The HoneyBook Alternative Built for Florists
HoneyBook is great for general business management, but florists need more. Curate gives you beautiful proposals plus stem counting, recipes, shopping lists, and production tools that HoneyBook simply doesn't offer.
"The efficiencies that we've created with Curate have been life-changing for the company."
Stacy K Ercan · Stacy K Floral
What is HoneyBook?
HoneyBook is a popular client management platform used by over 100,000 small businesses. It's designed for creative professionals across many industries: photographers, event planners, consultants, coaches, and yes, florists too.
HoneyBook does a great job with general business tasks: scheduling, invoicing, contracts, and client communication. It's a solid all-in-one CRM for businesses that don't have industry-specific needs.
But here's the challenge for florists: HoneyBook treats your floral business the same way it treats a photographer or a life coach. It has no concept of stems, recipes, wholesaler orders, or production sheets. If you're running a serious floral operation, you'll quickly feel the limitations.
Why Florists Outgrow HoneyBook
HoneyBook is a capable CRM, but it wasn't built for the unique challenges of running a floral business. Here's what florists tell us they're missing.
No recipe or stem counting
HoneyBook has no floral recipe functionality. You can't track stems per arrangement or calculate quantities needed across an event.
Curate's recipe builder tracks every stem, calculates totals, and generates shopping lists automatically.
No profit margin visibility
HoneyBook doesn't track your cost of goods sold or wholesale costs. You're flying blind on true profitability.
Curate shows your COGS and profit margin on every arrangement. Price with confidence.
No automatic shopping lists
HoneyBook can't generate shopping lists from your proposals. You have to manually tally stems and create orders.
Curate auto-generates shopping lists you can email to any supplier. Combine multiple events into one order.
Built for everyone, specialized for no one
HoneyBook serves photographers, coaches, consultants, and florists equally. That means it lacks florist-specific features.
Curate was built by florists, for florists. Every feature is designed for the way floral businesses work.
See How Curate Transforms Florist Workflows
Suzanna Cameron of Stems Brooklyn shares how Curate cut her proposal time from 1.5-2 hours down to just 20 minutes.
"I'm making a template from the start that I'm repurposing, making a custom wedding proposal for a client in less than an hour. Typically, it takes me anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes."
— Suzanna Cameron, Owner, Stems Brooklyn
Curate vs HoneyBook: Feature Comparison for Florists
See how Curate's florist-specific features compare to HoneyBook's general tools.
| Feature | Curate | HoneyBook |
|---|---|---|
| Built specifically for florists | ✓ | ✗ |
| Stem counting & floral recipes | ✓ | ✗ |
| Automatic shopping list generation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Markup management by item type | ✓ | ✗ |
| Mayesh floral library integration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Multiple photos per line item (up to 8) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Printable recipe/production sheets | ✓ | ✗ |
| Rental inventory management (add-on) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Real-time proposal updates (one link) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Beautiful, customizable proposals | ✓ | ✓ |
| E-signature contracts | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payment processing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Client communication | ✓ | ✓ |
What Florists Say About Curate
Don't just take our word for it. Here's what floral professionals have to say about making the switch.
"I had a really strong wedding brand and Curate helped me take it to another level. It has helped us create and implement processes for each category of our wedding business. The efficiencies that we've created with Curate have been life-changing for the company."
"They've reduced the time it takes to create proposals by 50%. I would recommend Curate in a heartbeat."
"I like that customer service is always listening to the input of its users and updating or adding tools to meet those needs. The ability to share a link to the proposed contract and the client's designs, colors, and even dedicate a page to them is great."
Who is Curate Best For?
Curate is built for florists who've outgrown generic tools and need software that actually understands the floral business.
Wedding Florists
Create stunning proposals with detailed recipes, track every stem, and generate production sheets for seamless event execution.
Event Florists
From corporate events to galas, manage diverse projects with flexible pricing, automatic shopping lists, and real-time client updates.
Profit-Focused Florists
Finally see your true cost of goods and profit margins on every arrangement. Not just overall revenue like in HoneyBook.
Florists with Rentals
Track vases, containers, arches, and more. Prevent overbooking and generate pull lists for your team.
Growing Floral Businesses
Scale your operations with tools that save hours each week. Combine events into single wholesaler orders and optimize your purchasing.
Time-Strapped Florists
If you're tired of manual stem counting, spreadsheet recipes, and cobbling together multiple tools... Curate consolidates everything.
Real Results from Real Florists
See the difference florist-specific software makes.
"They've reduced the time it takes to create proposals by 50%. I would recommend Curate in a heartbeat."
— Shaya Sherwood, Stella Event Design
"Curate saves me 10-15 hours per week... It might take me an hour and a half, now I've got it down to 15, 20 minutes."
— Joanna Walton, Joanna Walton Flowers
"Each individual proposal has probably saved me at least 2 hours worth of work. I am just booking so much more."
— Abby Beauchamp, Dermont Florist
Proposals That Show Your Floral Designs, Not Just Prices
HoneyBook proposals are basic: one photo per item plus a header image. That might work for a photographer, but florists need to showcase their designs in detail.
