Marius Dosinescu, founder of FloriDeLux.ro: about recruitment, teams of “super-florists” and HR in a large-scale online flower shop

Recruitment in the flower shop, right before the holidays

The winter holidays, but also the months of February and March, represent the biggest challenge of the year for florists. Christmas, Valentine’s Day and March 1–8 bring huge sales peaks, but also an acute need for skilled staff. During this period, all flower shops are recruiting and the competition for good florists becomes extremely intense. That’s why planning needs to start early — November or January at the latest — so you don’t run out of teams when orders explode.

Marius Dosinescu, the founder of FlorideLux.ro, explains in the full interview how he managed to build one of the most solid florist teams in Romania. He recommends looking for People First — florists who love what they do, have ethics, patience and attention to detail. Technique can be trained, but passion cannot be taught. A simple test for recruitment: a bouquet of 19 roses with packaging in 15 minutes, to see concentration and resistance to pressure.

To cope with the volumes, Marius recommends to “break the process” — the florist becomes a real Chef de atelier, supported by helpers and freed from paperwork or sales. Automation of processes (production, photography, delivery) and mixed recruitment — full-time fixed-term employees plus day workers motivated by bonuses — can make the difference. Another practical tip: provide boarding and boarding for people in the province; a small gesture that brings stability.

An essential detail for team loyalty: the leader must be present. Marius tells how he worked side by side with the team in the most difficult moments and introduced the “no lost nights” rule to protect people’s morale and efficiency.

Keep reading the full article because it is a real lesson in leadership and management for any florist who wants to grow. You will learn how to recruit more easily, how to keep valuable people and how to create an environment where florists perform with joy.

The story of an entrepreneur & the beginnings of FloriDeLux

How did you end up founding FloriDeLux in 2003–2004?

“In 2001 I started my career as an entrepreneur, with a web design and web development agency – Avantaj NET. As part of the learning process we started to build online stores; it was the .com bubble at that time and everyone was talking about the future of commerce as e-commerce. Unfortunately, there were no customers, no one believed in what would come next for traditional commerce – I even remember: «No one will ever order online…». So we started and built our own online store. At the beginning we wanted to position it as a premium, because they were the only customers who had cards. This is how the idea of premium service FloriDeLux was born, but rather the whole service, but the service and the way you present them – yes, you can «Luxury bouquets», «Luxury floral arrangements», etc.”

When the florist team becomes critical

When did it become clear that the florist team was essential to success?

“In the beginning we did a kind of dropshipping: we had partner florists in Bucharest, and we did the delivery, as there were no services developed in this area at the time. When we started to grow, we realized that it was not enough to sell bouquets made ‘on our knees’ in the flower shop and we started looking for florists to make our own floral workshop. Not knowing anything about the actual production of bouquets, we based exclusively on the experience of the florists, which – unfortunately – was limited to the general know-how in the market. We then understood that the team of elite florists is the only strong differentiator, along with an impeccable service.”

Recruitment & team building

How did you initially identify the “right florist”? What criteria?

“There is no such thing as the right florist – it’s more of a process, which I also understood later. At first we looked for the execution time – the faster he did, the better it was for us. Over time we understood that ‘fast’ does not mean ‘better’: it can mean lack of attention to detail, destruction of flowers, etc. Gradually we adjusted our pace and began to understand more about the time required to make a ideal bouquet, the balance between aesthetics and technique. We managed to ‘break’ the process into N steps and we understood that, in the right florist, we are looking for: knowledge of the technique at the minimum level, aesthetic sense and a lot of professional ethics. He is constantly looking to improve and deliver according to our standards.”

Which profiles were the hardest to find?

“A very important aspect was finding a key person: with experience and the ability to quickly evolve, to become a trainer further on, in an industry with high turnover – a job that, at the time, was not even in the COR. We were always looking for experienced florists, but many of the experienced ones migrated to their own business, even if very small, preferring to work directly.
To answer exactly: the most difficult to find initially, there was no collective passion for this job – it was perceived as a ‘low job’. Later, as the FloriDeLux.ro brand evolved – people really wanted to ‘steal the job.’

