Ordering flowers over the internet may be the latest online shopping trend to catch on. Anindra Siqueira takes a look at House of Flowers and tells you whether you should order your next floral arrangement online
Ordering flowers is a personal experience. You may want to go through the trouble of personally picking long-stemmed roses or the whitest of lilies, but House of Flowers by Marry Me has some really beautiful floral arrangements that don’t require knit-picking on your part. The arrangements have been designed to go with specific events and moods, making your job easier.
What I liked about House of Flowers, besides the vibrant collections, is the website design, which is minimal and simple. It’s all about the flowers. And the descriptions of the arrangements are concise, so you know what you’re buying. The site design adds an open feel to browsing and shopping, an area in which many sites stumble.
The website is a nice destination, whether you need flowers as a gift, for an anniversary or just for your home. The arrangements start at `599 and go all the way up to `3,399. But they aren’t your standard bouquets that consist of flowers thrown together; in a way, they are extremely intricate pieces of art. Keeping that in mind, I would say that they offer extremely good value for money. Even the cheaper bouquets are creative and eye-catching — there’s one floral arrangement (Cotton Candy Land) that comes on a tiny, cute tricycle and would make a wonderful gift.
Delivery is free within Mumbai, but you’ll have to pay an additional `100 if you want the arrangements delivered to areas such as Navi Mumbai or Thane. Another nice feature is that the site gives the option of same day delivery if you order before noon. The checkout process is streamlined — always a plus! — and you can choose when to have your bouquet delivered and add a handwritten message card as well.
One of the most interesting aspects about House of Flowers is their floral subscription package, although it may not benefit everyone. The package allow you to schedule weekly or monthly deliveries, but sadly, there’s no yearly option for birthdays and other special occasions. They even send you a questionnaire so that they know what kind of floral arrangements you prefer, based on which they create a package for you.
However, the one area where the site falters is its selection, which is limited to say the least. They only have 27 arrangements, although most are suitable for more than a single occasion. For instance, the Oh! Darling — a bouquet containing red roses, pink alstroemeria, chrysanthemums and carnations — finds itself in practically all collections, from birthdays to romance. Still, the limited choice can be a bit of a downer and a larger catalogue would be welcomed.
The best thing about the site is that there’s no dearth of creativity when it comes to the floral arrangements. And I’m sure you’ll love the beauty in its simplicity.
Where www.houseofflowers.in
Contact 69998821, 9029021178, [email protected]