How Ferns N Petals is betting high on expansion plans in the post pandemic phase

Founded in 1994, Ferns N Petals has now established itself as a household name in the flowers, plants, cakes, and overall online gifting landscape. The company is headquartered in New Delhi, and has retail outlets across the stretch of the country.

Speaking about the significance of Valentine’s Day for the company, Vikaas Gutgutia, Founder and Managing Director, Ferns N Petals says that it is the most special day for a florist. “Flowers have always been a medium to express emotions,” he says. He adds that because of the third wave and the subsequent lockdown, the business was affected during the beginning of the year. However, the situation is getting back to normal, and the company is getting back to its pre-Covid levels in terms of numbers.

Vikaas shares that when it comes to retail and flowers, the company has ambitious plans for the year with five to six new geographies in the pipeline, and fast-paced growth alongside. Additionally, the team also want to focus heavily on the branding aspect of the business.

In terms of categories, the focus areas for Ferns N Petals are cakes and flowers, shares Vikaas. Presently, chocolate as a category is gaining a lot of traction.

“We intend to have our own chocolate brand, which we will be selling through our portal,” he says. Apart from that, different combinations of green plants are also coming up as a growing segment for the brand. Additionally, adding liquors such as champagne and wine to the gifting landscape is something that the brand is keen on exploring.

According to Vikaas, the company currently has 400 outlets as of now - cakes and flowers put together, and they are planning on opening two stores a week for the next financial year. In terms of international expansion, he shares that the company intends to be a global player in the gifting landscape. They are currently in five countries, and the company has the ambitious goal of launching in a new country every two months in the next financial year.

Lastly, talking about revenue, Vikaas shares the company is looking at closing the financial year at around Rs 650-675 crore run rate and is aiming to go 30 percent higher next year.