THIRTY YEARS LATER, FLOWER POWER TAKES HOLD
NEW YORK CITY - In the '60s, America's "Flower Children" coined the term "Flower Power." That idea soon gave way to decades of disco dancing, conspicuous consumption and trickle-down economics. But now it's the "nesting '90s" and once again baby boomers are embracing flower power in record numbers.
 Industry experts report that America's taste for tulips, roses, lilies and other fresh flowers will kick overall sales of cut flowers in the U.S. to more than 8.5 billion dollars this year.
Market research reveals that approximately 45 million U.S. households now purchase flowers at least once a month, up from 31 million a decade ago, according to Chicago-based marketing consulting firm, The Floral Index, Inc.
Practical Maters
The increase in demand accompanies a change in consumer buying patterns.
Roses, long the dominant cut flower in popularity, have been joined by tulips, which have made a rapid rise in recent years as cut flower favorites.
Part of the reason may be the increased role that supermarkets and mass merchandisers now play in cut flower distribution.
While traditional florist shops continue to be the primary retailer for formal arrangements, the greatest increase in floral sales over the past ten years has been in supermarkets and mass merchandise outlets. Floral Index' market research shows that supermarket sales volume alone has increased 183 percent in the last ten years, a figure that may signal the first ripples of a sea change in American attitudes about fresh cut flowers.
Casual Flowers Fuel Cultural Shift
If America gave us "Flower Power," it is Northern Europe, Scandinavia and Asia that have long had the lock on flower culture. In Northern Europe, corner flower shops and flower carts are ubiquitous. In Asia, cut flowers are a part of the cultural and religious landscape stretching back centuries.
In the U.S., however, flowers were long considered specialty items reserved for occasions such as holidays, hospital visits and funerals. Today, Floral Index research shows that holidays and gifts still account for 30 percent of cut flower purchases. However, casual purchases of flowers now account for 25 percent of all stems sold. That figure is well above both hospital gifts (6 percent) and bereavement (15 percent) as reasons consumers cite for purchasing cut flowers.
Tulips are Trend Indicator
According to Sally Ferguson, director of the Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Center in New York, Dutch export statistics also reflect this growing U.S. trend. She reports that exports for the American 'forcing' sector, which are bulbs to be grown in the U.S. commercially as cut flowers, have increased a full 40 percent over the last decade.
Tulips, which are most often sold in casual bunches of 6 to 10 stems, are part of the growing trend toward integrating flowers into everyday American life. "That Americans are now buying flowers monthly is just a 'toe in the water,'" said Ms. Ferguson. "In many countries, people buy flowers weekly and this is for everyday life, for people at everyday income levels."
In Northern Europe and Scandinavia, for instance, cut and potted flowers are already a more routine element of daily life, Ms. Ferguson says. "It's not uncommon in Western Europe for small businesses to have floral displays delivered weekly, even car dealerships," Ms. Ferguson noted. "And, when you buy a new car, they send you home with a car - and a bouquet!"
While it might not be so easy to imagine your local Ford dealer tossing you a bouquet along with your Bronco, it's not hard to imagine that many of the very appealing ways that other cultures use flowers are finding their way into American culture too.
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