I was wondering how many shops on this site dropped WS this year. If so how did you feel it affected your year? We dropped TF and now just have FSN. It was the smoothest holiday ever. We had no order issues and no annoying phone calls from OGS.
How many have dropped WS this year.
- Thread starter mperry
- Start date
bootcampguy
Well-Known Member
We've dropped FTD this year, today is out last day. Computer being cleaned out, etc. Been FSN for 2 years now. Still with Tele for marketing reasons.......
Flowermomma
Well-Known Member
dropped FTD this year dropped tele 2 yrs ago.. have flower shop net to send to the US and overseas.
I find my over all order count is down but my profit is up.. and my waste is way down because i don't have to carry full bunches to make the incoming order. star gazers are very hard to sell in this town! people seem to hate the fragrance of them..
I find it much easier to sell what we have then to order in because a wire service has sold something.
I find my over all order count is down but my profit is up.. and my waste is way down because i don't have to carry full bunches to make the incoming order. star gazers are very hard to sell in this town! people seem to hate the fragrance of them..
I find it much easier to sell what we have then to order in because a wire service has sold something.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
Dropped TF 15 years ago, and FTD this year after being a member for 63 years...
Never been happier!
Never been happier!
This was my first full year without a wireservice - was ftd for 6 months in 2010. I was down 6000.00 for the year right before christmas but we've had massive funeral work this week and will finish the year slightly up. I think whats more important is my cog's was 14,000.00 less and I still suck at cogs
bootcampguy
Well-Known Member
I am going to help you change that next year!! I promise............I've asked my CPA to do a cheat sheet for his progam at Ct State on COGS. He's going to teach florists how to figure it right, not how the others are out there teaching it now.
Clarabella
Well-Known Member
TF was gone last year, FTD gone this year. Best decision ever!!!!
FTD gone ,sending back the Mercury tomorrow. I remember being very excited 21 years ago when we joined , I can't believe how excited I am to get out, good riddance
Just done in Nov with TF and couldn't be happier. What a relief 
Get this, I just got a call from TF like 3 days ago with a direct order and a credit card! Got all the money and my delivery fee! Happy! Happy!, person on the phone said the other shops were done delivering for the day, what? Not me, I hardly turn down cash orders unless it's ridiculous and way past business hours, which this wasn't. I always try to say YES! I read along time ago, when you start saying NO your business stops growing. I've tried to keep that in mind. Also I'm still with Bloom for numerous other reasons, but I have considered dropping them also. I will see what the future brings!
Get this, I just got a call from TF like 3 days ago with a direct order and a credit card! Got all the money and my delivery fee! Happy! Happy!, person on the phone said the other shops were done delivering for the day, what? Not me, I hardly turn down cash orders unless it's ridiculous and way past business hours, which this wasn't. I always try to say YES! I read along time ago, when you start saying NO your business stops growing. I've tried to keep that in mind. Also I'm still with Bloom for numerous other reasons, but I have considered dropping them also. I will see what the future brings!
Looking forward to that...I serve on the board of the CT Florist Association and that will be something we all can use. By the way dropped all wire services except FSN....sales down a bit but profit is up...we are loving not having the OG's calling every 10 minutes for orders that noone can possibly fill & make a profit!!!!
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
Exactly TKB... More dollars in your pocket on less work... I don't understand why more shops don't get it! Too many years on the Kool Aid perhaps...
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
FTD free in mid 09 and TF free in Q3 11...no ws now whatsoever.
Number of orders down and $s down, slighty. Resulting in lower COGs, lower variable costs, lower staff costs inc. delivery. Improved cash flow, improved gross margin and should be seeing improved net margin when accountant audits.
I miss the ws requirements and demands like I miss Muammar Qaddafi, which is not at all!
Number of orders down and $s down, slighty. Resulting in lower COGs, lower variable costs, lower staff costs inc. delivery. Improved cash flow, improved gross margin and should be seeing improved net margin when accountant audits.
I miss the ws requirements and demands like I miss Muammar Qaddafi, which is not at all!
Louis Taylor
New Member
Got out in February although we were in the directory for 90 days.
Joined FSN in February. Have web site with them also.
The only thing we miss is the order updating in our Advantage system wherby now we have put order into FSN and the reverse on incoming orders.
