Rabobank is not very optimistic about flower sales in the European Union in 2024. Lambert van Horen, Sector Manager at RaboResearch Food & Agri, gave Rabobank's view on developments in international floriculture at the Royal FloraHolland Trade Fair.
Rabobank has seen purchasing power drop worldwide over the past two years. Buyers of plants and flowers are typically people with an annual salary of at least USD 10,000, and their numbers are declining. For years, the plant and flower trade was a fairly predictable business for banks, showing a steady rise of about 2% per year between 2012 and 2019.
Then came a disruption caused by Covid in March 2019, and the flower trade temporarily ground to a halt. This caused the banks a lot of headaches, said Lambert van Horen, Sector Manager at Rabobank. A huge spike in the sales of plants and flowers soon followed, as people sought to express their love and gratitude to family, friends or neighbours and create cozy homes.
