Forward Flowers | a Beautiful Way Your Event Can Give More…

We love supporting purpose-driven businesses that are created by passionate people trying to make a difference in our world… So, when we heard about Forward Flowers – a gorgeous new initiative started by event producer, Penny Stanbury – we were desperate to share the details with you too.

Forward Flowers is about two things… making events more sustainable and caring for those in our community that could use a little cheering up. Join us as we learn more about this beautiful new business for the events industry…

Describe Forward Flowers?

Forward Flowers will collect the flowers from your event or wedding and donate them to local community centres. Nice.

How did the business come about? What need is it addressing?

It came about after organising my own wedding last year and attending lots of friend’s weddings.

I noticed that as a bride / event planner you put in so much effort and care into organising the big day, but not a lot of thought is given to the day after.

At our wedding, we decided last minute to collect all our event flowers the day after and give them to the local aged care facility… the response was amazing! The donation was so appreciated by the centre and it gave my new husband and I such a wonderful feeling knowing that all those beautiful blooms would not go to waste.

Flowers have such a short lifespan and often end up in the bin after an event, which I was shocked at. I initially created Forward Flowers to reduce the environmental impact of events and weddings, but then quickly discovered that the positive community impact that these flowers can also have is amazing. It’s a win, win.

How does it work? [The practicalities]

Each wedding and event is unique, but for a typical event… we will come and collect the flowers at the end of the night and then the following day we will sort all the flowers into suitable bedside arrangements. These arrangements are then delivered to local community centres.

Who can use Forward Flowers? / What type of events is it relevant for?

Anyone can, of course, use Forward Flowers, we love working with all size events from beautiful intimate garden weddings all the way up to large corporate events.

How much does it cost to use?

Prices range based on event size with a starting fee from $250 for a Sydney event. This covers collection, rearranging and delivery of table top decorations. Larger items like floral walls and large installations are quoted up additionally.

We also have lots of personal touches that people can add to their Forward Flowers service, such as – swing tags that can be attached to the new arrangements with a note to the receiver about the origin of the flowers and who the giver is.

We are also really excited about creating a series of workshops, where Forward Flowers will come to the centres and hold a workshop on arranging the flowers.

There are so many great ways that people can connect through these flowers. It’s very exciting.

What type of response/ feedback are you getting from event planners?

There has been such an overwhelmingly positive response from lots of event planners. I am finding (as an event producer myself) that brands are becoming very aware of their social impact and by using services like, Forward Flowers, it can help a brand be a lot more environmentally responsible.

For all events, we can offer beautiful table top signs where brands / couples can display that their flowers will not go to waste and will be given back to the community at the end of the event – it’s the small touches like this that really make an event special and memorable.

Where are the flowers being delivered?

Flowers will be delivered to a range of different locations. We aim to deliver to places that don’t have services like this regularly. We deliver to aged care facilities, mental health facilities, women’s shelters, drug and rehab facilities.

Flowers are for everyone, and everyone should be able to benefit from the generosity of our event clients.

What impact can flowers have on the well-being of people?

The impact of a bunch of flowers is incredible. Research shows that receiving a bunch of flowers lowers depression, increases compassions, fights anxiety – the list is astonishing! Jeannette Haviland-Jones in America has conducted some very interesting reading on the positive benefits of flowers.

What’s your best feel good moment since starting Forward Flowers?

I think the reaction from everyone who has gotten involved or heard about us has been the best feel good moment. It’s so great to have people believe in your idea and to support you, and to see everyone smile when you explain Forward Flowers. It’s nice to be nice, but it’s even nicer to give people the opportunity to do something nice for someone else.

How can event planners get involved?

Anyone interested can contact us through our website www.forwardflowers.com.au. We are also live on social media where people can see what we are up to. We love to hear from the event planners, florists and community centres who can request a delivery of flowers.

Do you have plans to expand to other cities?

Always, we have already had some great feedback from other states and will definitely look to expand in the future.

About Penny Stanbury | Founder of Forward Flowers

Penny has been working in the events industry for the last 8 years. She started out working in the UK for a few years in festival, music and theatre. Since returning to Sydney with her husband she has been working as a freelance event producer, and more recently as a Senior Producer with an experiential marketing company, which she absolutely loves.