Botanical Brouhaha Podcast

Today we're visiting Teresa Fung, owner of Mimosa in Boston, Massachusetts to discuss: how she pulled from her musical background, as well as her educational background in International Relations & Education Policy to create a unique business suited to her interests and personal goals the job fair that led to serious conversations about the direction of her career how she developed a relationship...

Today we're sitting down with Phil John Perry from Manchester, United Kingdom to discuss: his diverse background in visual merchandising, acting, writing, concept creation, and floral design the slow build to his passion for flowers his love of visual storytelling his thoughts on employment, freelancing, and fair compensation his advice on retaining artists as employees his thoughts on crediting t...

We were thrilled to have  Hitomi  and  Holly  as guests for the first-ever live taping of the BB Podcast during the  BB Garden Style Workshop  on November 5, 2018. The interview was actually a Q&A with the audience of attendees at the end of the workshop day. We wanted to share the conversation with you because these two designers have so many valuable lessons to share about flowers and life.  Spe...

Today we're sitting down with Cara Fitch, owner of  Trille Floral  in Sydney, Australia to discuss: how she found the courage to make a career change to floral design how freelancing helped her build a community of flower friends why she decided to start her own business how her clients find out about her business her production schedule for weddings her buying strategy at the Sydney Flower Market...

Today we're sitting down with Conner Nesbit, owner of  Leuca Floral  in Logan, Utah to discuss: the moment of clarity when he knew it was time to start his own business the origin of the name Leuca Floral how he got the word out about his new business the role his surroundings play in his work why he finds music essential during his design time his thoughts on freelancing for other designers how t...

Today we're sitting down with Janelle Wylie, owner of   Lavenders Flowers  &  Tono + Co  in Santa Ana, California, to discuss: how she transitioned her career path from speech pathology to floral design the impact Larry from Craig's List has had on her career why and how she rebranded Lavenders Flowers how her degree in studio art taught her resourcefulness and helped her build a network of artist...

Today we're sitting down with Kelly Mendenhall, owner of  3 Leaf Floral in Grand Junction, Colorado, to discuss: how workshop attendance affected the trajectory of her business how her motherhood plays into the decisions she makes about her business why she decided not to continue offering restaurant accounts and subscriptions how she's built a mentoring service to incorporate her counseling backg...

Today we're sitting down with  Robbie Honey , an inspiring floral designer, writer, and educator to discuss: how he grew to love the botanical world during his youth in Zimbabwe the various routes he pursued to acquire the education he needed to fulfill his curiosities how he found his place as a sought after florist in London's high-end fashion scene what led to the creation of his recent book, T...

Today we're sitting down with Suzie Kostick, a seasoned floral industry educator, freelancer, and consultant living in Rio Rancho, New Mexico to discuss: her multi-faceted career in the floral industry over the last 40 years her experience as creative director turned owner of Flora Magazine the importance of her years in retail flower shops to her overall career path her experience as shop owner,...

Today we're sitting down with Eatherley Schultz, owner of  Floressence  in Brevard, North Carolina to discuss: why she's currently working with a business coach the challenges of transporting flowers in the mountains how weather affects her business how her experiences in flower growing and garden design have uniquely affected her floral design business how she has managed to build a team who stay...

Today we're sitting down with Meg Connelly, owner of  Meg Catherine Flowers  in Indianapolis, Indiana to discuss: how her music & art background led her to floral design the benefits of working in a flower shop prior to opening her own business how she managed to start a successful business with her preschooler by her side the backup plan she's put in place in case of emergency how & when she deci...

Today we're sitting down with Max Gill, owner of  Max Gill Design  in Berkley, California to discuss: how he "stumbled into flowers" the parallels between his love of theater and floral design how gardening influences his floral design composition what he grows in his personal Berkeley garden the advantages of sourcing local nurseries his work at  Chez Panisse the responsibility he feels to his fl...

Today we're sitting down with Morgan Anderson, owner of  The Flori. Culture  in Scottsdale, Arizona to discuss: her research regarding the concept of floral design as an art form using flowers as medium how managing flower studios sparked her pursuit of studying floral design as an art form why some floral studio owners prefer hiring individuals with art backgrounds the myriad of opportunities for...

