Royer’s Stems Hunger will return June 21-29 to collect non-perishable food items for the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and the Greater Berks Food Bank.
Customers are asked to bring food items to any Royer’s Flowers & Gifts store and place them in a collection barrel. For each food item, they will receive a free carnation, up to a maximum of six carnations per family per visit.
In its first two years, Royer’s Stems Hunger has collected nearly 2,500 pounds of food for the two food banks.
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May is for mothers
M is for the many (so many) floral arrangements that we’re busy making for Mother’s Day.
Royer’s team members will handcraft nearly 14,000 arrangements May 1-7 (off May 5) in our central design department at 810 S. 12th St., Lebanon. You can get a glimpse of the activity in the slideshow below.
Design conference inspires new wedding ideas
We have some exciting news to share with you about our wedding plans.
Not a specific wedding, mind you, but rather the new wedding styles and flowers that we’re working to offer brides and grooms.
If you’ve followed this blog, you know about the extra effort – namely, regular trips to South America – we make to ensure the highest-quality flowers for our customers.
Similarly, earlier this year we sent several Royer’s representatives to a wedding design conference offered by floral wholesaler Florabundance Inc. The event, called “Inspirational Design Days,” took place on Dos Pueblos Ranch, overlooking the Pacific Ocean near Santa Barbara, Calif.
Cheryl Brill, Royer’s vice president of retail operations, was joined on the trip by Holly Newpower and Jennifer Stout, Royer’s store managers at Camp Hill and Shillington, respectively.
The experience gave them an opportunity to work with beautiful product that they typically don’t handle, Cheryl said, and to design in a natural, unconstructed way without concern for budgets, costs or recipes.
The participants designed wedding bouquets; beachside ceremony decorations; and a 30-foot-long centerpiece comprising mossy birch branches, strands of ivy gathered in the adjoining woods, and small vintage vases filled with groupings of garden roses, tulips, cut hyacinths, clematis, accented with candelabra and votive candles.
It was akin to a spa day for florists – or what Cheryl called a “guiltless playground.”
As a next step, we’re training our wedding consultants on the flowers and styles exhibited at the Florabundance seminar. We’re also redesigning the wedding content on royers.com.
Our intent is to provide more options for our wedding-planning customers.
“We must serve our more traditional customers as we always have,” Cheryl said, “while still keeping abreast of the newest trends in the industry. Inspirational Design Days was a great opportunity to do just that.”
Royer’s teams with WSOX to honor 20 administrative professionals
Royer’s stores opened a half-hour early on Administrative Professionals Day, making it easier for customers to pick up flowers on their way to work.
Meanwhile, listeners of greatest hits radio station WSOX (96.1 FM) had a chance to nominate a co-worker to receive a free floral bouquet compliments of Royer’s. WSOX’s yellow van delivered the bouquets to 20 surprised and delighted administrative professionals in Lancaster and York counties.
You can hear some of the reactions by listening to these clips:
Clip #1
Clip #2
We’ll handle your long-distance Mother’s Day order
Flowers are a time-honored way of letting mom know just how much you love her. But sending flowers long distance can be confusing and sometimes disappointing, especially if you are not familiar with the process and some of the pitfalls.
The Internet has given rise to thousands of flower-delivery options. But how do you know you’re really getting a good price and high-quality service? And will the flowers arrive on time?
That great price might not be so great
Many websites touting great prices show you a gorgeous arrangement – only to deliver a bunch of flowers in a box that mom still has to put in a vase. In many cases, what is delivered is similar to what you’ll find in a grocery store or at a street vendor. It might be a nice bouquet but not arranged in a container; often, the container costs extra.
After adding extra charges such as service and delivery fees, the great price that first got your attention might not be any better than what a local florist would charge.
Beware of unscrupulous companies
Perhaps you know of a florist where mom lives. But be careful if you use a search engine to find contact information for that florist. Many unscrupulous companies make themselves appear to be local florists – maybe the one that you’re familiar with – by using a similar name or even a local phone number (that ultimately rings to another state).
These companies tend to charge high service and delivery fees, only to hand off the delivery to someone else. They charge you fees that they didn’t earn, and you don’t get what you paid for.
Call early – and call Royer’s
You can avoid these hassles and ensure the best results by placing your order early – and by calling us when you do.
We’re proud to be your local florist, but we also are one of the largest senders of long-distance orders in the country. Other florists want to keep us happy because they want to continue receiving our business. We also foster our relationships with them through our regular participation in national florist meetings.
In short, we can resolve the rare problem when it occurs. What’s more, we have strong ties to FTD and Teleflora, the two largest wire services that florists use to transmit their orders, and they will step in if necessary to make sure that problems are addressed to our customers’ satisfaction.
