East London retailers grow Valentine’s Day flower order by 10%

East London retailers Janu and Kayur Patel are upping their flower orders by 10% this Valentine’s.

The Spar, which is located on a Jet forecourt on New North Road, Illford, has become a well-known spot for selling exceptional bouquets, with top-quality flowers sourced from Amsterdam and Kenya.

The forecourt flower destination is blossoming with daily sales that reach up to £700 on weekdays and £1,000 on weekends.

Last year, the store exceeded its expectations during International Women’s Day and Mother’s Day, surpassing a target of £30,000 by selling an impressive £32,000 to £33,000 worth of blooms with margins of around 40-50%.

Kayur said Valentine’s is set to become a pinnacle of flower sales in 2025, as it marked his store’s best trading event for flowers in 2024.

“We always expect to do better each year. We have to be optimistic and whatever doesn’t sell doesn’t mean it gets wasted. In any case, we can always sell it the next few days because our flowers are generally of good quality, so they last a while as well,” said Kayur.

He revealed to Convenience Store that the family-owned business has also started wholesaling its flower bouquets and exotic roses to a local and larger forecourt site.

In preparation for Valentine’s Day, Kayur said that he will be placing a flower order that is 25% larger than his store’s usual order for the other site. 

“We’re trying to build their business as well and for that reason, we’re going to be ordering a considerable amount more to also stock their store as well.

“Maybe not this Valentine’s, but we anticipate that by next year they will be selling in similar volumes to us, if not more, because they tend to have a better flow of traffic and footfall,” Kayur added.