Love's in the air...

Floral shop owners in eastern New Mexico agree Valentine’s Day, the holiday of the red rose, presents its busiest time for them.

It also presents unique ways for customers to express their affection, they added.

“Money wise it is our biggest holiday of the year,” said Aileen McAlister, owner of Butterfly Floral and Gifts in Portales. “Item wise it is Mother’s Day.”

“It’s extremely busy. We’re already working on getting all straightened up,” Clovis Floral Designs Owner Kathy Cox said. “It’s one of the biggest, if not the biggest, except Mother’s Day.”

Cox said she prepares five or six months in advance with orders and makes sure she has a large staff for the holiday.

“The phone won’t stop ringing,” said Donice Strickland, owner of Strickland’s Floral and Gifts. “We’ll probably have phone calls all day until Valentine’s Day is over.”

Portales floral shops had another obligation when it came to preparations.

“It’s crazy busy especially since Portales High School does their prom the week of Valentine’s Day,” said Hestands Floral and Gifts owner Rose Richards.

Richards added she anticipates a sales increase this year with the holiday falling on Tuesday, as people like to surprise their significant others by having gifts delivered at work.

They are nevertheless on top of the game.

“A lot of people have already ordered,” said McAlister. “We try to have some arrangements made up and ready to go.”

“I start three months early ordering and just making sure we have enough stuff,” said Sharla Bronniman, owner of Forever Blooms in Clovis.

Cox said a huge staff is important for a time when many customers shop the day of and at the last minute.

“We have to call in extra help and make sure we have all our experienced designers,” she said. “It’s about making sure you get good, quality flowers. Making sure you have enough people to deliver them.”

Unsurprisingly, the five floral shop owners acknowledged red roses are the most popular items, as they “always carry the statement of ‘I love you,’” according to Bronniman.

That is not to say people do not enjoy a little variety.

“The rose is my favorite, but we do others. We mix Valentine’s Day bouquets,” said Cox. “It depends on people’s tastes.”

“We have some that are rainbow colors,” said McAlister. “We have a bunch of different colors but red is our biggest seller.”

Bronniman said she jumps at the opportunity to be as creative as she can.

“I like my designs to have a unique look,” she said. “I love for people to call and say, ‘I’ve never heard of that before.’ We get unique rose colors too. We do deep purple lavender with a hot pink edge. It’s gorgeous.”

“Everybody’s a little bit different,” said Strickland. “Some of them want red roses. Some of them want them with other flowers. We get a lot of requests for stargazer lilies and tulips. It just has to be a favorite.”

Strickland added she keeps up with yearly trends but noticed this year presented nothing unusual for the holiday.

Richards said carnations, tulips and Gerbera daisies are popular.

She also has a Victorian-era bouquet including a mix of irises, tulips, baby’s breath, alstromeria, Queen Anne’s Lace and stock flowers.

Each flower represents a different meaning. The iris is the message itself, the tulip is the declaration of love, the rose representing love, the baby’s breath meaning everlasting love, the alstromeria meaning devotion, the Queen Anne’s Lace meaning fantasy and stocks meaning “you will always be beautiful to me,” Richards said.

But it’s the simple gesture that counts regardless of the kind of flower one receives.

“It’s nice to get flowers. It puts a smile on your face,” McAlister said.