British Florist Association

Who they are

The British Florist Association (BFA) is the trade body for florists in the UK. Its roots go back to 1917, when growers, florists and wholesalers set up the British Flower Marketing Association at New Covent Garden Flower Market. The BFA itself was formed in 1948, and the membership readopted the current name in 2001. It later absorbed the British Flower Industry Association in 1977 and the Society of Floristry in 2010.

The BFA brings together retail florists, studio florists, growers, wholesalers, educators and students. In 1956 it was a founder member of Florint, the European federation of florist associations, and it remains the exclusive UK member.

What they do

The BFA sets professional standards for floristry and gives members a national voice. It runs the Institute of Professional Florists (IoPF), founded in 2015, which awards individual membership based on the qualifications a florist holds. The professional register and member directory help the public find qualified florists.

It also works with WorldSkills UK to find and back the finalists for the WorldSkills UK floristry competition, opening a route to European and world skills events for young florists.

Events and shows

FleurEx is the BFA's annual trade show, held at the East Midlands Conference Centre in Nottingham each October. It is the UK's biggest floristry trade show, with an exhibition hall of suppliers, main-stage demonstrations, the Flower Lab and Plant Lab, one-hour skills workshops, and the live finals of UK Florist of the Year, sponsored by OASIS Floral Products. BFA Vision is the spring trade conference, with speakers and business workshops.

The Skills Academy runs free regional events on weekends and evenings across the UK and Northern Ireland, mixing a business element with hands-on design. The Bloom Room is a fortnightly virtual florist chat, held on alternate Tuesday evenings, free to business and IoPF members.

Standards and advocacy

The BFA speaks up for the trade on the issues that hit the workroom. It published guidance for florists on flower-import border rules, including the medium-risk products that affect what crosses the border. On the floral-foam debate, the BFA took a pro-choice, pro-research position rather than backing blanket bans, and welcomed the clarity that the Church of England's sustainable-flowers motion was advisory and did not introduce rules or bans.