# How people make a living on orchids



## The Orchid Boy (Nov 19, 2012)

I'm just curious about how you guys make a living off of orchids and how you got started. 

I'm also curious about those of you you don't make your main living off of orchids but sell your extras or flask or buy flasks and sell those. I'd love to do this in the not so distant future.

Just tell me how you do and how you got started. Thanks.


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## wjs2nd (Nov 19, 2012)

The venders/owners I know have a very busy schedule. They usually have to goto shows/events to help make a living and name for there business. 

Well others I know sell orchids on the side. Some can be very sucessful at this. I have sold some seedlings on the side before. 

The hardest thing with selling orchids: you have no guaranty of selling anything and then you get stuck with the expense. It's not a big deal when you spend hundred dollars here and there but, when you spend a few hundred dollars it adds up very quick.


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## ehanes7612 (Nov 19, 2012)

orchidmall.com and slippertalk.com are good resources to sell ..ebay is complicated and i would discourage using it


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## paphioboy (Nov 20, 2012)

IMHO, it would depend if your business is concentrated on one/a few genera with similar needs (say, slippers, phals or cyms) or a more diverse collection. To manage a diverse collection successfully, especially for selling, would need quite a bit of experience in growing the different genera and will definitely be more challenging.


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## NYEric (Nov 20, 2012)

Orchid business is very tough. Import and export headaches, lawsuits, damage from weather, bad business deals, etc. I dont sell any orchids but I trade a lot. I can't imagine selling orchids for a living alone.


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## nikv (Nov 20, 2012)

Marry a rich woman who can support you.


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## likespaphs (Nov 20, 2012)

an old adage is 
how does one make a million in the orchid business?
start off with two million...


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## gonewild (Nov 20, 2012)

likespaphs said:


> an old adage is
> how does one make a million in the orchid business?
> start off with two million...



Not enough start up to make a million.....can't do it starting with only two million.


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## Rick (Nov 21, 2012)

Seems like several established growers went out of business in the last several years.

If you already own the space, and live in a climate where energy costs don't eat you up then its easier to make a profit just growing and selling plants.

Otherwise I think you need to find lots of other ways to supplement your livelyhood.

A lot of folks are moving lots of plants from other (tropical) countries where land, warm weather, and labor is really cheap.


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## ehanes7612 (Nov 21, 2012)

Yeah, i think Andy's orchids, Parkside , and Hausermanns struggle and they have huge greenhouses...Andy's has a unique market and conservation in mind , so its definitely a different business plan there...I know Hausermanns depends greatly on phals , vandas and intergeneric oncidiums for their cash cow..and even though Parkside has a lot of paphs i think they depend on phals and intergenerics mostly. My local orchid seller (seattle orchid) really depends on phals also just so he can keep selling hobbyist orchids. Orchid selling/buying is shifting more and more to the internet as less and less people go to shows. I thought about going into the business when sanderianum hybrids were in great demand and supply was low but that's all changed. As far as paphs..the shift is going to Hangianum hybrids (which i think are atrocious, ugly and look too much like hangianum, but that's just me)..and of course the albums. But i dont know of anyone grwoing exclusively paphs (except Sam) who really comes close to making a living , but i think he just uses his sales to pay for his travels and the upkeep of his business (greenhouse)


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## KyushuCalanthe (Nov 21, 2012)

nikv said:


> Marry a rich woman who can support you.



I did, but so far she has refused to support me 



likespaphs said:


> an old adage is
> how does one make a million in the orchid business?
> start off with two million...



You mean you start with 2 mil and after a couple years yer down to 1 mil, correct?


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## likespaphs (Nov 21, 2012)

yup


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## paphreek (Nov 22, 2012)

Before actually going into business, I spent a few years (11) honing my growing skills, acquiring good breeding stock, and actually figuring out what I wanted to do. I also didn't quit my day job, and my business partner (wife) also works full time and spends time working in the greenhouse. We both love our time spent with the orchids and would probably be doing it even if we didn't sell. So far, what we sell helps pay for our expenses, but does not cover them all.


