I’ve just given a short presentation to the Slow Flowers Conference. It was a real honour to be asked to participate because I’ve long been obsessed by the Slow Flowers movement, which was started by Debra Prinzing in the USA just as I began my own flowery escapades. The idea of using locally grown flowers, as you will already know, lies at the heart of this small business, as does the idea of encouraging people to use more locally grown flowers in their own work, and of supporting flower growers in every way I can.

I chuckled a bit at the title of my presentation (a title that was chosen for me, not by me) which involved a film and a chat about ‘Creating a Destination Workshop for Flower Lovers’. I’m not sure I’ve ever thought of the Small Corner, in the often wet and largely grey/green environment that exists here in Yorkshire, as being a ‘destination’. So I googled the definition. A destination is a place to which people make a special trip. In the sense that guests here need to book a day off to come and need directions to find us, I suppose we are a destination, albeit not a very exotic one.

What I think might be of more interest to some of you are my answers to the questions regarding the running of workshops for flower lovers. Every week in my ‘Tea and Simply’ business chats I’ll talk to someone – usually a stressed-out wedding florist or maybe someone wanting to change career and who has a good space – who wants to start doing more workshops or to extend their already existing workshops.

I don’t have all the answers, but I’ve been running a business for over 10 years in which workshops are the main part, so I do at least have experience, have made some of the mistakes and have definitely done a lot of my own learning.

Here are the questions I was asked:

Who?

Who am I? Sarah Statham, aka Simply By Arrangement, the sole owner of a small flower business that specialises in workshops and weddings/events. I grow flowers, arrange them and teach others to create designs that are natural and always in tune with the season. I also take photographs. Sometimes I’ll write about flowers and people who are involved with flowers. Primarily I’ll help people to develop their flower skills, whether as a hobby, a passion or a business.

Where?

I’m based at home in Yorkshire, on a hillside just outside Hebden Bridge. My workshop, which was built especially for this job, is within the garden. To answer a different question posed the other week by my mother-in-law, it has two huge double sinks and a separate toilet! I don’t think she’s planning to move in. It also has special zinc-topped workbenches made by George Kidd, a local joiner/mastercraftsman who regularly appears in my yearly accounts (because he takes a lot of my money). There’s now a small cedar-clad photo studio/shed too (yes, built by George). It has a scent that I can only describe as ‘relaxing’ and George returns every now and again to take wafer-thin ribbon-like shavings from the door as it ‘grows into itself’. And it has mesmerising light, but I’ll leave that for a separate blog post. The garden is used for classes, although I’m also lucky enough to be supplied regularly with flowers from local growers. Guests who visit have access to all of those spaces as well as the house, where we eat delicious home-cooked meals. Most classes start at the kitchen table and it’s there that we’ll make our plan for the day. 

Hebden Bridge is a vibrant Yorkshire town, full of quirky shops, galleries and eateries, set in a picturesque valley and surrounded by wild Yorkshire countryside such as the moors across to Haworth (the birthplace of the Bröntes) and the ones just above our house which lead out towards the Pennines. The landscape is rugged, with big skies over those hills and moors; a landscape that changes colours from deep winter brown to various shades of spring green and, in late summer, even soft lilacs through to deep purple as the heather flowers. In autumn there are more gold and russet tones. If you love old stone then this might be a good ‘destination’ to choose. If you dream of white walls, clean lines and turquoise sea….it may not be for you.

What?

Workshops (and a small number of weddings and events too). Workshops/classes are timed to run in the flower-growing season from April to early November. Although in winter, for those who can manage without a full banquet of colour, there are just a few carefully thought out classes too. Most of the classes are done here in Yorkshire and are mainly one-to-one or one-to-two classes. Occasionally there’s something for a very small group. Sometimes larger workshops are at other places, places that have interesting details, such as good gardens or architecture or exceptional light. Places like Cambo Gardens in Fife, Scotland. A few times a year I’ll also teach classes alongside others whose work I respect and admire.

Most workshops last for a full day. Some are half a day and, from time to time, there are longer ‘retreat’-style classes, which can be up to three days. Good food has always been an essential element but obviously it’s good (dare I say exceptional?) flowers that are the main focus. As well as ensuring that guests get to make something (or several things) that is truly beautiful, I love to be able to photograph the end result so that everyone goes away not just with what they’ve made but also with an indelible visual memory. Each class is tailored to the guest.

Customers?

This must be the most important question for any business. In the first couple of years here customers were mainly local and the business developed through word of mouth. Now, perhaps because social media allows us all that amazing free advertising ‘reach’, customers come from all over the World, something that constantly surprises me.

People might be travelling to the UK on holiday and will make a Yorkshire stop-off to do a class. Sometimes people just come here and make Yorkshire their holiday. The Simply Yorkshire class that happens every couple of years lets folk do that in a place where they’ll be well looked after.

There’s also a local element to classes. Florists who live in the UK find it easy to travel here for a day or half a day, as do people who are starting to learn flowers as a hobby or those for whom a day of ‘doing flowers’ is just a day of escape.  As well as florists, floral designers and flower lovers, a lot of flower growers/farmers come on classes, especially if they are seeking ways of adding value to their own businesses, such as by offering to do event flowers. 

Location is important I think. Hebden Bridge is a relatively central place within the UK and easy to reach by road or train. As the town itself is actually something of a tourist destination there are lots of places to stay for anyone who wants to come overnight.

