In the heart of the Amsterdam-Zuid neighbourhood, the flower specialty shop TEUNIS VEENEMA bloem|sier|kunst is a gem. The beautiful local shop is certainly not your ordinary florist. Veenema's customers insist on top quality and good advice. When purchasing flowers and plants, Veenema looks exclusively for the best. "I always buy Phalaenopsis from Opti-flor, that is a guarantee of top quality."
Veenema, who prefers being addressed by his first name Teunis, tries to encourage visitors to his shop to come up with new ideas and has inconspicuously become a source of inspiration for his customer base. For example, the Amsterdam florist has just introduced his own creation, prepared flowers in water.
Questions about interior design
"When I visit my customers during my weekly round, they sometimes ask me for advice about interior design. If you are creative with colour and form, as I am, people expect you to have ideas about what colour would look best on that particular wall." Teunis visits some of his customers weekly to drop off the flower arrangement from their subscription service. "Many people have little time, but still want their home to look perfectly styled. Each week I bring along a new seasonal bouquet in a loaned vase. Then they have nothing to worry about."
Very long flowering period
"I notice that consumers have recently started looking again for plants to put in their home." Teunis has correspondingly increased the plant assortment in his flower shop. Several lovely Phalaenopsis arrangements stand out among them. "It is interesting that people expect the plants to flower for a long time." He feels that the Opti-flor collection meets the high expectations he and his customers have. "When I sell orchids from Opti-flor, I always mention that they flower for at least two months. I know from experience that they can flower for longer in practice. When people are so delighted to tell me that the plant flowered for four months, isn't it just great?"
Large or small
Teunis buys his orchids from the wholesaler. "Once a week I drive up to Aalsmeer." The Amsterdam florist is sometimes inspired there while walking past the Phalaenopsis trolleys with the Opti-flor collection. "Then I see a totally unfamiliar variety, and take a few back with me." Teunis has decided only to carry the large varieties, like Grandi-flora, and the small ones, like Artisto or Liberto. "The intermediate sizes are on sale everywhere in large quantities. My selection makes me more distinctive." Teunis also tries to include different colours than his competitors. "In the Opti-flor collection, I am particularly fond of dusky pink and lime green."
Stunning collection
Teunis is full of praise about the Opti-flor collection. "Opti-flor really stands out in my mind, they are up on a pedestal. Their plants are striking among the wide range of Phalaenopsis on sale. The flowers are lovely and large, and buds almost never drop off. It's not just the stunning Opti-flor assortment, there is also the way the products are presented at the wholesaler's that radiates an impression of quality. I can honestly say that I can buy the orchids from Opti-flor without even examining them. They have built up that level of trust."
