Jim’s Corner

The lazy days of summer. We think about lively beaches, outdoor concerts, cookouts with friends, sleepaway camps, family vacations and Fourth of July picnics and fireworks. Our thoughts turn this way each Memorial Day, which in addition to being a day of remembrance for fallen American military, is often celebrated as the unofficial kickoff to the summer.

Creating New Traditions

However, this year, it will be different. Many summer activities have already been canceled because of the pandemic. But, like all things in life, this summer will be what you make of it. It may require some creativity, but there is still fun to be had. You may not get to enjoy your annual family reunion or July 4th BBQ, but there are certainly other ways to enjoy our summer months. Continue Reading…

People often ask: is Mother’s Day the biggest day of the year for our florists? Yes, it is! And this week we are also honoring teachers and nurses. These three groups of people are doing even more remarkable work than usual to support us and our families. Continue Reading…

You may have heard of our long-running program, “Mothers Who Matter Most”. This year, the campaign has evolved into “Moms Matter Even More This Year”. Why? Because this Mother’s Day will be different. Whether working remotely, serving on the front lines against the virus, or taking care of their grandchildren at home, moms are being called upon to do more than ever right now. You may not be able to be with the important mothers in your life and celebrate in person, but that doesn’t change the enormous role mothers play in the lives of our families and communities.

“Mothers Who Matter Most” began some thirty years ago when we received a heartwarming request. A peculiar envelope, printed in block letters, was sent to our Bayside, Queens, NY office with $16 and a note from a young man who wrote that while he’d certainly made mistakes in his life, his mother had always stood by him. With Mother’s Day approaching, he wanted to know if we could do something special for her. We, of course, sent her a beautiful gift and he was forever grateful. The letter moved all of us and inspired us to ask customers to share with us stories of the incredible mothers in their lives.

At one point, we were contacted by a producer from Leeza, an earlier version of today’s Ellen. This woman told us how touched she was by the stories. We ended up collaborating on a campaign where one of five finalists was featured each day the week leading to Mother’s Day, and several celebrity judges, including Jim, picked the winner. Every year, we look forward to reading through your entries and hearing about these wonderful women and the lives they touch. Continue Reading…

A Note From Our Founder, Jim McCann

The week ahead is an important one – Administrative Professionals Week. Believe me, it’s one we feel very strongly about here, and I want to tell you why.

To me, this week is an opportunity to celebrate the people in our professional lives who make things happen. As many of us transition to working remotely, some of these folks may be more out of sight than usual. But they should never be far from our minds. If anything, I suspect many of them are working harder than ever – setting up remote offices; coordinating schedules at a distance; keeping facilities clean and up and running for when normal hours resume.

I could never accomplish half of what I do – nor do it with a smile on my face – without the amazing work of my assistant, Patty. We’ve worked together for nearly 28 years. Patty, Jo, Lisa, Susan, Kim, Barbara, Tammy, Letty, Marilyn, Andrea and the other amazing administrative professionals at 1-800-Flowers.com are the people who just “make things happen” and we are all incredibly grateful.

Show How Much You Care

Whether you have an administrative professional reporting to you directly or not, we all have people at our offices or workplaces who make the business run smoothly. Make sure you go out of your way to thank them this week and let them know what their work means to you.

I’d suggest we all learn from our 1-800-Flowers.com CMO, Amit Shah. During our all-team offsite meeting last summer in Long Island, NY Amit took half his time on stage to thank those individuals by name who make things happen at 1-800-Flowers.com. Hank and Edward in building services, Brian in the mailroom and Jeanne in reception. It was wonderfully moving and an example for us all.

The administrative professionals in your life may not be there when you walk in these days, nor walking the halls during your workday. So, make sure you go out of your way to thank them. Send a text. Make a phone call. Write an old-fashioned note. Make sure they know how indispensable they are – in these crazy times, more than ever.

A Note From Our Founder, Jim McCann

Many of us around the country are concluding our Easter celebrations or are in the midst of Passover. These will have been unique celebrations, with far fewer faces around the table. But we hope you kept traditions alive and have connected with your family and loved ones who couldn’t be there in person. Maybe you extended a few “virtual hugs,” like I did with my grandchildren.

Last week, I suggested we use this Holy Week to renew our faith, our relationships, and our commitment to our values. It’s important that we keep close to these sentiments as we face more weeks of social distancing and disrupted communications.

Traditions old and new

I have been inspired by the kinds of activities people have been able to continue online, and the new digital rituals that have emerged. At our house, my wife, Marylou, always paints Easter eggs with our grandchildren. Obviously, that was not an option for this year. But we did manage to paint alongside our grandchildren on video chat. My friend, the author and entrepreneur Dave Kerpen, convened a digital Seder and kindly extended me an invitation. Continue Reading…

A Note From Our Founder, Jim McCann

We are facing an unprecedented challenge. Our professional and personal lives have been upended. The way we work, study, socialize, worship and more will be different for some time yet. Unlike crises past, this is one that affects every one of our families.

A Time to Reflect

If there is any silver lining to this crisis, it is that we are being pushed into a heightened state of consciousness. I consider this kind of situation a “forcing function”. The term dates to the 19th century, but it’s most often used today, in user experience design, to describe a feature that prevents someone from taking action without giving it their explicit attention.

For me, a forcing function prevents us from living our lives on autopilot. By disrupting our normal rhythms, the virus is forcing us all to take a closer look at our lives. Some things that seemed important in our busy daily lives may no longer seem as critical. And now we may see more clearly the people and experiences that deeply matter.

Continue Reading…