Women's Day 2017 for Women by Women

Women's Day 2017 for Women by Women

International Women's Day spring Womens Day 2017

Over the last century, women and men have marched, demonstrated, and protested for women's rights in the workplace, home, and government.  Women's Day is a celebration of all that has been accomplished with women's rights, with a nod of respect to the past, and an encouraged look to the future.   

When the first Women's Day took place in 1909, women had very few rights.  They weren't guaranteed equal protection under the law, they couldn't vote, own property, choose a career, sue or be sued. Since then, things have changed here in the United States -- let's look at what women have accomplished in the last year:

•  In January, Women's Marches were collectively held in over 673 cities, with an estimated 4.9 million participants.
• The number of women world leaders—presidents or heads of state—have more than doubled by last year, according to the Pew Research Center.
• U.S. Women were the biggest winners in the 2016 Rio Olympics.  
• Movies about or by women in 2016 saw more nominations across the board than ever, including Hidden Figures, The Eagle Huntress, and the Ghostbusters.
• An article in Floral Management Magazine, entitled Daughters of the Revolution, revealed that "Nearly 52 percent of managerial or professional positions are now held by women."  This shouldn't be surprising -- according to Census data, since 1996,  young women age 25 to 29 have had higher college attainment rates than young men,  and now, the rate of women college graduates in now higher than men. Not only that, more women are getting MBAs, and this generation will be entering the job market as leaders.

While income parity and other rights are still being fought for in this country, and while women in abroad are still fighting for basic rights, we should be proud of what we have accomplished in the United States thus far, and we should honor those efforts and support our international sisters.  Celebrate what we have accomplished, and embolden each other for the future. Honor and hearten women in your life with a symbol of strength, beauty, and fortification.

In spring, flowers are the first to break through the cold, hard ground.  With beauty and grace, flowers lead the way out of winter.  Use flowers to honor the women in your life. Celebrate any woman who has inspired or encouraged you in the special way that only a woman can.

Happy Women's Day, and fight on.

Interview with Lane DeVries about Women's Day 2017

Interview with Lane DeVries about Women's Day 2017

#WomensDay CCFC interview Lane DeVries marketing materials Womens Day 2017

Women's Day (March 8th) is dedicated to celebrating women and honoring their achievements by expressing our respect, appreciation, and love. Originally founded in New York City in 1909, Women's Day is celebrated around the world; in the U.S., we have been witnessing the rising popularity of this holiday over the last three years.

Julie Randles, writing for the California Cut Flower Commission (CCFC), interviewed Sun Valley's Lane DeVries to get his take on the growth of this holiday and the potential it has for the flower industry. 

What growth have you seen in Women's Day since you won the marketing award for your work?

Sun Valley has seen a steady rise in sales for week 8 and 9 due to Woman’s Day. The biggest gains have been in tulips, which are a perfect flower for Women’s Day.  This growth has also been helped by in-store signage, display boxes, and stickers which help make Women’s Day an event.



Why did you decide to take the lead in trying to get traction for this holiday?   


In the American flower industry, there is a disproportionate focus on Valentine’s Day and Mother Day. Those two holidays are where we collectively, as an industry, have our focus, and that is also where we see the growth in sales.

But it’s not good for our industry to keep focusing only on those two holidays-that’s not good for product quality. The higher you make those peaks in demand, the more negative consequences for consumers and therefore, for repeat sales, and it hurts growth of the category as a whole.

My vision – the whole premise of our initiative – is to increase flower consumption in America. And I believe the way to accomplish that is to find other opportunities to buy flowers without taking away any efforts from Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. By driving sales throughout the year, we will put a fresher product in consumers’ hands, which, over all will increase demand for flowers.

What would you like to see happen next with this growing flower-related holiday? 

So far this year, we have been thrilled to have customers calling and asking about Women’s Day flowers and promotions. The floral industry as a whole is doing an amazing job of creating awareness and generating sales for this holiday. Next, we would like to see other retailers and industries promote the holiday, such as home and garden centers, balloon and greeting card manufactures, and food and beverage companies. Women’s Day shouldn’t just be promoted at florists and supermarket floral departments.

 
We would also like to see more attention in the media. The idea of Women’s’ Day is simple, and positive. Showing respect and gratitude for the women in our lives is something we can all appreciate, and of course, flowers do an exceptional job of conveying these feelings. In a world dominated by our smart phones, social media, and an unending news cycle, an opportunity to recognize and say thank you to our mentors, our coworkers, our elders, and our daughters in real time is proving to be a welcome addition to the traditions we celebrate.          

How else can we help grow this holiday?

Sun Valley started promoting Women’s Day in 2010. Ideally, we’d like all our fellow flower farmers, as well as, retailers and wholesalers to put together their own Women’s Day programs. We need consumers to see Women’s Day everywhere they look in early March. Look as the average floral department at Valentine’s Day, the overwhelming amount of red makes it impossible to walk by and not think about Valentine’s Day.   Now, imagine that department leading up to March 8th promoting Women’s Day with a huge display of flowers, balloons, colorful signage and other merchandise.  The potential is enormous.      

Thank you Julie and Lane!

We have some great marketing materials for Women's Day; contact up your sales rep if you want to join in and take advantage of this awesome holiday!