Becoming a florist: a colourful career option

Considering a career as a florist? Here’s what you need to know about the job and getting started working with flowers.

If you have an eye for colour, texture, and composition and you also happen to have a green thumb, perhaps becoming a florist is the right job for you. But what do you need to know before you enter the field?

Like most careers, working as a florist requires training. Research schools such as the Canadian Institute of Floral Design in Toronto or a course at your local college. Ideally, you’re looking for a program that offers solid theory about floral design with hands-on instruction.

Alternatively, you can consider horticultural programs, but these programs will take you beyond simply working with flowers—you may get to dig into other areas of horticulture such as crop maintenance, working with trees and soil, and more.

The schooling to become a florist can be a short-term, ranging from a few weeks to months, and often can be done in part-time evening courses. You'll learn about concepts key to the industry such as:

• Design forms and techniques in arranging flowers
• How to handle and care for flowers
• Special occasion flowers such as weddings, graduations and funerals
• How to wrap flowers and package
• Maintaining flowers
• Handling dried flowers and greenery

With a diploma to their name, graduates can go to take on any number of positions in the industry including entrepreneur, florist assistant, florist, florist designer, and more. The field is open—florists can open their own independent shop or website, work for florists at an existing store, or work within a larger retail store.

Florists’ salaries range depending on how much experience you have in the industry and even what city or town your employer is located. Pay may be hourly or salaried.

Not sure if this is a career that’s the best fit for you? Florists should:

• Enjoy being creative
• Have an eye for colour, contrast/coordination and composition
• Be comfortable working with people, including the public
• Have retailing skills like maintaining stock and inventory
• Know plants and flowers—all the “basics” and local choices, as well as some fancier, unique options