• Easter
  • small business

This past Easter weekend reminded me of my very first Easter as a small business owner. I learned a valuable lesson then that remains as true today as it did over two decades ago — the comeback is always stronger than the setback. I had only been open for a short time and had poured all of my money into flowers for Easter orders at my floral shop. Not really realizing what I was doing at the time, I set my cooler on the wrong temperature and lost my entire inventory. It took the help of an understanding supplier to fill my need in a hurry and on an impossible time schedule to not only save my Easter sales, but to save my business as a whole. I eventually paid that supplier back, and I remained his loyal and steady client for a long time thereafter. Looking back on that learning experience, I realize I could have let my troubles define my future. Instead, I rallied and not only met my customers’ needs but also provided a great product and service that kept them coming back. I didn’t do it alone, of course. My supplier, my family members working in the flower shop, and my self-determination to not fail created the perfect storm that turned a hurdle into a chance to shine. I see what I consider to be a very similar scenario playing out far and wide today across the small business community and especially among our Edible network. There is no doubt that almost every business has experienced some disruption as the COVID-19 virus continues to impact and change our world and our everyday lives. But for Edible, the ability of our franchisees to rally has not only been impressive, it has been transformational in the most monumental ways for their stores and the communities they serve.

Stepping up in a time of crisis

Despite all that is happening around them, Edible’s franchisees continue to do what they have always done so well for special occasions. I saw that in the Easter platters and holiday arrangements that flooded social media posts over the weekend. Even more importantly, they have also stepped up to meet brand new demands in our greater society at-large in ways that have been pivotal for our Edible network. The hit that sales took in the early days of this crisis was immediate, painful and could have been crippling. But the collective ability of the franchisees and the corporate staff to see a need and fill it with free delivery and fresh produce boxes — even though these were significant changes from our usual business and menu – has shown our network’s courage and determination to succeed in spite of these troubling times. My thanks run deep for the farmers and partners in the supply chain who stepped up to fulfill our changing orders — including our new popular vegetable offerings — at a moment’s notice. Most importantly, I am thankful for the franchisees who are the very lifeline of health and sustenance to their customers. What they have achieved with our evolving menu is nothing short of amazing. The ability to rally and serve whole fruit and whole produce with the experience and customer service that are hallmarks of the Edible experience has been something I will never forget. Orders continue to climb, and the numbers tell an amazing underlying truth: our franchise owners continue to WOW customers in ways that are memorable and, perhaps in these times, everlasting.

Going above and beyond

I would love to be able to personally congratulate everyone in our system for working through these trying times in ways we never thought imaginable. That includes all of those franchisees who have gone above and beyond to also give back in their communities. The abundance of love and support they have shown with deliveries to healthcare workers at local hospitals and first responders at police stations and fire stations are just a small glimpse into the positive impact they are having on the front lines. In the end, that’s what it’s all about — the positives that overcome the negatives. This past Easter (much like my first Easter in my small business), I truly believe we emerged much better as a business despite the adversities. And the road ahead looks even better as we continue evolving to meet new needs.

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  • celebration
  • Easter
  • Edible Arrangements
  • Holidays

For many people, Easter is a time of celebration and remembrance.

This year, as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of Edible Arrangements®, I’ve found myself especially reflective as I think about how far we’ve come since our very first Easter.

Continue reading “Special Memories for a Special Season”
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  • Easter
  • Edible Arrangements
  • Entrepreneurship
Edible Arrangements Easter Arrangement

Every year as Easter approaches I pause to think back and remember where this all started, and every year I’m taken back to memories of two special Easter seasons. That’s because Easter is where the story of my entrepreneurial journey as well as the start of Edible Arrangements really began.

In both cases, while I was intimidated by the challenge that starting new businesses presented, each time it reconfirmed my belief in myself and that I was making the right decisions.

Continue reading “Reflecting on sweet Easter memories”

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  • Easter
  • Edible Arrangements
  • History
  • Holidays
  • Tariq Farid
  • Tariq Farid Entrepreneur

Easter bouquets played an important role in the start of Edible Arrangements.

Each year as the Easter season arrives, I am reminded how truly blessed my family and I have been. For all of us, it is a time of remembrance and celebration, and that is especially true as Edible Arrangements® celebrates another year of growth. As a reminder of why the Easter season holds a special place in my heart, I wanted to repost this blog I wrote a year ago.

In 1986, when I opened my first flower shop as a teenager, and again in 1999, when I opened the first Edible Arrangements, Easter was my first holiday experience as a business owner in the gifting industry. And in each case, it was the Easter season that eased my concerns and reconfirmed my belief that I had made the right decision.

The Easter season of 1999 holds a special place in my heart.

As spring arrived that year, I was excited about a new idea to create artistically designed bouquets made from fresh fruit and I was convinced that they would be an immediate hit. My banker disagreed. When I asked for a loan to help launch Edible Arrangements, he told me with no hesitation that the business had no potential.

