Botanical Brouhaha Podcast

BB+ Guest :   Christine Hoover, LPC A common question we get from designers: "What does Imposter Syndrome look like in the floral profession?  In this episode Christine and Amy discuss imposter syndrome and how it impacts designers. Christine give some strategies for coping with imposter syndrome including slowing down, practicing self-acceptance, and learning how to deal with negative thoughts. ...

Today we're visiting with Ali Dahlson, Marketing Manager at  Mayesh Wholesale   to discuss: the rich history of  Mayesh Wholesale Florist the opportunity that led her back to the family business from a career in interior architecture how her family has expanded the business over the years to include 19 locations in 10 states the dynamics of a successful family-run business upcoming  US  and  Inter...

BB+ Guest :  Natalie Gill of Native Poppy in San Diego, California A listener from Minnesota asks:  "How do you market your à la carte wedding flowers?"  In this episode Natalie describes how she markets her extensive à la carte wedding flower menu and shares a few additional marketing strategies she uses in her business to build her Native Poppy clientele and find new customers. Hosts : Amy McGee...

Today we're visiting with Gracie Poulson, owner of Grace Rose Farm  in Southern California to discuss: expanding from a backyard rose garden to a full-scale farming operation logistics of scaling a business quickly to keep up with demand challenges of shipping a perishable product from a rural location choosing which rose varieties to grow diversifying a flower farming business to include addition...

Today we're visiting with Graeme Corbett, owner of Bloom + Burn in London to discuss: his transition from a career in TV to the floral design profession why he's felt the freedom to follow the natural flow of his business the logistical differences he's experienced while producing brand sets vs. weddings insights into his Instagram feed aesthetic lessons he's learned about pricing building a busin...

Today we're visiting with Liza Lubell, owner of  Peartree  and Garbage Goddess based in the NYC area to discuss: how a gap-year job in a flower shop turned into a 14 year career (so far!) in the floral industry her diversified business model which provides flowers for private homes, editorial work, weddings, special events, and corporate clients the seed of an idea for Garbage Goddess that began i...

Today we're visiting with Lorna Stuart Trainor, owner of A Room in Bloom located in Athlone, Ireland to discuss: her winding career path from archaeology to floristry how she decided it was time to take a leap and open her own retail flower shop the loneliness of being a business owner and how she has overcome it the conversation which led her to rethink her business model her transition from reta...

Today we're visiting with Rosbie Morton, founder/owner of The Real Flower Company located in Hampshire, England to discuss: how her perplexity over the lack of scented roses propelled her to find and grow varieties with scent the growth and diversity of her business over the years how she increased stem length while maintaining the scent of the roses she grows the experience which led her to grow...

Today we're visiting with Parie Donaldson, owner of  Parie Designs  (Amarillo, Texas), cancer survivor, and  Details Flowers  virtual designer to discuss: her transition from a retail shop to an events-only studio how she's dealt with setbacks and diversions in business how her breast cancer diagnosis affected her business her new venture as a virtual design assistant what led to her renewed love...

Today we're visiting with Lindsay Diminick, owner of Yellow Twist Floral Design in Portland, Maine and cancer survivor/emergency plan educator to discuss: her roundabout academic and career journey which circled back to the love of floral design she'd had since she was a teen the gift of moving and getting to restart a business and what she did with that opportunity how she utilized her time in ca...

Today we're visiting with Teresa Sabankaya , author of The Posy Book and owner of Bonny Doon Garden Company in Bonny Doon, California to discuss: the 'garden fever' that led her to a career in the floral industry over 20 years ago the struggles that came with adding a retail shop to her business model the ins and outs of running a retail flower shop in a locally-owned grocery market the two floral...

Today we're visiting with Natalie Gill, owner of Native Poppy in San Diego & Solana Beach, California to discuss: how she quit her corporate job and jumped into floristry the role her staff has played in her success her philosophy on staff management job descriptions for her staff members her advice for collaborating on destination weddings the Native Poppy Flower Menu how she mitigates loss of pe...

