He was once a counselor to Black and Hispanic teenagers in a Catholic home for orphan boys. He is now the predominant player in the nation’s entire flower industry. He directs fund-raising for the New Hope Community, a residential treatment home for disabled adults.
And at the same time, he has been named Entrepreneur of the Year 1990 by Inc. Magazine.
He is Jim McCann a man with a social conscience and a self-made millionaire who has revolutionized the way we purchase flowers in this country. Tall, bearded, with a twinkle in his eye, this smiling Irishman owns one of America’s fastest growing companies called 800-Flowers.
The concept behind 800-Flowers is so brilliant in its simplicity that one wonders why it never happened long ago. Here’s how it works: You can have flowers or gift baskets delivered across town, across the country or to practically anywhere in the world-twenty-four hours a day. seven days a week. Just pick up the phone, dial toll-free 800-Flowers and place your order. It’s simple, easy, inexpensive and-McCann hastens to add-there’s an absolute guarantee. “We ask for people’s trust. And we had better earn that trust. And we do.”
Coca-Cola, Schweppes, Kay Jewelers, Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain Cereal and Hershey Chocolate are just a few of the companies who have enlisted 800-Flowers to promote their own products.
These joint ventures not only paid off well for these companies but also introduced thousands of new customers to 800-Flowers. And keeping customers is what this marketing wizard excels at. In his “Never Forget” program, he reminds people of upcoming dates for which they may want to send flowers or gifts. And the “Save-A-Dozen” program entitles customers who have placed twelve orders through 800-Flowers to send a free dozen roses anywhere in the United States.
Last Mother’s Day he created one of his favorite promotions with the national newspaper USA Today.
Readers were asked to submit reasons why their mother should win a free bouquet of flowers.
“One little boy wrote that his Mommy was the best in the world because she brought his goldfish back to life and she did it by mouth-to-mouth resuscitation!” Jim McCann, who is a father of three children, throws his head back in hearty laughter. He has a lot to be happy about these days. He has doubled the business of 800-Flowers every two years since 1984.
The entrepreneurial gift was bred early in Jim McCann. He is the oldest of five children and was raised in Queens, New York, where his father owns a painting contracting company.
Both his grandmothers came from County Armagh, Ireland. “My internal chip had it encoded that you work a lot. I got that from my family. I always worked a couple of jobs even in college. We had a good life but we also had a sense that money was valuable.” he says.
The McCanns are a close family.
Every member now works for 800-Flowers, including Jim’s younger brother, Kevin, who has been retarded since birth. It was partly because of Kevin, and the closeness he brought to the family, that Jim turned to social work after graduating from the City University of New York. “The idea of “giving back” was always important in my family and still is.” Besides working for the New Hope Community where Kevin lives, Jim sits on the board of two homes for children, St.
John’s Home for Boys, where he worked in Rockaway Beach, Queens, and St. Joseph’s, a home for girls run by the Josephite Sisters. He is also on the board of the Brooklyn Catholic Child Care Society.
In 1976, as his young family started to blossom, he bought his first flower shop which has now grown to become the Floral Plenty chain. “Back then I knew little about flowers except that they were pretty and smelled nice and that the people in the business scemed nice too. But once you start writing checks you learn pretty fast the difference between a begonia and a chrysanthemum. You know, sending someone flowers is a way of communicating caring. It is an inexpensive way to express a sentiment. You don’t have to be a Longfellow the flowers speak for themselves. And the goose bumps you give to the person receiving the flowers are the same goose bumps you get when they call to thank you for your thoughtfulness. Our job is to make this as easy as possible,” he says.
What’s next?
“First there’s Valentine’s Day-one of our busiest holidays. And then there’s our move to new, expanded headquarters,” he says.
And where is that going to be?
“Where else would a flower company locate its main offices? Garden City, Long Island!” says the president of 800-Flowers with a big Irish smile.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the February 1991 issue of Irish America. ♦
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