Su Whale Meets Sarah Richardson of Leafy Couture, Leeds

Leafy Couture in Leeds have been creating beautiful flowers, arrangements and installations since their establishment in 2006. Its founder, Sarah Richardson, has trained with some of the best floral designers and creatives in the UK and US and now, as a college-level tutor, teaches and mentors budding and professional florists alike.

She has styled photoshoots for luxury brands like Jo Malone, Joe Browns and Anthropologie, and is the recommended florist for some of the North’s most prestigious wedding and event venues. Leafy Couture’s flowers have been featured in leading national and international wedding blogs and publications, and on Christmas Day 2018, Sarah appeared on BBC2 to give a Christmas Wreath Workshop with national treasure, Mary Berry. 

Sarah and her team will be at the Harrogate Spring Flower Show (23^rd-26^th April) to create their showcase installation on the theme of ‘Let me entertain you’. 

What inspired you to become a florist? 

I was surrounded by creativity at home, both my parents were art teachers, so we were taken regularly to galleries and exhibitions. After leaving university, my first ‘proper’ job was in a bank, which, I discovered very quickly didn’t suit me at all! My boyfriend at the time bought me a huge bunch of flowers to celebrate my first day, and I had so much joy from simply gazing at them that it made me think that floristry might be for me. I enrolled at Shipley College and worked in a couple of shops, one modern, one traditional, before setting up on my own. 

You wear a lot of hats – how do you manage so many different aspects of your business? 

I have a brilliant team, and over the years I have honed what I like to do. I’m good at saying ‘no’ and not spreading myself or the business too thinly.  

What do you love the most about what you do? 

No two days are the same, and I love how flowers set the tone for an event, how nature  makes the space feel good for our clients and customers. 

You have successfully franchised the Leafy Couture brand, how does that work? 

Our franchising grew out of the Flower School where many of our students were people returning to floristry after a break, or who were taking it up as a second career. We train them in the style and practices of Leafy Couture and give them full support once they have set themselves up. They work out of studios as event and wedding florists, we currently cover a large area of Yorkshire and part of Lancashire as well. 

What advice would you give florists who want to work with brands and social media influencers? 

It can sound really exciting, but you need to know your worth and don’t over promise. Make sure you charge for what you do and don’t be afraid to say no if it’s not right for you. Promises of free publicity don’t always turn into sales! 

You have 32K followers on Instagram, how important is social media to you? 

Hugely, it’s my shop window, gallery and photo diary. I spend a lot of time on Instagram connecting with people all over the world. You have to put in the effort to get the results that you want.  

Do you use UK-grown flowers? 

We have a small cutting garden, where my parents grow Dahlia, Hydrangea and fillers such as Achillea and Verbena, we also have a brilliant network of local growers that we can call on to supplement our stock between April and October. 

What would you say is the biggest challenge facing floristry today? 

For me, its pricing. The cost of flowers has risen so much that you need to be very savvy when buying. I often have three wholesalers’ websites up at the same time, looking for the best value and keenest prices. 

What are your hopes for floristry going forward? 

I would love to see an environmentally friendly floral foam substitute that is cost effective. I would also love flowers to be affordable for all so they can be enjoyed by everyone at any time, not just for special occasions.  

And finally, what advice would you give to aspiring or current florists? 

Work out what elements of floristry inspire you the most, what makes you thrive, and work hard at that, you don’t have to be able to do everything, but you must love what you do.   

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Su Whale is a florist and freelance writer with over Thirty years' experience in the floristry industry. She is the author and publisher of three best-selling books: Cut Flowers, 4th edition (2020) Cut Foliage, 2nd Edition, (2021) and Houseplants (2019), all bookshelf essentials for the professional florist.