As demand for fresh flowers slumps, this florist shifts to artificial ones

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, June 10

Post lockdown, fresh flowers have completely vanished from the shelves of most florists in the city. Known for their collection of fresh flowers and packaging, the owner of Meera Flower World has now been doing it all with artificial flowers.

Be it a rose stick or a bouquet or car decoration work, almost everything is now being done with artificial flowers which have quite a semblance of real ones and have become more acceptable these days. “Since the Covid-19 outbreak, the demand for fresh flowers has come down to almost zero. No one wants to take anything that exchanges so many hands. Since artificial flowers are washable and have a longer shelf life, the demand has switched over to these from fresh flowers, say Harinder Singh, who runs the popular Meera Flower World in Lajpat Nagar Market here.

“The quality of artificial flowers has increased so much that they look almost like real ones. The variety is also wide. One can go for small-potted plants, bushes, foliage, creepers, hangings, etc and have these packed in such a way that we normally do for the real plants. Roses, lilies, bougainvillea, palm, araucaria, ficus, etc, almost all varieties which are in demand in fresh collections,” says the owner.

Asked about the supplies, he says: “These are all China-made items which were available in Delhi markets. But now supplies from China have stopped. So we are also not getting any more of these. In their place, we have displayed some gift items in our collection now — mugs, clocks, photo frames, teddy bears, etc. If not flowers, people can go in for gifts.”

Harinder Singh had started his business with nursery many years ago, which he continues to run at the frontal portion of his showroom. Though he has helpers to look after his fresh foliage collection, he himself is not adding much of his personal touch as was the case earlier. “These days, I am more interested in going back to my old passion, that is oil paintings,” he says showing his collection at the showroom. “These are not for sale. I do it as these days, I am able to spare some time to revive my art. These will be kept at home or be taken by my son settled in the US,” he shared.