WFFSA and AFE Unite for Earth Day Webinar: Launch of Sustainabloom and New Resources for Wholesalers

To celebrate Earth Day, the Wholesale Florist & Floral Supplier Association (WFFSA), in partnership with the American Floral Endowment (AFE), hosted a forward-looking webinar: “Sustainability Resources for Wholesalers.” The event spotlighted practical, research-backed strategies that floral wholesalers can use to reduce their environmental footprint—and reinforced the importance of industry-wide collaboration.

The session was hosted by Kari Stringfellow, Executive Vice President of WFFSA, who welcomed attendees and emphasized the growing demand from consumers for sustainability in the floral industry. She introduced WFFSA’s key partner in this work, AFE, and its major sustainability initiative: Sustainabloom.

Key Speakers and Highlights

• Amanda Solliday and Gustavo Gilchrist, both passionate advocates for sustainability in floriculture, led the main presentation.
  • Amanda provided an overview of the Sustainabloom program, launched in 2022 and designed to offer education, tools, and real-world resources to help businesses improve their environmental practices.
  • She detailed the many free resources available to wholesalers, including tools to improve energy efficiency, reduce plastics, meet consumer expectations, and more.
  • Gustavo, speaking from his experience at Kennicott Brothers and as a member of the AFE Board, shared how his company has implemented these practices—such as reducing energy costs by updating lighting—and how wholesalers can become sustainability leaders within their supply chains.

A Call to Action: Sustainabloom Wholesale Nickel Program

A key moment in the webinar was the announcement of the Sustainabloom Wholesale Nickel Program, a new initiative launched in partnership with WFFSA. This voluntary program invites wholesalers to contribute up to five cents per box sold, helping fund an endowed resource pool for future sustainability education and programming. Founding participants already include Kennicott, DVFlora, Georgia State Floral Distributors, and Mayesh.

Continental Flowers has gone a step further, becoming a collection hub and matching contributions from their customers.

A Strong Industry Future

The speakers closed by encouraging all wholesalers to explore Sustainabloom’s website, subscribe for updates, and consider joining the Nickel Program. Kari Stringfellow concluded the event by thanking the speakers and reaffirming WFFSA’s commitment to sustainability and its ongoing collaboration with AFE.

“WFFSA is proud to support Sustainabloom and partner with AFE in driving real progress across the floral wholesale industry,” said Stringfellow. “Together, we can create lasting change.”