By Michaela Gosar, Owner
I’m one of the lucky ones. While many florists suffered from the lockdown of their shops, cancellations of events like weddings and large-scale celebrations, and the furloughing of employees, my single-person business has continued to grow. Operating from my home studio, I have been primarily serving private residences by making flower arrangements to celebrate their everyday occasions and special moments in their lives. I was already offering my flowers through my online shop before COVID but during the pandemic, my sales have increased. My customers - new and old – just want to “say it with flowers” even more so than before. And, since more people are working from home, some are buying arrangements to beautify their homes and spending more than usual. They’ve been faithful and I’m grateful.
Neighbors are helping neighbors and people are trying to support small and local businesses as much as they can. I do my part, too. I now rely more on local suppliers and flower farms than before COVID.
I’m very eco-conscious. I don't currently have a cooler so I get fresh flowers twice a week to meet daily orders. I make the arrangement, take a picture, personally deliver the flowers, and post the picture on social media. If I end up with leftovers at the end of the week, I don’t discard them. I create an arrangement for a friend, neighbor or someone I know is going through a rough time. I limit the use of floral foam which is harmful to the environment and for that reason has been banned from the world’s top floral show in the UK, Instead, I use other eco-friendly replacements like the floraGUPPY. It looks like a plastic ball with 58 holes of varying sizes for the stems and is recyclable and reusable.
Before COVID, I was already very active on the internet, sharing my floral creations with my fans. I know they love my work and enjoy my daily posts on Instagram and Facebook. It gives them joy.
With COVID I’ve become even more present on social media and active in my community. Offering a floral hug virtually through my posts, donating flowers to the heroes at the frontline, or surprising teachers with flowers are just a few examples of what I can do as a florist. As the owner of a small home-based business, helping out others and supporting other local businesses through my purchases and connecting with my followers on social media have kept my business going.
I have two young children and work around their schedules. It’s a juggling act, which is not for everybody, but it works for me.
I love living in America and was excited to open my floral business in 2014. My floral arranging style reflects who I am and where it all started – in Europe, in my mom’s garden in Prague. Happy to see it’s caught the eyes of my customers.
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VIP Alexandria Magazine is proud to present The Resiliency Issue. Featuring small business COVID-19 success stories, as told by the owners who lived in it, learned to pivot + survived.
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