Rose auctioneer Erik Wassenaar highlights the positive effect of this year's cold and wet spring. Production is much lower due to the weather conditions. On the other hand, the price is very good now. But what will it be like when the weather becomes sunny?
Graduates and summer festivals
The school exams are over, and many graduates celebrated their achievements with banners and flags. Congratulations to all the graduates! Summer festivals, such as the festival of lights, are also in full swing. Traditionally, this is especially celebrated in Scandinavian countries. In other words, days that are celebrated with flowers.
The positive effect of lots of rain
The moderate weather in the Netherlands has a major impact on flower production. The low temperatures and the lack of sunlight resulted in lower production levels relative to last year. The rain complicated sowing, planting, and harvesting in the open-field. In other countries, the weather hasn't been ideal either, affecting the amount of production. The good news is that these circumstances resulted in very good flower prices.
Consumer behavior
As consumers are spending less time outside on terraces, they are bringing summer indoors with flowers. The wedding season is also in full swing, providing an extra price boost for flowers with white and pink shades. The European Football Championship has no significant impact on flower sales, perhaps there is a slight increase in the sales of orange flowers. With plants, on the other hand, we do see the effect. Packaging with footballs on it, sleeves with Belgian, Dutch or German flags are regularly offered at the auction. As are ceramic pots in the shape of a football with plants inside.
Summer expectation
The first holidays are just around the corner. There are two ingredients that I am not really comfortable with. When the summer weather really starts, production may 'burst', and sales may increase considerably. This could potentially have a negative impact on prices, especially during the summer holidays. It's always uncertain how trade will develop. Sometimes, we had good prices during the summer holiday time, yet we also have seen years in which customers had no interest in flowers.
For now, we can still enjoy the good flower prices.