When purchasing fresh-cut flowers, it is important not only to formulate the order correctly, but also to consider the timing of the order, the actual availability of the product, and the current stage of the purchasing process.

Flowers are not purchased from a single warehouse inventory. Part of the assortment can be confirmed in advance with growers, while another part is purchased from current offers on the open market. Therefore, a single order is built up over several days: first, we determine what the growers can provide, and then fill any remaining positions as the required products become available.

The timing of placing an order is an integral part of the procurement process itself. The sooner requirements are defined and priorities are set, the more opportunities there are to source the desired assortment, choose among offers, and adjust the order before the flowers leave the farms.

Purchasing and Order Placement Schedule

The purchasing schedule depends on the farms’ operating hours. Under normal circumstances, sales departments operate on weekdays, so most purchases are made Monday through Friday. During holiday periods, some farms also organize sales on weekends - in this case, purchases can be made on Saturdays and Sundays as well.

Delivery is arranged to the agreed-upon airport by a predetermined date. For scheduled purchases, it is recommended to place an order approximately one week before the expected date the flowers leave the farms. This is a guideline, not a mandatory minimum: the optimal timeframe depends on the destination, flight schedules, route, order volume, and delivery requirements. Our managers advise clients on the appropriate timing in advance.

If the desired positions are available on the market in the required quantities and the customer has sufficient funds on their account, very fast shipment is possible. For example:

• Friday: purchase of flowers from farms
• Friday evening: delivery of boxes to the cargo agent
• Saturday morning: departure
• Sunday afternoon: arrival in Amsterdam.

This is the shortest possible delivery time, provided that several conditions are met simultaneously: the product is available in the required quantity, the farms can deliver it to the transport agency on the same day, the flight schedule and place booking allow for this route. If there is little stock available, the order is big, or certain items are in short supply, expedited shipping is either impossible or only partially possible.

Delivery speed depends not only on logistics: first and foremost, the assortment must be physically sourced from the market. Therefore, procurement timelines and transportation timelines cannot be considered separately from one another.

How an Order Is Created and Adjusted

The customer places an order specifying varieties, lengths, and quantities. Requests are sent to the farms, and they report which items they can supply, in what quantities, lengths, and at what price. Confirmation is not always complete: one item may be confirmed in full, another partially, and a third may not meet the required specifications - in such case it is added to the ongoing search.

The process is as follows:

customer order → inquiries to farms → preliminary confirmations → search for missing items on the open market → final order fulfillment → delivery

Placing an order early allows us to begin working with farms before active procurement of available inventory begins. This is especially important for items with high demand, limited production, or non-standard specifications. Preliminary confirmation does not mean that the entire order is finalized: some positions may remain open until suitable goods become available on the market.

After preliminary confirmation, the order becomes a working tool that is adjusted based on market conditions. A customer who wishes to actively participate in the procurement process can:

• check the order status on the website
• place additional orders
• consult with managers about the market situation
• explore possible substitutes
• make decisions regarding unpurchased items
• relax restrictions on length, farms, or stop prices, if necessary.

Active customer participation is not a prerequisite for effective purchasing: if priorities, acceptable substitutions, and price limits are defined in advance, the Daoflowers team independently makes operational decisions within the specified parameters.

Not every open position is a problem. Shortages in certain positions may be strategic in nature. For example, a simple position may be deliberately left unfilled so that a shortage variety can be purchased later using that position. Procurement involves not only systematically filling all order positions but also managing priorities in the face of fluctuating prices and varying availability of varieties.

The Open Market and Daily Purchasing

Pre-orders and the open market are two parts of a single purchasing process, and each mechanism serves its own function:

Pre-order - planning for necessary and limited items, maximizing predictability.

Open Market - utilizing current availability and new offers from farms.

Daily Communication - timely order adjustments and informing the customer about new opportunities.

Farms provide daily updates on availability. The Daoflowers system matches these offers with current orders and uses the corresponding items to fulfill them; if a product is not needed for current orders, it is listed on the Daoflowers trading platform (accessible for authorized users).

In addition to responding to changes in items already ordered, Daoflowers monitors new offers daily - new varieties, interesting limited-edition items, and attractive prices - and notifies the customer about them, even if such a position was not specified in the order. It is precisely these notifications that often allow customers to supplement their orders with an interesting new product.

Daily offers are constantly changing, so their availability cannot be considered a fixed inventory: position may be purchased by another customer, a grower may adjust the quantity, or an offer may become unavailable during the day.

When the offers appear on our trading platform

• Kenya: approximately 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Kenya Time
• Ecuador and Colombia: approximately 7:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m. Ecuadorian/Colombian Time (i.e., about 5 hours later than Kenya).

This is a guideline rather than a fixed schedule: the timing depends on when the grower provides updated availability information. Throughout the day, the assortment, available volumes, and prices may change. It is more accurate to view the open market not as a one-time update, but as a dynamic flow of offers throughout the day.

Not the entire product range is available on the open market

The open market offers a wide range of products, but not all positions are available for immediate purchase. It all depends on production plans, the season, and volumes. Some positions may require additional time to prepare.

We recommend placing advance orders for the following:

• hydrangeas from Colombia
• some positions from Ethiopia
• exotic flowers from South Africa
• seasonal peonies from Chile
• most specialty dyed varieties.

The distinction between pre-orders and the open market is not absolute: for example, the Blue Mondial rose sometimes appears among daily offerings, but the regular availability of most non-standard dyed varieties on the open market cannot be guaranteed. If such a position is essential for an order, it should be included in a pre-order, which allows you to reserve the quantity in advance with the growers.

This example clearly illustrates the difference between a product’s availability today and the ability to plan its purchase for a specific date. The open market allows you to buy a position when it becomes available, but it does not guarantee that it will be available when the customer needs it.

The order sets the direction for procurement, but daily market monitoring and communication with the customer and farms allow us to complete the order based on actual availability and market conditions.