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## Ray (Nov 22, 2012)

I think Hadley Cash (Marriott Orchids) is another one who makes a living off of slippers.

After my 1994 "Big Freeze" event (failed heater and alarm on a 7°F night) that wiped out a 20-year collection, I started First Rays with the intent of buying plants I wanted, keeping 1 or 2, and selling the rest to pay for what I kept.

That later led to doing the same for supplies, then equipment, books, etc. For 15 years, I did it on a part-time basis, but then courtesy of a no-option "early retirement" package, I went to full-time in 2009, and having the time to dedicate to the business has allowed it to grow significantly. 

The business pays for itself and more, but not enough to live off of. I only do one or two shows, and the speaking/selling engagements are a big "plus" - with the wonderful benefit of actually meeting the folks you communicate with online or via email.

Recently, the old company rehired me on a contract basis through the end of next year, so I now have two full-time jobs, requiring me to give up the speaking circuit for the time being.

I guess the bottom line is that if you want to run an orchid business, do it out of the love of orchids, not the love of money, and be prepared to sacrifice to be able to do what you love.


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## The Orchid Boy (Nov 22, 2012)

If I could have just a small orchid business I would be doing it out of love of orchids. If we lived in a world free of money and just did favors and traded and such, I'd love to just grow orchids and give them away.


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## Linus_Cello (Nov 22, 2012)

2 other business models:

Sell to the ultra high end/luxury. OrchidZone sells a lot of his plants to Japanese growers. Terry has a story where he sold a paph for $15 or 20k. It was a good investment for the buyer (who flew the plant on his lap for 20+ hours back to Japan) as the plant won the grand prize- some cash award ($5 or 10k) and a new Lexus.

Make this a hobby that helps pay for itself. One vendor is really more of a breeder, trying to line breed new hybrids. Besides the business tax deduction, the hobby pay for itself with the "rejects" that get sold through a store, at shows, or at farmers markets (the bulk of sales).


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## annab (Nov 22, 2012)

in my zone north west Italy ,( its a rich part of the country) this very hard to live today , there is a huge crisis and much garden are for to fault ,I think when lacks bread is too hard buy orchid or another plant , I think that in this situation the only thing that one can do its stay immoveable.
in this moment you risk uselessly your money .
orchid is for me a passion ,certainly should be beautiful living off the orchid but my dream is another is that one day I can do" baracca e burattini" and go away may be in calabria or sicilia and live there at the shadow of the beautiful sun ,with kind temperature all the year too .
and then finally Built my greenhouse where I can put in my orchid so my heaven becomes real .
I have also another desires when I done all this ,I would like the capacity to involve other people in the fantastic world of orchid I dream that my greenhouse was full of people that admire my beautiful plant .
but I would like say another thing ,remember that if you have a passion but a big passion you should never surrender ,because there are a lot of story of success in the world ,and may be you could be one of this .
all the best ,anna


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## cnycharles (Nov 24, 2012)

very nice. I have heard it said recently that the most 'successful' people were not exceptional or extremely smart students with the very high grades or the highest iq's, sometimes just 'mediocre' students who kept working at something and had more drive and maybe an idea that they wanted to work at until completion. becoming distracted by some things can be a big killer of dreams and passions.

a co-member of our orchid society has moved to another part of the state where he is now studying to become a social worker of sorts; someone who shares with others the joy of orchids and uses that to relieve or alleviate stress and other mental and physical strains

i had thought at one time that I would acquire a collection of phal species, mainly awarded or the more rare ones, and simply propagate and disseminate them here in the u.s.,... life and work has interfered mightily and most of the rare ones I had no longer exist, and some when I do net searches can't even find in the u.s. . now that a very respected phal vendor in virginia no longer sells high quality species, I am not sure if many will be available since his sources dried up. but, someone could have a collection of unusual things, and make seedlings of them and sell the flasks and compots to hobby or wholesale vendors, and be able to support their desire for orchid collecting and growing (maybe not a full income, but not losing so much money)


