Tulip season has begun! My first chore in the morning was harvesting the tulips for market. Flower harvesting for market differs from cutting flowers for a home bouquet. Tulips are harvested for market when the petals are closed and starting to show some color. If the outer petals are green they are left in the field for harvesting at a later date. The stems are cut long and low, down to the bulb. Some wholesale sellers leave the stem attached to the bulb, storing them intact or selling them with the bulb. This practice can promote a longer shelf life. The foliage is stripped, and the tulips are packed immediately into sanitized buckets and stored in a refrigerated cooler.
This week I finished up my business plan draft for Enterprise for Equity. I found a lot of recent articles on the wholesale cut flower market. I was able to glean some encouraging data from an interview of Diane Szukovathy, founding member of the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market Cooperative. The interview is in the March 2018 issue of Growing for Market, a monthly newsletter for market gardeners, edited by Lynn Byczynski.
The Seattle Wholesale Growers Market Cooperative was founded in February of 2011. Diane Szukovathy and husband Dennis Westphall, owners of Jello Mold flower farm and 11 other northwest growers formed a growers cooperative with shared marketing opportunities and goals. The first year the cooperative generated $300,000 total sales revenue. Jello Mold’s gross income increased by 84% during their first year. Last year the co-op generated $1.68 million in revenue. In December the market relocated to a larger space that will allow them to meet demand and continue to grow. Nearly 55% of the market sales are from pre-sold orders. 65% of the sales are from members of the co-op, the remaining sales are from consignment sales. New growers are encouraged to sell on a consignment basis their first year. The six member team of full time employees manage operations and lend support to new growers, who are assigned crops to fulfill the growing demand. The co-op does not require members to sell exclusively through the co-op. I plan to target local florists within a 25 mile radius, but my primary goal is to sell on consignment and seek membership in the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market Cooperative during my second year of operation.