Talmage & Trends w/ Talmage McLaurin

"Trends are a fun way to tell a new story" says renowned floral trend forecaster, Talmage McLaurin AIFD. "Trends are not revolutionary, they're evolutionary." Tiny shifts. A movement forward, rather than a disruption. Eye-catching trends capture consumer interest and drive impulse sales. Listen as Talmage shares six floral trends that will inspire us in 2023.

How we Bloom podcast is an oasis of flower ideas. Hosts Sharon McGukin and Smithers-Oasis North America invite floral guests who dare to do things differently. We listen, learn, explore new opportunities and that's how we bloom!

Transcript

Talmage McLaurin: (00:10)
“I think every time you shop, you walk into the store and no matter where it is, you're looking around for what's new.”

Sharon McGukin: (00:26)
Welcome to How We Bloom, an Oasis of flower ideas. I'm your host, Sharon McGukin AIFD, AAF, PFCI, and I believe that every great success story starts with one simple idea. That's why we interview those who dare to do things differently. Inspiring people who plant seeds, grow ideas, and bloom to their full potential. In this podcast, we listen, learn, explore new opportunities, and that's How We Bloom.

Sharon McGukin: (01:05)
We have a very special guest today, my favorite trend forecaster - Talmage McLaurin AIFD. Along with his take on trends, you'll be entertained by Talmage's keen observations and dry sense of humor. I, like many other floral trendwatchers, love to see his annual trend forecast presented on stage. If you've missed it, no worries. You can visit flower.style.com to find those inspirational images and trend stories as they evolve. Talmage's floral career began in a family-owned flower business. In 1990, he launched a 23-year floral publishing career contributing to more than 400 issues of Florist Review and Super Floral magazines. As the creative director and publisher for Florists Review Enterprises, Talmage was featured in more than 20 books for florists. Inducted into AIFD - the American Institute of Floral Designers, in 1988, Talmage has staged eight popular trend presentations at National Symposia.

Sharon McGukin: (02:19)
In 2008, he received the AIFD Award of Distinguished Service to the floral industry. Known for his astute trend forecasting abilities, Talmage conceptualized the America Floral Trends Forecast in 2002. He remained involved in its publication until 2014. Now, Talmage resides in Fort Lauderdale and is part of the Creative Team of Sunshine Bouquet in Miami. Trend-spotting for flower farms, growers and importers. Capturing every part of the industry from production, marketing, and business sales to the newest designs and color palettes. In his nearly three decades of trend-watching, Talmage has discerned that floral trends are not revolutionary - they're evolutionary. Our dear friend and floral forecaster is here today to share those details with us. Hello, Talmage. Welcome.

Talmage McLaurin: (03:28)
Good afternoon. It's good to see you. I like looking at the people that I talk to.

Sharon McGukin: (03:34)
That is very nice. To be able to feel like we are in one place,

Talmage McLaurin: (03:39)
Like we are in one place. We're talking about something very visual today, and we don't have a visual medium, so I'm going to have to use my words. As we tell children all the time "Use your words, stop screaming." Yeah, I sort of fell into this whole trends thing by accident, I think more than anything else because I just couldn't imagine that we ... that the floral industry ... couldn't get on the same page and bolster our businesses, collectively by telling the same story. So that's kind of what, as a publisher at a magazine, and as a journalist really. Because, I think that's what trend-watching is for most florists. Going out there and ferreting out what really matters aesthetically to customers. And how we can really harness that and turn it into sales.

Sharon McGukin: (04:38)
I think trends drive impulse sales. It's like clothing, you have clothing. But, when the new season comes and the new clothing styles come, you want to add that to your collection. The same, I think with floral trends, as the trends evolve, you want to bring that home with you and feel like you have a new idea or a new feeling in your home.

Talmage McLaurin: (05:02)
And, what I think what distinguishes that is that when you're buying new clothing, or you're looking at new fashions. It's telling you a story. It's not just hitting you with something different. It's something you buy into.

Sharon McGukin: (05:18)
I agree.

Talmage McLaurin: (05:18)
You buy into it because you like the story that's being told. That's what I've tried to add to each of these looks that we've pulled together for 2023.

Sharon McGukin: (05:30)
And, that's what I find so interesting. I love the images, but I also love your stories. I think that's what gives the trends value.