We would have been deep in the red if we had continue with wire service with all of the fees.
Joined FSN in February. Have web site with them also.
The only thing we miss is the order updating in our Advantage system wherby now we have put order into FSN and the reverse on incoming orders.
We would have been deep in the red if we had continue with wire service with all of the fees.
Dropped ftd
We are happily wire service free! Still waiting for lousy $160.00 check after 3 months +++!!! That was the only check we got from them in like a year! That month we did 1 wire out for about $100.00, filled about $800.00 incoming orders and that was all we got. I know i have been spending less on flowers, deliveries (gas, driver) and labor! When we cancelled before, our sales were down but profits were up. Cogs are way to high for everything and made me cringe to fill orders for just flowers knowing that they get 20% for us doing all the work & putting out so many $$$! I don't know how they get away w/ the robbery! I have never talked to so many florists as in these past couple of years who were completely unhappy w/ wire services! Got to keep our locals happy instead of running out of flowers before every holiday on bs, low price, last minute ftd orders! Thanks for listening!
We are happily wire service free! Still waiting for lousy $160.00 check after 3 months +++!!! That was the only check we got from them in like a year! That month we did 1 wire out for about $100.00, filled about $800.00 incoming orders and that was all we got. I know i have been spending less on flowers, deliveries (gas, driver) and labor! When we cancelled before, our sales were down but profits were up. Cogs are way to high for everything and made me cringe to fill orders for just flowers knowing that they get 20% for us doing all the work & putting out so many $$$! I don't know how they get away w/ the robbery! I have never talked to so many florists as in these past couple of years who were completely unhappy w/ wire services! Got to keep our locals happy instead of running out of flowers before every holiday on bs, low price, last minute ftd orders! Thanks for listening!
Flowerchatter03
Co-Owner and Floral Composer
We dropped FTD years ago and terminated with Bloomnet in November 2010 but it took til October 2011 to get it finalized. Couldn't be happier. As the others have testified, increase in profit, decrease in delivery stupid stuff and BS. We concentrate on our own local customers.
We do still have TF (we have their POS and a few of the modules), however, we do not carry any of their codified product. Just Flowers is with TF so when they call, we just don't answer (thank God for caller ID).
We do still have TF (we have their POS and a few of the modules), however, we do not carry any of their codified product. Just Flowers is with TF so when they call, we just don't answer (thank God for caller ID).
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
I hear Carrie's story all too often.... it's sad the way the industry is going, but it's the local florists that are really at the controls... they just have to realize it and say...no mo...
We got rid of teleflora 3 years ago when we bought the shop. Previous owner I worked for took a huge loss belonging to teleflora. They also send us direct orders with a credit card all the time. We deliver to far out areas with a hefty delivery charge that no other florist delivers to. Much happier without them.
out of FTD last Sept 1, and will be out of TF this year. I stopped doing any volume work for them at the holidays last year tho. That's what made my mind up. I had happy customers and even converted a few to non-holiday customers. I have only had this shop for 3 years, and working for FTD was putting me in the hole.
FYI I won't be filling credit card orders for any order gatherer including TF, either. Why let them steal your customer from the google search with a $5.00 coupon then have you do the work while they get a toehold in your town? You might get the $39.99, but they get a new contact to market to. Oh yeah, and they make a $14.95 processing fee on your hard work. On top of that, what you deliver WILL NOT be what the customer ordered because everything on TF's site is in a codified container. They will have paid over $60 for a $30.00 arrangement. Who will get blamed for the bait and switch?
FYI I won't be filling credit card orders for any order gatherer including TF, either. Why let them steal your customer from the google search with a $5.00 coupon then have you do the work while they get a toehold in your town? You might get the $39.99, but they get a new contact to market to. Oh yeah, and they make a $14.95 processing fee on your hard work. On top of that, what you deliver WILL NOT be what the customer ordered because everything on TF's site is in a codified container. They will have paid over $60 for a $30.00 arrangement. Who will get blamed for the bait and switch?
ChristiBrown
Well-Known Member
I dropped FTD and Bloom last summer and will let TF go this year. I plan to join FSN once TF is done. My annual revenue is up 18% from last year too thanks to lots of extra work and very very happy local customers (and profits much better too!). Don't miss FTD or Bloom a bit and I doubt I will miss TF either