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Our guest on this episode of Discover Lafayette is Lauren Bercier, co-founder and CEO of Something Borrowed Blooms, a rent and return floral boutique in Upper Lafayette located at 102 Max Drive.
Created with her cousin and co-founder Laken Swan in 2015, Something Borrowed Blooms’ design team creates wedding flower collections using premium silk flowers.
The floral arrangements, boutonnieres, table arrangements, and other designs are rented out to brides across the U. S and Canada and delivered in a manner similar to Amazon Prime. The bride receives her shipment two days prior to the wedding date with a prepaid return label and packaging to make the receipt and return stress-free and enjoyable. The shipment is topped with a liner that treats the recipient to the scent of fresh flowers.
The concept is similar to Rent the Runway where you can rent premium clothing for a fraction of the cost.
In the case of a typical wedding, brides may spend $2000 to $3500 and up for flowers. They can rent similar arrangements from Something Borrowed Blooms for $500.00 and pocket the rest of their budget to be spent on other needs or perhaps, put in the bank for a rainy day!
Millennials bring a different sensibility in planning a wedding today than in days gone by. Many are marrying at a later age, paying for the wedding themselves, and are cost-conscious. Wedding budgets have been on the decline and millennials are more focused on the experience rather than needlessly overspending on the dress or flowers. Changing trends have opened the door to acceptance of this new rental concept which can provide great cost savings.
Something Borrowed Blooms was chosen in 2018 as Startup of the Year by Junior Achievement of Acadiana 21st Business Hall of Fame.” While Lauren and Laken originally envisioned 12 weddings a month as a successful business endeavor, the company in 2020 now ships out approximately 500 floral packages a month. Business has steadily increased and the company experienced a 248% growth in sales in 2019.
Lauren and Laken keep up with current trends in bridal fare by attending the annual Bridal Fashion Week. 2019 color trends leaned to muted dusty mauves and roses. In 2020, the popular colors are jewel tones with a deep green being popular. Something Borrowed Blooms’ most popular collection has been the ‘Olivia’ which is a soft, muted palette of ivory roses, mini ranunculus, rosemary & olive bushes. Other popular collections include the “Taylor” Collection which is composed of antique beige peonies, lavender scabiosa, and a variety of ivory-colored roses, as well as the ‘Jane’ and ‘Cameron’ Collections, all of which you can view here.
The Olivia Collection outsells all others by three to one. 
Olivia Aisle Marker is one example of accessories that may be rented. 
The newest option is the Taylor Collection with antique beige peonies.
Lauren’s advice for other entrepreneurs who are starting up their own business: Find your # 1 thing that differentiates you. If you copy what others are doing, you will be lost in the crowd.
Something Borrowed Blooms is on the fast-track to achieving great success by following Lauren’s sage advice of finding that perfect niche market, and of course, through the team’s sheer discipline and hard work!
Update as of March 11, 2020: Something Borrowed Blooms was the 2019 FedEx Small Business Grant Contest Bronze Prize Winner. You can visit Fed Ex’s website here to read more about their journey in shipping and how they rely upon FedEx for the delivery of their wares.
Congratulations to Lauren Bercier and Laken Swan for their success in breaking down barriers in how to put on a beautiful and cost-effective wedding! Please shop local!!
For more information, visit https://www.somethingborrowedblooms.com
