Tariffs hit flower industry: 'People can expect to pay a little more'

WARREN, Mich. (FOX 2) - Like many florists in Metro Detroit, Jody Costello gets her flowers from Kennicott — a wholesaler in Warren.

"I’m a third-generation florist so my great-grandmother was a florist in Detroit - both of my parents were florists," she said.

The backstory:

Hundreds of different flowers — the majority of them from outside the U.S. are now subject to tariffs.

"We get flowers from Ecuador, Columbia, Canada, Thailand, Holland," said Andy Arthur, of Kennicott Brothers. "There are so many variables right now. You never know. We were threatened with Canada and Mexico there for awhile. It was going to be 10 percent, it was going to be 25 percent.

"We are trying to work with our growers to find a balance - maybe they would eat part of it and maybe we would eat part of it," said Arthur. "But you still have to have the product so you gotta make it work on way or another."

Arthur said another hurdle is going to the trouble of figuring out new pricing - then the tariff goes away, sending you back to square one.

And with peak wedding season coming up, it creates another issue.

"I think we just have to keep communicating," said Judy Costello, J Costello Designs. "The wholesalers communicating with their florist, and the florist communicating with their couples and we’re just gonna have to ride this out."

In one form or another, the tariffs will likely be passed onto the consumer.

"We’re all in the same boat together, we’re not out to make a million dollars that’s not our goal," Arthur said. "The goal is to take care of the consumer and do what's best for everybody."

"I think with Mother’s Day right around the corner, people need to understand that your mom still wants flowers and we are gonna do our best 
to keep those prices where they need to be," Costello said. "But people can definitely expect to be paying a little bit more."