Upselling the Bridesmaid Bouquet
While many of us hope for customers with unlimited floral budgets, the reality is—at least, if you're just starting out, still building a high-end portfolio, or prefer simpler events—you have to get creative in stretching the floral design budget.
I hate ladders, and while I get excited about an over-the-top install now and again, my ideal wedding setup includes dropping off personals, setting centerpieces, and designing an arbor. Focusing on smaller events enables me to keep profit margins high because they don't require all-day setups with large teams and rental equipment.
Bridesmaid bouquets help create the vibe of the wedding flowers. (1)
But just because my business model focuses on events with basic floral needs doesn't mean there isn't an opportunity to enhance their floral experience (and my bottom line). When looking for ways to provide additional resources or enhanced floral designs to my clients, they first line item I consider is the bridesmaids' bouquets.
How to Rethink Repurposing Bridesmaid Bouquets
"Always the bridesmaid, never the bride," as the saying goes. Personally, I love bridesmaid bouquets because they usually are less stressful to design—usually.
However, the impact that bridesmaid bouquets provide in setting the stage at a ceremony is critical in conveying the floral vibe of the whole event. So it’s a shame that post-ceremony these stunning collections are one of the first forgotten pieces.
We all know the trick of using bridesmaid bouquets as centerpieces to help the client repurpose these flowers for reception decor. It's a simple concept: place cylinder vases on the tables that would later be the home of the bridesmaids' bouquets.
I initially loved the thought of this because, in most cases, the bouquets translate well to the reception tables. But I was totally underwhelmed once I set a few up this way and noticed the bare glass vases awaiting their currently in-use counterparts.
I imagined the guests entering the reception while the bridal party was still taking photos, wondering if the florist had forgotten something. And what if—just WHAT IF—they forget to place the bouquets?! Then the guests are just sitting there staring at an empty vase all night. I'm all for simplicity, but I've worked too hard for my reputation, and the last thing I want is for anyone to be underwhelmed by my work. Not on my watch!
There had to be a better solution, so dressing up an empty vase with some greenery at the base was the obvious next step that wouldn't have a significant effect on the cost. However, after a few more setups, I felt the same "something missing" vibe (duh, the vase is empty—so clearly, something is missing).
I had to figure this out. If I looked at the sparse vase on the table and thought something was missing, so would every guest. I knew I had to find a way to make these centerpieces look intentional on their own.
A Fresh Take on Repurposing Bridesmaid Bouquets (And a Unique Upsell!)
Tucking a clear cylinder vase into a larger colored vase is a great way to begin a repurposed centerpiece. (2)
Instead of losing the entire centerpiece sale, I was determined to find a way to create an affordable way to repurpose those bridesmaids' bouquets.
Even if the pre-ceremony champagne stood between the bouquets and their intended homes, I still needed to come out looking like a winning vendor—and on budget. I found the answer with a few trips to the local craft store and some time digging around in our container stash.
I took the simple 6" standard cylinder vase that most of us use for bouquets (think dollar store y'all), and another vase that was large enough to hold the cylinder vase with room for greenery (I use a 6-1/4" x 6-1/4" x 8-1/4" cylinder).
I painted the bigger vessels to match our wedding vibe and then used waterproof putty (the same we sell at hhfshop.com) to adhere the smaller cylinder inside the larger one. The result was a ring where I could design greenery around the smaller cylinder vase where the bridesmaid bouquet would be placed. This combination allowed me to create beautiful greenery centerpieces that looked complete all by themselves but were taken to another level when the bouquets were dropped into the middle.
This technique was a game-changer. I walked away from reception after reception, finding myself saying, "It looks like a complete design now!" Surprisingly, I look forward to these centerpieces most and have worked to change up the look of greens with other florals and filler.
Creative Solutions Can Be Big Wins for Both You and Your Floral Design Clients
It’s a win-win situation: The clients get to have an affordable, super-efficient option for centerpieces, and I, the designer, feel good with the result. We charge around $60 in our market for the greenery centerpieces, which is a far cry from our compote designs.
Use waterproof putty to attach the smaller cylinder inside the larger one. (3)
Design greenery in the ring around the smaller cylinder vase where the bridesmaid bouquet will be placed. (4)
create beautiful greenery centerpieces that look complete all by themselves. (4)
If the bridesmaid bouquets become M.I.A., guests of the wedding won’t know the difference with these greenery centerpieces! (5)
The best part about this is that you can use different sizes or shapes to create your two-in-one vase for a greenery centerpiece.
It's a flexible concept that I've been able to reimagine depending on the overall vision. Planners love it (because it's easy!), brides appreciate our creative approach to their budget, and it's an easy process for our design team.
This creative bridesmaid bouquet hack has been crucial to building the business I want: well-done florals without big-time stress.
It is possible to create amazing things on a budget—it just takes a little creativity and ingenuity, a skill embedded in all creatives.