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## chrismende (Nov 24, 2012)

I concur with most here: orchids as a profitable business are a very difficult goal. My outlays for my small (30 x 55 square ft) commercial space and acquisition of stock are at this point nearly at the level of a nice new car. It takes a long time before the plants are ready to sell and until the public is aware of what one is selling and enough trust and good will are built up for profits to begin to occur on even a small scale. I'm still, after about two and a half years into the development of my business, at the point of less focus on sales than on growing the plants. I'm slowly putting all the pieces together: business license, resale permit, insurance, website and cards, inventory system, recordkeeping system, etc. When I'm further along I will announce my readiness to all of you very happily. Right now, I'm putting one foot in front of the other day by day, happy in the knowledge that I'm doing what I utterly love: being around orchids and orchid people! I'm funding all this out of my pension and social security as a retired R.N, as well as out of my not extensive savings. So - don't quit the "day" job. If you can, make it in a related field! Get a horticulture, chemistry, geology or botany degree if you can! If you simply cannot do that, try to make more than you need on a monthly basis so that your orchid expenditures can be covered!


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## ericst11 (Nov 24, 2012)

You won't get rich off orchids you might beable to support your habit . But making a living is getting far and few . The production of Phal and other mass made orchids. Has just smashed the small time orchid vendors. Even the bigger ones are slowly fading away.


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## LWP (Jan 24, 2013)

*How to make a Million on selling orchids, first you take two million ...*

Somewhat of a standard quote in the nursery business, but very appropriate here. Most never get rich, many that do make their money by selling their property and pocketing the appreciation after decades. For others, it's an act of love, fulfilling their hobbies and an income stream ... not wealth. Understand your customer, anticipate trends, be ahead of the herd, offer consistent value and promote, promote, promote... and luck be with you.


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## ehanes7612 (Jan 24, 2013)

i am hoping to garner a thousand awards and sell off my collection when i am 60 (i figure i will be sick of orchids by then)..and do something else...i have two awarded plants so far..998 TO GO!!!!


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## Rick (Jan 24, 2013)

ehanes7612 said:


> i am hoping to garner a thousand awards and sell off my collection when i am 60 (i figure i will be sick of orchids by then)..and do something else...i have two awarded plants so far..998 TO GO!!!!



Isn't that about $40,000 dollars in awards fees!?!?



I know several growers that make a good portion of their revenue by doing the speaking tour thing, and selling plants direct at OS meetings. That's like a constant marketing thing.

A Phal grower friend of mine is an AOS judge. Owns his house/property/GH's outright (so opperating costs minimized). A lot of his sales (primarily to local florists) are plants he purchases from wholesale sources in early bud, and then blooms them out. In general he has them for less than 6 months, and the bulk are white hybrid phals.

He has a ton of awarded plants, species and hybrids, every color and pattern immaginable, breeds his own, but blooming white phales are what pay the bills.


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## ehanes7612 (Jan 24, 2013)

Rick said:


> Isn't that about $40,000 dollars in awards fees!?!?



Yikes!!!..AOS should give out more awards, huh?

:rollhappy:


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## SlipperFan (Jan 24, 2013)

LWP said:


> Somewhat of a standard quote in the nursery business, but very appropriate here. Most never get rich, many that do make their money by selling their property and pocketing the appreciation after decades. For others, it's an act of love, fulfilling their hobbies and an income stream ... not wealth. Understand your customer, anticipate trends, be ahead of the herd, offer consistent value and promote, promote, promote... and luck be with you.



Welcome to Slippertalk, LWP. Please introduce yourself in the Greetings and Salutations section. You sound like someone who knows about the orchid business.


