July 23 2023

Mrs. Worldwide: Ellen's Online Course

Tags: Classes

Ellen is taking her talents online! In a partnership with The Gardener's Workshop Ellen has created an online course called Florist School Online: Growing Your Business with Local Flower Sourcing. In this course Ellen shares how she built a thriving floral business exclusively sourcing locally-grown flowers. In this course you will learn:

• How to build relationships with farmers in your area
• The logistics of procuring locally-grown flowers
• Marketing, selling and differentiating with locally-grown flowers
• How to build and sustain a network of local, interdependent suppliers and consumers
• An overview of the landscape of the global and national cut flower industry and the significance of locally sourced flowers in the industry and to your business
• How to examine your motivation for going local and capitalize on your authentic story
• How to build a loyal and returning customer base for a thriving floral business

How it Works

This course is available on demand and is self-paced. Also included in your enrollment:

• Access to The Gardener's Workshop private Facebook group for students.
• Ellen's webinar: Dried Wreath Making Tips.
• Over 300 searchable FAQs on the course content.

Learn More

If you are an aspiring florist, an established florist looking to re-invigorate sales, a farmer-florist who needs to embellish your own output, a farmer looking for new sales outlet, this course will provide you with a thorough roadmap to source your product locally and insight into the business of local flowers. Join the course news email list to stay informed on offerings, give-aways and other marketing for this course.

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June 21 2022

Farmer Fat Stacks

Tags: Classes, Farmers

Get ready to make some money! Ellen has launched her second online class with The Gardener's Workshop. Preparing to Sell to Florists is an on demand insider's workshop for flower growers who want to sell directly to florists.

Ellen shares what florists want from their flower providers and how to sell to them from over a decade of buying directly from the farm focusing on three topics:

• Finding The Right Florist Customers
• How to Price Your Product
• All About Availability Lists

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How It Works

Sign up anytime. It's an on demand workshop. Go at your own pace - it's about two hours. There's even a no questions asked money back guarantee. If you purchase the class before July 4 2022, you will be invited to a live Q&A with Ellen!

Learn More

This class is for anyone who wants to sell flowers directly to florists. You might be a big, multi-generation farm looking for a new sales outlet or a hobbyist aspiring to upgrade to a side hustle. You will learn how florists work, how to compete with wholesalers, how to define your value proposition, how to pitch your product, and how to build an ongoing successful business relationship.

Don't just believe this rando blog. Hear Ellen talk about this class on the Field and Garden podcast. Get your bag!

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May 18 2020

Books, Books, I Need My Books

Tags: Classes, BookClub

Our next promotion for Ellen's online course is her list of Ten Books Every Flower Pro Should Read. Boring, right? Think again. We're kicking off this list with a flower books beatdown IG Live event on Tuesday May 19 at 4:30 PM EST (available later on IG TV). Ellen and Jennie Love of Love 'n Fresh Flowers are going to go at it over their favorite floral books as industry pros. It's definitely gonna get chippy.

Ellen with author Amy Stewart

So, what books made the cut for Ellen? You have to sign up for the course news email list. But here's a teaser: Flower Confidential, obvi. Martha, duh (but which Martha - there's so many). How many selections from Ellen's nerdy book club? What hidden gems are listed that you have not discovered yet? Such intrigue!

In this publication Ellen writes why she selected each book and what the titles mean to her and Local Color Flowers. It is a list from Ellen's perspective as a professional florist. However, it is a great collection for any flower enthusiast. If your favorite didn't make Ellen's list, add your recommendations to the comments.

We're going to be producing lots of free informative, valuable, and entertaining stuff, like this list of books, leading up to Ellen's class: Florist School Onlline: Growing Your Business with Local Flower Sourcing. It's all available when signing up for the course news.

Do it.

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January 10 2020

Droppin' Flower Knowledge

Tags: Classes, At LoCoFlo

Here's the deal on our classes: It's probably the most fun you will ever have. For reals, taking a LoCoFlo class is a unique experience in our artsy studio led by creative experts where you develop skillz and learn new things.

We offer a variety of classes related to local flowers. They are typically part instruction and part hands-on and you leave the class with your creation. We also offer off-site classes, on-line classes, demos, classes instructed by experts in other fields as well as private classes for groups and individuals.

Photo: BAM Co-Create

Types of Classes

• Skills Focused – In these classes, the objective is to master floral design concepts, techniques, and proficiencies. Our instruction emphasizes the process. For instance, in our Intro to Floral Design class, we teach the basics of color theory and floral design while building the arrangement. Other skills-focused classes address the use of mechanics such as floral frogs or more complex techniques to make a hand-tied formal bridal bouquet. These classes are a great way to develop your skillset for a floral hobby or maybe even a side hustle or career.
• Product Focused – It's all about the gram! The goal of these classes is to complete a stunning floral arrangement. These classes feature a particular seasonal focal flower as in our Spotlight classes or we will tackle a particular project like Thanksgiving Centerpiece or Winter Wreath. These classes are fun, informative and leaves you with a satisfying sense of accomplishment.
• Private – We offer private classes and demonstrations at the shop and on the road. These can be a class we already offer just for your group, or we can customize a class for your needs. Examples of our past private classes: headcrowns for a child’s birthday, neighborhood wreath class, garden club talks regarding sustainability and local sourcing and more, Individual floral tutoring also available. Call or email Ellen (410-262-1494 | ellen@locolo.com).
• Other classes - We partner with venues and professionals to offer a variety of other interesting classes. These include conducting our flower classes on the farm where the flowers are grown, in neighboring retail shops, even on the water taxi! Our online classes are hosted by The Gardener's Workshop focusing on buying and selling local flowers. We also have had visiting instructors such as artists and bakers who conduct their classes at our shop.

Credentials

We’re legit. Our instructors are Master Gardeners and flower farmers with decades of professional floral design experience. We have training from respected organizations (FlowerSchool New York, Longwood Gardens) and industry experts (Jennie Love, Erin Benzakein, Francoise Weeks). We are members of the ASCFG since 2008 and Ellen won their prestigious Allan Armitage Leadership Award in 2016.

What Else

Classes at LoCoFlo are a fun, one-of-a kind experience where you learn new skillz using locally grown flowers and sustainable practices. Classes are for all experience levels unless otherwise specified. Advanced registration is required. One adult admittance per registration. Check the schedule on our Classes and Events page - there's always something new to do and learn.

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