She is now a wealthy successful business owner. The florist to the aristocracy. She's gained a royal warrant. She's expanded locations, products and distribution. When new forms of communication are created, she makes sure her daisy is there. When new forms of technology are invented to make shipping, distribution or production cheaper faster better, she takes advantage to maintain her competitive edge.
Eliza and her sister do eventually marry and have children to whom they pass down the business. Today her descendants still run the business. 1-800-Flowers.
Nah - I made that last part up (okay so I made the whole thing up). But you must admit it gives the parable a certain elegant symmetry on which to end the story.
In the Parable of the Flower Seller, at every step, Eliza has done the same thing:
- Gotten the word out (communicated)
- To customers with need or want and coin to buy (connected)
- To sell her perfect flowers (unique offering or solution)
- For enough money to grow and diversify (exchange something of value)
Communicating to connect. Finding buyers with need & coin. Exchanging something of value - your unique product for their money. My retelling of My Fair Lady aimed to make a basic point about marketing. Eliza never lost sight of the premise for if she had, she would not have been in business very long.
Rather than waiting for rescue from the white knight (or in Eliza Doolittle's case the urbane teacher), Eliza took action and stayed focused and built an empire. Can I get a you go girl? You can take exception and call my parable a fairy tale and you would be correct. My Fair Lady upon which the story is based is but a fantasy.
But I challenge you to prove the parable wrong.
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