JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — At the Jacksonville Flower Market, owner Shelly Hagan is anticipating a botanical business boom ahead of Valentine's Day, but some of her supplies are stuck at sea.
"It's to the point you don't know when your truck is coming, if you're truck's coming, what time your truck's coming," she told First Coast News.
She's tried to prepare for supply chain issues, ordering months in advance to make sure she has the inventory but even that has proved difficult.
"If you are getting it from another florist you got to them know, 'I can do the best I can do, but I don't have this particular heart, or this size or this shape. Can I substitute it?' A lot of that is going on which is disappointing to the customer," Hagan said.
Something that's disappointing to her: finding eager employees. She's hiring, but says it's been tough since the pandemic.
Getting resumes is few and far between.
"You might have 10 resumes and you might have 10 interviews and maybe two show up. It's a lot of work just to get people in the door just to get an interview," she said.
Hagan's received about 200 Valentine's Day pre-orders and predicts those who wait until the last minute may find themselves with limited options or worse, in hot water.
Her Beach Boulevard location is open seven days a week, including the weekend before the holiday for those procrastinators.