Powered to bloom
Kelly Jamieson, founder of Edible Blooms, knows the tech side of her business is sorted, thanks to Telstra, which gives her more time to focus on making her customers’ happy.
Edible Blooms is the brainchild of Kelly Jamieson. By connecting with Telstra, she has found her business is quite literally blooming. Here, Kelly talks us through her journey from vision to the nationwide success Edible Blooms is today.
How did Edible Blooms start?
Edible Blooms is just like a florist, but you get to eat our bouquets! When I first came across the idea, I had a gut feeling that it was going to work. If I loved it, other people would love it, too. When my sister, Abby, and I were young, we used to make biscuits and sell them, so I think we were destined to work with chocolate!
I sank everything I had into starting this business, despite my accountant telling me I couldn’t afford to and that it would close down in a day. I just said, “Let’s do it!” There is nothing better than putting everything on the line – because you have to make it work. I remember my first Brisbane customer. He sent a gift to his wife, “just because”. That melted my heart and I felt I was on to something.
What is your core business strength?
The most important things are the taste and the look, but as an online store, our customers’ experience is everything to us. Being quick and responsive to customer needs is something that we work really hard
“An entrepreneur is just a little bit of crazy and a lot of ‘can-do’.” KELLY JAMIESON FOUNDER OF EDIBLE BLOOMS
on improving all the time. When our customers’ are happy, we have a business that just keeps on going.
How does technology help you stay in touch with your team?
The greatest benefit of technology is that Abby and I can see exactly what our stores are doing within Australia. The speed and accuracy of the data I am working with helps me make better business decisions, and having cloud-based systems means I can see minute to minute what is happening across all our Edible Blooms locations, while working from my home office.
How has Telstra technology helped digitise your business?
We recognised early on that people are time-poor. Our Neto online store from Telstra is integrated with other platforms, we have a lot of touch points with the customer to keep them updated from when we make their order, through delivery to when it finally arrives. Also, we can take our Neto online store to where our customers are – if they are on eBay or Facebook, our Neto online store can talk to them.
Our Neto online store from Telstra is integrated with a lot of other platforms, including our accounting software. I never thought it would give me the amount of flexibility it has. I still work really hard, but I can work where I want to work.
How do you manage your work/life balance?
For me, it comes down to life enjoyment. The cloud-based systems we have from Telstra allow me to work from my farm in South Australia, while Abby runs the operations from our Melbourne office, but we can still be in touch with our business locations.
When my business systems are working perfectly, I can spend my time where I want to, which is about the customer. I love my family, I love my business and when they work together, that is when I am the happiest I can be.
“Even when I am at the markets, I can check sales on my Neto dashboard and place orders. I can even check on my staff availability using the Telstra Business Apps”