Ep. 137: How iBuyFlowers Helps You Buy Farm Direct
In today’s BB Podcast episode (No. 137), we’re visiting with Wilfred de Wit, founder and CEO of iBuyFlowers where florists and event planners can shop online for wholesale flowers directly from 100+ farms in both the US and abroad. Will shares his background in the floral industry and the challenges he witnessed, leading to the inception of his company. The conversation covers the importance of transparency, ethical sourcing, and customer education. Will also talks about his hopes for the role AI will eventually play in personalizing orders for iBuyFlowers customers. If you’re looking for a company who believes in building strong relationships with their growers and customers, this episode will be insightful. Will’s goal is to educate his customers about the benefits of ordering directly from growers, which can significantly improve the quality and longevity of their flowers. Special Offer for First Time iBuyFlowers Users: Get $100 off a first order over $200. To claim this offer, use Voucher Code: ibfmdpcbotanical100 You can find show notes and more episodes of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast at botanicalbrouhaha.com, and you can find the BB Podcast co-hosts on IG @botanicalbrouhaha and @hey.nataliegill. This episode of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast was produced by Joel McGee. Original music by Landon McGee.
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Ep. 136: Rachael Lunghi's Floral Business Insights
In today's BB Podcast episode (No. 136), we're visiting with Rachael Lunghi, owner of Siren Floral Co based in Southern California. Siren Floral Co was born out of a wedding and event planning company Rachael founded initially. Her love of flowers led her to eventually focus on floristry full time. Since that time, Rachael has developed a style all her own that's easily recognized and sought after by clients. Leaning into her love of travel, she gradually carved out a destination weddings and events niche for Siren Floral Co. We're honored to bring this conversation to you! Join us as we chat with Rachael about: her experiences with destination weddings and travel logistics pricing strategies for floral services and transparency with clients balancing work and family life as a new mom her aesthetic and design philosophy lessons learned from past business experiences, including closing a retail shop advice for aspiring wedding planners and florists on contracts and goal setting the importance of building a supportive team and community This episode of the Botanical Brouhaha Podcast is brought to you by: BLOOM TRUST CO. A curated collection of floral resources you can trust. Click here to learn more. You can find show notes and more episodes of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast at botanicalbrouhaha.com, and you can find the BB Podcast co-hosts on IG @botanicalbrouhaha and @hey.nataliegill. This episode of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast was produced by Joel McGee. Original music by Landon McGee.
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Ep. 135: The Evolution of MUD Urban Flowers
In today's BB Podcast episode (No. 135), we're revisiting Chloe Murray, CEO/Creative Director of MUD Urban Flowers in Glasgow, Scotland and our second guest ever back in 2017 (Ep. 3) when the BB Podcast was just getting started. When we last visited, Chloe was only a couple of months into her new business and absolutely on fire! She was seeing quick growth and loving the process. Fast forward to 2025. Today, Chloe has guided MUD Urban Flowers through a pandemic, exponential growth, and significant life changes. And she's still passionate about her business model and the people she serves. And she's done it all without a phone number for her customers from day one! If you wish your flower business was more outside the box, Chloe will get you thinking about the possibilities. This episode of the Botanical Brouhaha Podcast is brought to you by: BTCO Circle Retail 2025 April 1-May 27th, 2025 Simple.Soulful.Connection Click here to learn more. You can find show notes and more episodes of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast at botanicalbrouhaha.com, and you can find the BB Podcast co-hosts on IG @botanicalbrouhaha and @hey.nataliegill. This episode of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast was produced by Joel McGee. Original music by Landon McGee.
