The Business & Pleasure of Flowers
Join Vonda LaFever and Lori Wilson as they share expert advice, insider tips, and a whole lot of fun on all things floral. While everyone loves flowers, running a floral business can come with its fair share of challenges that might make you lose sight of the joy it brings. In this engaging and informative podcast, Vonda’s wealth of floral expertise pairs perfectly with Lori’s background in teaching, sales training, and life coaching to deliver valuable insights you can use right away.
From industry trends and the flower shop of the future to overcoming obstacles like boosting sales and building a stellar customer service team, they’ve got you covered. Discover how small shifts in your mindset and approach can create big transformations in your business and life.
Hit subscribe to put the pleasure back into your life, go back to loving flowers, find fresh inspiration, and bring the joy back to your business!
The Business & Pleasure of Flowers
Behind the Blooms: How the American Floral Endowment Supports Every Florist
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Episode 338: Most florists have seen the AFE logo, but many don’t realize just how much the American Floral Endowment impacts their business every day.
In this episode, Vonda and Lori sit down with Debi Chedester, Executive Director of the American Floral Endowment, to uncover the research, scholarships, internships, grants, and industry initiatives happening behind the scenes that help florists succeed.
Debi shares her unique journey into the floral industry, what surprised her most about the people who make it special, and how AFE has spent 65 years investing in the future of flowers. From flower quality and consumer research to sustainability, travel grants, and recruiting the next generation of industry professionals, this conversation highlights why AFE matters to every florist, whether you realize it or not.
In this episode you’ll learn:
- What the American Floral Endowment actually does
- How AFE research improves flower quality from seed to consumer
- Free resources available to florists right now
- Travel grant opportunities for industry events
- The growing importance of sustainability and Sustainabloom
- Why consumer and Gen Z research matters more than ever
- How AFE is preparing the industry for the next 5–10 years
- Ways florists can support and get involved with AFE
Whether you’re a retailer, wholesaler, grower, designer, or simply passionate about the floral industry, this episode offers a fascinating look at the organization quietly working behind the scenes to help flowers - and florists - thrive.
Because when we invest in the industry together, everyone blooms.
Sponsored by:
Flower Clique
Flower Clique Prep School
Real Life Retail Florist