Ota Floriculture Auction

Name

Ota Floriculture Auction

Legal name

株式会社 大田花き

Website

https://otakaki.co.jp

Company type

Public

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Floriculture Wholesale Market

NAICS

Flower, Nursery Stock, and Florists' Supplies Merchant Wholesalers (424930)

akta.pro primary industry

Flowers, Gifts & Specialty Occasion Marketplaces (CRAFABAN)

Keywords

• Flower wholesale auction
• Floriculture market
• Cut flower trading
• Wholesale flower distribution
• Flower logistics services

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Auction Commission / Trading Fees: Ota Floriculture Auction generates revenue primarily through commissions and trading fees on the auction of flowers and related processed products. Producers consign flowers for auction-based selling to flower shops and buyers, with the company taking a commission on each transaction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Ota Floriculture Auction operates Japan's largest flower wholesale market (handling volume of 276 billion yen in FY2025), conducting auction-based sales of cut flowers, ornamental plants, and processed flower products. The market connects flower producers (生産地) with flower shops (花屋) and registered buyers (買参人). The company also runs the OLIVE+ web-based ordering system for remote bidding/purchasing and the Bloemfontein development unit offering ancillary logistics services and specialty products.

Product overview

Ota Floriculture Auction operates Japan's leading flower wholesale market (Handling 276 billion yen in FY2025, No. 1 in Japan), providing a core auction platform for cut flowers and potted plants, supported by a portfolio of digital and logistics service products. The principal digital platform is OLIVE+, a web-based ordering system covering four plans for buyers, data users, and producers. The Bloemfontein development unit manages an ecosystem of ancillary services and products including cut flower freshness testing, a berth reservation system (telesa-reserve), logistics services (delivery coordination, equipment rental, storage, subdivision), business consulting (new business support, business succession), and specialty consumer products such as moss mini bonsai, soil moisture sensors (SUStee), assistive suits (Muscle Suit Every), and Nano Flux nanobubble water devices. The company also develops branded merchandise including Shasta thermoses and coffee equipment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Bloemfontein: 大田花き開発ユニット。花瓶や鉢、苔や水草、おすすめの植物、肥料・農薬・土壌改良剤などの商品開発・销售的子公司，提供切花日持ち試験等各种サービス。
• OLIVE+
• 大田花き商事部｜Bloemfontein

Products and services

• Flower Auction Market Services
• OLIVE+ Web Ordering System
• Florist Logistics Services Bundle
• Equipment Rental Service
• In-Facility Display Fixture Rental Service
• Cut Flower Vase Life Testing Service
• Berth Reservation System
• New Business Support Service
• Business Succession Consultation
• Rakuno Bijin Fertilizer
• Nano Flux Nanobubble Device
• Moss Mini Bonsai
• SUStee Soil Moisture Sensor
• Muscle Suit Every Assistive Exoskeleton
• Shoryu Root-Pulled Pine New Year Decoration Kit

Quantifiable outcome

• 276 billion yen annual handling volume — Japan's No.1 flower market

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• JA中野市花卉部会majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJA中野市花卉部会 (JA Nakano City Floriculture Division) is a major producer organization and key supplier of peonies to Ota Floriculture Auction. The division holds approximately 44% market share of peonies sold at Ota. With about 130 member producers, the organization has maintained Japan's top position in peony production through innovative techniques including enoki mushroom byproduct reuse for soil improvement and diversified farming strategies. They ship peonies plus other flowers including statice, lisianthus, and sedum.
• JAふくしま未来coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJAふくしま未来 (JA Fukushima Mirai) is a major agricultural cooperative that formed a unified flower division in FY2022. With 267 members targeting 10 billion yen in sales, they are a significant supplier of chrysanthemums and branch materials (eucalyptus, etc.) to Ota Floriculture Auction. Despite challenges from extreme heat in previous years, the cooperative continues to grow with new producers joining.
• 株式会社大田花き花の生活研究所coreOthersA group company of Ota Floriculture Auction. Personal information (customer data) is shared between the parent company and this subsidiary within the scope of the stated purpose of use. This is the only group company listed for personal information joint use purposes.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Teleflora: Teleflora is a US-based flower delivery network connecting retail florists for order fulfillment. It is comparable to Ota's florist customer segment and adjacent to the auction-distribution flow, though it operates in North America and is consumer-facing rather than auction-based.
• FTD (Flowers Transmitted Disintermediation): FTD is a North American floral delivery network serving consumer gifting demand through partnered florists. Comparable to Ota in serving the same downstream retail florist ecosystem, though it is consumer-facing and operates primarily in North America rather than auction-based.
• ProFlowers: ProFlowers is a US-based online flower delivery retailer that sources directly from growers. It is comparable to Ota as a potential disintermediation threat — bypassing wholesale auctions by connecting producers directly to consumers — but operates regionally in North America.

Emerging players

• The Bouqs Company: The Bouqs is a US-based direct-to-consumer online flower company sourcing farm-direct cuts. Comparable to Ota as an emerging digital channel in the flower supply chain that bypasses traditional auction distribution, though it is consumer-facing and much smaller in scale.
• Farmgirl Flowers: Farmgirl Flowers is a US-based direct-to-consumer flower delivery company with a curated, design-led brand. Comparable to Ota's Bloemfontein consumer-products extension as an emerging digital flower brand, though operating at much smaller scale and primarily in the US.
• BloomNation: BloomNation is an online marketplace connecting local florists with consumers. Comparable to Ota's role as a marketplace for flowers, though it operates as a consumer-facing digital platform rather than a B2B auction, and serves a regional US market.

Broad incumbents

• Dole plc: Dole plc is one of the world's largest producers and distributors of fresh fruits and vegetables, with significant cut flower and ornamental operations historically. Comparable to Ota as a broad incumbent in fresh produce supply chains with vertical integration from production to wholesale distribution, though at much larger and more diversified scale.
• Greenyard: Greenyard is a major Belgian fresh produce and plant wholesaler with global operations across fruits, vegetables, and flowers. It is comparable to Ota as a broad incumbent in fresh/floral wholesale distribution, though it operates at a wider portfolio scale rather than specializing in flower auction marketplace.
• 1-800-Flowers.com: 1-800-Flowers.com is a major US-based floral and gifting retailer with both direct-to-consumer and wholesale-adjacent operations. Comparable to Ota as a broad incumbent serving the flower demand chain, though it focuses on consumer-facing gifting rather than auction-based B2B distribution.

Direct peers

• Royal FloraHolland: Royal FloraHolland is the world's largest flower auction, operating a marketplace connecting flower growers with buyers in the Netherlands. It is the closest direct peer to Ota Floriculture Auction due to identical auction-based B2B flower marketplace model, similar commission-based revenue structure, and analogous digital platform for remote bidding (Connect).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/otakakijp
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCL8K2wVT3xHZyKC36FJrHig
• Facebookfacebook.com/OTA.rosy.future
• Instagraminstagram.com/otafloricultureauction
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ota-floriculture-auction-co-ltd-7555-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ota Floriculture Auction