Manly's Rambling Rose Florist
Recipients of numerous awards Rambling Rose Florist is owned and operated by the husband and wife team of Graham and Wendy Grainger.
With 17 years in the flower business, their creative approach and innovative styles make their beautiful shop on the Corso an industry leader. The Grainger’s son Matt is a local business owner also, operating Manly Surf School.
Our Manly spoke to Graham, who handles the business side of the enterprise, about flowers, trends and staying ahead of the competition.
Our Manly: After you sold your first business, you decided against retiring and opened up a new florist shop. Why in Manly?
Graham Grainger: It was too early to retire, so we decided to start again. We chose Manly because it was very different from our shop before. We didn’t want to do the same all over again. Different clientele, different type of work. Makes life interesting.
O M: Where does Wendy get her contemporary ideas and inspiration from?
G G: Hers is a style that’s been in the shop since it was new. We’ve just embellished it, I suppose. We don’t stick to traditional flowers; we try to go outside the square. More exotic flowers, creating arrangements in an interesting way. We want to create a different look. Our arrangements stand out.
O M: The main objective of Rambling Rose is to maintain a consistent level of professionalism. How?
G G: We monitor what goes out. We have a certain style here. It’s a matter of training our people and consistently making sure they do it. If the product is not right we pull it apart and start again, until we get it right. We have systems in place, checklists. If something new comes in we have it all written down to turn the product out the way we want it.
O M: How does the Internet affect your business?
G G: We’ve got a website we try to promote as best we can. We want to grow our internet business.
O M: Green initiatives? Is sustainability an issue?
G G: We try to use products that are environmentally friendly. We don’t use any chemicals in our water like a lot of florists do. No preservatives, we don’t believe in that. We just make sure our water is changed on a regular basis and the flowers last just as long. We compost all our off-cuts.
O M: Do you use local flowers? Favorite indigenous flower?
G G: Most of our flowers are local. Sometimes we import roses in winter, but that is a very small part of our turnover. If they are not local they come from Victoria and Tasmania. Tropical orchids are imported. The waratah is a nice flower indigenous to Australia. We use that extensively when it’s available.
O M: Surrounded by flowers and plants would seem like a nice environment to work in?
G G: Same as every business. Even though the product is nice, there’s a lot of hard work behind the scenes. You’ve really got to be dedicated to enjoy it. A lot of young people get started in the business but it gets too hard for them. You’ve got to be passionate about the product.
Thanks, Graham! Learn more about Rambling Rose, click their logo!
Interviewed by Paul Oscar Hamilton