Tariffs impact imported flowers ahead of Mother's Day
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — With tariffs, we often talk about car parts and electronics, but flower prices are also blooming.
President Trump put out a baseline 10-percent tariff on all imported goods. This includes Columbia and Ecuador, where the vast majority of fresh-cut flowers sold in the U.S. come from. This piles on top of import taxes already in place. Ecuador had a 6.8 percent tariff so importing their flowers today levies a 16.8 percent tariff.
The tariffs are not slowing down ahead of Mother's Day, according to Tom Parker. He is the owner of Churchland's Village Flower Shop.
Parker said things are picking up, mainly thanks to last-minute shoppers. He already had 200 orders for delivery as of Friday morning and expected hundreds more before the weekend ends.
When looking at flowers for mom, Parker recommends something vibrant.
'A vase of mixed flowers, pastel flowers,' he explained. 'Mom's like pinks and whites, bright colors.'
Parker says recent inflation also made the price tags grow. Through the years, the demand never wilted.
'People always want to give mom or the girlfriends or wives flowers,' he said. 'It's a good gesture. Gets you out of the doghouse.'
Many of Parker's flowers do in fact come from abroad.
'We get flowers from Canada, South America,' he said. 'We used to get them from California. Not so much anymore, but Canada has stepped up.'
Parker hopes tariffs against Canada do not step up since shipping flowers on land is cheaper than flying them in.
'There's a lot of variables when they come out of South America, you know, going through airports, they have to be probed and checked for illegal substances,' Parker said.
His advice to other florists — stay prepared, and focus on what you can control. Be it Mother's Day, Valentines or prom season, he said one thing is always certain.
'The true American man waits to the last minute anyway,' Parker said.
In 2024, the U.S. imported about $2.2 billion worth of cut flowers and greens, with most coming from South America.
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