December 2?,, 1920 



The Florists^ Review 



13 



RETAIL STORE MANAGEMENT 



WHAT THE LEADERS IN THE TRADE ARE DOING 



DELIVERING THE GOODS. 



Meeting the En Route Problems. 



It lias been noted tliat florists' motor 

 eliicles are at once distinguishable 

 rom the rest of the trucks on the roads. 

 Vppearance to tlic man in the street has 

 leen considered, so that the advertis- 

 ing value alone is worth the price of 

 'he special painting, decorations, etc. 

 In the larger cities the florists often 

 •'Hiploy a characteristic color, as, for 

 ■xaniple, one large New York firm uses 

 liolet, another blue. It is of great 

 value to have the delivery car so 

 I>ainted, because it is in keeping with 

 the tone of the business. It reflects 

 the character of the goods carried. 



The problems of flower and plant de- 

 livery are not the easiest to solve. The 

 florist handles highly perishable goods; 

 he must make quick deliveries; his 

 plants come in all sizes and can not 

 be packed in boxes so as to be easily 

 loaded. Plants must be so transported 

 that they will not be injured; hence a 

 greater amount of care must be used by 

 the driver and the truck body must be 

 so designed as to avoid damage. 



Pot Holders. 



When the truck is being driven over 

 a rough city street the body sways and 

 bounces up and down, the tendency 

 being for the plants in i>ots to be 

 thrown against one another. This is 

 obviously ruinous. One member of the 

 trade uses a body in which there are 

 three liorizontal tiers of shelves. All 

 heavy j)lants in pots are placed on the 

 floor of the body. In order tliat they 

 may rest upright, he uses small wooden 

 lioxes of standard sizes into which the 

 pots can be fitted. These wooden boxes 

 have a large bottom area, so that they 

 ;ire not likely to tip over. Another 

 florist has arranged one jtortion of the 

 body floor exclusively for flowers in 

 I)ots and has arranged clamps to Imhl 

 the pots. These clamps are made espe 

 eially for that ])urpose and gri]> the ])ot 

 firmly in four ])Iaces. Another metlioil 

 is to use parallel strips of wood across 

 tlie body about four inches from the 

 floor, .six or s<>ven sets of such parallel 

 strijiH are used, e;u'li set being a little 

 farther apart than the next, so that all 

 sizes of pots can be acconimod;iteil. 



In order that all sizes of jilants can 

 be taken care of, bodies should be so ar- 

 ranged that one small portion near the 

 front or rear occtipies the full height of 

 the body. Where sliding shelves are 

 used and are maile the full length of 

 the body, the size of plants to l)e car- 

 ried is restricted by the lieight between 

 shelves. 



Keeping the Right Temperature. 



One of the diftii-ulties connected with 

 the delivery of cut flowers is that of 

 jirotecting them while in transit. Se 

 \-er(' colli fur a short jwriod will ruin 

 them. Kxtreiiie heat is bad. In cold 



weather it is necessary to keep out tiie 

 cold, so that when flowers are kept in 

 the wagon for hours they may be de- 

 livered in a fresh condition. An ex- 

 haust type heater installed in the body 

 of the truck will not do, because gas 

 leakage, however slight, damages the 

 flowers and may i)erhaps kill them. One 

 florist has arranged to utili/A' the heat 

 in the driver's compartment. This 

 usually is warm and when it is enclosed 

 th(> heat is allowed to circulate tiiroiigh 

 the l:>ody sullliciently to keeji the flowers 

 at an even and jjrotecting temperature. 

 If exhaust lit>at is to be used, the inside 

 jiiping should be free from any coimum-- 

 tion. One coil of ])ipe within the body 

 nuiy be found suflicient, but the line 

 should include a control of some sort. 

 There should be a thernu)meter within 

 sight of the driv<'r, so that he may kee]( 

 the temjierature as near constant as 

 possible. 



On Time and On Record. 



Flower .•ind ]>lant deliveries, unlike 

 many others, must be m.ade often at a 

 definite time. An order may be re- 

 ceived to deliver a funeral jiiece at ex- 

 actly a J), m., and nut befon'. Conse- 

 • juently it becomes necessary to liavi' 

 delivery wagons always in good condi- 

 tion and to have drivers who c.'iii ap 

 l)reciate the value of time. 



In order to kee]) ;in accurate record 

 of the calls, deliveries, etc., the ]irinte(l 

 forms of the florist should call for the 

 following information: Time of recei[it 

 of order and by whom received, name 



and address, (|Uanliiy and kind of 

 llovvers or plants, time (d" departure of 

 truck, time of delivery of flowers, time 

 delivery was recjuesteil. One retailer 

 has a sjiecial pad for telephone calls. 

 This pad contains the foregoing itcniS 

 and eaidi order is made out in duplicate, 

 the dujdicate Ijeing handed to tht; drivev 

 of the wagon, who enters the inforni.'t- 

 tion in his deliverv book. 



FALLON WINS WINDOW PRIZE. 



Decemlier - was an eventful day in 

 the history of the .1. .1. Fallon Co. and, 

 in fa-ct, the \\|](de cit\- of Durham, N. C. 

 It was the opening ot' the White Way 

 in that city and also the merchants' 

 ^'hristmas openini;. 



The Durham Morning Herald offered 

 prizes for the best w iuilow dis[)lays for 

 the event. .\ handsome, silver loving 

 cuj) was to be awarded the merchant 

 having the most artistically <lecorated 

 winilow and best sales suggestion. The 

 .1. J. Fallon Co., with a beautiful trim 

 of Russell, Ophelia, Columbia and Sweet 

 heart roses, sweet peas and a bride's 

 boucjuet, with signs, ''Say It witli 

 Flowers'' and "'Order Your Christmas 

 Flowers Early,'' won first prize. The 

 backgrouiiil for the display was a light 

 fence, entwined with i)ink chiffon. 



An ann(uincement of a flower to every 

 caller brought in thousands of peofde 

 during the evening, who heartily com- 

 niende(| the jiroprietor-. on the inside 

 ap|H'arance as well as the window dis- 

 jilay. The store Avas bedecked through- 

 out with baskets and vases id' cut 



Interior of the Store of the J. J. Fallon Co., at Durham, N. C. 



