BLOOMEX LAUNCHES NEW FUNERAL PRODUCTS July 23, 2008

OTTAWA, July 2008 – Bloomex, the fastest growing online florist in Canada, has redesigned its funeral arrangement and products for a fresh new spin to depict the universal changing of opinions when it comes to selection of funeral products.

Bloomex Creative Design team has been studying 2008 trends in the market, and has released a fresh bold selection of funeral arrangements.

“The growing change in attitude towards funerals has given us new ideas of how we can design funeral arrangements that celebrate the life of someone departed, and as society changes, we are changing with them to meet their needs, “ says Jeff Godfrey, Marketing Manager for Bloomex. “The loss of a loved one is definitely tragic in that they are departed from our Earth, but they are not departed from our memories and hearts. More and more people are celebrating the life of a recently departed, and thus want colours, scents and flowers to portray joy, celebration and festivities of times shared with that special someone.”
The new arrangements come in a variety of intense colours, and mixtures of various traditional flowers, flattered with tasteful exotic flowers. We have taken the all-time favourites, such as roses and used softer brilliant colours such as pink, purple, coral, and yellow. We incorporated more striking colourful flowers such as delphiniums, lilies, gladiolus and asters, to mix and compliment the traditional carnations and roses, creating a magnificent masterpiece of fragrances illustrating the joy and commemoration of a special person that will be dearly missed and forever remembered.

Bloomex Management realizes that not all generations share this new concept of funerals arrangements, in which we have continued to offer our traditional funeral products. These collections are just as beautiful and elegant as the modern ones, however they concentrate on less vibrant colourful flowers, generally using red, white, soft hues of purple and yellow. The conventional flowers such as carnations and roses are still the popular favourites among the traditional funeral arrangements.

As well as initiating new vibrant colours to our new funeral products, we have also implemented unique inventive designs not offered in the past. Included in these new products and collections are casket sprays of vibrantly luscious Gerberas daisies, standing wreaths in both traditional colours, and festive exciting colours and flowers. Bloomex offers an array of modern, contemporary, and remarkable funeral arrangements that cater to your preferences and needs, and to top it off, we also provide customer orders.

ONLINE FLORIST TAKES COMPLAINTS SERIOUSLY July 21, 2008

OTTAWA, June, 2008 – Bloomex, the fastest growing online florist in Canada, has come together with Ellen Roseman of the Toronto Star. This encounter came about after several customer complaints were published on Ellen Roseman’s blog site, which had imprecision of Bloomex policies and procedures.

Mrs. Roseman, who describes herself as an advocator for consumer issues, positions herself on the side of the consumer to battle alongside annoyed, testy and disgruntled consumers in their dealings with big companies. Her blog site is just that, a place for discontented consumers to voice their experiences, and deter others from dealing with certain corporations.

The owner and President of Bloomex, Dimitri Lokhonia, met personally with Ellen Roseman to give clarification, and resolve some of the misapprehension of Bloomex policies. Mr. Lokhonia admits that there have been mistakes in the past, and in an effort to correct these issues, we implemented a new system that will allow customers to get answers to their questions almost immediately. “We could not possibly predict the enormous growth of Bloomex, especially in the past year”, says Dimitri Lokhonia. “We realized we needed a more interactive, customer centric system that is easily available, and understandable to our customers, which is why we created these two new systems”

Bloomex, a national Canadian online floral company, offering various floral and gift arrangements throughout Canada and the U.S. via its online computerized system. Since it’s inauguration in January 2006, Bloomex has grown to an exponential growth rate of 200%. The magnitude of its success was unpredictable, and in the light of this development, Bloomex Management implemented new systems to properly deal with the quantity of orders being placed, designed and shipped.

With the initial installation stages now complete, Bloomex was pleased to announce the implementation a state-of-the-art customer service system in order to keep pace with the company’s dynamic growth. This new approach to customer service will dramatically reduce hold times, eliminate the need for customers to repeat information after arriving at a live customer care representative and even allow customers to chat live with a service agent, resolving their issues faster and more conveniently. In addition to this ultra-modern customer service system that has received optimistic reviews, a new tracking system will work in conjunction and hold all our employees accountable. Bloomex anticipates this new tracking system will improve overall customer satisfaction.

”Our customers are always our #1 priority and we continuously strive to provide the very best products and services”, says Angela Malik, Customer Service Manager of Bloomex. “ We are confident that our two new systems will alleviate some of the issues that have faced us in the past.”

