Ordering flowers for Valentine's Day? What to buy to save big

CHICAGO - With Valentine's Day about a week away, Chicago florists are bracing for a flurry of activity.

According to the National Retail Federation, Valentine's Day sales are expected to reach a record $14.2 billion this year, with approximately 40% of consumers planning on buying flowers.

In a FOX 32 money saver special report, local experts share their tips on how to save a few bucks when picking which buds to buy.

Welcome to Cupid's workshop or in this case, the design center for Ashland Addison Florist.

"Supply looks good. All of our product seems to be coming in on time," said Justin Sheffield, CEO of Ashland Addison Florist. "Demand, we’re expecting to be strong too."

Besides picking the perfect flowers to send on Valentine's Day, Sheffield also knows consumers are concerned about price.

"Prices seem to be pretty stable. We dealt with a lot of the inflation over the last couple years, but that seems to have leveled off, so we are trying to hold prices as best we can," Sheffield said.

A recent survey by Consumers’ Checkbook shows the price for a dozen long-stem roses can run anywhere from $15 to $90.

So you might be wondering what buds to buy that will still show some love and won’t wear out your wallet.

"Red roses is the single item that really drives a lot of the cost of a lot of the arrangements," Sheffield said.

Sheffield says you can save a few bucks by using a different color rose instead.

"It’s about 30% or 40% less than if you straight, all red dozen roses," Sheffield said.

If that doesn’t work for you, there are other options.

"Tulips are really good right now. Springtime is when tulips are in season. We have a great supply of those right now. That’s something a little bit different now than the traditional roses," Sheffield added.

"If you’re not tied to red roses, that really helps give us some more options and we have lots of other flowers that we can include," he added.

After tulips, Sheffield said the next best bet for your budget is sending a mixed arrangement. But what about carnations?

"Carnations are really love or hate. A lot of people think they are old-fashioned, cheap flowers but there are new varieties out there too that are more interesting," Sheffield said.

Another way to save a few bucks when buying Valentine's Day flowers is picking them up at the supermarket. Consumers’ Checkbook said that’s key to cutting the cost.

"They usually offer flowers for about 40% to 60% less than what independent flower shops sell them for," said Kevin Brasler, executive editor for Consumers’ Checkbook.

Brasler adds there are trade-offs if you go this route.

"You are likely to get better buds by going to an independent florist. They have higher buying standards. They are not buying truckload after truckload of flowers," Brasler said. "If you are sending flowers to someone out of state, Brasler shared this advice when shopping online.

"Know in advance, a lot of the pictures shown online are exaggerations of what you’re going to get," Brasler said.

That’s why he said it’s better to work with either a local floral shop in your city or one in the area where you are sending your flowers to.

"There are a lot of companies these days advertising on the internet that make it seem like they are a local florist shop and they’re not. "There are these middlemen who just take in orders and then try to find a florist in that area to fulfill them and what often times happens is there are delays," Brasler said.

The experts had one final on how to save on Valentine's Day flowers.

If you are having them delivered, consider having them arrive a day or two before the big day. You might wind up with a discount or another perk added to your order.