Florists expect bumper Sant Jordi sales of over 7 million roses

The Florists' Guild of Catalonia (Gremi de Floristes de Catalunya) expects to sell more roses for Sant Jordi 2025 than the seven million sold last year.

The sector is also optimistic they can reach €20 million in sales, the guild's president explained during a press conference on Wednesday.

Roses and books are the two traditional gifts that lovers, friends and relatives exchange in Catalonia on April 23, Saint George's Day.

Joan Guillén said that professional florists will have nearly 2,200 points of sale across Catalonia, a figure that grows significantly when factoring in individual sellers.

The guild also presented the winning design for the Sant Jordi 'rosa d'autor' (signature rose) project, created by Paula Jericó.

One million 'rosa d'autor' labels are already making their way to all corners of Catalonia.

"We hope that this will help us reach our goal of selling one million 'roses d'autor' this year, Guillén said.

In the flower sector, we are talking about sales exceeding €20 million, but we are concerned about how much of that stays within the professional sector," he admitted.

Flower stalls

The streets of towns and cities across Catalonia fill with people on Sant Jordi, browsing the book stalls, getting their new purchases signed by their favorite author and buying roses for loved ones.

Regarding flower stands, Guillén said that Barcelona has 400 florists that have the right to place a stall on the street outside their establishment, while, in total, there are between 800 and 900 established professional florist stalls in the city.

In 2024, 4,100 licenses to sell roses were granted to private individuals in Barcelona, alongside nearly 2,000 unauthorized stalls, according to reports.

The guild president therefore criticized what he called the "excessive intrusion" into the market.

He estimates that professional florists will have 2,200 points of sale across Catalonia.

Guillén called on all local authorities to act sensibly and "not oversupply the market in every town." He reminded everyone that florists are a year-round business and should be defended as part of the local commerce sector.

Roses from Ecuador and Colombia

The guild president believes the total number of roses sold in Catalonia will likely reach around seven million again this year, with 70% to 80% coming from Ecuador and Colombia, and the rest sourced from the Netherlands.

Podcast

Learn more about Sant Jordi in a special Filling the Sink episode recorded last year: Books, roses and legends - Celebrating Sant Jordi in Catalonia.