Talmage McLaurin: (05:40)
All of them are related. Fortunately for the accuracy of the trend report - unfortunately we went through it. You see all these stories through Covid-colored glasses. You've heard of the rose-colored glasses. Well, those got broken somewhere a couple years ago and turned into Covid-colored glasses. And so, I don't think anything in our world is quite the same. I know your son ... I was listening to his ‘Partnering with your Customer’ podcast this morning with you, and Drew said that "it was sort of a reset," that we all went through. Not only did it reset the way we want to live, it reset the things that we are attracted to. And so as we go through these six different looks, they all relate very specifically to what happened with Covid.

Sharon McGukin: (06:34)
Because it was a very specific experience and something that I'm not sure we're going to leave behind us for a very long time.

Talmage McLaurin: (06:43)
Yeah. For good or bad, it did affect us. And, yeah, we'll see that as we get into the trends a little bit. I think of myself more as a journalist than a trend forecaster. I had a good friend who said, "you know prediction is really good unless it's about the future, and then it's not terribly accurate." So, what I try to do is hinge my predictions on something that already exists. Something that I can bet on, that I can really depend upon. We look at all the trend forecasters who are out there, and it's not floral trends, it's trends for all different kinds of products. We've tried to learn over the years how to relate them to flowers. How specifically, one trend really works for flowers and another one maybe doesn't work for flowers. And, so it's just ferreting that out and, and finding the hookups there that can change our business.

Sharon McGukin: (07:42)
One of the things I think is important is that we must realize that a trend is a projection. It's not an absolute. This is where we think we are going with the products we see in the marketplace. Now, for example, the Pantone Color of the Year. We think they've chosen a color for the coming year. They've actually chosen a color that's seen in numerous markets that is already the Color of the Year. Where a fad usually lasts about six months or so, and a trend two or three years and a style five to 10 years, they're all still projections of what we are going to see more of. We name them and then aspire to become that trend.

Talmage McLaurin: (08:25)
Right. And, the other thing is the trend reports that we purchase to inspire us for flower trends are the same trend reports that designers are going to have. Fashion designers are going to, interior designers are going to, people who are developing products, people painting the interior of your home. Any kind of product that's looking forward is going to witness these same reports that are out there. Because we're going a lot of times to the same source, it helps to validate and everybody sort of gets in the same line. And, like me ... "if you want to be a leader, you just find a parade and get right in front of it!" So sometimes that's what I have done. I feel like I've done that here, because a lot of the work has already been taken care of. It's just fitting it into a story that helps sell flowers.

Sharon McGukin: (09:19)
One of the most interesting things, that I in particular love, are your trend stage presentations. People who might not be able to identify an isolated trend, once you put it into a stage mechanism with the materials, containers, and concept to use as a sales force, then they can see it. They can go back and build vignettes in their own businesses to project that style. And, it's very important in our floral businesses that we have the same projected image online that we have in-store. You don't want the customer to find you online, come to your store and be disappointed. You also don't want them to come to your store, and then try to use your website and be disappointed. You want to offer the same cohesive look. Trends can help you to fine tune that image.

Talmage McLaurin: (10:15)
Right. I look at these trends and I imagine somebody trying to digest them and to make them their own for their business. I hope that when people look at them they have a sense of freedom about it. This is just a springboard. If you look at a certain palette and it doesn't quite work for you, maybe you could update it so that your customers would be more interested in it. Maybe if it included this color ... well, by all means grab that color add it in and distinguish yourself from everyone who's out there. Make it your creative springboard to start a trend forecast of your own.

Sharon McGukin: (10:58)
And, I think you have to adapt the trends regionally. I don't think that I in Atlanta have exactly the same surroundings that you have in Miami. And, it's important for florists across the country to remember to first move forward with trends for their region. If you're in Kansas, don't try to mimic New York City, for example.

Talmage McLaurin: (11:20)
Exactly. Exactly. Exactly.

Sharon McGukin: (11:23)
Can you speak to us about some of the upcoming trends?

Talmage McLaurin: (11:28)
Let me take you through them really quickly. The first one that comes to mind is one that I'm calling Green Space. And it's really based on the fact that when Covid hit and everybody was staying at home there was kind of a push to communicate with and be surrounded by nature in some way. For folks that were living in urban areas, this became quite the task because, you know, you couldn't just drive to the country. Here you are stuck in a concrete jungle, and you're wanting to commune with nature. How do you do that? Well, a lot of city planners really got on the ball and started creating more green space for parks within the city. In the city of Paris alone they gave up 70,000 parking places.