FlorideLux team, video:

What was the selection process like: interview, practical test, tests?

“First of all I was looking for a HUMAN – a person with whom I could talk and who would understand what I was explaining to him. Technical skills were also important: knowing how to use at least a computer, a tablet, a phone. Without exception, even for the experienced ones, the practical test followed – I was carefully watching the EXECUTION TIME and attention to detail in the shortest possible time.
I recommend to everyone: employees with a period of trial. It’s impossible to convey all the information in a short interview, no matter how rigorous it is. The trial period was for both parties: to see if they like the team, the amount of work, etc., and to see how the man is performing and, obviously, how much he is developing. Many people gave up saying: “It’s like in a normal flower shop – it’s too much work.”

How do you scale the team when the business grows

What worked for scaling?

“It was a very big challenge, but the solution came from ‘breaking’ the work process. I considered that the florist is like a Chef in the kitchen and needs helpers next to him. Thus, the florist mostly only made arrangements, bouquets, funeral wreaths – floristic products or related. The florist did NOT sell, did NOT do documents, did NOT deal with paperwork – he just did his job. I invested in production software so that the time for transmitting information has been reduced considerably, and mistakes have become rarer.
Another aspect: we created our own line of business – floristry courses, in groups of 20-30. For us, they were a nursery for recruitment and strong positioning as a florist trainer. Many times, even if we did not recruit directly from graduates, the fact that they could obtain a ‘florist’ degree just by working with us was a very strong incentive.”

How did you manage the peaks (Valentine’s Day, March 1–8)?

“During the busy periods we worked with day laborers and employed about 30 florists + day laborers to cope with the volume. There was separate bonusing on the volume. Recruitment started from January for February 10 – March 10, sometimes hiring full-time for a fixed period. Constantly communicating and being a place where people wanted to come, we managed to find people even from the province, for whom we provided accommodation and meals in Bucharest, in addition to the salary.”

How do you plan so you don’t run out of staff?

“Planning started around November for the period of the following year. Why? Many make commitments in January, and we had to be ‘in front of them’, as an employment alternative. Many times, those who had collaborated with us returned, and over time the recruitment became easier. Now it seems simple, but there was always that feeling: if they will materialize, if they will come? We sold according to how many people we had: if they didn’t come, we couldn’t deliver.”

External partnerships, schools, internships?

“Yes, we tried. It works up to a certain level, but most of those who take specialization courses want to start their own business; others prefer to learn on the job and maybe later get a degree. Even though the course line brought us significant income, as a recruitment nursery it was less effective than the employer branding achieved through these courses: people understood that we were the best and came to us to learn. We periodically brought trainers from the Netherlands – something that contributed a lot to employer branding.”

Loyalty, culture & leadership

How did you keep good people close to the brand?

“I would look back and say that it was the conditions… but I think it was more important that I tried to be human: to understand, to support them, to let go when things got hard. Another reason was the brand – very strong. Now they use complicated words (‘organizational culture’, etc.), but under the FloriDeLux.ro brand I built value – human, professional – and security for my future. I remember: when I announced the sale, a colleague started to cry and told me: ‘My husband and I just decided to have a child, because I felt that here I had a stable job, without fear and where I was treated fairly and humanely’.”

Connect with Marius Dosinescu on Linkedin

Elements of culture, training, recognition, development:

1. Organizational culture. “Responsibility, autonomy, customer orientation. Open communication; everyone understood the direct impact of work on the end customer experience.”
2. Training. “Internal training programs – floristry skills and soft skills (communication, leadership). Clear onboarding and mentoring for new employees.”
3. Recognition. “Public performance recognition system – bonuses, flexible benefits, constant internal appreciation. Individual and team results were communicated transparently.”
4. Development. “Even if the environment was relatively small, there was the possibility to advance, to do more.”

How do you manage peak pressure and flow?

“I could write books. The basis was to ‘decompose’ the process of making a bouquet into the smallest possible parts, to reduce friction and time. Having a software development company behind me, we developed customized solutions: production software, photography software, delivery software – we greatly reduced downtime. The table was taken in formations of 2-3 people, to avoid interruption of production.”

