Bengaluru: Flower vendor battles online sales

Festival seasons are among the busiest days for flower sales, whether Christmas, Dussera, or Diwali, as they keep everyone occupied. However, Ravi Kumar, a Koramangala flower street vendor at SLV Flowers, says online flower shop sales have affected offline flower sales in the past five years.

“Earlier, I used to go and pick up 300 bundles of flowers from Wilson Garden market, but now I pick up only 200,” opined Kumar. He has been a flower seller for more than a decade and has witnessed the growth of online flower sales and a decline in offline purchases. Even though the wholesale prices at Wilson Garden Market are Rs 20 higher than those at Koramangala Flower Market, he still wants his customers to buy quality flowers over other factors.

Sales were unaffected in December due to Kumar’s skills in retaining customers. “Many people do buy online, but we have our regular customers, like politicians, policemen, and shops in and around Koramangala, who buy from us on a fixed agreement or regular basis,” he opined.

These regular customers allow him to maintain his business and feed his family, especially during low-sale days. Kumar even prepares flower bundles in advance for regular customers who request them and hand delivers them to their houses. His passion, dedication, and love for flowers are why he stayed out all night from December 31, 2024, to January 1, 2025, knowing that sales would be at their peak.

He further added that companies that sell flower bundles online come to him, buying in bulk with complete packaging for around Rs 300 and selling them for Rs 500. Even though he knows they are buying it for their online business, he still does not let any sale go.

 

Written by: Daiti Baindur, School of Communication and Media Studies, St Joseph’s University, Benglauru