But I was convinced I had a good idea, and I also knew that Easter and Mother’s Day — two of the biggest holidays in gifting — were right around the corner. I scraped together the money I needed and, with the help of my family, built a small Edible Arrangements store next to my flower shop in East Haven, Connecticut. During this time I faced another of those moments that force entrepreneurs to take a step back and make sure they are committed to their idea.

While we were preparing for opening day, my father invited a friend to the store to show him what I was doing. The friend was a respected professor at a local university and I was excited to hear his thoughts on the business. I was convinced he was going to tell me what a great idea this was. Instead, I was shocked and a little shaken when he told me he didn’t think the business had any potential and that I was wasting my time and money.

It’s times like these that can place doubt and second thoughts in an entrepreneur’s mind. But I was passionate about my idea, and convinced it would work. Barely two weeks before Easter, I opened Edible Arrangements.

Marketing funds were limited, so I created simple flyers to hand out to customers of my flower shop, friends and anyone else I came across. I was so convinced they would love the arrangements that I promised each customer that if they didn’t “WOW” the recipient, I would give them a complete refund.

That first Easter I received 28 orders. My family and I worked all day and into the night to create the arrangements and make sure they were perfect. The next day, as they were delivered, the phone began to ring. Typically, in the gifting industry, when you get a call following a delivery it is a complaint that “the flowers aren’t fresh,” “they didn’t look like they did in the picture,” or a similar issue.

Not this time. Each time the phone rang it was a customer calling to say, “WOW.” Their friends or spouses who received the arrangements were excited and wanted to know where they had found such a creative gift. That Easter convinced me that Edible Arrangements would be successful.

At the time, of course, I had no idea that Edible Arrangements would become a global chain and would be featured in newspapers, magazines and on TV programs worldwide.

At the time, I had no idea that the concept of a business selling fresh fruit arrangements would create opportunities for hundreds of passionate franchisees around the world to pursue their dreams.

I had no idea, when we received those first 28 orders, that 15 years later we would be preparing to fill more than 120,000 orders for another Easter weekend.

That’s why this year, as every year, I pause to think back to those early days and remind myself that Easter truly is a blessed holiday.

 

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  • Easter
  • Edible Arrangements
  • Holidays
  • Tariq Farid
  • Tariq Farid Entrepreneur

Each year as the Easter season arrives, I am reminded how truly blessed my family and I have been. For all of us, it is a time of remembrance and celebration, and that is especially true this year as Edible Arrangements® celebrates its 15th anniversary.

In 1986, when I opened my first flower shop as a teenager, and again in 1999, when I opened the first Edible Arrangements, Easter was my first holiday experience as a business owner in the gifting industry. And in each case, it was the Easter season that eased my concerns and reconfirmed my belief that I had made the right decision.

The Easter season of 1999 holds a special place in my heart.

As spring arrived that year, I was excited about a new idea to create artistically designed bouquets made from fresh fruit and I was convinced that they would be an immediate hit. My banker disagreed. When I asked for a loan to help launch Edible Arrangements, he told me with no hesitation that the business had no potential.

But I was convinced I had a good idea, and I also knew that Easter and Mother’s Day — two of the biggest holidays in gifting — were right around the corner. I scraped together the money I needed and, with the help of my family, built a small Edible Arrangements store next to my flower shop in East Haven, Connecticut. During this time I faced another of those moments that force entrepreneurs to take a step back and make sure they are committed to their idea.

While we were preparing for opening day, my father invited a friend to the store to show him what I was doing. The friend was a respected professor at a local university and I was excited to hear his thoughts on the business. I was convinced he was going to tell me what a great idea this was. Instead, I was shocked and a little shaken when he told me he didn’t think the business had any potential and that I was wasting my time and money.

It’s times like these that can place doubt and second thoughts in an entrepreneur’s mind. But I was passionate about my idea, and convinced it would work. Barely two weeks before Easter, I opened Edible Arrangements.

Marketing funds were limited, so I created simple flyers to hand out to customers of my flower shop, friends and anyone else I came across. I was so convinced they would love the arrangements that I promised each customer that if they didn’t “WOW” the recipient, I would give them a complete refund.

That first Easter I received 28 orders. My family and I worked all day and into the night to create the arrangements and make sure they were perfect. The next day, as they were delivered, the phone began to ring. Typically, in the gifting industry, when you get a call following a delivery it is a complaint that “the flowers aren’t fresh,” “they didn’t look like they did in the picture,” or a similar issue.

Not this time. Each time the phone rang it was a customer calling to say, “WOW.” Their friends or spouses who received the arrangements were excited and wanted to know where they had found such a creative gift. That Easter convinced me that Edible Arrangements would be successful.

At the time, of course, I had no idea that Edible Arrangements would become a global chain and would be featured in newspapers, magazines and on TV programs worldwide.

At the time, I had no idea that the concept of a business selling fresh fruit arrangements would create opportunities for hundreds of passionate franchisees around the world to pursue their dreams.

I had no idea, when we received those first 28 orders, that 15 years later we would be preparing to fill more than 120,000 orders for another Easter weekend.

That’s why this year, as every year, I pause to think back to those early days and remind myself that Easter truly is a blessed holiday.

 

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