We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brooke Murad. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brooke below.

Brooke, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

When I went to put together the model for my freelance business, I really had to think critically about my niche in a saturated space. Why would someone choose my services over an established florist in the area? There are 2 strategies:

1) Price. This was the most obvious advantage I could provide. My studio is my home, so I don’t carry overhead expenses. I decided to charge a flat 20% labor fee on top of my costs. Traditional florists tend to charge a similar fee, but they also mark up the price of each flower. By removing that extra expense, my clients are receiving quality products at lower price. A membership at a local wholesale florist & receiving my Sales and Use Tax Permit were key to this.

2) Minimums. I have found an excellent niche in the wedding market by offering my clients a full-service florist with no minimum. Most of my clients want just part of their wedding covered (for example, they want real bouquets, but they are comfortable with fake florals as their table and venue decor). A traditional florist may turn down this business if it doesn’t reach a certain minimum, whereas my low overhead means that I’m able to fulfill those orders.

Brooke, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I initially founded Queen City Bouquet as a means to get back into floral design while maintaining my full-time marketing role. I spent 7 years while in high school and college working part-time in flower shops in Connecticut and North Carolina where I was able to learn the skills to make almost any item. I have worked on my fair share of weddings, proms, holidays, and funerals through that experience, so I felt confident knowing I’d be able to fulfill event orders as a freelancer. I was especially motivated by an experience from 2020 in which a coworker asked me to do all of the florals for her super-small wedding.

I am still learning the ropes as I navigated my first tax season, writing up an event contract, buying quantities, etc, but I am so proud to have several events and individual orders under my belt from my freelance business. My full-time position is also still going well; the company I work for actually hosted me for a corporate event where I led a bouquet-building workshop and provided a self-service flower bar. That experience was transformative for me as it really helped to spread the word on the business to a key demographic in the area, which has since led to several orders.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Like many other small businesses, many of my clients at this time are through word-of-mouth. I am fortunate to have friends and coworkers who trusted me with their large events (weddings, corporate events, baby showers, etc) that gave me opportunities to photograph and show off my work.

My Instagram presence has also been crucial. The floral industry is really grounded in visuals. Clients need to connect to your specific design portfolio and sometimes with you personally. Instagram has allowed me to give examples of my work in different types of events, which has absolutely led to growing my reputation. Although I’m still growing my following and building up my profile, I have had several inquiries stemming from that platform. As a low-overhead business offering a cost advantage, it’s really important for me that I continue to keep my overhead low. Free marketing via Instagram has been helping my company grow at a manageable rate, and I’ve had so much fun sharing my work and connecting with people in the area.

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

Directly after I formed the LLC, I really wanted to make a video I could share on Instagram and TikTok about my business. I wanted to share what the process would be like to work with me as a freelancer vs a traditional florist. It felt important to share that process visually and verbally to alleviate any fears for my clients about choosing me.

As I had very little budget (as in, none) for marketing, I enlisted the help of a friend. I happened to have a friend planning a wedding, and she wanted me to help with the flowers and build her a proposal. I used her wedding as the example for the video, and we were hysterical trying to get everything right. We drove around town finding the best filming locations. We did outfit changes. We set up various unsteady stacks of random items that were “just the right height” to hold up a phone for filming. We brought lamps from all over my house to give “just the right lighting.”

Looking back to that video, it’s still the most engaged-with video on my profile, so I guess it was worth all the effort!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clt_freelance_florist
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brookeam

Image Credits
Shawn Cetrone