FLORENCE, Ky. — John Fitzpatrick said he’s been with the Secret Garden by Roses and More for about 30 years. His daily tasks include filling up vans with flower arrangements and getting those to customers.

What You Need To Know

  • National Average Gas prices reported by AAA on May 27 shows gas at $4.599

  • Kentucky’s price average sits at $4.294 reported by AAA on May 27

  • Employees at The Secret Garden by Roses and More in Florence area say they’re doing anywhere from 20 to 30 deliveries a day

  • They say they could fill up the tank on vans about once a day

“Most of my day-like 75%-most of my day is just making deliveries,” Fitzpatrick said.

Fitzpatrick said he could make 20 to 30 deliveries in a day. The business fills up the tank amid inflation as gas prices skyrocket around the commonwealth and nation. Kentucky’s reported price average sits at $4.294, according to AAA on May 27, 2022. 

“These vans. I fill up about one van once a day,” he said.

He said it could be 60 to 70 dollars to fill up the tank in a van.

Janet Ratliff is one of the flower shop’s owners. She said besides gas, they’re impacted by a shortage of helium and are just battling inflation and supply chain shortages.

“We’ve had to increase prices on our deliveries just a little bit. We haven’t really done what it has really affected us. The cost of flowers keep going up just because the cost of getting the product here and even locating the product is getting more difficult,” she said.

Ratliff and other employees were working away on flower arrangements for Fitzpatrick to tackle. Ratliff said this time of year is busy with all kinds of graduations, celebrations and weddings.

“Weddings are all of Northern Kentucky, even south of Florence. They go all the way into Cincinnati as well, so we cover a really wide range of areas and do a lot of traveling,” she said. 

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