After the initial meeting with Ellen Roseman, Dimitri Lokhonia placed Michelle Robitaille, the Public Relations Manager at Bloomex and Ellen Roseman in contact to assess some of the past complaints, and give Bloomex an opportunity to correct situations where they made mistakes. Michelle Robitaille has reviewed each complaint seriously, extracting all order details from the Bloomex system to determine accountability and try to rectify them. This has initiated customer refunds, credits, discounts and re-sending of products where Bloomex has taken the initiative to regain customers that have had unsatisfactory dealing with Bloomex, as well as ensuring these concerns do not arise in the future.

“Our goal is to address the issues of past Bloomex clients, and offer them reasonable compensation where we made mistakes. Due to the nature of our business, and human error, we do make mistakes, but we always try to resolve these as quickly as possible to maintain customer satisfaction.” Says Michelle Robitaille. “We have made several changes to our website so that our policies and guarantees are easily visible in numerous locations across our website, eliminating unjust expectations. Bloomex’s business model continually permits them to provide the freshest flowers possible at the lowest price.”

Interview with Bloomex Wedding Flower Consultant Michelle Brazeau July 15, 2008

By Alyssa Julie

Designing the perfect wedding at a low cost is a lot easier than most people believe. That’s thanks to companies such as Bloomex, which sells beautiful flowers at extremely low-costs. The company has an expert team of florists that can design the perfect arrangements for your weddings, or they can sell you a selection of beautiful flowers at a wholesale price that won’t break your budget. That’s a great option for young and crafty couples that want a beautiful wedding, but don’t have as much money to spend.

Although the company has been around for 10 years, the wholesale division of the company is relatively new (only within the last year or so). Taking up the reigns is Michelle Brazeau, young-women with a background in forestry and a passion for plants of all kinds. She jumped headfirst into her career with the company and has been rising quickly through the ranks ever since. She is now the wedding and wholesale’s consultant for Canada’s largest online flower company.

Bloomex, she explains, is able to offer bulk flowers at such affordable prices because they deal directly with the growers. There is no middle- man to speak of. That means the flowers they sell are beautiful and fresh and since they are grown in Canada, they don’t take too long to reach the customer.

So whether you want to create your own beautiful arrangements, or whether you want someone to do that for you, Michelle is their to help brides and grooms-to-be understand what flowers there are available and what flowers make great matches. That’s something that can often be very surprising she says, adding, “ I was never a big fan of Carnations, but after seeing the beautiful ways they can be arranged, I’ve definitely become a fan of Carnations.” The company, she says, can also provide a striking, expertly arranged bouquet at an extremely low cost that will look beautiful with any DIY or professionally designed flower arrangements.

The one piece of advice she says needs to be emphasized, is that whether you’re interested in DIY or not, couples should take time to plan flower arrangements well in advance of the big day. Most couples, she says, change their minds a few times before coming up with the perfect arrangements, simply because there is so much to choose from. Just think; couples can choose anything from striking and colorful Hydrangeas, to Carnations or Tulips, to the timeless and elegant Calla Lily.

That said, although most brides change their mind quite a bit before the big day, there are definitely some noticeable trends. For one, brides often choose colors that will match their bridesmaid dresses. Many brides are also choosing flowers in cream colors and shades of pink, such as Fuchsia. “Really anything that’s feminine,” Brazeau explains. Matching the color of your flowers and bouquet to your bridesmaids’ dresses makes sense, because it ties all the colors together so they aren’t overwhelming.

At the end of the day, Michelle says she really loves her job and sees herself working there for some time to come. Not only does she love working with flowers; but also It’s such an important day for all of her customers and it’s a great feeling to be involved in something so monumental to their lives.

WAYS TO REDUCE STRESS IN THE WORKPLACE July 9, 2008

Did you know that a Statistics Canada survey found that:

1) More than one-third of working Canadians cited too many demands or hours as the most common source of workplace stress,

2) Fifteen percent cited poor interpersonal relations,

3) 13 percent cited risk of accident and injury,

4) Depression is expected to rank second only to heart disease as the leading cause of disability worldwide by 2020,

5) Depression affects one-tenth of the population, including one-tenth of all employees,

6) Depressive disorders account for 30 to 40 percent of all medical plan dollars paid for mental illness.

Employees under stress can show a wide range of symptoms; from irritability, poor concentration and decision-making, to fatigue, heart disease, digestive problems, and high blood pressure or back pain. Stress can compromise the immune system, making a person more prone to infections and communicable illnesses, and can trigger depression. Working Canadians feel most stressed by jobs that keep them at work too long or make too many demands on their time. Sources of stress also varied between men and women, men were less likely than women to feel stress as a result of too many hours or demands.