How do you avoid burnout and turnover?

“You can’t completely avoid them. A ‘trick’ that worked: to keep morale high. I, as the founder and general manager, was constantly involved and worked side by side with them – the first to arrive, the last to leave, whenever I could. Motivation is many times stronger than physical exhaustion. At one point I introduced ‘NO LOST NIGHTS’ – decision ‘highway’. People didn’t have to sleep; I succeeded in ~80% of the cases. I couldn’t find the ‘perfect solution’ for those who didn’t give up, with a smile on their faces.”

Big HR challenges & a deadline

What were the biggest challenges?

“Staff turnover. In the absence of professional ethics, leaving overnight, without notice. It created a domino effect and put additional pressure on employees, and it forced me – from a recruiting point of view – to abandon a rigorous process and accept almost anyone, in order to reduce the load on the team.”

A concrete example and how you overcame it:

“On May 24th (I don’t remember the year), we had taken time off – my wife and I – to make the little one’s party. We received a phone call: ‘All the florists have resigned’. It was terrible: 5 florists in one day, due to a spontaneous conflict. Honestly, I didn’t believe it until the next day, when they stopped coming to work. I don’t think I directly managed it, it was a team effort: the director of production made a superhuman effort and covered all that period alone, and we took care of the recruitment for the summer. It was also a bit of luck: it was a quiet period. Thanks again to those who helped us get through.”

Recommendations for florists: how to recruit more easily

Tip for finding florists “worth investing in”?

“There is no magic solution and no easy process. You just need to communicate as much as possible – as a business brand to customers, but also to potential employees. When you communicate, you’re not just communicating for selling, you’re communicating for branding. All the time.”

What to put in the job ad?

“Insist on the working conditions and the passion for flowers. Many are in the industry for the love of flowers, and the salary is sometimes secondary. If you also offer good pay, good conditions and look for passionate people, you will be successful.”

How do you attract good candidates (from other fields or beginners)?

“Simple: offer internship and on-the-job training + the opportunity to advance financially as well, quickly, as they learn.”

How do you properly evaluate a florist before hiring? Practical tests?

“You can’t make an ‘exact’ assessment. Look for people, above all – avoid functional illiterates and people who don’t smile when they see flowers. Love of flowers makes you smile during peak periods (March 1-8).
Brief for two: a bouquet of 19 roses with beargrass and packaging, 15 minutes to make. See attention to detail and technique ‘under pressure.’ I recommend sitting and watching how they work – you put extra pressure and make sure the prospective employee doesn’t give in to a potential client.”

At the interview – what questions/behaviors are you looking for?

“There is no exact list. Very important: the person should have joy in living, love flowers and people. You cannot be a perfect florist if you do it only for money.”

Skills of today’s florist

What new skills are needed (compared to 10–15 years ago)?

“To handle the computer/tablet and not be functionally illiterate: to understand what is being asked of him and what he is reading. Much of the flower trade is done online, at a distance, and the attention to detail must be taken to the extreme: the customer does not see the bouquet in the flower shop, and the photo can be analyzed ‘in blood’ – dissatisfactions easily arise. Yes, digital technical skills and understanding of e-commerce & packaging processes, plus adaptability to large volumes.”

The future of recruitment in florists

What trends do you see (seasonality, freelancing, outsourcing, automation)?

“Recruiting is becoming more TikTok-oriented, as the platform provides direct access to Gen Z and Millennials. According to a recent study, 46% of Gen Zers landed an interview through TikTok.”

Three key factors for team success

“1) Understanding. 2) Education. 3) Motivation.”

After exit: plans, teams & vision

What are you going to build next?

“After exiting FloriDeLux, I focused on developing digital platforms that support entrepreneurs and marketers: aysa.ai (SEO automation), adverlink.net (link building marketplace) and other SaaS projects.
Regarding teams, the goal mine is to build autonomous organizations based on continuous learning, remote collaboration and the use of AI for efficiency. The long-term vision: to create an ecosystem where people can evolve professionally in scalable projects with real market impact.”