WCFC in the News

Thursd · August 21, 2026

Defining the Flower Shop: Who Really Speaks Flowers?

WCFC Wants Florists, Not Grocery Stores, to Win

Thursd, the international floral industry magazine, profiled the World Cut Flower Commission and its I Speak Flowers campaign: why the industry has never defined what a flower shop is, why supermarkets, gas stations and order-gathering websites all get counted the same way, and how WCFC plans to send customers back to real florists.

"We have no interest in becoming a wire service. We send customers to florists, not orders."
Bill Kennicott, Founder, in Thursd

Industry report · October 2026

An Industry in Peril: The State of the Independent Flower Shop

The United States has lost more than half its flower shops since 1992, while spending on flowers nearly doubled. This sourced report follows where the sales went, why a century of industry campaigns marketed the flower and never the florist, what independent brewers, booksellers and hardware stores did about the same problem, and what florists can do together now that customers are asking AI where to buy.

For the public · October 2026

How to Order Flowers Using AI (and When to Call a Real Florist)

A five-minute guide for people who shop with AI

How to use AI to get ready, when it is fine to let AI order, and when to call a real florist: middlemen who take a cut, fake "local" flower shops, how long fresh flowers really last, and why a few dollars more is worth it.

For florists · October 2026

Who Will AI Send Your Customers To? A Guide for Independent Florists

What is changing as customers ask AI which florist to call

What AI search means for the independent flower shop, and how the World Cut Flower Commission and I Speak Flowers help real florists be found.