Alina Neacsa is happy with how she stands in life and works these days. She proudly and inspiringly shares her story on Thursd.com - like a hurricane. No, just kidding, but for sure differently than anybody else. A Floral Interview with Alina Neacsa makes us clear how badly she earned her spot in the floral industry and how badly she deserves to.
A Floral Interview With Alina Neacsa
So who is Alina Neacsa? What was your motivation to go into floristry?
Who am I… ?!?
"I am a very ambitious person with big dreams and a long-term vision. For some people I am a floral designer, for others, I am a teacher, for some, I am a mentor, a garden roses Ambassador, an influencer in the flower industry, and a flower person- but not in a regular way. I work internationally now, creating flower arrangements for big-budget weddings or corporate events. My background is not related to flowers, I have graduated from an Economic school, I also graduated from Banking Institute and worked in a bank, but I guess I missed the joy of doing something really important. Of course, I didn’t realize this at that time but I felt trapped into something too stiff for my personality. I quit my job and launched my own company which was totally insane in the eyes of my family. I didn’t care, so here I am. Fast forwarding the past 15 years of my activity in the wedding industry, I realize now that my real journey in the flower industry has begun 4 years ago when I stopped acting like a regular florist and discovered that flowers are something much more than “items” to be used in beautiful arrangements."
Alina Perfumella - the Beginning of a New Me
"I believe that “Alina Perfumella” moment (when a French garden rose from Meilland International received my name) was the start of this new “ME”, a new Alina who wants to discover the story behind every flower, the story of the breeder, then the grower’s story and finally add the florist design with that flower in this equation. Visiting flower farms in Kenya, Holland, France, greenhouses, fairs, flower shops in Dubai in the past four years, collaborating with the Thursd.com platform, and interacting with so many people, made me realize that this is what I have to do from now on, showcasing the most beautiful flowers in the world, with the most incredible stories."
Can you tell us a little bit about the latest trends?
"Well, the way I see it, the Russian style gains a lot of attention in the past two years, and I see this influence in many European designs. Another trend is using lots of flowers, the modern style bouquets are using many flowers, so the minimalist style is losing ground now. Dyed flowers are suuuuuper trendy and lots of flowers were absolutely transformed from regular flowers into stunning ones: please check the dyed carnations or tulips, I am sure you will fall in love immediately. Dried flowers are also trendy and in high demand these days."
Are you a trendsetter?
"YES! I am! But not because I intended to be one, but because I become without realizing it. Many people follow me and slowly I turn into an influence in the flower world."
What is your idea on trends for 2022?
"I honestly believe that the 2022 trend should be about showcasing the flowers to the world. The trends should be concentrated on creating a better environment and a better world. Flowers are “created” for expressing emotions and connections between people."
Launching today: Thursd Floral trend color of the year 2022- Genuine Pink #e6a6a6. Do you like it?
"The pink color is one of my favorites, and it’s easy to see this by looking in my social media timelines; I am a very pinkish person. Besides that, pink is a happy color that is thought to be a calming color associated with love, kindness, and femininity. People often associate pink color with different moods, for example: joyful, creative, feminine and vibrant, childish, refreshing, and euphoric. I asked my friend Clara Rotescu who is an extremely talented fashion designer to dress me for this interview. Clara’s signature is focused on revealing a different path for soul searching and self-discovering mirrored into our fascination for what lies beneath any sight to grace our heart. She engages her works into an awareness effort for techniques and symbols threatened to fade away. She chose dresses in a Genuine Pink color palette in a quest to bring happiness and calmness with the help of flowers in these troubled times."
The theme that comes with this trend color is Building Bridges
"Building bridges theme is exactly what is missing now, and I hope many will take the opportunity to “build the bridge” for a better future in our industry. From my side, my next project for 2022 (which is secret right now) is exactly in this theme and Thursd.com will be the first platform to showcase it."
What do you want people to learn in this interview with Alina Neacsa about your character, signature design?
"I definitely have a “signature” design. For me, scented garden roses will always be a part of who I am, and my designs will always have a scent and an abundance of flowers. I am not a minimalist style flower designer and I can’t find myself creating wire structures or abstract forms. I created a signature and my own place in the world of flower designers! But I feel the need to do more than create luxurious weddings or special events. I believe that I am here to do something no one else has done before, to bring closer the parts of the chain, bring closer the breeders with the growers, with the florists, and in the end with the final client. For this matter, I started a series of podcasts with well-known floral designers, teachers, traders in the industry with the goal of bringing them together to create a beneficial environment for our industry."
How is business these days?
"For some, it’s great, for others it isn’t, but it depends on many factors. For many florists with small businesses, it’s hard right now, the flowers are expensive, the costs for promoting online are really high. On the opposite side- the big companies, with big budgets and a great online network, the pandemic worked perfectly for their businesses and they thrive."
In some parts of the world, the availability sometimes is a problem, you feel that too?
"Flowers are still available and I own a company that sells flowers through an online platform (an exporter located in Holland). We have more than 15,000 varieties of cut flowers available every week, 10,000 plants, and approximately the same numbers in articles useful in the daily flower business, so I can’t complain about not having enough availability. We also have direct rose imports from Kenya and Colombia but I admit that in the past month we encountered some difficulties with the spaces at flight cargo companies."
Is education important?
"100% yes! It’s the most important thing to be educated and to practice a profession like any other. If you want to become a doctor, you go to school. The same thing applies to any other profession. The problem is that not every country has a proper educating system, so for some people the learning process it’s expensive and it takes a great amount of time. I was one of those people many years ago and that made me want to open my own Florists Academy. Now, we evolved so much and we are constantly inviting well-known florists from other countries and cultures to teach their style and techniques to those interested in learning and adapting to the newest trends. But the most important knowledge in this industry is not the trends but the basics. If you don’t know how to properly cut a flower or you have no idea how to condition to make it last longer….the trends won’t help you. And I say these things because although everyone has access to information, I still receive complaints about flowers that die just because the florist has no idea how to take care of them."
The biggest global issue for floral designers, what do you think it is? And what's the biggest issue for yourself?
"Pandemic for sure, you never know what to expect. Today you are in the green zone but this could rapidly become a red zone with restrictions that can put an end to your business. The pandemic affects the logistics, also without a green pass you are not allowed to enter flower shops, malls, etc…. and there is nothing you can do about it. My personal biggest issue was not being able to travel as much as I used to, but this also gave me time to redefine who I am and what I want to do next."
What do you like most about your profession?
"So far, I am fortunate enough to meet everyone I wanted. I love to travel and discover new places, flower farms, interesting business stories. I visited Tambuzi Farm in Kenya in 2019 and meet Tim Hobbs (the owner) and the entire team. Now, because I am a huge fan of garden roses, I would like to go visit Alexandra Farms in Colombia. I met Joey Azout at Parfum Flower Company's private party and we’ve chatted about his business. I have him on my shortlist of people I want to see in 2022."
In this interview with Alina Neacsa, can you tell us what you are most proud of?
"I love it and I am very proud that I became an ambassador for garden roses. I am also proud that I can inspire people to become better and trust themselves. I'm proud that I created a brand from my name in the flower industry. I am proud that I receive flowers from all over the world to test them and that I can see some varieties before it’s released on the market. And last but not least: A floral interview with Alina Neacsa on Thursd.com, I'm really proud of that."
Is there anything that you want to tell our audience about having this interview with Alina Neacsa?
"Yes!!! Please keep an eye on Thursd.com for the launching of my new project! It will be useful, inspiring, with lots of information and amazing stories! Stay tuned!"
