpose of APW, Rick Rivers, of A Floral Boutique in Daytona Beach, Fla., uses email marketing with the subject line, “Where would you be without your assistant?”
With just about a month to go before the holiday, how are you marketing it?
No matter which name you apply to these all-important support people who keep businesses running smoothly (and are nearly 9 million strong, according to the U.S. Department of Labor), the truth is, fewer of them have received flowers in recent years – at least not during the week that’s supposed to be all about them.
Administrative Professionals Week, April 20-26, the holiday started in 1952 (then known as Secretaries Week), has not been the boon to the floral industry that it was once.
According to the Society of American Florists’ post-holiday surveys, 40 to 60 percent of florists have experienced sales declines for APW every year since 2008.
Some florists attribute this to the holiday’s timing. It falls too close to Easter and Mother’s Day, and consumers are reluctant to purchase flowers for multiple occasions in quick succession. In northern states, APW often corresponds to schools’ spring breaks, as well.
“The assistants are usually on vacation with their kids,” so their bosses skip the flowers, said Helen Halloran of Concord Flower Shop in Concord, Mass.
Others say bosses have moved away from gift giving since the recession.
“They take them to lunch and are done with the holiday in about an hour,” said Tim P. Lawing, AIFD, of Tim’s Touch Flowers and Gifts in Lexington, S.C.
And then there’s name confusion, cited by 43 percent of responders to SAF’s survey as the reason for declines.
Bosses don’t know who exactly qualifies as an “administrative professional.” The name is also a mouthful, though some handle this by abbreviating it to APW. (“Everyone is into acronyms these days and shortening it makes it easier to talk about without stumbling,” said Cheryl Bakin, of Parkway Florist in Pittsburgh.)
“When the name changed, about the same time the economy crashed, it really hurt us,” said Tony Medlock, AIFD, of PJ’s Flowers in Phoenix. “When it was Secretaries’ Week, our first day would be 90 pieces, then 60 pieces,” and so on. “Now we mainly just send flowers to CEOs’ assistants.” The upside: while APW volume has shrunk, those CEOs are splurging. “We’re seeing much higher ticket prices ($50-100),” he said.
To clarify the purpose of APW, Rick Rivers, of A Floral Boutique in Daytona Beach, Fla., uses email marketing with the subject line, “Where would you be without your assistant?”
With just about a month to go before the holiday, how are you marketing it?
