S3, Ep3 – In conversation with Whitney Bromberg-Hawkings
3 March 2023
With Vogue describing her as ‘Fashion’s Chicest Florist’, FLOWERBX Founder and CEO Whitney Bromberg-Hawkings is a renowned figure of authority and inspiration across the luxury industry. Having famously started her career working closely with Tom Ford, initially during his tenure at Gucci before becoming Senior Vice President of Communications for his own iconic company until she took the leap and launched FLOWERBX in 2015.
Everyone in fashion is known to communicate through flowers, and FLOWERBX has solved the search of luxury, single-variety blooms of the most premium quality, delivering a shopping experience that is simple, reliable, and high end, with clients including tier-1 brands. Dr Reena brings Whitney to Harley Street to discuss everything fully from the beginning and learn just how it all began.
Conversation Show Notes – The Recap
Whitney opens up the episode by taking us back to the Tom Ford era – an iconic figure across the fashion and luxury industry of whom, of course, she famously worked for, for two decades, describing how she started as his PA straight out of school and eventually ended up as his Senior Vice President of Communications, describing it ‘as the greatest job in the world’.
Tom had always stated that it was essential to have a ten-year plan, which during her twenties for Whitney, this translated to ‘work work work’, and then in her thirties, she successfully combined this with having her family. She was getting to the point where she was turning forty, pregnant with her third child, and started questioning if she could see herself in her role over the next ten years – joking about ‘getting Tom a diet coke when she was fifty’ and the possibility that she would be spending the rest of her life working with Tom (stating that of course, this would have been a perfectly great outcome).
Pregnancy, Whitney discussed, was a time where most women would want to stay put and be extremely settled in where they are, and for others, it can often be a catalyst for changing absolutely everything. As ‘a working mom’, Whitney had found she was buying absolutely everything online, and if she was having friends over for dinner, she didn’t want to buy a mixed bouquet—she would opt for ten hydrangeas on the living room table or twenty peonies in the bathroom, so she found herself constantly going to the flower market for single-stemmed blooms, that also provided good value too, usually going at 8 am dressed in cocktail attire to go into the office with Tom, her car filled with flowers.
And so the FLOWERBX idea started circulating, born out of this permanent need for single-stem variety blooms. Whitney started it as a side hustle while working with Tom Ford, but she soon realised that it had legs, and she realised that she had to give it everything, crediting this change with having her third baby. Stepping away from a role that she had identified with for twenty years also gave Whitney back her own identity, as she had always been linked to Gucci and then Tom Ford’s eponymous brand. Her husband, she had also met through Tom during their years at Gucci, was also working for the brand and so much of their relationship had been linked to being together and working together all of the time. Whitney also realised just how strong her friendship groups really had become when her best contacts and acquaintances rallied around to offer and show their support (Fiona Golfer at British Vogue at the time writing a huge feature on her practically from ‘Day one’).
Since the 2015 launch, FLOWERBX has taken the global industry by storm, with major tier-one names attached to the brand as dedicated clients. Caring about quality and consistency is key, each brand able to represent their own very clear identity through flowers (Dior is always pale pink roses, for example, with Whitney stating that you can’t go wrong with that). Quality has always been at the forefront of the brand language, and never compromising on this has ensured longevity and growth, despite the advice from early investors and shareholders. Whitney adds that she is so happy that she ‘stuck to her guns’, which has also defined FLOWERBX away from lower-tier competitors where the market is easily saturated, as she wanted to be the only premium online flower delivery company.
Back in a time of recession, it was the premium positioning and the fact that many consumers still care, first and foremost, about quality that has enabled FLOWERBX to continue to grow and succeed.
When it comes to day-to-day routine, a typical day in the life of Whitney begins with having the most amazing husband, advising how a support network is vital and can come in many forms, but support is needed because it’s vital. Exercise is also an essential ‘every single day’, crediting that she feels at least 85% better if she has exercised, more for her mindset than physical health, which she likes to do first thing every morning, even if it’s something as simple as a forty-five-minute walk in the park.
Post-COVID, her routine is very different. She used to be at the warehouse every morning with 4am starts; however, now every day can be very different, crediting the brilliance of her team, who are ‘very good at putting out fires’, many of which in floristry take place before 7 am.
In terms of sustainability, that was of key importance from the get-go rather than throwing the term around like a buzzword (and their first delivery van was an electric van, despite being very expensive to run). They have also never had plastic inner packaging (which in floristry is extremely difficult when flowers require a water source). Most impressive of all, however, is that the FLOWERBX business model is based on a zero-waste business model.
In terms of switching off, it’s not something that Whitney naturally feels a need to do, what with being so motivated and excited about what she is growing, but having kids in a way forces you to have those non-negotiable boundaries, as does a weekend house in the countryside to balance out the fast-paced life of the city, naturally carving out time with her family.
Episode Key Takeaways – The Best ideas
[On working with Tom] There was no better job in fashion and no one better to work for.
You must always have a ten-year plan.
Pregnancy can sometimes be a catalyst for wanting to change absolutely everything.
Start something as a side hustle – you will soon realise if it has potential to take the leap.
If you use the best quality, you can’t go wrong. Quality is everything.
Build your support network – both at home and at work and surround yourself with an amazing team. You can’t do it all alone.
Ensure you give things your full focus, be excited about what you’re working on, but also have those non-negotiables in place.
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