Only 1 in every 3 people suffering from depression obtains proper treatment. For those who do, the success rate is very high, 80-90%. Many times, the onset of depression can be reduced if not eliminated by incorporating natural therapies such as flowers.

Multiple studies show that a flower-filled environments helps people relax, raises pain tolerance for people with chronic disorders, and triggers uplifting emotions like happiness. Flowers are also able to enhance good feelings such as life satisfaction and also affect how people behave in a social situation. One of these studies, published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology, found that regular exposure to natural environments such as gardens helps people recover from the ill effects of stress more quickly.

Research from Kansas State University’s Department of Horticulture finds that colorful flowers work more effectively than green foliage alone to reduce tension. “Flowers are symbolically and emotionally integrated with human life,” says Eunhee Kim, the research assistant professor at Kansas State who led the studies.

A natural and beneficial mood stimulator, flowers are said to:

1) Immediately alter moods to create happiness and pleasure.

2) Tingle the senses with their natural exotic fragrances

3) People who receive flowers are more likely to be less anxious, depressed and restless. They experience enjoyment and are more fulfilled with their lives than those who have not received flowers.

4) Create personal bonds with others, flowers make people feel loved and cherished, resulting in heightened sociability and happiness

5) Brighten up spaces and create a sharing ambience. People are likely to place their flowers in areas where everyone can see and enjoy them, creating a less anxious environment, adding to communication amongst co-workers, and overall happy attitudes. Even the grumpiest of persons couldn’t resist the natural beauty of flowers and their intoxicating scents.

With such a compelling argument, there’s no reason why we should let stress get the better of us. Take the time to send a loved one flowers at work, not only will it make them happy and excited, but it will make you feel good to know that you have taken 1 step in reducing the stress of a special someone by improving their mood, productivity and health, which in return will lower your stress levels resulting in that “feel good” feeling. See the difference the power of flowers can make!

By: Michelle Robitaille

Bloomex

What Is Your Birthday Flower? July 3, 2008

JANUARY- The Carnation

Carnation flowers are a common flower used for ceremonial events and symbolism. According to Christian legend, carnations first appeared on Earth as Jesus carried the Cross. The Virgin Mary shed tears at Jesus’ plight, and carnations sprang up from where her tears fell. Thus the pink carnation became the symbol of a mother’s undying love, and in 1907 was chosen by Ann Jarvis as the emblem of Mother’s Day, now observed in the United States and Canada on the second Sunday in May. Coming mainly in shades of white, red and pink, the carnation was once used as a ceremonial crown in certain events of Ancient Greek Society.  The carnation is a long time favourite for cutting and adding to certain home floral arrangements and bouquets.

 

 

FEBRUARY- The Iris

Iris express peace of mind, Friendship, Faith, Hope, and Wisdom.

Iris is a genus of flowering plants with showy flowers that takes its name from the Latin word for rainbow. There are many species of Iris, widely distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone. Their habitats are very varied and range from cold regions into the grassy slopes, meadowlands, stream banks and deserts of Europe, the Middle East and northern Africa, Asia and across North America. Elevation is of not much importance.

 

 

MARCH- The Daffodil

Daffodils, the flower symbolizing friendship, are one of the most popular flowers exclusively due to their unmatched beauty.  Daffodils belong to the genus Narcissus.  Daffodil flowers have a trumpet-shaped structure set against a star-shaped background

Often the trumpet is in a contrasting colour from the background. The name Daffodils includes the cluster-flowered yellow Jonquils and the White Narcissi.

Daffodils are native mainly to the Mediterranean region, in particular to the Iberian Peninsula, as well as Northern Africa and the Middle East.

 

 

APRIL- The Daisy

The Daisy is the flower bringer of good fortune and blissful pleasure.

It is thought that the name “daisy” is a corruption of “day’s eye”, because the whole head closes at night and opens in the morning.

The most common characteristic of all these plants, is that what in common dialect might be called a “flower”, is an inflorescence or flower head; a densely packed cluster of many small, individual flowers, usually called florets (meaning “small flowers”).  Often considered a weed on lawns, though many also value the appearance of the flowers. Several cultivars and hybrids have been selected with much larger flower heads up to 5-6 cm diameter and with light pink to purple-red ray florets.

