How to hire
Match the florist to the job first. An everyday high-street shop owns birthday bouquets, anniversary hand-tieds and funeral tributes ordered at short notice, while wedding work belongs with a designer who offers consultations and a written function sheet, and confetti, faux hire and bouquet preservation each belong with their own specialists. When you first enquire, say the occasion, the date and the delivery postcode, since all three decide which shop can actually help.
Know which reassurances count. Floristry has no mandatory register, so there is no licence number to demand; instead search the British Florist Association member directory for the business name and check the name and address that come back match the shop you are hiring [1]. For British-grown seasonal flowers, the Flowers from the Farm search finds member growers near you [2]. A relay membership such as Direct2florist tells you the shop can send nationwide orders through local member florists [3]. Treat any of these as a plus alongside reviews, never as a promise on its own.
If you are planning a wedding, book a consultation and leave with a written function sheet naming every arrangement, from bouquets and buttonholes through ceremony arches to table centres, with the setup and collection times agreed. Ask which stems are in season for your month and what replaces a named stem if it is unavailable on the week, since a substitution policy in writing prevents disappointment. Where your designer orders breeder roses through a wholesaler directory, confirm who places that order and by when.
If you are ordering funeral flowers, give the florist the funeral date, the venue and the exact wording for the card, then ask them to agree the delivery slot with the funeral director or crematorium direct. Sprays, wreaths, posies and coffin tops each suit different positions, so describe where the tribute will rest. Confirm the delivery time in writing and keep the receipt with the rest of the funeral paperwork.
Get the quote in writing before you agree anything, and check it names the stems and quantities, the container or wrapping, the delivery charge and postcode, any setup or hire fees, the substitution policy, whether VAT sits inside or on top, and what deposit secures the date [5] [6]. A deposit for wedding work is normal, while the full balance long before the date with no written terms is not. Treat an outlier far above or below the rest as a question rather than a bargain, and ask what is included or left out.
After delivery, check the flowers against the photograph or function sheet the same day, since fresh stems fade fast and late complaints are hard to judge. For weddings keep the function sheet, the quote and the final invoice together until every hire piece is collected and the deposit is returned. If something arrives plainly different from what you ordered and the shop will not put it right, Citizens Advice sets out your consumer options [5].
Telford and Wrekin adds its own wrinkles. Eight conservation areas cover parts of the borough, including Wellington town centre and the Severn Gorge, where extra controls touch trees, demolition and shopfronts [7]. The Gorge is a World Heritage Site and a living community in a steep-sided valley, so suppliers work around narrow lanes and tight parking [10]. Civil marriages take place at the Register Office in Wellington or at venues licensed by the council [8]. Funeral tributes usually go to Telford Crematorium on Woodhouse Lane, where chapel slots run to a tight timetable [9]. New-build closes in Lawley Village differ again, with managed parking and named-house deliveries that reward a precise address [11].
A typical job runs the same course whatever the occasion. First contact sets the triangle of occasion, date and delivery postcode, ideally with photographs of the venue or the style you picture. The florist replies with availability and either a shop price or a consultation date for weddings. The consultation ends with a written function sheet naming every arrangement, the delivery and setup times, and the balance date. On the day the team delivers, dresses the venue where agreed, and takes confirmation photographs. Sign-off means checking the work against the sheet before guests arrive.
The written quote is the document that prevents most disputes. It should name the stems and quantities, the container or wrapping, the delivery postcode and charge, setup and hire fees with collection times, the substitution policy, whether VAT sits inside or on top at the standard rate [6], and the deposit that secures the date. At the end, keep the quote, the function sheet, the final invoice and the delivery receipt together until hire pieces return and any deposit comes back. Where money changed hands without paperwork, Citizens Advice sets out the consumer position [5].
Pricing
As of autumn 2026, everyday flowers run roughly like this: Telford shops publish hand-tied bouquets from the mid-thirties to around one hundred and fifty pounds, one Market Drayton shop prices its everyday range from thirty-nine fifty to forty-nine fifty, and the national relay benchmark starts from twenty-five pounds [4]. Delivery usually sits on top at a few pounds a drop, with one Much Wenlock shop charging four ninety-nine to six ninety-nine by postcode and near ten pounds nationally. Occasion flowers price by the job: designs spanning flowers, funerals, plants and gifts run twelve to two hundred and sixty pounds at one shop, confetti starts from a couple of pounds a packet, faux runs thirty-six to one hundred and fifty pounds with wedding hire, and resin keepsakes run seventy pounds into four figures.
What moves the price most is the stem itself: rare, imported or out-of-season varieties cost more than British-grown seasonal flowers, and large-headed blooms such as peonies and garden roses sit above carnations and chrysanthemums. Scale comes next, since a bridal bouquet plus buttonholes plus an arch plus table centres multiplies flowers and labour, and on-the-day setup and collection add a further charge. Delivery distance, same-day urgency and wedding-season Saturdays push the total up, while subscriptions pull the per-stem cost down.
Ask whether VAT sits inside or on top of every figure, since the standard rate is twenty per cent and florists state their position inconsistently [6]. Get the scope in writing before you agree anything: the named stems and quantities, the delivery postcode and charge, setup and hire terms, the substitution policy, the deposit and when the balance falls due. Keep the quote, the function sheet and the final invoice together until the flowers arrive and any hire pieces are collected [5].
Wedding flowers price by scale and season. A bridal bouquet alone costs a fraction of bouquet plus buttonholes plus arch plus table centres, with on-the-day setup and collection adding labour on top. Summer Saturdays book out first, while pre-ordered breeder roses carry their own lead time through your designer. Fix the function sheet before asking what moves, since each line prices alone.
Funeral work prices by tribute size and timing: a coffin spray outweighs a posy, and a weekend chapel slot leaves less room for late changes. Preservation and faux follow different maths, with resin piece size setting the keepsake price and hire periods plus deposits setting wedding faux. Confirm chapel delivery or hire-stock return in the same written confirmation as the price.
Red flags
Takes a wedding booking with no consultation and no written function sheet naming each arrangement.
Quotes funeral flowers with no delivery time agreed with the chapel, crematorium or funeral director.
Shows no prices, no delivery charges and no VAT position anywhere before you order.
Promises specific imported stems months ahead with no substitution policy in writing.
Asks for the full wedding balance in cash long before the date with no written terms.
Claims membership of a floristry body you cannot find in that body's own directory [1] [2].
Delivers flowers plainly different from the photograph and offers no route to put it right [5].
Takes on wedding venue dressing with no venue visit, no setup time agreed and no named contact for the day.
Accepts a wedding deposit with no receipt or order confirmation showing what the money secures.