If you’ve ever attended an FQ event or scrolled through the photos from one of our quarterly sleepovers, chances are you’ve seen a bouquet from Floralcentric. Co-founded four years ago by Ainsley Henry with the help of her mother, Michele Coomey, Floralcentric is an Auckland-based floral design business specialising in beautiful blooms for weddings and events.
Though it’s hard for Henry to imagine doing anything else now, her entrance into the floral industry came about during a time of great uncertainty, when she was living in London and unsure which career path to take. After working for several top florists in London and getting multiple large-scale events under her belt, she was inspired to start her own business upon her move back to Aotearoa, and although it’s been a tumultuous few years — she hasn’t looked back once.
Below, we chat to Henry about all things flowers including the top floral trends we can expect to see in 2024, the process of designing a custom order, and her upcoming workshops with Brogan Scott Art.
In conversation with Ainsley Henry:
Tell us a bit about you, your background, and your career to-date:
I’m from New Zealand, I went to high school in Auckland and university in Wellington, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts. I then worked as a legal secretary for a few years to save enough money to travel through Europe before moving to London in 2018 where I began floristry. My mum and I started Floralcentric together four years ago but she has recently moved to focus on her own business, Michele Coomey Floral. I learned everything I needed to know about floristry from her and I wouldn’t have been able to start Floralcentric without her.
What inspired you to start your own floral studio?
Growing up I always helped mum here and there but funnily enough I never thought about doing it full time! When I moved to London I was a bit stuck on what I wanted to do in my career as I wanted to do something more creative. Mum suggested that I should reach out to florists over there; the following week I was working for some top florists and I had the opportunity to work on many large scale events and weddings. I basically got thrown in the deep end but it was the best way to learn. The work was very inspiring and a whole lot of fun. I moved back to New Zealand just before lockdown and half way through the lockdown mum and I decided to open up Floralcentric — which looking back seems like a crazy decision but I think it paid off.
What are some of the challenges you face in running a floral business, and how do you overcome them?
This would definitely come down to the wedding side of things as you are involved in the most important day of someone’s life, and there can be a lot of pressure! While we always try our hardest to source particular colours and varieties of flowers for a couple, this can prove tricky sometimes. Although this doesn’t happen often but sometimes on the week of the wedding we will be faced with not being able to source a particular flower as it may be in high demand that week so we rush around trying to find the closest alternative!
What trends are you currently seeing in the floral industry?
At the moment I think the bow is still having its moment! Being incorporated into arrangements or as a styling component. People are tending to do smaller bridal bouquets, all one variety of flower, which I personally love as I think a larger bouquet can take away from the beautiful dress. I usually try to stay away from particular trends as I like to bring our own style and personal touch into each wedding. I want each wedding to be unique and different.
Can you describe a typical day in the life of a floral studio owner?
Honestly it changes every day! But usually it starts off with the 5am flower market and a whole lot of coffee!! What I find that some people don’t realise is that when you are working on a wedding it’s not just work ‘the day of the wedding’. We are gathering and sourcing flowers all week from our local suppliers, prepping in the studio days leading up, or travelling away if the wedding is out of town — which a lot of the time they are. Then after the wedding comes the pack down and then we repeat this process weeks on end, all through summer. It’s never ending!
In what ways has your business and/or the industry evolved over time?
Over the past years Floralcentric has evolved to focus more on weddings and events. When we first started we had a small retail shop selling bouquets, ceramics and other little things but over the years I have learnt that my passion is the wedding and events side of things. I have recently moved into a studio on K’Road which I share with three other people in the wedding industry, Michele Coomey, Brogan Scott and Lizzie from Love James. We have opened this collaborative space which is open by appointment. I still have bouquets online which are open for pre-order and you can pick up or have these delivered.
Do you have any favourite projects/events/installations you’ve made that you can tell us about?
I can never get past the installations that I worked on when I was living in London. I worked for an amazing event and wedding florist called Grandirosa. They were always involved in big scale events that took place in private members clubs and luxury hotels. They like to go big over there so creating 22-foot Christmas trees and covering the whole facade of a building was a normal day at the office! You would never get that same scale in New Zealand so I will always be grateful I had the chance to work on those projects.
Who inspires you personally and professionally? Any accounts you recommend we should follow?
My mum! I learnt from the best. She has created such a successful wedding business working on the biggest New Zealand weddings, and hopefully Floralcentric reaches that scale one day. I also follow a lot of florists from around the world who I draw inspiration from. In particular, My Violet based in Sydney and This Humid House based in Singapore.
What’s next for you and for Floralcentric?
Opening this collaborative space with the girls is a focus at the moment, it’s so nice to be able to share it with other people in the industry and all work together. I’m also going to start doing some workshops throughout Winter, and some as a collaboration with Brogan Scott Art. You will get the chance to do a hands on floral arrangement with me and then a watercolour workshop with Brogan. It’s a fun afternoon!
Quickfire questions:
Best place for a cocktail in Auckland… Loving the cocktails at Madame George, a new local fave.
Last TV show I binged… Marcella. It’s an British detective show. Love those types of shows
The next place I want to visit… I’m about to head to Italy and Spain so I’m holding out for that trip.
My favourite flower/colour combination right now… Always a sucker for the pink and red colour combo.
Favourite local designers… Kowtow, Rachel Mills, Dominique Healy.
My guilty pleasure is… The almond croissants from Forte Greene.
My dream collaboration would be with… I would have always loved to do something at the Chelsea Flower Show in London!! Working with any of the amazing florists there.
Best place to dine near me… Pici and Otto have to be a fave, anything pasta related.
