DECATUR, Ga. — Phones in flower shops will be ringing all over metro Atlanta this week for Mother’s Day.
Channel 2’s Lori Wilson was in Decatur at one of the oldest flower shops in Georgia to see how tariffs could be affecting their operations.
Paul McClure told Wilson that his shop has been filling flower vases for 108 years. His parents owned and ran the Fairview Flower Shop but over time, he’s noticed changes.
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Customers attitudes are different and so are their buying habits.
Now, tariffs are taking their toll too.
McClure told Wilson that prices tend to go up this time of year anyway, due to the holiday.
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“But several weeks and months ago, our vendors were sending out emails to expect a price increase now, expect one tomorrow, expect one next week,” McClure said.
McClure told Channel 2 Action News that his flowers come from all over, both in the United States and beyond.
“Most of them are outsourced from South America, California, Michigan, just a little bit all over,” he said.
According to the Association of Floral Importers of America, 80% of flowers sold in the U.S. are imported, and that means the prices for flowers can change daily.
“Yes, I’m ordering less, because I know the price of the arrangements have to go up,” McClure said. “I’m ordering based on the orders we have already received.”
McClure told Wilson that people are still buying flowers for mom, but they’re saving money by buying smaller arrangements, or they’re saving on the delivery fee by picking up the flowers themselves.
McClure said he hopes when you do honor mom, you buy from a store near you.
“We just prefer they use the local florist,” McClure said.
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