Entrepreneurial behaviour of florists

Introduction

Floriculture in India has evolved from a traditional practice into a thriving business, driven by urbanization, rising consumer demand and increasing export opportunities. It plays an important role in agriculture, supporting both rural and urban livelihoods, especially helping farmers and businesses linked to agriculture. With its diverse climate, India grows a variety of flowers and places like Maval taluka of Pune district, Satara and Nashik in Maharashtra are key areas for growing flowers like gerbera, carnations and roses. The demand for flowers, especially cut flowers, is increasing in India and abroad due to changing lifestyles and higher incomes. Government programs, like export promotion schemes by APEDA, have also helped this sector grow. However, floriculture business also faces challenges in terms of marketing and meeting urban consumers' demand for timely flower delivery. Florists in this fast changing market show strong entrepreneurial skills, mixing creativity with smart business strategies to meet market demands and grow their businesses. Entrepreneurs are people who start and manage businesses, using innovation to increase profits and bring about change. Their role is essential for the growth of the floriculture sector and they contribute significantly to the country's economy. This study focuses on the entrepreneurial behavior of florists in Pune, where traditional methods meet modern business ideas. As Pune's urban environment and consumer preferences change, florists must combine creativity with good business planning to succeed. They work in a market influenced by seasonal trends, festivals and the growing importance of sustainability. This requires them to show innovation, leadership, risk taking and effective marketing skills. By studying how florists balance artistic creativity with business skills, this research provides valuable insights into their entrepreneurial qualities and level of their entrepreneurial behaviour.

Methodology

Pune, located in Maharashtra on the Deccan plateau in Western India, is known as the "Queen of the Deccan" and was once the cultural capital of the Maratha empire. With geographical coordinates of 18° 31' N and 73° 51' E, Pune is a metropolitan city where the florist business has flourished, making it an ideal location for this study. The research follows an ex-post facto design and is part of survey-based research. A total of 140 respondents were randomly selected from various parts of Pune city. Data was collected using a structured interview schedule, designed based on objectives of the study. The schedule was pretested on non-sample respondents to ensure its accuracy and necessary changes were made before the final data collection. Personal interviews were conducted to gather www.extensionjournal.com information, which was then analysed using statistical tools like percentages and frequencies. Respondents were scored on a scale of 2, 1 and 0. The total score for each respondent was calculated by summing up all obtained scores. They were then grouped into three categories using the tertiles categorization method.

Results and Discussion

Floristry is a business that demands a high level of entrepreneurial skill. The entrepreneurial behaviour of florists was operationally defined as the cumulative outcome of various components, including innovativeness, decision making ability, risk orientation, management orientation, leadership ability, achievement motivation, competition orientation and self efficacy. The entrepreneurial behaviour of florists was assessed based on these components which were presented below. The data was collected, analysed to obtain results and presented in detail in Table1. [4] and Wadekar (2016) [14] .

Decision Making Ability

It was observed that nearly two fifth (39.29 per cent) of the florists fell into the medium category while, 36.43 per cent were classified as possessing high decision making ability followed by nearly one fourth (24.29) of the them having low decision making ability. Most of the florists in Pune had moderate decision making skills means they were capable but sometimes cautious or slow. About 36.43 per cent florists were very good at decision making, confident and independent, likely due to good education, social activity and digital exposure. Around one-fourth of them struggled to make decisions and faced difficulties in taking firm actions for their business. These findings were similar with findings of Nagesh (2006) [3] and Shreekant and Jahagirdar (2017) [10] .

Risk Orientation

Majority of florists (54.29 per cent) showed a medium level of risk orientation followed by 25.71 per cent showing low risk orientation, while 20 per cent of them showed a high level of risk orientation. Most of the florists had medium risk orientation balancing caution and risk, who were often middle-aged with stable incomes. Low risk takers were likely older and experienced, preferring stability due to lower education or income. High risk takers were younger, better educated and wealthier, using technology and modern methods to stay ahead. These findings were similar with findings of Nagesh et al. (2011) [4] , Raghunath (2014) [8] and Bindu et al. (2019) [1] .

Management Orientation

The majority (54.29 per cent) of the florists showed medium management orientation. Whereas, more than one fourth (26.42 per cent) of florists had a poor management orientation, followed by 19.29 per cent of them having a high management orientation. Florists with medium management orientation had moderate experience and education and they were using structured practices effectively. Those with high management orientation were experienced, well-educated and used digital tools to adopt modern strategies for better growth. Florists with low management orientation were less experienced and educated, managing their business informally. These findings were similar with the findings of Shewale (2017) [9] and Swati et al. (2017) [11] .

Leadership Ability

The majority (55.00 per cent) of the florists fell into the medium category. Meanwhile, one fourth (25.71 per cent) of the florists were having low leadership ability followed by 19.29 per cent of them possessing high leadership ability. Florists with medium leadership ability had some experience and education and could improve with training. Those with high leadership ability were more experienced and educated and they were using social networks and community building to strengthen their leadership. Florists with low leadership ability were lacking experience in team www.extensionjournal.com management and had lower education, limiting their leadership potential. These findings were similar with the findings of Nagesha (2005) [5] , Thakare (2013) [13] and Swati et al. (2017) [11] .

