Earning hundreds of millions of dong near Tet, orchid flower arrangers "sleep during the day and work at night"

(Dan Tri) – Orchid weavers are paid by the orchid branch or by a finished work of art. With a job that requires high artistry and creativity, they often “sleep during the day and work at night”.

Compared to other Tet flowers, orchids “hit the streets” earlier, around the beginning of December. In addition to imported goods to serve the Lunar New Year market, orchid arrangers are also an important priority, causing businesses that sell this noble flower to seek out and invite them.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy, owner of a large orchid business in Vinh city ( Nghe An ), said that good orchid arrangers in Nghe An are quite rare. Every year, Ms. Thuy has to invite workers from other provinces to arrange flowers. In addition to familiar "connections" who have cooperated many times, the treatment regime such as wages and accommodation expenses are also decisive factors in choosing the destination of good flower arrangers.

Mr. Le Van Duy (from Lang Chanh district, Thanh Hoa) has many years of experience in the field of orchid arrangement. In previous years, Mr. Duy mainly worked for businesses in Hanoi . This year, according to the group's assignment, he and a group of workers went to Nghe An to work.

“To do this job, in addition to having artistic talent, thinking and creativity, it also requires meticulousness, patience and perseverance,” said Mr. Duy.

In recent years, the demand of orchid growers has gradually shifted from vases, spherical, symmetrical arrangements, to artistic orchids on driftwood. Therefore, each florist must constantly innovate, grasp trends and constantly be creative in their profession.

A finished orchid product that reaches the customer must go through many stages, each stage will correspond to the worker's salary. The simplest stage is fixing the orchid stem to the steel bars to create shape.

The orchid arranger’s salary depends on the skill and ability to meet the customer’s requirements, the technique of “potting” (arranging orchids in a ceramic vase) or “driftwood” (artistic flower arrangement on driftwood). Normally, the orchid arranger’s salary is calculated based on the number of flower stems used to complete the job.

The "counting branches" to calculate the price is often applied to "potting" workers, at a price of 20,000-25,000 VND/depending on the facility.

After 2-3 years of working as an assistant, the worker can handle the complete “potting” job by himself. Although the job is not too complicated, the “potting” worker must be careful and focused, because just breaking an orchid branch can cost several hundred thousand dong.

For "driftwood" workers, due to the high requirements for skills, artistry and creativity, the salary is also higher.

“When it comes to driftwood, if you count the branches, the labor cost is 35,000-40,000 VND/branch. However, normally, the labor cost of flower arrangers on driftwood is calculated based on the completed work, 5-7 million VND, or maybe higher,” said Mr. Duy.

Mr. Hoang Minh Toan (from Phu Tho ) and his team of workers have been at an orchid business in Vinh city since the beginning of December. The work of the team of workers usually lasts until about December 25. Depending on the skill, members of the flower arranging team can earn 3-4 million VND/day, and highly skilled workers earn 5-6 million VND/day.

According to Mr. Toan, orchid arranging requires high skills, artistic thinking and creative ideas. Because the job requires high creativity, the workers often work from late at night to dawn. That is the time when they can concentrate and are less distracted by noise. Due to the work schedule, orchid arranging workers only take a nap for about 4-5 hours and continue working at around 10am the next day.

It took Mr. Toan nearly a day to complete the orchid work on driftwood, which cost 80 million VND. The worker with 14 years of experience in orchid arranging received 8 million VND for this "work of art".

“Orchid arrangement on driftwood is very complicated and elaborate. First, the craftsman must come up with an idea on the driftwood, then come up with an idea to arrange orchids and combine decorative products. Each work on driftwood must highlight the artistic intention and importantly, the details must complement and enhance each other’s beauty,” said Mr. Toan.

The workload is high, eating, sleeping, and daily life are disrupted, but in return, orchid arrangers have a desirable income. In about 20 days, a normal orchid arranger can earn 50-60 million VND, a skilled worker can earn over 100 million VND, ensuring a prosperous and fulfilling Tet for the family.

Dantri.com.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/lao-dong-viec-lam/kiem-ca-tram-trieu-dong-dip-can-tet-tho-ket-hoa-lan-ngu-ngay-cay-dem-20250110165246922.htm