Natalia Rodikova: “In our country there are many prejudices associated with flowers”

- Natalia, how long have you come to floristry, and what trends were outlined in the market at that moment?

“Our workshop is two and a half years old.” Before that I had the opportunity to purchase flowers for other stores, it was interesting to me, and after a while I realized that I would develop in this area. I went to the courses of florists in Kaliningrad to a very famous specialist, then spent some time in Moscow and St. Petersburg, I watched the market situation in central Russia.

Do you know that in the world of floristry there are also fashion shows similar to the fashion shows of world famous couturiers? One of these events gave me inspiration, so Tsvetaeva began. I dreamed of creating an ideal flower delivery service so that each bouquet would cause genuine delight among the recipient and inspire, delight the customer. Then there was a tendency to give roses in bundles, but I wanted to fundamentally change my attitude to flowers, because when ordinary roses are given to you again - it's not original.

At first I did everything myself, until I realized that I couldn’t do it anymore. So the team began to appear people who are on the same wavelength with me. It is very important that people are inspired by the workflow, that they truly love what they do. And you know, we have just such a team of "lovers of work and life."

- What other trends were then on the flower market?

- Frankly, it is difficult to form a demand for something that people have not seen before. We immediately set ourselves the goal of moving away from the standard bouquets that many flower salons offer. But the demand for something more interesting in our region at that time was in its infancy, so it was difficult at first. You make an unusual bouquet, publish photos on social networks, and at first people just look closely.

Bouquets of exotic flowers are not as persistent in nature as classic roses, for example. The question arises from buyers: is it necessary to buy a bouquet, which instead of two weeks will "stand" for five days? And we set ourselves another task: to surprise the recipient, to produce such a “wow effect”. After all, it was not by chance that we occupied a certain niche in the market: girls long ago and often began to say that it would be great if someone hinted to their man how tired they were of roses. When a man decides on something unusual, his girlfriend will always appreciate it. But over time, we began to receive feedback and realized how cool it is when what we like is liked by others.

- I think that this is a general trend for Russia, and for regions in particular: gradually more and more people choose more interesting solutions instead of standard ones. Right?

- In large cities of Russia, flowers other than roses, gerberas and chrysanthemums became popular 3-4 years ago, later in the regions.Of course, everywhere there are still many stalls that sell ordinary bouquets, but there are also many who appreciate some other beauty. Yes, exotic bouquets are a little higher, but people are aware of their value.

- Let's get to the details. What flowers are gaining popularity today?

- Today, peonies have gained tremendous popularity. Although there are men who at the sight of peonies say: "Oh, they grow in the garden." But, firstly, not everyone has gardens, and secondly, peonies are different, only I know more than 30 varieties, I think that there are even more of them, and those grown in the gardens are less resistant. In general, peonies are in demand all year round, and today new countries are beginning to breed them to ensure uninterrupted supply, although from this, of course, the price changes for them throughout the year.

We also love peony roses - some of their varieties are incredibly fragrant. Interesting flowers are ranunculi. Many girls, especially brides, dream of having ranunculi and peonies in their wedding bouquet, but in nature it is arranged that some flowers replace others. Ranunculus ends at the end of May, peonies at this time are just beginning, and only some lucky ones are lucky to find both flowers. Stunning flowers are hydrangeas, they are beneficial in every sense: quite persistent (with proper care) and with a large inflorescence. An armful of hydrangeas invariably produces the same “wow effect”.

- I heard that the Calla lilies caused a new wave of popularity?

- I would not say. Callas were popular in the 90s, they are really persistent, unusual. And now there are lovers of exclusively callas, but there are relatively fewer than lovers of ranunculus. Today, slightly different greens are popular than before: eucalyptus, skimmy, interesting tree branches. We try to introduce really unusual flowers. For example, a lotus box that changes color from light green to black. In bouquets, she attracts a lot of attention, is especially appropriate in bouquets “with character”. Dahlias are returning to fashion, but again, not the ones from the grandmother's garden, but interesting, unusual varieties. This year they are popular at weddings. Sweet peas look unusual in bouquets - it also has a pleasant aroma. In a word, if a client really wants to give not a bouquet on duty, but one that stands out from other bouquets and surprises, today there really is plenty to choose from.

- Speaking of trends, I want to clarify: whose experience do you have to focus on? To big cities or even to other countries?

- We focus on those and others. Many interesting things can be found at florists from the USA, France, England. They have a very different approach to composing bouquets, there is more conciseness, simplicity, the trend is even mono-bouquets or bouquets with two kinds of flowers. A lot of interesting things in Moscow, specialized events are held there, and people constantly exchange experiences and ideas. Very beautiful bouquets are made by Ukraine. This is not to say that somewhere is better, but somewhere worse, it's just a different view of floristry. Garden bouquets are popular in Europe - such as if they were gathered together with tree branches, garden roses. Very free and light style and fairly even color scheme.

- What changes has the packaging undergone today?

- To be honest, I didn’t accept packaging at all before, and at first we bound all our bouquets with wide satin ribbons. After some time, we tried to pack flowers in burlap, the first in the region. Today it has become popular. At one time there was a boom of hat boxes - the flowers in them look spectacular, but this is quite expensive. Transport boxes are also very good, especially in the winter, and plus they look stylish.

We like to experiment with wood: we have our own production, where we make wooden boxes, flower boxes. Flowers with sweets look especially beautiful in such boxes. The drawers themselves are multifunctional, in the future they can be used as a container for various home accessories. Also today, kraft paper, in various shades, is incredibly in demand as a packaging. Bouquets in black craft paper look very beautiful and stylish, in them the look focuses on the colors themselves, although you need to understand that not everyone will appreciate such a bouquet.

In our country, in general, there are many prejudices associated with flowers. Until now, some people pay attention to the number of flowers in a bouquet and do not accept an even number. There was a case when a woman from America ordered a bouquet from us, and the recipient called us with a complaint that there were 16 roses in a combined bouquet (of different colors). For some, this is really a tragedy, while in Europe people calmly buy flowers by packing 10 pieces, for example.

“Do you think these are just prejudices?”

- No, I understand that it is individual for everyone, but you should not go to extremes. It is one thing if you see a mono-bouquet of 10 flowers, another - when the bouquet is assembled, it just does not make sense to count the flowers.

- Are there prejudices about shades? For example, what yellow flowers - to separation?

- Many people still perceive the yellow color in bouquets as the color of separation. But there are those who relate to this easier. We believe that yellow is the color of the sun, cool and energizing. Or, for example, people are wary of red and white carnations. They are perceived as mourning flowers. But at the same time, carnations of other shades are very fond of, and some of their species - for example, “shaggy”, are not at all perceived as carnations. Two years ago, a trend of fruit and vegetable bouquets appeared; they look very stylish, beautiful and spectacular. We experimented, but technologically it is quite difficult, and a high degree of responsibility for the quality of the products, although in the fruit season we make bouquets with strawberries and cherries.

- Has the culture of color perception changed today? For what and who buys bouquets most often?

- Of course, it has changed, and it pleases. There was a fashion for men's bouquets - with interesting flowers in unusual packaging, instead of those old "triangular" bouquets. In addition, the girls are no longer embarrassed to buy flowers for themselves - especially often they call for flowers at the end of the week to just put them at home. And insanely happy that men give women flowers not only about, but simply to please. For example, one of our clients, leaving on a business trip to Japan, sent bouquets of cute notes to his girlfriend every day.

Floristry today is as much a developing field as fashion, this industry has its own magazines and leading experts. And nature itself is so amazing that it inspires new ideas every day. And that's great.