Florists who depend on individual (rather than corporate) customers were hit hardest. “When the economy went in the toilet in 2008, we lost 40 percent of our business overnight—gone, vanished,” Rosenberg says.
It’s not just those who sell flowers—a network of artists and designers depends on pretty vegetation for a living, too. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, their job outlook is expected to decline 6 percent from 2016 to 2026, leaving 3,500 out of work. And it’s not just New York: In 2016, the U.S. Census recorded 13,188 retail florist shops throughout the country. The number reflected a steep decline from the 27,341 shops in 1992, when the industry was still in its prime.
“It’s hard to maintain overhead these days,” says Bill Nikolas, who owns Bill’s Flower Market, a wholesaler-turned-retailer that has been family-owned and -run since 1936. “A lot of people operate at a loss.”
Nevertheless, there are still top event planners with five-figure budgets to decorate weddings and corporate parties, and their wallets are wide open. A $30,000 order of orchids can make all the difference to a wholesaler’s profit margin, while a few $8,000 wedding arrangements per month can keep some florists afloat.
Casper Trap, a Dutch wholesaler who grew up working on flower farms in the Netherlands, owns Dutch Flower Line. He has increased his business-to-business sales and developed a social media presence to draw new clients. Although such strategies have brought him success, he still hopes to leave the confines of West 28th Street.
“New York is the biggest money prize, but the flower district is just this little, pathetic street,” he says, pacing between buckets of fresh cut flowers from Colombia, Holland, New Zealand, Ethiopia, and Japan.
The structure of the market has fallen apart, say store-owners. There is no longer a sense of camaraderie in the district when businesses cut corners to stay alive, they say. Wholesalers are selling retail to turn an extra buck, and florists, who traditionally purchased from wholesalers, are buying directly from growers.
Maryanne Finnegan, owner of Foliage Gardens, says wholesalers are also struggling to find workers. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has been targeting the industry, she says, given that the labor-intensive jobs tend to attract immigrants from Central America seeking work.
Prior to Sept. 11, 2001, Finnegan would file agricultural requests to obtain documentation for her employees. “Now they’re American citizens,” she says. “They pay taxes. They’re wonderful people. These are stand-up American success stories. But now I can’t get a single person in.” ICE didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Finnegan says she’s been able to stay afloat, thanks to a niche market: plant rentals. But with her workforce under threat, plus online competition, traffic jams, and Chelsea rents, she fears the district’s days are numbered.