Nothing says love like a dozen long – stemmed roses on Valentine’s Day. More than a million roses will be sold during this festival for lovers, the biggest day of the year for the nation’s rose industry. It’s going to remain the most popular flower because love never goes out of style.
Yes, a rose is a rose is a rose. But selling them is no longer a beautiful experience for traditional flower shops. Supermarkets now offer convenience to the busy and discount rose shops help those hopelessly in love save money. Roses only is a good example of a discount rose retailer that was transformed from a traditional shop to answer the challenge in the’ 90s.
Inside this store on Sixth Avenue near 40 th Street, contemporary white furniture and wall – to – wall mirrors give it an expensive look. Customers move about freely among the counters, looking eagerly at the roses in more than 50 colors from shelf to shelf. Some customers say it’s the high quality of the roses that attracts them there. “I spent $ 20 but the flowers looked like I paid 60 or 70 dollars,” says one customer.
Studies show more people are buying roses in ones, two and threes these days. In fact, more than half of all roses are sold in bunches of fewer than a dozen. But Roses Only's low prices encourage people to spend. Even on Valentine's Day, when the price of a dozen roses and delivery can soar as high as $150, 12 of Roses Only's most expensive flowers sell for just $35. The company's key to success is to hold prices down by controlling every link in the rose chain. It grows its own roses in the sunshine of the Andes Mountains. In addition, the company also sells other items such as ballons and stuffed animals.
While discount rose retailers are witnessing their business bloom, U.S. rose growers aren’t able to compete with the fierce foreign competition. More than 57% of roses sold in the USA are grown in other countries. The biggest foreign producers are Colombia and Ecuador, which accounted for almost 90% of the total imported last year. The trend has hurt domestic rose growers such as Johnson Flowers of California, considered to be this country's leading producer.
Now, instead of fighting overseas rivals, the Johnsons are trying to work with them. "We have a few big fighting overseas rivals, the Johnsons are trying to work with them. “We may also widen our business to include the service area and be a representative for overseas flower producers.”
As a result of severe competition, those in the rose business long for the good old days, whereas ordinary people benefit from the low price.
60．What is the central theme of this text?
A．The US rose business is going from bad to worse in spite of the efforts made.
B．The rose will remain the most popular flower as love never goes out of date.
C．The rose business is trying to meet the challenges in the market to succeed.
D．The rose industry plays an important role in American economy.
61．How does Roses Only obtain success in the discount rose retailing field?
A．By setting up more chain stores across the country.
B．By selling roses in supermarkets.
C．By selling high quality roses at a low price.
D．By selling roses by the dozen.
查看答案和解析>> 科目：高中英语 来源：江苏同步题 题型：阅读理解  Most of my earliest childhood memories are of the beach-in the hot sun, building sandcastles, burying Dad in the sandNow the coast has a pleasant and relaxing attraction beyond words. I looked forward to a windy cliff-top walk or a rainy day rock-picking just as much as those rare moments when Iget to a short sleep in the sun. But there's nothing more pleasurable than turning up at a beach to find it deserted. These are my favourite secret beaches-ones either not well known or take a bit of effort to get to. Most of those listed scored highly in the Marine Conservation Society Good Beach Guide 2009; the others are too secret even for them. Sennen Clove is just a mile northeast of Land's End, the westernmost point of mainland England. It's a beautiful spot, with white sands, deep green sea and amazing sunsets over the Isles(群岛) of Scilly, 28 miles away. The west-facing beach is popular with surfers, with bigger waves and winds often found at the Gwenver end. There's a beach restaurant with good views of the bay and the sunsets. The smallest of Isles of Scilly, Bryher is a mile long, half a mile wide-and a natural wilderness of unbelievable scenery. Walk along the narrow sandy roads to the eastern seaboard and you come to two quiet beaches. Green Bay has views over to the palm trees of Tresco's Abbey Gardens, and a little further south is Rushy Bay, a beautiful beach facing the deserted island of Samson. On Bryher, farm shops sell locally grown produce, and they trust you to leave the money in the pot. It's that kind of place. 1. The best title for this passage is ________. A. The Beautiful British Isles B. Secret Beaches on the British Isles C. The Most Pleasurable Place in Britain D. My Experience of Searching Beaches 2. According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE? _______ A. The author is a tourist guide in a tourist agency B. The author likes walking on a rainy cliff-top most C. The author wrote the article to advertise for the beaches D. the author loves beaches that are not known to most people 3. Which of the following maps can correctly describe the geography position? ________ (LE=Land's End SC=Sennen CoveIS=the Isles of Scilly)     4. In author's view, farmers on Bryher are ________. A. mean B. selfish C. sincere D. lazy 查看答案和解析>> 同步练习册答案 湖北省互联网违法和不良信息举报平台 | 网上有害信息举报专区 | 电信诈骗举报专区 | 涉历史虚无主义有害信息举报专区 | 涉企侵权举报专区 违法和不良信息举报电话：027-86699610 举报邮箱：58377363@163.com版权声明：本站所有文章，图片来源于网络，著作权及版权归原作者所有，转载无意侵犯版权，如有侵权，请作者速来函告知，我们将尽快处理，联系qq：3310059649。 ICP备案序号: 沪ICP备07509807号-10 鄂公网安备42018502000812号 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
