Thanks to the Internet, both florists and consumers can access wholesale flowers. There are roughly 900 flower wholesalers in the U.S. and more than 20,000 floral shops in the country that serve as resellers. And more people are buying flowers from retailers than ever before. According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, flowers sales have gone up one billion dollars every year for the past decade.

Where are all of the flowers coming from? According to the Society of American Florists, two-thirds of all flowers are imported into the United States. Colombia is the largest supplier by far. In the continental U.S., California is the primary provider of fresh flowers and has 77% of the domestic market share.

Women are still the biggest purchaser of flowers, so if you are a reseller of wholesale flowers, be aware of who your main customer really is. Women buy nearly two-thirds of all fresh flowers.

Mother’s Day is big business for floral retailers. Two-thirds of all gifts on Mother’s Day are flowers, according to the National Retail Federation. Even in a bad economy, shoppers do not miss Mother’s Day, though they may give extra consideration to prices and look for something within their budgetary constraints. For those shoppers who do not buy flowers for mom, gifts such as jewelry, spa services, brunch, and books or CDs are typically purchased instead.

For Valentine’s Day, retailers need to stock up on wholesale flowers from their distributor, because it is the one holiday that generates the most revenue during the year. Red roses account for half of all the Valentine’s Day flowers that are purchased, though other flowers and plants are growing in popularity. According to a floral trends study performed in 2005, many women send flowers and gifts to their mothers on Valentine’s Day, so it’s not just a romantic holiday anymore.

Because the floral industry continues to expand rather than contract each year, savvy business executives will continue to capitalize on flower trends to capture more of the market base.