Society of American Florists launches Aster AI consultant
SAF launched Aster, an AI consultant trained on floral industry resources to guide staffing, pricing and operations. Learn how it works and explore membership benefits.
The Society of American Florists has launched Aster, an AI-powered business consultant available to its members. The tool is designed to provide practical guidance on staffing, pricing, marketing and operational efficiency for floral businesses.
According to SAF, Aster is trained exclusively on the association’s resources, including Floral Management, SAF industry news and courses from the Floral Education Hub. The goal is to deliver responses tailored to floral-specific workflows, seasonality and margin pressures rather than general business advice.
“Aster is like having an experienced floral business advisor in your pocket,” said Lori Wheat, SAF president. “Florists are busy running shops, managing teams and serving customers. This tool helps them make confident decisions faster, using guidance that’s rooted in the realities of the floral industry.”
Joe Aldeguer, SAF director of it, who led development of the chatbot, said Aster was built to provide reliable, practical support aligned with SAF resources. The platform can remember past conversations, supports multiple languages and will continue to evolve as new content is added.
For greenhouse growers and retail florists managing perishable inventory and seasonal labor, the tool aims to support data-informed decisions and improve operational efficiency. Aster is included with SAF membership.