Today we're visiting with Alicia Schwede, owner of Bella Fiori and Flirty Fleurs  near Seattle, Washington to discuss: her most popular blog posts on Flirty Fleurs how a move affected her business model the flowers she grows in her garden why she thinks Pinterest helped the floral industry changes she's witnessed in bouquet styles over the years her thoughts on Instagram How to Connect with Botani...

Today we're visiting with Zoe Woodward, owner of Swan Cottage Flowers in Stoke Hammond, UK to discuss: how she turned her passion for gardening into a business the importance and benefit of a solid educational foundation how she chooses content for Instagram stories growing flowers for wedding couples the logistics of growing 100% of the flowers she uses in weddings how she and her husband, Neil,...

Today we're visiting with Michelle Hodges, owner of Sprout in Fredericksburg, Texas to discuss: her proposal process for wedding flowers the Sprout Mood Boards her transition into floral design from the teaching profession the progression of her business from flower stand to retail shop to private studio working with destination brides the benefits of freelancing for other designers sourcing flowe...

Today we're visiting with Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins, founder of Madrid Flower School in Madrid, Spain to discuss: what led her to flowers while working on a Master's degree in Creative Writing at NYU the impact of taking her first class at New York Botanical Garden her love of the Putnam and Putnam workshop experience moving from journalism to floral design through writing about florists and flora...

We were thrilled to have Francoise Weeks and Jenn Ederer as guests for the second live taping of the BB Podcast during the  BB Garden Style Workshop  on April 2, 2019. The interview was structured as a Q&A with the audience of attendees at the end of the workshop day. Because the BB community is spread far and wide and couldn't all be there with us that day, we want to share the conversation with...

Today we're visiting with Nicole Rossi, owner of  Texture Florals  in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to discuss: her unconventional transition from architecture to floral design creating a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), the pros and cons, and what eventually led her to change the direction of her business the experience that sparked her interest in wedding and event flowers the event that ende...

Today we're visiting Lucia Milan, owner of  Lucia Milan Flower Studio  in São Paulo, Brazil to discuss: her transition from fashion stylist to flower business owner how Chapel Designers membership impacted her business exploring and refining Brazilian style her passion for sustainable practices how traveling changed her thinking how she finds ideal wedding clients her desire for her work to mimic...

Today we're visiting Katie Noonan AIFD, owner of Noonan's Wine Country Designs in San Luis Obispo, California to discuss: how her parents and their business influenced her love of flowers how AIFD Symposium has been instrumental in her passion for and pursuit of floral design what she did for a living while building her floral design business the 2 greatest challenges she faces when designing outd...

Today we're visiting Coral Shortt, owner of Epanouir Flower Studio in Cape Town, South Africa to discuss: her introduction to flowers while growing up in a family of flower-loving gardeners the correlation between her IT background and the project management end of weddings her transition from retail to a wedding specialty two important considerations when opening a retail shop striking a work/lif...

Today we're visiting Jennifer Haf, owner of  BLOOM  in Charlevoix, Michigan to discuss: how her garden grown flowers paved the way to a thriving wedding + retail flower business how her business has grown and changed alongside her family life over the years running a flower business in a seasonal location thinking through an exit strategy for retirement how she curates her retail shop rebranding s...

Today we're visiting Bryan Watson, co-owner of Myrtie Blue with his partner Gene in Fort Walton Beach, Florida to discuss: the story behind their business name the challenges of producing beach weddings the secret behind his successful business partnership with his husband, Gene Myrtie Blue's extensive rental inventory how he organizes and retains the staff responsible for Myrtie Blue's event prod...

Today we're visiting with Semia Dunne of Flowers by Semia and The Floral Reserve in Providence, Rhode Island to discuss: the long winding educational path that eventually led her back to her love of flowers how she's grown a successful wedding and event floral design company over the last 19 years the birth, successes and challenges of her passion project, The Floral Reserve the unique location th...

Today we're visiting Ashley Fox, owner of Ashley Fox Designs  in Woodbury, Minnesota to discuss: how she sets and meets goals knowing her boundaries and doing business with integrity how she edits the body of work she shares with the word to attract her ideal clients the value of sketching ideas as they come to her and putting them away for future clients saying 'NO' how her craving for visual sti...