Ornamental potted plants : A booming flori-business

Priyadarshini Salam / M Molibala Devi / Nandini Chongtham *

Situation/Challenges Problem/Issues

Mr. Robertson after finishing his post-graduation could not find a suitable job and decided to start a flori business. Initially, he faced a lot of difficulty as the cost and expenses of starting ornamental nursery is high as protected structure is essential. Lack of proper infrastructure/post-harvest facility further added to his problem of more spoilage as ornamental plants are highly perishable.

Frequent bandhs and blockades in the past caused obstacle in his business. Marketing of the produce was not a smooth task in early days as people were not very much aware about indoor/potted plants but now with the changing lifestyle and increasing air pollution in our surroundings more people are now buying and keeping indoor plants not only for beautification but also to purify their home and the surrounding environment.

Response/Initiative

Mr. Robertson started his venture of selling quality planting materials and ornamental potted plants in the year 2015 in a protected structure of size (500 m2). Seeing the rise and demand of indoor plants and quality planting materials, he has further expanded his business and is now producing cut flowers and potted plants in 4 more protected structure.

The commercial value of potted plants has gained momentum in the recent years due to their requirements for instant gardening, indoor and outdoor decoration such as decoration of commercial complexes, corporate offices, offices, malls, hotels, and various other sites for different functions & events.

Besides this, pot plants are also used as great gift options and many online nurseries are now offering decorated pots as gift items. He also offers his potted plants both foliage and flower potted plants for rent for any events/programme for a specific period of time depending upon the needs of the customer/clients.

A surge in demand for pot plants for interior décor of office spaces and households as well as for purification of air in our surroundings is already seen. He further stated that residents of Imphal are buying more potted plants than earlier as land for gardening is becoming scarce and with rise in incomes more people are now buying expensive flowers and plants to decorate their homes.

Having a degree in marketing further helps him in strategizing the channels and knacks in marketing of the produce. Owing to the current pandemic situation, transportation of indoor plants is hindered greatly hence he is planning to set up a cold storage chamber in future to prevent losses/spoilage caused due to delay in transportation/marketing.

Results/Outcomes

Mr Robertson has named his venture Nursery Pool and plans to develop an online business (www.nuserypool.com) in the same name. For now he sells high quality planting materials, potted plants at wholesale rate in Imphal and other North Eastern States in offline mode. His nursery has a plethora of ornamental plants such as chrysanthemum, carnation, annual flowers, indoor plants etc.

Nursery pool is tied up with 3 company scientific seedlings Pvt. Ltd. These companies provide him with quality planting materials of ornamental plants which are in demand. Form this, he further multiplies and produce huge supply of any indoor/potted plants namely chrysanthemum, money plant, kalanchoe, pelargonium, peace lily, snake plant etc. Also, with the current pandemic situation, the demands and trends of the importance of indoor plants has increased tremendously.

Particulars Production (Nos.) Inputs procured Total input cost (a + b) Sale (Rs.)
Thermal Pots (a) Seedlings (b)
i. chrysanthemum multiflora and pot variety seedlings 3000 Rs. 60000/- (8 inch pot) @ Rs 20/pot Rs. 90000/- @ Rs 30/seedlings Rs. 150000/- 10,50,000/- (Rs 350/pot)
ii. Kalanchoe 1000 Rs. 5000/- (5 inch pot) @ Rs 5/pot 5000/- @ Rs 5/seedlings Rs. 10000/- 180000/- (Rs 180/pot)
iii. Calibrachoa 1000 Rs. 20000/- (8 inch pot) @ Rs 20/pot 10000/- @ Rs 10/seedlings Rs. 30000/- 350000/- (Rs 350/pot)
iv. Pelargonium 1000 Rs. 20000/- (8 inch pot) @ Rs 20/pot 20000/- @ Rs 20/seedlings Rs. 40000/- 300000/- (Rs 300/pot)
v. Hibiscus 2000 Rs. 20000/- (6 inch pot) @ Rs 10/pot 30000/- @ Rs 15/seedlings Rs. 50000/- 300000/- (Rs 300/pot)
vi. Vinca 1000 Rs. 20000/- (8 inch pot) @ R 20/pot 30000/- @ Rs 30/seedlings Rs. 50000/- 300000/- (Rs 300/pot)
vii. Pentas 1000 Rs. 20000/- (8 inch pot) @ Rs 20/pot 20000/- @Rs 20/seedlings Rs. 40000/- 300000/- (Rs 300/pot)
viii. Fertilizer (NPK) - - - Rs. 40000/-
ix. Media (sand, compost, peatmoss) - - - Rs. 100000/-
x. Workers (3 nos.) - - - Rs. 420000/-
Total cost: Rs. 930000/- 2780000/-
Net Profit: Rs. 1850000
B:C: 2.98

Evidence/Impact

Robertson is now a successful entrepreneur and annually his income is more than a salaried person. He gives training and provides guidance to aspiring florist who wants to start flori business.

KVK Imphal East gives has conducted skill training programme of farm women and rural youth on floriculture where Robertson provided insights and technical guidance on raising of quality planting materials of potted plants, preparation of media for raising nursery, high the floriculture, production of off-season ornamental plants, use of artificial light in regulation of flowering, importance of micro-irrigation in floriculture and marketing scenario of floriculture in Manipur etc.

Lesson Learned

With more than 5 years in this business, he has learnt that one must be flexible, open to changes, challenges and new technology and adapt with the latest trends and scenario to cater to the customer needs and demands which in turn will help in flourishing the business for a longer period of time.

He further says as we are now living in a digital era, new ways of marketing the products through social media such as Facebook or Instagram must be adopted to attract more customers.

In addition, putting a large and attractive hoarding outside the nursery helps in attracting customers as the nursery can be easily seen and people won’t have trouble in finding it. It is also important to keep nursery attractive and beautiful as most of the people will see the nursery from outside and will wish to come inside.


For further details contact: -
Public Relations& Media Management Cell,
CAU, Imphal.
Email: [email protected]