Today we're sitting down with Kelly Marie Thompson, owner of  Fleur  in Chicago, Illinois to discuss: her start as a shop owner 16 years ago as a 22 year old recent college graduate the wide range of merchandise offered at her flower/lifestyle boutique the #1 seller at Fleur how she balances retail and wedding work how she's successfully grown her staff over the years what she looks for in a new t...

Today we're sitting down with Heather Siu, owner of  Myrtle et Olive  and  Lark & Ives  in Vancouver, British Columbia to discuss: the importance of consistency in branding why she decided to rebrand her business how she successfully transitioned from a rental company to a full experience floral & event design company why she chose to study under individual floral artists rather than attending a f...

Today we're sitting down with Emily Avenson, owner of  Fleuropean  in Aubel, Belgium to discuss: what inspired her to begin growing flowers some of her favorite varieties to grow (hint:  Creme Brulee Phlox  and  Sahara Rudbeckia  made the list) how she's managed to combine the vegetable garden culture of Europe with her flower garden blooms making plant-dyed ribbon the  Slow Flowers  movement & cu...

Today we're sitting down with Jennie Love, owner of  Love 'n Fresh Flowers  in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to discuss: the process of finding land to farm custom growing for clients her  Summer Solstice Party how she fine tuned her business to work for her the logistics of  her CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) the challenge of pricing locally grown flowers for profitability her biggest marketi...

Today we're sitting down with Christin Geall, owner of  Cultivated  in Victoria, Canada to discuss: her years as a homesteader growing/selling flowers and salad her multi-faceted business model her thoughts on flower photography the workshop that sparked her desire to pursue floral design and growing again how a color theory class and an art history class enriched her design aesthetic the challeng...

Today we're sitting down with Nick Priestly, owner of  Mood Flowers  and  Flower School Glasgow , as well as co-owner of  MUD Urban Flowers  in Glasgow, Scotland to discuss: how he ended up in the flower business (hint: it wasn't exactly a life-long dream!) what led him to co-host the Chapel Designer European Conferences with Holly Chapple how his business background keeps his flower businesses pr...

Today we're sitting down with Maggie & Mick Bailey, owners of  Bramble & Bee  in Tomball, Texas to discuss: how they structured Bramble & Bee to work  with  their personalities why they MUST travel how their personalities compliment one another in running the business day-to-day Mick's unique background and what it allows him to bring to the table Mick's biggest fear for Maggie and what he's doing...

Today we're sitting down with Marco Groot, CEO of  Hilverda De Boer USA  to discuss: his childhood growing up in Holland and the role flower farming played in his formative years why he has a life-sized cutout image of Elvis in his office why he decided to go the 'trade' route rather than the 'farming' route in the floral industry how one summer changed the course of his life and landed him in the...

Today we're sitting down with Laetitia Mayor, owner of  Florésie  based in Blanzy-lès-Fismes in Northern France to discuss: her path from being an engineer in Switzerland to being a floral designer in a quaint french municipality of 100+ inhabitants how blogging helped get her business off the ground the important role workshops have played in her growth as a designer the advantages her engineerin...

Today we're sitting down with Fiona Pickles, owner of  Firenza Floral Design  based in West Yorkshire in the UK to discuss: her unique talent related to event delivery how she utilizes interns and freelancers in her business the subject of some of her most popular Instagram posts her proficient use of social media and why she appreciates it how she grew her business into a business model that feed...

Today we're sitting down with Maxine Owens, owner of Max Owens Design in Dallas, Texas to discuss: how her background in retail and science prepared her for opening a flower business her thoughts on hiring, managing, encouraging, and keeping freelancers how she structured her business to take summers off and refuel her love of people and the joy she finds in teaching others her collaboration with...

Today we're sitting down with Françoise Weeks, owner of  Françoise Weeks European Floral Design  in Portland, Oregon to discuss: her transition from substitute teacher and medical lab technician to floral couture artist her wardrobe preferences (smile) how she defines texture in floral design the 45 year old childhood memory that ignited her journey into woodland floral designs her segue into teac...