Talmage McLaurin: (12:18)
The population voted for this! I mean, if you've ever been to Paris, you know, there's no place to park your car. And they're giving up 70,000 of them? Wow! To create plantings in the inner city. So, this whole look is based on our need to interact with nature. In the United States, 83% of folks are considered to live in urban areas. It really is more widespread than you would think. I'm a country boy. I don't imagine that many people, but there's all these people sort of trapped in the city trying to find a green leaf somewhere just so that they can feel like they are communing with nature. So, this palette is based on a couple of greens. Spring green and a deeper rich green. But it's the blossoms that happen in these plantings that really steal the show. So, you've got a lot of bright colors, you've got a lot of hot pinks and oranges that all play together. I've imagined that we're reclaiming the rainbow for everyone. It doesn't just have to be in a pride parade anymore. But if you reclaim that rainbow and throw it up against some green plantings, I think you've got a look there that people are going to be attracted to. And that's what is behind the idea of Green Space.

Sharon McGukin: (13:41)
I find that one very interesting because when I think of green space, I'm expecting it to be the greens and whites and mossy tones. So, it's interesting to see the bold color interplayed there. I like that.

Talmage McLaurin: (13:55)
Yeah. Communing with nature.

Talmage McLaurin: (13:59)
So the second one that we looked at is something that we called Ephemeral. Now I know it's a fancy word, but it just means here today and gone tomorrow. And, it related in many ways to the fact that during Covid you were stuck at home. There was a lot of cabin fever going down. People were just kind of losing their minds from the fact that they didn't really know who was attacking them. Was nature suddenly started to attack us? Or, is it just some crazy man-made thing that came out of a laboratory in Wuhan? I mean, people were really confused about what was going on. I still don't think all those questions are answered, but that's beside the point. The fact is that we were really seeking some comfort in our lives.

Talmage McLaurin: (14:43)
We wanted to surround ourselves with colors and materials that were comforting. This sort of introspective, sensitive palette of colors is about bringing in a lot of pastels that are easy on the eyes and provide a sense comfort. I always work with Leatrice Eiseman at the Pantone Institute. She's the North American director of Pantone, and we work on palettes together. And she said, you know what? If you're really going to want to make this idea (or this palette) heartfelt, you should add kind of a dusty red to it. The red color ties it to our heart when you're buying flowers. You know, especially men when they're buying flowers, they grab a red rose. When you think of Valentine's Day, you can't think about it without thinking of the color red. And of course, you know, the upcoming Christmas season red is such an integral part of what's going on there. So it's all these various pastels tied with that kind of dusty red that makes it a very soft, easy to look at, feel good trend.

Sharon McGukin: (16:04)
And, I love the delicacy of that particular trend.

Talmage McLaurin: (16:09)
Me too.

Talmage McLaurin: (16:13)
Third up is something that we called Utilitarian. I don't know if you remember back just prior to the Pandemic, the whole idea of Cottage Core was growing. Especially online among a lot of young people. But, it got a bad rap in the fact that it was sort of based on some ideas that didn't seem to have a clear worldview. It didn't seem to be as woke as it needed to be. It was a little bit too Anglo-Saxon. It was a little bit too ‘little house on the prairie.’ So, we took that look and we cleaned it up and added some worldview to it. Brought in some textiles and some weavings that really made it inclusive. It still has those same warm palettes that many of the ideas of Cottage Core had, but it's very basic.

Talmage McLaurin: (17:11)
It's genuine, it's authentic, and it's what people wanted to do during the pandemic. There was an idea that, you know, I just want to move out to the country and live a simple life again. And that, of course nobody did. But, that's the idea it was it's based on. This very organic, functional trend has an abundance of warm colors. And, it has a lot of stems in it. A lot of floral stems in it that seem like you might have just been out in the country picking goldenrod, a few wild sunflowers or some Queen Anne’s lace and sort of gathering them all together. But, we want to bring that forward as a commercial product, even though it seems like it was something that you just maybe gathered yourself in the country.

Sharon McGukin: (18:02)
I liked the way that you mentioned in your writings that it hints to America's addiction to nostalgia. Whenever we feel uncomfortable, we need something that's nostalgic to reinforce that we're okay. And it's interesting too, when you stop to think that nostalgia for each person is dependent on their age and the years that they grew up in. Nostalgia varies with every generation.

