This past week, before I caught a cold, I decided to wake up early and visit the flower district before starting my work day (about 5:00, which is early for me). Emerging from the subway at Union Square I realized that it also was a Greenmarket day. The vendors had just begun their set-up for the eventual crowd. I strolled on towards 6th Avenue and then headed north on still-quiet streets until I reached the corner of 28th.
This is New Yorks gateway to the flower world. Every day the trucks unload their bounty and by noontime the majority is bought up and spirited away to all corners of the city.
U.S. Evergreen is one shop one petal in a very concentrated blossom of activity that is focused on the intersection of 6th and 28th. Its job as a wholesaler is to act as a gateway from the source to all of the end locations; their ceaseless daily shipments infuse the city with the seasons harvest, casting the ripples of autumn far and wide.
On this day, Autumn has arrived from the trucks in full-force, bundled in its concentrated form and ready to be disbursed across our city. What caught my eye were the varieties of cherry-like crabapples, willow, winterberries and celastrus being unloaded from trucks in large bundles. And buckets of frosty eucalyptus. Before my first Halls throat lozenge, eucalyptus in the humidifier was my hero.
A walk through 28th is great fun just remember that most shops are closed by early afternoon. Most of us would not be able to make it on a normal day. But most shops are open on Saturdays until noon or 1:00. -Matt N.-
5:00AM!! So that's what NYC looks like at 5AM.
Hi, can I ask what camera did you use to take your pictures? Thanks...nice pictures....
Nice adventure for the morning before the crowds begin. And inspiring pics. Any idea if these wholesalers are willing to sell to the public?
Meso -
Thank you for the question - and the nice compliment. I have a Leica Digilux. I am an 'enthusiastic amateur' - I got the camera used on CL, the user's manual is not so hot but it is a wonderful camera. I am not so hot with moving subject matter, but enjoy taking my flower photos.
P2 - You had a question last week about how to water tightly packed flower arrangements. I asked a local florist who said that you may want to put the arrangement in the bathtub and overflow the water, which would push out the old water and replace it with the new. Otherwise, I have a friend who has a large pan and sets that down on the floor and does the same procedure, and then just empties out the pan when finished.
Some of these fall choices like the winterberry (the red berries in the last photos) and willow can last a LONG time in water, so it really is to their benefit to get fresh water every once in a while. I noticed that Republic in Union Square has a huge bunch of willow in a vase by the bar. I would love to do the same in my apartment :)
Charmain,
That also is another good question. Do you have time for a long answer?
If not, here is the short answer: YES, some will. US Evergreen does not, unfortunately. You would need a resale number to buy from them. But you can find smaller amounts of what they sell at nearby shops.
And here is the long answer: YES, some will. The system is supposed to go something like this:
From the auctions and farms the flowers are bought by wholesalers. The wholesalers (as in the shops in the flower district)then sell to retail vendors. You then shop at the retail shops and buy from them. The reason for this system is because the wholesalers have a brisk business that deals in volume. They do not have time to stop and answer questions as they sell hundreds of roses. You pay a higher price at the flower shop, but you also get more care and attention and do not have to buy a minimum of 100 roses.
The problem hase come in that some florists and plant shops have gone directly to the farms. In doing this they get a lower price and make a higher profit. This also takes business away from the wholesaler and upsets this delicate ecosystem(?). So the result is a wholesale neighborhood that is mottled with shops that will sell to both as a way to pay the bills. For places like US Evergreen it does not pay for them to do retail. But others have worked it in. You can buy from many shops like Caribbean Cuts (on 28th btwn. 6th and 7th) and the prices are quite reasonable. They just ask that you pay tax. I go there when my local florist does not have something. Don't be afraid to walk into a shop and ask if they sell retail. I guarantee you will walk away with something in this neighborhood.
My last trip I bought a mystery plant called 'ginger stick' - sometimes shops get something in that is new and try it out on their customers. This is one of those plants. I will post pictures at some point - imagine a lucky bamboo crossed with a birch tree. Very unusual.
Dear Chairman - I really shouldn't tell this since I'm building my own flower arranging business, but I've never been asked for my resale number anywhere in the market. You can easily shop at Associated, Fisher and Page, Empire Cut Flowers and others without proving your wholesale eligibility. And you don't need to buy 100 roses, 25 in a bunch will do. It's fine to ask about prices but don't intentionally out yourself as a member of the public by asking sales people to split bunches. In general, look confident, ask few questions, and stay out of places that posts signs on the door specifically excluding retail sales ("wholesale" on the awning is generally fine). And in New York I wouldn't advocate buying by the stem at most regular florists. They are going to add a hefty mark-up even if you don't want the flowers to be arranged because that's the business they are in. You wouldn't go into a Madison Avenue dress boutique and ask to buy fabric, would you?
Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous. My favourite is the first pic. Celastrus? Never heard of it, but it has a certain autumnal nobility about it that thrills me to the core.
Aren't living things beautiful? I don't understand people who don't keep plants or flowers in their home.
Charmain --
if you don't want to get up at the crack of dawn, and don't mind paying (likely) slightly more, for many kinds of flowers there are online wholesalers that will FedEx flowers overnight to you. These places basically cater to the DIY-wedding crowd. Some are (all dot coms)
farmdirect
growersbox
marisolblooms
bigrose
Look in the back of any wedding magazine, there are tons more
I have a stall selling fresh cut flowers here and unfortunately I cannot sell wholesale direct to the public, as you are supposed to have a legitimate business before you can buy wholesale.
If all wholesalers began selling direct to the public, eg Mrs Smith wants to get all the flowers for her wedding from a wholesaler as she will save 50%, then even though I would make money the knock on effect is not very good, and because of this I wouldnt want to see others selling wholesale direct to the public.
The public would find the cheapest place to buy their flowers from so even tho you can not sell unless you own a legitimate wholesale business you still need to sell the product at the right price so the cutomers will come to you.
Hello,
I usually go direct to the farmers/growers to buy my flowers or plants for my boutique because the markup on many of these items is so high. This way I am able to pass on some of the savings to my customers and sell product at a reasonable price.
I also like doing this because I am pretty much guaranteed to get the best quality when I get straight from the source. But, just so you know in my experience in dealing with growers they do always require a reseller license and proof that you are in business.