The Grocery Store Floral Dept. that Gives Me All the Feels

Pastel flowers make up a unicorn-colored bouquet.
#TodaysBouquet: Unicorn-style arrangement from the Safeway in Fairwood (Bowie, Md.).

I’ve been to Seattle twice and both times, I’ve had the chance to visit the Pike’s Place Market. There is an absolutely stunning array of flowers there – beautiful, fresh bouquets made of any type of flower you can imagine and starting at $5, they are super affordable. I’ve often wished that I had a place to find fabulous floral that did not require a cross-country flight.

Happily, since my first case of “Pike’s Market Floral envy,” the floral departments in my neighborhood grocery stores have stepped up their game.

I’m not just imagining the upgrade. The Produce Marketing Association reported that supermarket floral has been a growth area for grocery chains in recent years. Stores are prioritizing shoppers’ desire for more variety and fresher blooms (with a longer shelf-life) to meet customer demand. They’re also increasing square footage dedicated to floral departments and bringing on dedicated staff to assist costumers.

Infographic shows recent growth trends among supermarket floral departments.
Credit: Produce Marketing Association/Food Marketing Institute Trends in Mass Market Floral Report

I’ve bought lovely flowers at my nearby Shopper’s, Giant and, more recently, at Lidl. Today, though, I want to give a loud shout-out to my favorite floral department at Safeway. Specifically, it’s the Fairwood location in Bowie, Md., that gives me all the feels. (I used to primarily shop at the location in Greenbelt, Md., which has its own strengths, but the Fairwood floral department is the best one around in my opinion.)

Fresh, colorful and creative, Safeway’s bouquets provide a beautiful pop of color around our house. What the Fairwood Safeway does particularly well is presenting a monochromatic display of their flowers so it’s easy to shop by color family and coordinate with your decor or your mood. Say you’re looking for something happy. You can find for your favorite flower – roses, alstromeria, pom poms, carnations, lillies, etc. – in yellow.

They also do really fun holiday and themed bouquets. For example, they had lovely red, white and blue pom pom bouquets for the 4th of July. And this week, they had pretty mermaid and unicorn bouquets (like the one I bought this week that’s pictured above). These would be great teamed up with the mermaid or unicorn cupcakes in the bakery section. (Full disclosure, Safeway is also my favorite bakery. I digress…)

It all adds up to a broad, easily accessible selection for consumers. I’ve shared some of my recent favorite bouquets below.

So indulge your inner flower junkie next time you’re out for your groceries. Whether it’s Safeway or your favorite local grocery, the floral department may deserve another look.

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