Thessaloniki is ready for Valentine’s Day
Of Lemonia Vasvani
From the print edition “Thessaloniki Press”
The florists, confectioners and jewelers of Thessaloniki are preparing feverishly for the most loving holiday.
Valentine, which in recent years is an established occasion to express one’s love, is constantly gaining ground. Young and old will think on February 14 to buy a flower, a sweet or a piece of jewelry to see in their partner their love.
The main volume of flower orders has arrived in our city since last Monday. “These are roses mainly since they have been associated with this holiday. We estimate that 150,000 roses will be sold to customers, while if there is more interest, the number can reach 200,000 “, said in “TyposThes” the florist Mr. Manolis Syllis and member of the administrative committee of the Professional Chamber of Thessaloniki.
He added that “on the basis of the rose are made various compositionsς. The consumer can choose flowers with chocolates, get a bouquet of flowers or a basket with flowers and toys, etc. “
He said that last year this celebration gave a breath to the industry as it was allowed to operate flower shops that had been closed for several months due to restrictive measures against the pandemic. “Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s Day celebrated in May, are the top days for florists. Last year, due to the pandemic and what we all went through, we saw that many wanted to buy flowers for their loved ones and express their feelings in this way. “We hope to have a similar move this year as well,” he commented.
In general, for the industry, he stressed that in the summer and muntil October was clearly a better move in wedding decorationsas a large percentage of couples who were to get married in 2020 moved it to 2021. However from November onwards the traffic dropped. “It’s winter, but also the pandemic that continues to exist. “After Christmas we saw a downward trend as in the above came the increased costs in energy and transportation”, said Mr. Syllis.
However, now all the forces will be channeled for the celebration of Valentine. “It’s not just lovers. It is a celebration to show that you care about a fellow human being. “With a flower you show your love tenderly”, he commented.
They will celebrate it… sweetly
It is known that “love passes through the stomach”. So many will be those who will prefer to express their love with a paste, a cake or just a few chocolates.
Preparations have already begun and many confectioneries have put heart-shaped pastries in their shop windows.
The president of the Thessaloniki Confectioners Guild, Marios Papadopoulos, told APE-MPE that “spending one or more euros, customers will enter the confectioneries to get heart-shaped sweets – or not in flavors such as chocolate or strawberries, cake, cookies or Another”.
He also stressed that the confectioners are ready to respond to any budget. In this context, he pointed out that the 170 members of the guild, as well as the more than 400 confectioneries in the prefecture of Thessaloniki have all kinds of hearts, “even those who want to show a sweet that they do not want to … love”.
With an earrings and bracelets
Some will choose a piece of jewelry. However, the orders have already started, there are also those who choose at the last minute to do their shopping.
The president of the Association of Jewelers and Watchmakers of Thessaloniki, Petros Kalpakidis, stated in “TyposThes” that “The purchasing power of the public may be more limited due to increases in energy and the cost of living, and there is no fatigue with the ongoing pandemic, but there is a mobility in the stores of the industry. It seems that they want to buy jewelry, with the earrings and the margins to come first in the preferences of the consumers “.
As for the prices, he said that “there is a possibility for the customer to buy a quality cost at a cost that starts from 50 or 100 euros”.
Finally, he recommended to support the Greek jewelry which, as he said, “is better than the foreign one and in parallel with their purchases, they also help the economy of our country”. Especially for the residents of our city, they do not prefer the shops that are members of the Association of Jewelers and Watchmakers of Thessaloniki (note that the Association has 100 members at the moment).