Denver Small Business Profits - Customer Service Staffing Is Key!

In 1994, single mother and former Kindergarten teacher Jennifer Smith was on a flight from France furiously scribbling down a business plan.  A natural floral designer, her stunning flower pots and beds at home garnered persistent requests from friends and neighbors.  Inspired by the beautiful flowers she’d just seen abroad and driven by the need to support her son, Jennifer put together a plan to start her own business creating and planting spectacular residential and commercial floral displays.  The plan was executed by building a dedicated and highly trained small, professional floral design team; thus, Les Belles Fleurs was born.  The team’s first client was the Parade of Homes, an outstanding opportunity to show Les Belles Fleurs' talent and test the team.  Jennifer smiled remembering that first job and with a laugh said, “We’ve been busy ever since.”

Hiring a Successful Team that Can Execute

Understanding that an essential element to any business is a strong, committed staff, Jennifer used several strategies to attract the right people for what was then a small start-up.  What did Jennifer do right?

• Paid employees a very competitive hourly rate; generally more than offered in the corporate world in 1994
• Hired highly educated individuals with degrees in Art, Social Work, Journalism, Home Economics, Education and Architectural Engineering which helped ensure the execution of critical thinking abilities and solid communication skills needed for the client targeted
• Hired bright entrepreneurial individuals, many of whom were mothers of her son’s friends seeking to earn extra income for the family
• Hired people looking for creative, part-time employment opportunities willing, wanting and needing to work for many years in this capacity to ensure staff consistency in development and training

Repeat Customers – An Unwavering Attention to Customer Service and Details

Part of the reason Les Belles Fleurs stays so busy is not just the quality floral designs they provide, but their positive connection with the company driven by the team’s unwavering attention to customer service.  To keep their clients for more than 17 years, the Les Belles Fleurs team delivers a strong message:

• The client’s property is respected and protected at all times
• Team members are required to follow strict policies regarding staff safety, dress requirements, client communication, conflict resolution, attendance
• Project deliverables (floral designs and plantings) must meet defined quality standards
• Staff job site orientation meetings are conducted for each project, and the deliverables are defined and described in writing
• Staff set-up and clean-up must be executed in accordance with Les Belles Fleurs standards   

Company Culture – Steel Magnolias Work Hard, Take Pride and Have Some Champagne

Through both recruitment and work activities, Jennifer has focused on creating a strong, consistent company culture for her 30 team members.   They work hard, take pride in their job and its results, and with their outgoing and customer focused personalities each team member fosters strong client relationships that have built the foundation of Jennifer’s successful company.  On the other side of the culture ledger, Jennifer fully understands that the working conditions many times are challenging and demanding:  the weather, long hours during seasonal projects, and the job’s physical requirements are offset with champagne acknowledgments, chocolate covered strawberries and relaxing spa treatments.

Scribbled Business Plan Created Over the Atlantic Provides Son with College Degree

Les Belles Fleurs has provided well-paying employment opportunities to highly educated moms looking for temporary, part-time or seasonal Denver jobs.  Through this connection the team has found and made lasting friendships...“those you can count on.”  Furthermore, and amazingly, the business plan scribbled down over the Atlantic by Ms. Smith in 1994 has enabled her to pay fully for her son’s college degree; an incredible accomplishment for the single mom. Congratulations Jennifer, hard work goes with the territory, and you have reaped and earned the rewards!
 

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