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Ep. 134: Rooted in Heritage: How Jamaican Roots Guide Olivee Floral
Building Olivee Floral In today’s BB Podcast episode (No. 134), we’re visiting with Karla Smith-Brown, founder of Olivee Floral. Karla’s inspiring journey evolved from a career in public relations to becoming a successful floral artist. Her story isn’t just about flowers; it’s about weaving passion, sustainability, and heritage with personal connections to make a powerful impact. Starting out, Karla offered pop-up events and hand-tied bouquets, gradually building her brand (named after her great grandmother, Medorah Olivee Wright). With a design aesthetic influenced by her Jamaican heritage, she developed a signature wild yet refined style. As Olivee Floral grew, Karla began to view flowers as a medium for art, not just for traditional events. Now, she works with brands like Vogue, Birkenstock, and Nike, often being sought out because of the strong professional relationships she’s built and the unique design aesthetic she’s developed. Join us as we chat with Karla about: the significance of using locally grown and sustainable flowers for funeral arrangements addressing the challenges and taboos surrounding discussions of funeral flowers in society innovative approaches to creating sustainable funeral flower designs without floral foam the role of florists in educating families about sustainable options and practices the potential for changing perceptions of funeral flowers to make them more approachable the impact of creative and sustainable practices on the floral industry and communities This episode of the Botanical Brouhaha Podcast is brought to you by: BLOOM TRUST CO. A curated collection of floral resources you can trust. Click here to learn more. You can find show notes and more episodes of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast at botanicalbrouhaha.com, and you can find the BB Podcast co-hosts on IG @botanicalbrouhaha and @hey.nataliegill. This episode of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast was produced by Joel McGee. Original music by Landon McGee.
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Ep. 133: Farewell Flowers: Sustainable Options for Funeral Flowers
A Vision for Sustainable Funeral Flowers In today's BB Podcast episode (No. 133), we're visiting with Carole Patilla, co-founder of the Farewell Flowers Directory and owner of Tuckshop Flowers. She joined forces with Gill Hodgson, founder of Flowers from the Farm, to address a need in the floral industry that is often overlooked and avoided — sustainable funeral flowers. This conversation will be helpful for you if: 1) you're unsure how to execute your vision to create funeral flowers without traditional flower foam and single-use plastics or 2) you're struggling to educate clients (and funeral directors) about the importance of sustainable funeral flowers. Carole shares her experiences working with local funeral homes, highlighting how they have embraced innovative approaches to funerals that reflect the wishes of families for personalized services that prioritize sustainable practices. Practical Tips for Creating Sustainable Designs Carole shares her experiences creating foam free funeral arrangements that can adapt to different surfaces, such as curved caskets lids. She challenges the notion that certain practices are set in stone simply because they have always been done that way. She believes strongly that florists have the power to set their own rules and standards in business. This episode of the Botanical Brouhaha Podcast is brought to you by: BLOOM TRUST CO. A curated collection of floral resources you can trust. Click here to learn more. You can find show notes and more episodes of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast at botanicalbrouhaha.com, and you can find the BB Podcast co-hosts on IG @botanicalbrouhaha and @hey.nataliegill. This episode of The Botanical Brouhaha Podcast was produced by Joel McGee. Original music by Landon McGee.
Do you own a flower business or dream of starting one? Are you looking for practical floral design tips? Ever wonder how other florists run their businesses? Or maybe you’re a farmer florist building a flower farm and floral design business at the same time? You’ve landed in the right place!
At the BB Podcast, we serve floral designers, farmer florists, flower shop owners, and aspiring florists by diving into practical tips and insider information from real working florists, floral educators, flower growers, and floral industry vendors to help you find the tools you need to start, run, and grow your flower business.
We like to mix it up! Do you prefer hearing real-life stories or diving into specific flower business topics? Either way, we’ve got you covered.
Listen to our storytelling episodes featuring floral professionals sharing the details of starting and running their flower businesses. So many stories just waiting for you to dig in and learn from those who are doing what you want to do!
Browse our topic-specific interviews where you can expect everything from conversations on marketing, staffing, and floral software to pain points like finding your mojo or listening to your intuition in business.
Amy McGee, Botanical Brouhaha founder, brings years of relationship building with floral designers, farmer florists, and floral professionals to the table and invites you to pull up a chair for the conversations where you’ll learn and be inspired by the nitty gritty transparency of the questions she asks.
The BB Podcast is co-hosted by Natalie Gill, owner of Native Poppy.