The QPMA Pillar of the Industry for 2014, Bernadette Hamel, was welcomed onstage with a thundering standing ovation during the closing banquet at the annual QPMA Convention. A dynamic woman whose commitment to the industry is evident, Hamel made her mark at QPMA by being elected its first female president in 2007-08.

“If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.” — Sir Isaac Newton.

It’s fascinating to me that this manifesto was proclaimed in the 1600s by one of the world’s greatest scientific minds, Sir Isaac Newton, the master of astronomy, chemistry, physics, mathematical science and theology. Quite simply, Sir Isaac Newton discovered how the universe stays together.

In a world where instant gratification is not fast enough, we still find large groups of people who understand that the journey is a very important part of the destination. This was certainly the case at the recently held American Institute of Floral Designers Symposium, Transition Transformation, in Chicago.

A 20 percent increase in pre-registrations for Agriflor, the international flower exhibition in Quito, Ecuador, Oct. 1-4, has organizers very excited. The 135,000-square-foot CEMEXPO Exhibition Center will be filled with flowers, international visitors and over 200 exhibitors, according to a news release from organizer HPP Exhibitions in Amsterdam.

Frank Biddle, owner and managing partner at Tradewinds International in Boulder, CO, told The Produce News that he’s attended Agriflor since 1996.

The hunt for trends is a roller coaster ride for our design team. Deciphering and categorizing the plethora of available information can be quite a challenge. As we work through it all, we begin to see certain trends emerge and grow and take on a life of their own; the following four stand out, and apply to broad applications, including floral sleeves and packaging.

Some feel the poinsettia is turning into a common plant with nowhere to go but down in sales and popularity, but is that really where it is heading?

With more than 100 varieties of this incredible plant, along with a clean bill of health on the toxicity claims that once haunted it (although we do not suggest you toss a salad with your holiday poinsettia — it is no longer considered toxic or deadly); the USDA estimates there will be $250 million dollars worth of poinsettia sales in 2014, which makes it the best-selling potted plant in America.