There aren’t many things better than a hard working hand to help you get the job done. I was fortunate enough to have my next door neighbor and dear friend, and a freelancer, assist me on one of our very last weddings. If you are new here – we began as a first generation flower farm and quickly fell into wedding and event florals through the noticeability of our flower truck.
We recently made the difficult decision to forego any further wedding services because frankly. it is just way too difficult for one person to tackle. Drew (my husband) would occasionally get sucked in to helping me on a large event but made it clear that this was not what he wanted to spend his weekends doing, and he has his own career. I respect that so I tried to eliminate any involvement by him as much as possible. Back in March Drew’s work schedule changed so now he works most every weekend. Even if I needed him in an emergency (and there have been those) he would be states away and couldn’t assist.
Help is not consistent and we haven’t been able to rely on, or keep workers. I put everything I have into this farm and this business and no one will respect it or care for it the way that you do.
I have always offered to my employees to make their own schedule – they can work as often or as little as they like. I also allowed them to make their own hours. I planned frequent raises and I always fed them (usually) a home cooked meal for lunch. I learned the hard way that this environment and leniency still won’t keep people around. Due to the inconsistency of farm laborers or floral freelancers, I realized I could not agree to do full service florals for a bride while worrying that I will not be able to execute her vision. There was one wedding where it took a four-horse trailer to transport construction sized ladders and three people setting up rigging in a barn until 4 am for an incredible installation. As wedding florists, we have to be reliable.
I was fortunate for this last wedding to have talented and creative women by my side who saved me from 4am wake ups, 12+ hour shifts on my feet in the studio, multiple trips to the venue, and loads of stress. I cannot believe what a difference a couple great freelancers makes and it makes you incredibly grateful for hard working, reliable people who truly want to work! They added so much beauty and expertise to this wedding.
Pray for me friends, that as we grow the farm that I might find someone willing and able to help support our growing business and dream.
