Choice Farms Celebrates New Leadership and Industry Excellence at the 2025 WFFSA Floral Distribution Conference

This year’s Wholesale Florist & Florist Supplier Association (WFFSA) Floral Distribution Conference, held in Miami from March 3-5, marked an inspiring milestone for Choice Farms. We proudly celebrated as our Director of Sales and Procurement, Fredrick Melero, stepped into his new role as President of WFFSA. The event reinforced our commitment to strengthening and advancing the wholesale floral industry through innovation, collaboration, and superior service.

The 2025 conference brought together industry leaders and innovators to explore transformative ideas and relevant trends. Sustainability, digital commerce solutions, personalized floral designs, and the rising popularity of hybrid and virtual events were prominent discussions, highlighting the ongoing evolution of our industry.

Reflecting on his appointment, Fredrick Melero said, “I am deeply honored to lead WFFSA into its next chapter. Strengthening wholesale florists and suppliers by enhancing operational efficiencies, providing unmatched product quality, and fostering deeper industry connections will be central to our strategy moving forward. WFFSA is committed to these goals, ensuring our wholesale partners remain strong, innovative, and responsive to market demands.”

The conference featured numerous highlights, including the much-anticipated inaugural Floral Xcellence Awards, celebrating outstanding achievements and innovations within the industry. Adding to the event’s vibrant atmosphere was the memorable Yacht Rock-themed party, providing attendees with a fun, relaxed environment for networking and fostering connections.

Additionally, Choice Farms proudly hosted our annual customer appreciation dinner at Joe’s Stone Crab, a Miami institution established in 1913. This special event offered an opportunity to honor and strengthen long-standing relationships with valued wholesale partners in an iconic and historic setting.

Throughout the conference, Choice Farms showcased our extensive floral inventory, emphasizing our extensive selection of premium rose varieties and unique novelty blooms that help wholesalers meet diverse and time-sensitive needs.

As we reflect on the successful conclusion of this year’s WFFSA conference, Choice Farms remains committed to innovation, reliability, and unmatched quality in the wholesale floral market. With Fredrick Melero at the helm of WFFSA, we anticipate continued excellence and look forward to supporting our partners as we grow together.

Where: Doral Academy Elementary

When: August 11, 2022, 1 p.m. EST

Details: WF&FSA will partner with local Choice Farms to bring flower arrangements to teachers who will be preparing their classrooms for the start of the new school year.

WF&FSA (Wholesale Florist & Florist Suppliers association.) launched The Flower Movement Awareness Week(August 8-14) in 2021 to promote community activism, using flowers to change mindsets and uplift feelings.

The movement will highlight the outreach efforts of WF&FSA members, such as bringing floral design workshops to community centers; donating flowers and arrangements to schools, nursing homes, hospitals, and hospices; and working with local groups to build neighborhood gardens.

“Flower Movement Awareness Week is a concentrated effort where not only those that work within the floral industry can come together but anyone who understands the positive impact flowers make can help bring awareness to their healing properties,” said WF&FSA Executive Vice President Molly Alton Mullins. “Use this week as a way to support the movement by donating your time, knowledge, or resources in a way that showcases the amazing benefit of flowers.”

Sponsors:

Choice Farms is excited to participate in the flower movement and give back to our community by surprising the teachers at Doral Elementary Academy with beautiful flower arrangements to celebrate the school year.  

Teachers are real-life superheroes; they inspire us to be the best version of ourselves. So, we felt it was right to show them they are appreciated. 

Choice Farms, Doral Florida is an importer and distributor of the world’s finest flowers. www.choicefarms.com

Over the last two months, we have seen weddings and events rise to unprecedented numbers. This is great for business! It, however, has been accompanied by a lack of product. Primarily due to weather, post-pandemic reduction of hectares at several farms. Also relevant is the purchases of large farms by mass market companies, which deflects this production out of the traditional wholesale industry. Supply, therefore, has been limited.

Wholesalers are emphasizing to their customers to think colors, not varieties specific, especially on roses. Florists have gotten the opportunity to think outside the box and get creative with what they do have available. To top it off, in the floral industry, as well as all other industries, transportation has been a major issue. More demand and less flights available, have capped the scenario for a perfect storm in the floral industry. It has been a challenging two months. At Choice Farms, we have the varieties you need. If not, we have the best substitute variety available.

According to N. P. R. News, weddings scheduled for 2022 are said to be in the 2.5 million range which is the highest since 1984!