{"id":876,"date":"2025-07-28T14:21:23","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T14:21:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/popwebserver03.com\/devteam\/choicefarms\/?p=876"},"modified":"2025-07-28T14:21:23","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T14:21:23","slug":"highlights-from-devx-2025-5-takeaways-from-cleveland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/popwebserver03.com\/devteam\/choicefarms\/highlights-from-devx-2025-5-takeaways-from-cleveland\/","title":{"rendered":"Highlights from DevX 2025: 5 Takeaways from Cleveland"},"content":{"rendered":"

Written By Freddy Melero, Director of Sales & Procurement at Choice Farms & President of WFFSA<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been to a lot of DevX events \u2014 nine of them, I think\u2026 maybe seven\u2026 or was it five? (Let\u2019s just say I\u2019ve been around the DevX block a few times.) No matter the number, this year\u2019s experience in Cleveland definitely stood out.<\/p>\n

For those who don\u2019t know, WFFSA DevX<\/a> is an immersive, behind-the-scenes experience that brings floral professionals together for hands-on learning, facility tours, and real talk about where our industry is headed.<\/p>\n

DevX 2025 had the right mix of learning, laughs, and those unexpected moments that remind you why this industry is so special. It was packed with meaningful conversations, fresh perspectives, and a few surprising facts that \u2014 even after all my years in the business \u2014 still managed to teach me something new.<\/p>\n

Here are five things that stood out to me this time around:<\/p>\n

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  1. Over 9 Million Orchids \u2014 Seriously<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"Green<\/p>\n

    Our visit to Green Circle Growers<\/a> was impressive on so many levels, but the stat that stopped me in my tracks? They move more than\u00a09 million orchids a year<\/strong>. That\u2019s not a typo. The scale of their operation and the systems they\u2019ve put in place to do it well \u2014 and sustainably \u2014 was something every one of us could learn from.<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. The Floral Foam That Changed Everything<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \"Smithers<\/p>\n

      Walking through Smithers-Oasis<\/a> was like stepping into a piece of floral history. These are the folks who invented OASIS\u00ae Floral Foam<\/a> back in 1954 \u2014 and it’s still a huge part of how our industry builds arrangements today. It made me appreciate just how far we\u2019ve come and how innovation can have a ripple effect for decades.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Alex Weber Had Us All Fired Up<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        \"Alex<\/p>\n

        Our keynote speaker, Alex Weber<\/a>, brought the energy. He talked about turning fear into fuel, and it hit me \u2014 that feeling we get when we\u2019re nervous about trying something new? That\u2019s growth knocking.<\/p>\n

        Here\u2019s what stuck with me:<\/p>\n