I am going to keep this very simple. I chose this florist because of the positive reviews and initially I felt that I made a wise choice. After the end result, I cannot rate them well.
I realize the rating is partially an emotional reaction, but the significance of their service and delivery really determined the entire level of satisfaction.
There are two moments in life that are absolute: Birth and death. A dear friend of mine passed away last week (hence the emotional element of the review). Being unable to attend her memorial service has caused me a fair amount of remorse. In the very least, I felt that I would at least send flowers - preferably ones that would bloom annually.
After finding Flowers From the Rainflorist on yelp, based on the proximity, reviews and pictures, I decided to call them. A gentleman by the name of "Tom" answered and he was extremely helpful. He helped me decide on what flowers to send and promised to that he had a particular pair of orchids in mind. The service was at 11:30, so Tom said he would plan for 10:30am to ensure they were on-time. I felt *immensely* relieved to know that I would be able to represent and pay my respects to my friend and her family.
I thought it would be alright... I thought wrong.
The next day, I received a call from the florist owner at 11:35 stating that the driver got stuck in traffic and that they were running late, with excuses about traffic on N. University or Commercial Blvd... Mind you, they were supposedly planning for 10:30, meaning had they left before 10:30 they still very likely should have been on time. Door to door the distance is 2.5 miles: a 6 minute drive (without traffic) a 15 minute bike ride, a 40 minute walk. If traffic were really a factor, they could have diverted to other directions and gone around the traffic.
I was stunned. I didn't even know what to say. I simply implored her to get them to the family. I called back 15 minutes later, they had missed the service... Now they were trying to locate the family through the priest..
The owner called me back 10 minutes later to tell me that they found the family and handed the flowers to my friend's mother as she was sitting and consulting with the priest, whom I am sure was clearly consoling the family. I can't imagine how that went or how incredibly awkward it was to interrupt the family to hand this grieving woman a flower arrangement, with my name on it, while she is in despair... I am entirely embarrassed.
Instead of being seamless, it was incredibly awkward... And, after an incredibly weak excuse, there was no sense of an attempt to make it right (if it even could have been), only a hollow attempt at an apology and an assurance that 'this has never happened before' (as if that makes it better)... I really wanted to cancel in that moment; however, the prospect of doing so was distressing considering the situation and my inability to pay my respects in person.
They totally screwed the pooch on this one.
If there are situations where timeliness is of the utmost importance, this is one of them. As I said; there is an emotional component to my review. Emotional, but entirely valid and rational.
For this reason, I will never use this florist again; nor would I ever suggest that anyone else use them if timing is a consideration. read more