Achievement Motivation

More than half (52.14 per cent) of florists were categorised as having medium achievement motivation, followed by 34.29 per cent florists in the low achievement motivation category, while 13.57 per cent of them showed high achievement motivation. Most of the florists had medium achievement motivation attributing to moderate income and education, balancing ambition and risk. Florists with high achievement motivation were usually well educated and financially stable and were driven to succeed and compete in the market. Florists with low achievement motivation often had lower income and education, preferring stability over growth due to fear of failure. These findings showed similarity with the findings of Nagesha (2005) [5] , Shewale (2017) [9] and Shreekant and Jahagirdar (2017) [10] .

Competition Orientation

The majority (53.57 per cent) of florists showed medium level of competition orientation followed by 27.14 per cent of them showing high competition orientation and nearly one fifth (19.29 per cent) of the florists had low competition orientation. Florists with medium competition orientation formed the majority, balancing income and decision making with a moderate approach. Those with high competition orientation were most probably younger, well-educated, financially secure and bold in taking risks for growth. Florists with low competition orientation might be due to reason that they were often older, risk-averse and less decisive, resulting in lower income. These findings were similar with findings of Patel (2005) [7] and Patel (2010) [6] .

Self Efficacy

Less than half (47.86 per cent) of the florists showed medium self efficacy, followed by 37.14 per cent who displayed high self efficacy. A smaller group, 15.00 per cent fell into the low self efficacy category. Florists with high self efficacy (37.14 per cent) likely had strong achievement motivation which enabled them to tackle challenges more effectively and innovate in their businesses. Education might have also played a role, as more educated florists tend to feel more confident in their abilities, contributing to higher self efficacy. Age could be another factor with older florists who have more experience possibly feeling more capable, while younger ones were still building their confidence, which might explain the lower self efficacy percentages. These findings were similar with findings of Taufiq et al. (2011) [12] and Deepthi (2016) [2] .

Overall entrepreneurial behaviour

The overall entrepreneurial behaviour was derived from the above data by adding up the scores of all eight selected components, which together made up the entrepreneurial behaviour score of the florists. The majority (57.86 per cent) of florists, fell under the medium entrepreneurial behaviour category, while nearly one fourth (24.28 per cent) of them exhibited low entrepreneurial behaviour. A smaller proportion (17.86 per cent) of florists demonstrated high entrepreneurial behaviour. Most of the florists had medium entrepreneurial behaviour due to moderate levels of innovativeness, decision making ability, risk orientation and management orientation. They balanced decisions well and took calculated risks but didn't fully explore high risk opportunities. Florists in the low category lacked confidence or resources, limiting their business efforts. A smaller group with high entrepreneurial behaviour actively worked on growth, innovation and success. These findings were similar with the findings of Nagesha (2005) [5] , Wadekar (2016) [14] and Shewale (2017) [9] .

Conclusion

The research on the entrepreneurial behaviour of florists in Pune showed that most of the florists had moderate levels of innovation, decision making ability, risk taking ability and leadership. These qualities helped them navigate the competitive floriculture industry, where demand and consumer preferences fluctuate consistently. The study highlights the need for skill development, innovation and structural improvements to overcome challenges and create opportunities for future growth in the florist business.

References

1. Bindu N, Shivalingaiah YN, Shwetha NV. Entrepreneurial behaviour of flower growers in Tumkur district of Karnataka State. Int J Curr Microbiol Appl Sci. 2019;8(3):656-663.
2. Deepthi V. A critical study on entrepreneurial behaviour of agripreneurs in Andhra Pradesh. PhD thesis. Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University, Guntur; 2016.
3. Nagesh. Study on entrepreneurial behaviour of pomegranate growers in Bagalkot district of Karnataka. MSc (Agri) thesis, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad; 2006.
4. Nagesh B, Halakatti SV, Hanchinal SN. Study on entrepreneurial behaviour of pomegranate growers. Agric Update. 2011;6(3&4):122-125.
5. Patel DD. Management efficiency of rose growers. PhD thesis. Anand Agricultural University, Anand, Gujarat; 2010.
6. Raghunath AK. Entrepreneurial behaviour of the nursery owners. MSc (Ag) thesis. Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Maharashtra; 2014.
7. Shewale AS. Entrepreneurial attributes of nursery owners in Marathwada region. MSc (Agri) thesis. Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth, Parbhani; 2017.
8. Shreekant, Jahagirdar KA. An analysis of entrepreneurial behaviour of dry grape (raisin) producers of Vijayapura district. J Farm Sci. 2017;30(4):491-495.
9. Swati K, Prajapati MR, Patel VT. Entrepreneurial attributes of nursery growers. Gujrat J Ext Educ. 2017;28(2):418-421.
10. Taufiq A, Shamsul H, Haneef R. Entrepreneurial characteristics of the agripreneurs under the scheme of agriclinics and agri-business centers. J Community Mobil Sustain Dev. 2011;6(2):145-149.