Talmage McLaurin: (18:31)
Right, right. Yeah. Nostalgia for me is definitely living in the country. So It's sort of a yes.

Sharon McGukin: (18:38)
Myself also.

Talmage McLaurin: (18:41)
A bucolic plague of sorts.

Sharon McGukin: (18:43)
<Laugh>

Talmage McLaurin: (18:47)
The next up, Wehistoric, is something that really harnesses our creativity. The creativity of youth as well. During this pandemic time, a lot of people were going to school online, and nobody could really travel. And the thought of going into a museum was just almost unheard of. They'd all shut down. So many of the major museums around the world opened their doors up virtually so that you could hop online. It was absolutely free to tour the Louvre or numerous different museums around the world. So, something happened creatively. All these young people were virtually traveling and looking at a lot of Roman and Greek icons - like busts, statues, and columns. And it sort spawned a creative sort of smash up. I don't know if you’ve ever watched Glee. They'd take two songs and they'd smash 'em up.

Talmage McLaurin: (19:52)
Well, these creative youngsters, as it were, took the classical elements and smashed them up with some new ideas. You have to be living under a rock, if you haven't seen all the face vases and sort of kickbacks to Roman and Greek times that are so prevalent in the accessories market now. And, if you take it one step further and add some really bright colors to it with some really contrasting colors - it makes this whole classical, historical, creative, new youthful look. It's definitely an eclectic look, and a super, super young look. I think that's kind of why I like it. It's based in the classics, but it's just full of wild creativity.

Sharon McGukin: (20:48)
The classics rewritten.

Talmage McLaurin: (20:50)
Yeah. And the colors range from purples into peachy, bright peachy, pinks into some grays called blue granite. And they even threw in the color of last year. Very Peri is one of the elements of contrast, as far as the palette is concerned, that that smashes up with all these Greek and Roman icons.

Sharon McGukin: (21:17)
Very good.

Talmage McLaurin: (21:19)
Next up is something we call Voluptuous. Now, you mentioned that I live in Florida and Miami is very voluptuous in its attitude. This look is very expressive and vibrant. It's full of energy. It's just really the time to party now that Covid is theoretically over with. We all knew if this thing ever got finished, that we were going to try to have a good time again. And that's sort of what embodies this whole look. It's sensuous. It's robust. And, one thing that it is - is very inclusive of everyone. It's inclusive of all skin colors, body types, and points of view. And, it all comes together in a palette that is completely and utterly warm. So, it's the pinks to reds, and burgundies. The peaches, to oranges, and rusts. And there's no cool color involved at all. In fact, when you take all the flowers that you can gather in those particular hues, and you pull them together and you don't use the color green - which would've been the, the opposite on the color wheel to the red, that's central to this look. And if you take that green away without that contrast, suddenly all these other related colors start playing together and having their own little party. And, that's the gist of it. This sort of intense celebration.

Sharon McGukin: (22:57)
Well, there's nothing like a flower to brighten up a party.

Talmage McLaurin: (23:03)
Yeah, if you take those flowers and you throw 'em into sort of a ... we're seeing a lot of these vases of people without their clothes on. They're very popular. In fact, there's one designer who has a vase that - you're getting a rear end view on this base, and it has two little handles on it. She calls them love handles. So, I mean, it's there. There's a bit of wit to the whole thing as well. But, you know, it's bursting with primal energy and definitely celebrating a lust for life.

Sharon McGukin: (23:40)
Very good.

Talmage McLaurin: (23:45)
So last up on the six different trends that we've looked at for 2023 is something that we call Atmospheric. During Covid, there was an overriding sort of preoccupation with people about what we were doing to the world. I mean, is this disease that we are having to deal with something that we did to the world accidentally? Or, intentionally? Whatever the case, we certainly could use some responsibility checks on how we are creating or cleaning up pollution and really what we're doing to the world. So, this palette celebrates the earth. The world in a macro view. It's the teals of the ocean. The blues of the sky. The verdant greens of a pasture. Those colors come together and play off of each other in a very soothing way. It's a dark, rich sort of mysterious and magical palette, that celebrates the earth and how we can responsibly move forward.

Sharon McGukin: (25:04)
In the transcript, there will be links to the trends that you've just mentioned and to the website. And then in the blog we'll have photos that represent these trends also. We will be able to guide our listeners to find this information that you've provided on flower.style.com.

