Floral Designer

Description: Floral designers create wide varieties and types of floral arrangements and presentations that are commonly sold in today’s marketplace; grocery stores, flower shops, wholesale floral companies, and eco-friendly floral and gift boutiques.

Knowledge Required: Business, marketing, floriculture, visual arts, design

Skills: Leadership, critical thinking, business planning and strategy, sales, customer relationships

Career Path: Floral designers may take classes in business, floriculture or ornamental horticulture. Many designers start off working at a flower or gift shop to hone their skills, and eventually handle large events for their own small businesses.

Best Cities for this job: Santa Barbara, Oakland, San Francisco, New York City

Median Annual Income: National: $34,392. CA: $57,500

Future Growth: Employment of floral designers is expected to decline slowly, by 3 percent, between 2008 and 2018. However, there will be continued demand for speciality floral retailers for custom orders.

From the field: "I've learned so much more by actually just doing, than just reading books." - Pilar Zuniga, Owner of Gorgeous & Green