5 - It's not just about flowers

Ital Florist president Eligio Paris talks about continuing success

The best gift Ital Florist got for its 25 years in business came from FTD (Florist Transworld Delivery), the organization grouping over 20,000 florists all over the world. "Here it is," says Eligio Paris, president of Ital Florist, proudly displaying the plaque from FTD. "In the year 2000 we were among the 100 biggest florists in North America. Based on our turnover, I can tell you that in 2001 we're currently in the 46th position."
Quite an accomplishment for Eligio Paris, whose company, always at the forefront of its industry, has received several other awards. According to FTD's yearly ranking, in fact, in 1998 Ital Florist was among the 1,000 biggest companies; in 1999 it ranked in the first 250 positions; and in 2000, as stated, among the first 100.
Another nice present for its 25 years came from Ital Florist itself: a deal was struck with one of the major Canadian banks, for its purchase of floral gifts. Additionally, the over 60,000-strong bank staff will receive special treatment by Ital Florist, being able to place their orders by computer. A sweet deal, considering that 12 other U.S. and Canadian companies had tendered their services in competition with Ital Florist.
Mr. Paris, however, does not intend to rest on his laurels ("Woe to those who stop," he says) and he looks forward to new challenges. This is especially true since the company, which he opened in 1976 with a partner, is nowadays wholly owned by his family: he bought his partner's shares in 1989 and distributed them among his children.
He's helped by his son Italo, who graduated in Economy and is the general manager of the company; his daughter Ester, who graduated in Languages and deals with marriages and other large events, and Ester's husband, Gaetano Mauro, who's purchasing manager. Eligio's other daughter, Evelyn, with a degree in Modern Letters, chose to become a teacher instead.
Despite being run by a family, this company avoids following the familial pattern, where fathers bring in their children in order to ensure them a future or to keep them under their control. Here, true professionals chose to follow in the footsteps of their father (or, in the case of Gaetano Mauro, of his father-in-law) because the business he founded is appealing.
This is shown by what Ester says: "Among all of us, of course, there is a deep affection; but my husband, my brother and I thought we would do something else. For instance, I wanted to devote myself to translation and literature. But when Eligio Paris, regardless of his being my father, proposed that we take an active role in Ital Florist, we accepted, because there is a big market to develop."
Which big market?
"Let me explain with an example. Ital Florist has been Toronto's biggest Italian florist company; the challenge today lies in making it the biggest florist company, regardless of ethnicity. This is the challenge we accepted when we replaced my father's original partner, and this is what we intend to achieve."
Eligio Paris is not a patriarch surveying his children and bossing them around; he's their first collaborator, and were it not for some silver in his hair he could be mistaken for one of their own age group, since he's still perfectly fit.
In this capacity of Ital Florist's first employee, Mr. Paris leads us in a visit to the company, which is not merely a florist's shop but a trade organization linked with the world via the Internet.
"We're technologically advanced," he explains. "That allows us to track the delivery of a bunch of flowers, regardless of its being bound for Toronto, for a small town in the Apennines, or someplace in Siberia. All our financial operations, from wholesale purchase to retail sales, are handled by a computer. It is rather complex, because since we are members of organizations such as FTD and Interflora, we are in contact with florists all over the world. As soon as we receive some flowers from a wholesaler we clean them and put them in refrigerated rooms. When orders come in, our six designers prepare the bunches for delivery, which is carried out in the GTA and neighbouring areas within the day by an efficient delivery service whose vehicles are in radio contact with us. As you can see, Ital Florist is no mom-and-pop store: 20 people work here."
Then he tells us about "his" emigration: Eligio Paris was born in Celano (L'Aquila), got an accountant's high school diploma, and at 23 decided to come to Canada "for a couple of years." He stayed. "At the time - it was 1964 - my education would have allowed me to find a job in Italy. But I thought that by spending a couple of years in Canada, I could improve my scholastic English, and achieve better results after returning. Instead..."
Instead, Mr. Paris?
"Instead, here I am. When I arrived I worked for six months in construction; then I kept the books of a beverage factory and a florist's shop on St. Clair. I even worked as an insurance agent for one year, before ending up as an accountant in the offices of Mio Brio, the company owned by Messrs. Madonia, Pirello, and Panacci; I remained there for almost 10 years, eventually becoming their comptroller. Fact is, I had immediately begun to get along quite well, so shortly thereafter I had Tonina, a classmate and first love of mine, come over from Avezzano, and we got married. By that time I had given up any idea of going back to Italy, then came the children, and in 1976 I opened Ital Florist. And here I am."
What is the secret of the success of Ital Florist?
Eligio Paris smiles, and one can see that his reply would be "stubbornness," but he doesn't like to boast, so he replies instead that "I believe that it is the way the Italian community received the new company, appreciating its innovations and commercial aggressiveness. For its part, Ital Florist followed the evolution of our community, from the first moments of difficult adaptation to success. It followed this evolution with flowers, symbols of beauty, love, and good taste. But our success is also due to our belonging to the major flower delivery organizations, which enables us to serve the world and especially Italy, thanks to a distribution network that was created over 20 years. In Italy, we can reach even the smallest towns, both with flower bunches and with gift preparations we create for Christmas and Easter..."
How many florist's shops are you connected with in Italy?
"With 1,500. We keep a card for each one of them, with their addresses, the orders fulfilled, and the list of neighbouring towns they can serve. We also use the Italian yellow pages to identify florists who are not included in our list."
What does this mean?
"That Canadian florists come to me whenever they need to send flowers to Italy. Even large organizations, when faced with difficult deliveries to Italy, come to Ital Florist. This is generating a return flow of orders from Italy that previously was not coming."
Where do you buy your flowers?
"Mostly from Canadian producers and wholesalers who import from the Netherlands, then from Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, and Mexico."
Nothing from Italy?
"Very little. The point is that Italian producers, committed to supplying the local and European markets, pay little attention to North America, especially because they can't compete with Dutch organizations and with Central and Southern American prices."
Which flowers sell most?
"Roses: they're always the queens. Then gerberas, lilies, and carnations."
What do Italian-Canadians prefer?
"Also in this case, roses. But recently Italian-Canadians are moving towards exotic flowers: orchids, strelitzias, anthuriums; and wild flowers, such as sunflowers, liatris, montecassinos. Of course, they avoid chrysanthemums, whereas Canadians routinely buy and give them as presents."
Did being Italian help you in your trade?
"Sure it did, because we Italians are fanciful and stubborn. I also think that I was helped by my notoriety within the Italian-Canadian community. I've been engaged in sports and social activities. In 1969 I was one of the founders of the Celano Canadian Club; I was a member of the board of the Italian Chamber of Commerce, and was very active in sports, first with the Celano team and the Toronto & District Soccer League, then with the Toronto Italia Cycling Club. With the latter I organized some memorable cycling events, bringing to Toronto great champions such as Bartali, Moser, Merckx."
Is there a moment you're particularly proud of?
"Two of them. The first was when Cèline Dion asked me to deliver a bouquet of red roses to Pavarotti, who was in Naples, after recording their famous duet. That bunch included a thank you card with some affectionate words of admiration that made me proud to be Italian."
What about the second?
"It was when FTD chair Bob Norton invited my son Italo to the Advisory Board of the association. That invitation meant that the small shop opened in 1976 on Albion Road, besides Sicilia Bakery, had blossomed, to use a flower metaphor. You have probably understood that to me Ital Florist is not just a business and the crowning of so much effort; it is also the tool for allowing everyone to express emotions. We do not deliver just flowers, we deliver feelings."

Publication Date: 2002-12-22
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=2181