Sending flowers long distance can be confusing, but it doesn’t have to be. Just call us, and we’ll make the process easy. We’ll handle your out-of-town order with the same care and attention it would receive if we were delivering it ourselves.
Royer’s acquires business operations of Lebanon Valley Flowers and Gifts
Effective today, Royer’s has acquired the business operations of Lebanon Valley Flowers and Gifts.
Lebanon Valley Flowers’ store at 1140 State Route 72 North has closed and its customer list, standing orders and phone line will transfer to Royer’s flagship store at 810 S. 12th St., Lebanon.
Lebanon Valley Flowers’ stand at Lebanon Farmers Market will remain open but will focus on giftware.
Lebanon Valley Flowers’ owners, Peggy and Steve Progin, approached Royer’s shortly after Valentine’s Day to express their interest in selling, said Greg Royer, president and CEO of Royer’s.
“Peggy and Steve and their team have worked hard to build a loyal customer base,” Greg Royer said. “We are grateful that the Progins looked to Royer’s when they decided to sell.”
Royer’s is sending a letter to Lebanon Valley Flowers customers to welcome them into the Royer’s family. Recipients can take the letter to any Royer’s store to receive a free rose.
Royer’s celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2012. Andrew Royer, manager of Royer’s in Lebanon, represents the fourth generation to work in the family business, which his great-grandmother Hannah Royer started.
“We’re eager to meet the Lebanon Valley Flowers customers and welcome them to our store,” Andrew Royer said. “This is a busy season with proms, Mother’s Day, graduations, weddings. We’re here to provide excellent customer service no matter what the need is.”
Royer’s Lebanon store is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Thursday; 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday; and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. The store can be reached at 273-2683.
Prom time players
Spring is in the air, and prom season is upon us.
Barry Spengler of Royer’s joined Fox 43’s Morning News to talk about the latest floral trends for proms, from keepsake bracelets and floral rings to wrist cuffs and arm corsages. And for the guys, there are boutonnieres that attach with a magnet.
You can view Barry’s visit with Ashley Palutis below.
Meanwhile, Royer’s in Camp Hill is holding a “prom party” from 4 to 7 p.m. April 16-17. It’s an opportunity to see the latest design trends, colors and flowers, and to receive a 15 percent discount on corsage and boutonniere orders. Refreshments will be served.
‘Wow!’ factor: bridal event honors Royer’s
The Premier Bridal Event 2013 took place on Jan. 20, but Royer’s brought the warmth and colors of summer to the Eden Resort in Lancaster.
In fact, Royer’s display – decorated for a summer wedding – recently garnered a “Wow! Award” from the event’s sponsor, Weddings Year Round Bridal Magazine.
For the display, which occupied most of the ballroom, we decorated a gazebo, archway, altar, centerpieces, cake. Royer’s worked closely with Eagle Rental of Stevens, Pa., which provided the hardscapes that we decorated.
Meanwhile, Royer’s also brought home a Public Choice Award from the bridal show. Our Valentine’s Day-themed centerpiece took first place in the Lancaster/Lebanon/Berks Division.
Below, you’ll find pictures of our Valentine’s Day centerpiece, of our wedding display, and of Cheryl Brill, Royer’s vice president of retail operations, with our awards.
For more information about how Royer’s can help make your wedding day truly memorable with flowers that complement your décor, click here.
Here’s how to extend the life of your Easter blooms
Even after the Easter Bunny has visited and the last eggs are hunted, Easter plants will bring beauty and color into your home. In fact, you can make the flowers last a lot longer by following some easy steps.
What’s more, after your bulb plants – such as daffodils, hyacinths, tulips, crocus and narcissus – have finished blooming, you can transplant the bulbs into the ground and watch the flowers come up next year.
The key to making the flowers/blooms last longer – perhaps twice as long – is to keep the plants in a cool place, such as at night. This will stall the normal aging process, extending the life of the blooms.
While you’re sleeping, place the plants in your garage or out on your porch (but don’t let them freeze), and then bring them back inside your house in the morning. For smaller plants, such as a single-bloom hyacinth, you might even have room in your refrigerator.
Of course, it’s also important to keep the plants watered.
Once the blooms peak, let the plant die back into itself, nourishing the bulb. Keep the bulb in its pot and store in a cool, dark place. In early fall, separate the bulbs and plant them in your garden in anticipation of their blooming again next spring.
Getting hip to the hop: Cable-11 visits corporate complex for Easter
Leave the hiding to the Easter Bunny. We love showing off all of the Easter activity taking place this month at Royer’s.
Visiting our corporate complex in Lebanon today was Blue Ridge Cable 11 News of Ephrata, specifically reporter Peter Taraborelli and photographer John Hershey. They spoke about hyacinths, lilies, hydrangea and other flowers and plants of the season with Barry Spengler, Royer’s vice president of operations.