Alongside knowing your customer base goes knowing what prices they might be willing to pay. Running floral workshops costs money, and with increasing food and flower prices it’s never easy to get class pricing right. I’m continually seeking to understand what customers want and try to do a variety of classes across a whole price range. I’m sometimes lucky enough to get repeat customers and so they might need something different each time. Equally, those repeat customers will also love some consistency. Our customers, or guests as I prefer to call them, are of all ages and from all walks of life. What unites us all, and what takes up most of the conversation time, is that love of flowers.

There’s so much more I could write here because customers truly are the most important element.

What are the key features of workshops here?

Size? Flowers? Vessels? Photography? Business development? Connecting to others? Nice backdrops? A good lunch? So many answers spring to my mind from this question but, for me, I’d say that it’s all about the learning. At least that’s what my hope is for everyone who comes here…..that they learn something; whether it’s something completely new or just a different way of seeing, and that they want to go away and practise. 

I talk about this a lot. We all need to practise. It makes the process get easier and it allows you to develop constantly. The vessel that all our guests take home I think helps, as a reminder to carve out time to do this. Each vessel handmade by a potter – again, ones whose work I admire.

As far as the learning is concerned I genuinely think that the size of workshops here helps. Small. Often teaching just one person each day, and rarely working on my own with more than four people gives me a real chance to gear each class to the needs of the individual guest. 

Teaching has always been what this business is about. Providing a great space, superb flowers and other comforting things integral to the day are of course essential. But understanding what every guest wants to learn and achieve, and more importantly understanding how each guest learns, is vital. We don’t all learn in the same way. There are note takers, visual learners, those who learn by doing, those who achieve greater results by being left quietly alone, those who love praise, those who are embarrassed by it……the list is as long as the list of flowers growing here in August when the dahlias and rudbeckias collide with the sweet peas and roses.

The one question I’ll always ask of every guest is, “what would you like to get out of your day?”. Because the day is always about them.

What are the ingredients to creating a destination workshop for flower lovers? 

Let’s be clear here. I’m answering this in a hypothetical way, as I did in the Slow Flowers interview. You’re free to disagree or to add your own tomatoes, just don’t waste any by throwing them in my direction because they look better dangling from urns. I’ve answered this question from your perspective rather than mine, assuming you’re thinking about doing this.

You’ll need to attract an audience. Why would people travel to take a class with you? 

Have a think about your immediate location; in other words, the place where you hold classes. What’s good about it? How can you show that to others? Visually might the easiest way, but you can also write or talk about your location. We often forget that word of mouth recommendations by other people hold a lot of power.

Also, look at the environment around you. Look at your local scenery and your town/village. If someone were to come for a short time, where are the places they should see? 

There’s so much potential here because your local environment will change all of the time; the scenery with the seasons, or maybe there are local events that are an attraction or great places to visit. I often wonder if the Yorkshire Tourist Board should employ me and it’s about time the one in Fife did! If I have a day off I’ll try to take the dog on a good walk with a few photo spots and these are areas I’ll return to in every season. Sharing other local businesses that you love is also helpful and hopefully they’ll do the same for you.

What else do you have that will make people come to you? Again it’s an obvious answer, and one we hear a lot, but the answer will inevitably be ‘you’. There are lots of folk out there who can teach you how to market ‘yourself’ and it’s not really my area of expertise. One thing you need to be sure about is that you are confident that you can teach, and that you’re good at what you intend to teach. There I go again…back to the practise word. 

So many other things can attract an audience. An impactful advert. Maybe bringing in others to run classes with you. Social media is a science all of its own, and again there are plenty of ways to learn how to use it effectively.

Be clear about what your workshops involve, and be honest with yourself about who you want to teach and what you can teach.

One way is to showcase the work of your guests. Photos/films of what gets made in your workshops are always helpful. You know I’m now going to suggest you need to be able to take photos don’t you?

Workshops demand a lot of hard work and preparation.

From sourcing/gathering all the materials to making sure everything and everywhere looks good…..and no matter how many hours you put into this someone will always find the corner you forgot. What I would say though is that some of the best classes I’ve been on haven’t necessarily been in the fanciest places. Great flowers, food, teaching, class content and the feeling of being ‘looked after’ before, during and after a workshop are, in my humble opinion, the essential ingredients. 

If there is any ‘secret’ ingredient at all it might be this: a genuine love of flowers.

Gathering people together who share this is pretty special, and watching them all chat and work and, in many cases, keep in touch afterwards and go on to do good things. That’s the best bit.

I wish you lots of luck if you’re starting to do your own workshops. And you know I’m going to say make sure you keep a good photographic record of all guests’ work.  Maybe even a note of what food you serve them, in case they come back.

The final question I was asked was ‘What does the year hold for Simply By Arrangement?’.

It’s the first proper week of January 2025 and my years of ‘experience’ tell me that I haven’t a clue what will happen this year. But my plans (if the universe allows) are for more of the same. Lots of one-to-one classes. Much use of the new photo shed. Career class guests are all set to come on classes here and at Cambo Gardens, and I’ll release a few more places on the career class in May.

There are tentative plans for a Simply Yorkshire class either this year or next but I’m waiting to firm up the location. 

Special guest teachers are coming to do classes. Some are on the website, a couple will be mentioned in a little while and, if I’m lucky, more will appear going into next year too.

Maybe I should end by saying this. If it’s a destination workshop you seek, in a place of peace and tranquility where you are cocooned in a calm environment……there are still some places left on classes at Cambo in summer and autumn. Perhaps this is the year for you. It’s definitely worth making a special trip.