Talmage McLaurin: (25:24)
Yeah, at points it becomes sort of limiting to just only use my words because everything here is such a visual medium. It's pretty easy when I can show slides or I can show something visual. Because, people get fascinated by what they're looking at and it doesn't really matter what I say. They're just sort of engrossed in the beauty, or lack thereof, of any particular look that goes on here. But, I do think that most people respond well to all of these. There's nothing here that's sort of scary or so far out that it's unrelatable. And I think that's something that's really important to recognize about trends is that they're only as good as their relatability.

Sharon McGukin: (26:17)
Absolutely. And as you spoke of each one, I envisioned the stage presentation I saw you give at SAF – Society of American Florists. I loved the way that you presented those trends. As you said, in person with flowers and with your monologue. But it's harder to see it in your mind unless you have an image. So thank you for putting that into the website that people can go to actively and follow.

Talmage McLaurin: (26:46)
Yeah, you know, for a while I was working on trends for a company and we tried to keep them secret only sharing them with our buyers. But I mean, you just really can't keep a trend secret and if you did, probably wouldn't be valid at all anyway. A trend is just something that everyone has to be enthusiastic about for it to really be valid.

Sharon McGukin: (27:06)
And of course, as we said earlier, a trend is a movement. It's not a stationary object. Trends are evolving in and trending out at all times. A trend doesn't just arrive in one year, it's in the making two or three years as we move in that direction.

Talmage McLaurin: (27:25)
Exactly tiny little shifts and a brand new story. That's what's really exciting about it. Because, you know, nobody's going to go in and change their world every two or three years. I mean, they might adjust it slightly. So, that's why it's so important that the trends we do embrace in our business are relatable to people. And, the fact that it's a movement forward, it's not going to be so disruptive that they can't really bring it in for their own enjoyment.

Sharon McGukin: (27:56)
It's suggested that retail florists, for example, have a 60-20-20 rule as they provide materials for each season that is 60% of that you know you can sell, 20% of the basics, whether it might be velvet Ribbon or Christmas or candles or something like that. And 20% of 'latest-greatest.' Those really new popping trends typically are not your best sellers. They're your better seller the following year. Because, you have to see something about 27 times before it feels normal and integrated to you. So, the customer comes in and they see those beautiful trends for this year, but the 60% actually goes better with what they had last year and they can integrate it. Then that 20% latest-greatest evolves into part of the 60% the following year. Something brand new and eye-catching brings buyers in the store, but they buy mostly from that 60%.

Talmage McLaurin: (28:59)
Right. Just like me, people are really resistant to change. But I'm not resistant to a new perspective.

Sharon McGukin: (29:07)
Yes. And, we enjoy having something that enlivens our designs. It's fun to create a new look, or enjoy a new color harmony.

Talmage McLaurin: (29:16)
It's also fun to tell a new story,

Sharon McGukin: (29:19)
To tell a new story. Absolutely.

Talmage McLaurin: (29:21)
After a year you get tired of the old story, you know.

Sharon McGukin: (29:23)
That's true. How else would you suggest that florist use trends? To build vignettes, to tell stories, to have in-store events to bring the customer to the story? Do you have any suggestions in that light?

Talmage McLaurin: (29:41)
I do. I think that we florists in particular accent the world and we accent interiors. And if you're going to tell the story, well … you have to bring in other elements so that people get the whole idea visually. Shop around for a piece of furniture that helps you tell the story. For a new fabric that you've seen that you imagine people might be using in their interiors. A couple of throw pillows could also grab and perpetuate the story you're telling. It can't just be a new colorful flower arrangement that you hadn't expected. You've got to give folks a point of reference on how it's really going to help them to accent the stories they're telling for themselves and the materials, colors and patterns they're surrounding themselves with.

Sharon McGukin: (30:47)
Create those vignettes in your brick and mortar store. Photograph those vignettes and put them on a landing page on your website. Share what's new and clever in your showroom. The person who is shopping has the opportunity to find that online, fall in love with it, and then come to your store to purchase it. So, you use those trends as a gateway to bringing in foot traffic. And we've lost a lot of foot traffic because people got used to ordering online. So now we have to use a hook online to pull them back into our stores

Talmage McLaurin: (31:24)
And, maybe try an actual collaboration with a designer or an accessory store in your area that you might bounce ideas off of and share products. You know, it's long been kind of a joke that ‘every florist thinks they're an interior designer and every interior designer thinks they're a florist.’ But, it's so nice when those two can get along and really use each other's strengths in a way that's helpful to both parties. So yeah, I would collaborate with some other visual professionals in your area. It's not a bad way to help move trends forward.