Curate lets you add up to 8 photos per line item, drag and drop directly from Pinterest, and include color palettes and inspiration boards. Your proposals become visual experiences. They help clients fall in love with your designs.
- Multiple photos per arrangement (up to 8)
- Inspiration boards and color palettes
- Real-time updates. No resending needed
"Curate helped me take my wedding brand to another level. The efficiencies we've created have been life-changing."
Stacy K Ercan · Stacy K Floral
Stem Counting, Recipes & Shopping Lists — Built In
HoneyBook has no concept of stems, recipes, or wholesaler orders. You'd have to track everything manually in spreadsheets. That's the exact problem you're trying to solve.
Curate's recipe builder tracks every stem in every arrangement. It automatically calculates totals across your entire event and generates shopping lists you can email to any supplier. The math is done for you.
"My favorite feature? The math is done for me. I'm a very right-brain creative person and I hate doing math. Curate remembers my percentages, my labor cost, my fees, all of my pricing."
Shaya Sherwood · Stella Event Design
See Your True Profit on Every Arrangement
HoneyBook shows you revenue, but not your cost of goods sold. Are you actually making money on that bridal bouquet? You won't know unless you're tracking wholesale costs separately.
Curate tracks your wholesale costs and automatically calculates your profit margin on every arrangement. Set markup profiles by item type (flowers vs. hardgoods), and price with confidence knowing exactly what you'll earn.
Why Florists Choose Curate Over HoneyBook
HoneyBook is a good general CRM. But for florists who want to scale and work more efficiently, Curate is the obvious choice.
Built for Florists, Not Everyone
HoneyBook serves photographers, coaches, and consultants the same way it serves florists. Curate was built specifically for the floral industry. Every feature is designed for how florists actually work.
Recipe & Stem Counting
HoneyBook has zero recipe functionality. Curate tracks every stem, calculates quantities automatically, and generates shopping lists. Eliminates hours of manual work.
True Profitability Visibility
Stop guessing whether you're making money. Curate shows your cost of goods and profit margin on every arrangement, helping you price with confidence.
Visual Proposals That Sell
HoneyBook limits you to one photo per item. Curate lets you add up to 8 photos, create inspiration boards, and showcase your designs the way they deserve.
Automatic Shopping Lists
HoneyBook can't generate shopping lists from your proposals. Curate creates them automatically from your recipes. Email them to any supplier you prefer.
Production & Execution Tools
Generate printable recipe sheets for your production team, track rentals, and create pull lists. Tools HoneyBook doesn't offer.
We'll Help You Make the Switch
Switching software can feel overwhelming. That's why our dedicated migration team works with you every step of the way. We'll make sure your transition from HoneyBook to Curate goes smoothly.
Data Migration
We'll transfer your clients, templates, and historical data from HoneyBook.
Personalized Training
Get one-on-one onboarding to ensure you and your team are confident with Curate.
Ongoing Support
Our team is always here to help via email, chat, and scheduled video calls.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about switching from HoneyBook to Curate.
What's the biggest difference between HoneyBook and Curate for florists?
HoneyBook is a general CRM built for all creative businesses (photographers, coaches, consultants, and florists alike). Curate is built specifically for florists, with industry-specific features like stem counting, recipe building, automatic shopping lists, COGS tracking, and production tools that HoneyBook simply doesn't offer.
Can I track my stems and recipes in HoneyBook?
No. HoneyBook has no recipe or stem counting functionality. You'd need to track stems manually in spreadsheets or use additional software. Curate's recipe builder is built-in, tracking every stem and automatically calculating quantities across your entire event.
How long does it take to switch from HoneyBook to Curate?
Most florists are fully operational on Curate within 2-4 weeks. Our dedicated migration team handles data transfer and provides personalized onboarding to ensure a smooth transition.
Can you migrate my data from HoneyBook?
Yes! We work with you to migrate your customer data, templates, and historical information from HoneyBook to Curate. Our team handles the heavy lifting so you can focus on your business.
Does Curate have proposals and contracts like HoneyBook?
Absolutely. And more. Curate creates beautiful, customizable proposals with e-signatures and integrated payments, just like HoneyBook. But Curate also lets you add multiple photos per line item (up to 8), include detailed recipes, and update proposals in real-time without resending.
Can I use both HoneyBook and Curate together?
Some florists do! They use HoneyBook for general CRM tasks and vendor collaboration, while using Curate for florist-specific features like proposals, recipes, and production. However, most find that Curate handles everything they need, making HoneyBook redundant.
Can Curate generate shopping lists for my wholesaler?
Yes! Curate automatically generates shopping lists from your recipes, which you can email to any supplier. You can also combine multiple events into a single order to optimize your purchasing.
What if I need help after switching?
Curate provides ongoing support via email and scheduled video calls. You'll also have access to our extensive knowledge base with an AI assistant, video tutorials, and regular training webinars.
Can multiple team members use Curate?
Yes! Curate allows your entire team to access the system simultaneously. Each team member gets their own login with role-based permissions. Perfect for growing floral businesses.
Ready for Software Built for Florists?
Schedule a free demo to see why florists are choosing Curate as their HoneyBook alternative.
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