Is it cheaper to make your own garland or buy it in?
The question on everyone’s lips…well only if you’re a florist and bent over buckets of foliage this December.
I’m such a sucker for garlands, they look amazing, but when it boils down to it, they are time consuming and expensive to make.
Earlier in the wedding season, I made 80 meters which weaved down the centre of the tables for the wedding breakfast, underneath beautiful wooden platforms for the food.
I’ve also just finished a winter wedding which required 60 meters for the aisle and tables. Days of garland making has certainly got me thinking - is it worth it?
I thought it would be useful for me, and others if I properly costed it, to see if garland making is actually profitable.
The mindset of someone self employed is to ‘do it yourself’, but these huge quantities are impossible to make on your own. For both jobs mentioned, I’ve had to draft some wonderful freelancers in. Thank you Lucy, Jezebel and Esme!
I thought it might be useful to show how I cost for three feet of luxury garland. A calculation that can easily be scaled up.
I allocate 1.5 bunches of foliage per foot. So for three foot of mixed garland my product cost is approximately £18 (for 4.5 foliage bunches).
It would take me approximately 20 minutes to make, so let’s round up to half an hour and charge a labour cost of £6.
To summarise, this is how it breakdowns:
£18 - product
£6 - labour
£5 - profit
Total £29 per three foot (which is just shy of a meter).
You can buy ready made garlands from very reputable suppliers including Tregothan in Cornwall, who courier nationally, and the quality and customer service is outstanding. I can also buy a range of pre-made garlands through my Dutch wholesaler, which comes from The Irish Green Guys. You can also register for a trade account and buy directly from them.
A quick comparison search for pre-made scented luxury garland, shows a couple of different price options:
£21/three foot from The Irish Green Guys (with a trade account)
£33/three foot from Tregothan (with a Trade account)
Plus VAT and delivery charges. With my profit added, the garland may be more expensive to the client overall if buying it in.
Here’s why you might want to make it:
You can guarantee the source of your foliage, choosing to buy locally, from the UK and Ireland.
It creates employment - again, this is about supporting the local creative economy. I was really happy to be able to give three florists a days work, even if it is laborious after several hours.
Quality control - I was able to choose some really beautiful foliage. I think with garlands, it’s all about the choice of material, and what we made ended up being luxury garlands with a real mixture of ingredients. My favourites are all the different eucalyptus, mixed with variageted pitto, Olive, and if you need something long lasting, then soft ruscus.
It’s not always feasible to make it yourself. Here are a few reasons to buy it in:
Space - I have space to make it all and store it.
On a dry day, you could do it outside, but garland making tends to take over the whole studio, so it depends on the demand of the wedding and if you need space for flowers as well.
You don’t have freelancers to help - I would argue that it’s really important to create a network of florist friends who you can lean on for jobs like this.
I hope this brain dump helps. Questioning and cross checking methods and pricing makes me feel more in business. It gives me confidence pricing and means I can happily explain to clients what’s involved, and why things cost what they do.
Im not sure the garland trend is ever going to die, so next time an enquiry comes in, I’ll be prepared.