Sharon McGukin: (32:10)
I think because people are more driven by experience shopping now than just shopping for items. I think that shops could bring in a potter and have him give a talk and display pottery, an author and have a book signing. If you have the space in your shop, allow small garden clubs to use your space for a meeting or have a tea for a group. By bringing in people who are doing interesting things you add interest to your brick and mortar shop.

Talmage McLaurin: (32:46)
And also if you can, host a flower arranging class within your space. You can talk about the ideas and things that are exciting and trend worthy. It's going to have a great impact on some of your best customers. I've often said that you never really love flowers until you can get your hands on 'em. So that's why I always want to encourage people, to empower their customers, to work with flowers, touch flowers, arrange flowers, and really enjoy what florists have known for years. Flowers are a heck of a lot of fun.

Sharon McGukin: (33:23)
A lot of florists have had great success with having flower classes in their store. If they didn't have the space in the store, I've seen people put tents out for an afternoon. One lady in one of my audience had a really great idea. When she went to an event, like a design show in a wholesale house. (One of those events is where I met her.) She said that she bought the materials she saw used on stage. She took those materials, trends and looks back to her shop. She sold tickets for her own design show. She made similar designs using similar materials. She said to her audience "this is what I learned at my design show." And, the people did exactly what she did. They got excited and bought those same materials themselves. And that's how she paid for acquiring her education. She would have the event in her store that people paid to come to and buy materials. And that money went toward her visiting more design shows. I thought that was brilliant.

Talmage McLaurin: (34:32)
Well, you know, and it all revolved around creating some enthusiasm. Makes a difference.

Sharon McGukin: (34:38)
Yes, and enthusiasm is contagious.

Talmage McLaurin: (34:40)
Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. If you can create some enthusiasm, you've gone a long way.

Sharon McGukin: (34:46)
And I think that's one of the major things that trends do because it is something new and exciting, even though it's an evolution, it still is different enough each year that it feels fresh.

Talmage McLaurin: (34:58)
Right. I think every time you shop, you walk into the store and no matter where it is, you're looking around for what's new. You want to see something different. You want to be inspired, if you're like me, sort of a visionary, you gravitate towards those things that are aspirational. Things that I don't have but maybe I want. I think a lot Americans, are that way too. They're, they're looking for what's new and what can enhance their lives.

Sharon McGukin: (35:30)
I always think that a great place to start looking for trends is in the fashion department. For example, at the Atlanta Merchandise Mart, I would always start when I was shopping for a flower shop (when I had one). I would start in the building with fashion because what we wear, we love and then we feel so comfortable in it, we start to integrate it into our home. If you watched it - the colors, the textures, the finishes, like fringe or no fringe, fur, those type of things, once you had them on clothing, then before long you had it on a pillow as well. It's also funny because of trends being overriding, as you said earlier for every different industry. You can have a car, a rug, a pillow, and a sweater, all of the same color, because that's the newest color.

Talmage McLaurin: (36:23)
Right? Yeah, yeah. The color of the year, when they announce it - whether it's the Pantone Color of the Year or it's even the paint stores. You start looking for that color everywhere and you'll start to see it. It's just automatic. People pick up very quickly on that. It used to be that you could sort of surprise people. But, the fact that we communicate so readily and visually with our computers and our phones, there's not much that's a surprise to people anymore. So, when people see something that's, trend worthy or new and it relates to something that they've seen - if you're a grandma on Facebook, if you're a little bit younger on Instagram, and if you're super young on TikTok, if you see those items show up that were surprising to you there in your local florist in some way, shape, or form, that's how you manage to, keep yourself relevant.

Sharon McGukin: (37:24)
And it gives credence to them too because then you're like, "Oh, they're on track!"

Talmage McLaurin: (37:28)
Right, exactly.

Sharon McGukin: (37:30)
I think remember the days when we did product development by going to Europe to shop the trends, and then you would come back to the US and formulate what trends you wanted. We'd go to Asia and make the trends. And so it was as though the conception was Europe, construction was Asia, and consumption was in the US. Back then there could be a lag from six months to three years in a trend making it forward. And now it's about 30 minutes because somebody takes the picture and emails it right over to the factories.

