Romania’s flower market to grow by 15% this year

Flowers are not only beautiful, they can also be profitable, according to KeysFin analysts, which estimate that that local flower market will increase by about 15% in 2020.

This market has increased significantly in the last five years: by 96% compared to 2014 and by 6% compared to 2017, reaching RON 330 million in 2018, the same analysis revealed, according to local Agerpres. This year, the flower market in expected to go up to RON 450 million.

“Floral businesses have gained momentum in recent years and we cannot help but notice that over 90% of the entrepreneurs in this sector are Romanian,” said Roxana Popescu, managing director KeysFin. “At the moment, this sector’s growth comes only from consumption, but surely it can come from production if there will be initiatives in this sense,” she added.

In 2018, the number of companies active in this field was 36% higher than in 2014, the qualitative analysis finding over 830 companies in the flower industry. However, only 387 of these companies registered profit, and 373 had losses in 2018. On the other hand, in the same year, the net result of the floral businesses evolved at a sustained pace, managing to switch from a loss of RON 12.5 million in 2014 to a profit of over RON 20 million in 2018.

The largest local companies active in this field, based on their turnover, are Comgaby Moln SRL (running the Magnolia flower shops), Flowers Market Holland SRL and Flor de los Andes SRL. All of them are owned by Romanian investors.

Bucharest ranks first based on the turnover of floral businesses headquartered here (RON 113 million, 34% of the total turnover), followed by Bistrita-Nasaud county (10% of the total) and Ilfov county (9% of the total).

There were approximately 1,600 active employees in the industry, at national level, in 2018, 36% more than in 2014. On the other hand, the average cost per employee increased almost twice as fast as the average productivity per employee, respectively 80% in 2018 versus 44% in 2014.

The e-commerce market has also been on an upward trend, according to KeysFin. There were about 150 online flower shops in Romania in 2019, and their busiest months are February, March and December. Local holidays such as March 1 or Dragobetele, but also international holidays, such as Valentine's Day or March 8, contribute significantly to the online flower merchants' revenues.

(Photo source: Pixabay.com)