 

 

MAY-Lily of the Valley

Lily can mean many things including purity, majesty, beauty, sweetness and humility. The stems grow to 15-30 cm tall, with one or two leaves (10-25 cm long), flowering stems have two leaves and 5-15 flowers on the stem apex. The flowers are white, bell-shaped, and sweetly scented; flowering is in late spring, in mild winters in early March.  The flower is also known as Our Lady’s tears since, according to Christian legend, the tears Mary shed at the cross turned to Lilies of the Valley. Traditionally, Lily of the Valley is sold in the streets of France on May 1. Lily of the Valley became the national flower of Finland in 1967.

 

JUNE- The Rose

Roses are ancient symbols of love and beauty. The rose was sacred to a number of goddesses (including Isis and Aphrodite), and is often used as a symbol of the Virgin Mary. ‘Rose’ means pink or red in a variety of languages (such as Romance languages, Greek, and Polish).  The rose is the national flower of England and the United States.  Attar of rose is the steam-extracted essential oil from rose flowers that has been used in perfumes for centuries. Rose water, made from the rose oil, is widely used in Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine. Rose hips are sometimes made into jam, jelly and marmalade or brewed for tea, mainly for their vitamin C content. They are also pressed and filtered to make rose hip syrup. Rose hips are also used to produce oil used in skin products.

 

 

JULY- The Larkspur

Larkspurs have laughter and relaxation energy, much like people born in July.  The flower has five petals that grow together to form a hollow flower with a spur at the end, which gives the plant its name. The seeds are small and shiny black.  The plant was connected to Saint Odile and in popular medicine used against eye-diseases. It was one of the herbs used on the feast of St. John and us such warded against lightning. In Transylvania, it was used to keep witches from the stables, probably because of its blue colour.

 

 

AUGUST- The Gladiolus

The flower of the Gladiators. Strength of character, sincerity, generosity, are traits symbolized in the Gladiolus.

The genus Gladiolus comprises 260 species, 250 of which are native to sub-Saharan Africa, mostly South Africa. About 10 species are native to Eurasia. The impressive flower spikes of Gladioli come in a wide array of beautiful colours.  Gladiolus flowers open beginning at the base of the spike and continue upward.  The Gladiolus flower signifies remembrance. It also expresses infatuation, telling the receiver that he or she “pierces the heart”.

 

 

SEPTEMBER- The Aster

The word Aster is of Greek derivation and refers to the Star like flowers that can be white, red, pink, purple, lavender and blue, mostly with yellow centres.  Asters are actually 1 – 1.5 – inch flowers. An Aster flower is actually a collection of very tiny tubular flowers, grouped together in a central disk, and surrounded by so-called ray flowers or petals, e.g., Sunflower. There are over 600 species of asters, the most popular being the Monte Casino. Ancient societies believed that the odour of its leaves, when burnt, drove away evil.

 

OCTOBER- The Marigold

Sacred affection is shown with the marigold.

A myth describing which seems to be creation of the marigold is mentioned in the story of Clytie and Apollo.  The marigolds, genus Calendula L., are a genus of about 20 species of annual or perennial herbaceous plants in the daisy family, native to Mexico and Central America, the Mediterranean region and Macaronesia.

The leaves of this plant are 5-18 cm long, simple, and usually roughly hairy. The flower heads range from pale yellow to deep orange, and are 3-7 cm across, with both ray florets and disc florets. The petals of the Pot Marigold are spicy and are edible, added to dishes as a garnish.

 

 

NOVEMBER- The Chrysanthemums

Chrysanthemums were cultivated in China as a flowering herb as far back as the 15th century BC. The flower was introduced into Japan probably in the 8th century AD, and the Emperor adopted the flower as his official seal. There is a “Festival of Happiness” in Japan that celebrates the flower.

 Yellow or white chrysanthemum flowers are boiled to make a sweet drink in some parts of Asia. Chrysanthemum tea has many medicinal uses, including an aid in recovery from influenza.  Chrysanthemum plants have been shown to reduce indoor air pollution by the NASA Clean Air Study. 

 

DECEMBER- The Poinsettia

The December birth flower is the Poinsettia, which equals celebration, success, reassurance, and good cheer

A Mexican legend explains how poinsettias came to be associated with Christmas. Apparently, a child who could not afford a gift to offer to Christ on Christmas Eve picked some weeds from the side of a road. The child was told that a humble gift, if given in love, would be acceptable in God’s eyes. When brought into the church, the weeds bloomed into red and green flowers and the congregation felt they had witnessed a Christmas miracle.