Talmage McLaurin: (38:05)
Yeah. And it doesn't really necessarily follow that same path anymore.

Sharon McGukin: (38:09)
No, not at all.

Talmage McLaurin: (38:10)
A trend can be developed on the street, captured on your phone, uploaded to some social media. And, it goes from there.

Sharon McGukin: (38:20)
Pinterest drives trends very often now because so many people follow it. A trend is the action of what people are preferring in a space of time. Pinterest drives trends very often.

Talmage McLaurin: (38:34)
It does, it does.

Sharon McGukin: (38:35)
Well, we just appreciate you so much for being with us today, Talmage. I've looked forward to this because I love trends and I love your trend presentations. You always have such a different outlook. Thank you for sharing that with us.

Talmage McLaurin: (38:48)
Of course. Now you are going to ask me what my superpower is, aren't you?

Sharon McGukin: (38:52)
Yes, I am.

Talmage McLaurin: (38:53)
I've been thinking about that since I was listening to Drew.

Sharon McGukin: (38:57)
That was my next question. What is your superpower?

Talmage McLaurin: (39:01)
Well, I've thought about it a lot and I think it's what has made me successful. And, also attracted me personally to the ideas of trends. You're looking at something in a different way every day. You wake up and you really have an expectation for something new, something different, something wonderful on the horizon. As an artistic personality myself you're hampered by the fact, at least I am, that I want redo everything that I've ever done before. I'd like to make it different. I'd like to make it better. I'd like to make it prettier. I'd like to make it more relevant to what's going on. So I, I thought about that, you know, professionally, how that sort of drives me forward.

Talmage McLaurin: (39:50)
Always wanting, wanting to know that my best project is still out there. A lot of people have, well this is my big 'what I did that I'm the most-proud of' and I just haven't done that yet, you know? Yeah. And, I'm still waiting for it to come along and maybe it'll slap me on the face one day. Maybe it won't. But professionally doing that and also personally doing that. There's so much to be said about how we can cultivate our relationships with the people we're working with. And I have always made it a practice, more than just professing to it. But, I wake up in a new world every morning. You know, they say geese wake up in a new world every morning and they're referring to how stupid they are. But I try to wake up in a new world every morning thinking maybe the day's situation before wasn't perfect, but it might clear up today. And, it goes with personal relationships that if you're working with somebody you're not having a great time with, sleep on it - maybe they'll be better in the morning. Maybe you will be too. So I think my superpower is to be able to move forward and isn't that what trends are about?

Sharon McGukin: (41:02)
It truly is. And I would add to your superpower from an outsider's opinion, your ability to see things just a little differently. Usually it's hilariously, you always make me laugh at your keen observations, but I think because you can see it a little differently, you lead us in that direction.

Talmage McLaurin: (41:25)
And, I changed the prescription to my eyeglasses as well. So, everything's coming a little bit clearer these days.

Sharon McGukin: (41:33)
And, that was with that late birthday .

Talmage McLaurin: (41:37)
Yeah. Exactly. Woo. The cataracts have yet to cloud my vision. How about that?

Sharon McGukin: (41:42)
They will.

Talmage McLaurin: (41:48)
Yeah. I was warned by the optometrist.

Sharon McGukin: (41:51)
You mentioned my son Drew earlier. When I asked him for his superpower, he said it was his energy. And I said, well … be really careful because I've always said that my superpower was my energy. Eventually, It does start to go away, , enjoy it while you can.

Talmage McLaurin: (42:12)
This has been fun.

Sharon McGukin: (42:14)
You are a delight, as always. Thank you so much.

Talmage McLaurin: (42:17)
You're very welcome.

Sharon McGukin: (42:17)
And again, In the transcript and in the blog, we'll have links so people can follow your advice and we will connect them with you.

Sharon McGukin: (42:34)
Smithers Oasis-North America, Talmage, and I want to thank you for joining us today. If you've enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend and be sure to hit subscribe. You don't want to miss the inspired solutions. Our upcoming guests will share with you for your personal or business growth. If you have topics or a guest you'd like to hear, please message me. We'd love to hear from you. Until next time, I'm Sharon McGukin reminding you that like the unfurling petals of a flower, we grow by changing form. Soaking in inspiration in like raindrops. Absorbing energy from others, like warmth from the sun. This growth opens us up to new ideas and that's How We Bloom!