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## limuhead (Jan 25, 2013)

As far as a business it never really occured to me to make a living on orchids, but to supplement my income or 'support my habit' I think it is a necessity unless you are fairly well off. I have raised orchids for about 20 years, made a few hybrids, and grown and sold thousands of orchids. Many would say that having sold thousands I must be a commercial grower; the answer is no. I am a hobbiest that buys flasks and compots(very expensive ones at that), grows out a small population, selects the ones I feel that will be nice, and sells what I don't have room for after discarding stunted or unhealthy plants. I have in the past sold at local orchid shows and plan on doing it again in the near future. Last year I sold over 10,000$ on Ebay alone, but about half of that went right back into my hobby/habit. It allowed me to build a 600 square foot greenhouse in my back yard and then fill it (overfill actually) with what I consider quality breeding stock. After all is said and done I made about $2,000 dollars last year, but I estimate if I sold everything I have in the greenhouse retail right now I would have about $40,000.


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## abax (Jan 25, 2013)

As a nursery owner, the best advice I've heard here is don't quit your day
job!


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## goods (Jan 25, 2013)

I don't have much to add to this subject, but one suggestion I can make is to learn and become a pro at flasking. By being able to do everything "in house", I think you can save yourself some money and increase your collection frugally. 

I'm still learning all the details of the process, but I have a friend who does all of it for me, and I just trade out the services by splitting the seedlings with him. I've been able to acquire some pretty rare species this way on a rather limited college student's budget.


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## Ozpaph (Jan 25, 2013)

I dont want to offend but it seems to me that one of the major factors causing the demise of large growers in this country was 'hobbyists' buying flasks and selling mericlones and seedlings (cymbids and catts) at a cost the large growers counldn't compete with (no overheads or staff costs). The market was flooded with small, cheap stock which killed a lot of the adult plant business (which attracted a premium price). Orchid shows here also allow almost unlimited disposal of divisions etc by society members to the public - why go to a nursery? That, with a major decline in the public's interest in horticulture and plants saw many established business fold.
Now, if you can supply premium sized plants or the latest breeding (in paphs) you have a chance. I suspect the dark times will come again when all the hundreds of paph flasks bought by hobbists come onto the market via eBay.


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## limuhead (Jan 25, 2013)

Ozpaph said:


> I dont want to offend but it seems to me that one of the major factors causing the demise of large growers in this country was 'hobbyists' buying flasks and selling mericlones and seedlings (cymbids and catts) at a cost the large growers counldn't compete with (no overheads or staff costs). The market was flooded with small, cheap stock which killed a lot of the adult plant business (which attracted a premium price). Orchid shows here also allow almost unlimited disposal of divisions etc by society members to the public - why go to a nursery? That, with a major decline in the public's interest in horticulture and plants saw many established business fold.
> Now, if you can supply premium sized plants or the latest breeding (in paphs) you have a chance. I suspect the dark times will come again when all the hundreds of paph flasks bought by hobbists come onto the market via eBay.



I would have to agree with that 100%. I have sold on Ebay, but not cheap; at least at above average retail prices. What I personally think is killing the market is those nurseries that produce 1,000's of a particular orchid and have to dump them because they have 1,000's more coming out of the lab and have to make room in their production houses. That is one of the many reasons I love phrags and paphs; at least they can't clone 1,000's of them...


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## The Orchid Boy (Apr 10, 2013)

limuhead said:


> That is one of the many reasons I love phrags and paphs; at least they can't clone 1,000's of them...



That's one of the reasons I love them too.

I'm wanting to set up a sales website, but a very simple one. I like buying from ebay, but I hate selling on ebay. Maybe I'm just not familiar enough with it. Maybe I should try it again. But if I was to set up an independent website, what should I use and what should I know? I like the simplicity of Leo S., Tom K., and Sam T.'s websites. I'm mainly just selling to help pay for the hobby and so I can get more orchids and growing space, not seeking much profit.


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## cnycharles (Apr 10, 2013)

you should ask limuhead how he does this, since he buys tons and sells lots of the extras


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## NYEric (Apr 10, 2013)

If you can get seedlings at a low enough cost to sell them and make a small profit you can have funds to get better/select plants you desire.


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