Abbotsford, BC Florists

Abbotsford Flower Shop News

Abbotsford Tulip Festival holds contest to enjoy field of flowers all alone - North Delta Reporter

Although this year’s Bloom Abbotsford Tulip Festival has been cancelled due to COVID-19, a contest is being held to give one winner – and members of their household – a chance to enjoy the tulips all by themselves.The social media contest has been launched on Bloom’s Instagram page, and the winner will be chosen on Friday, April 24.The prize package includes up to three hours alone to enjoy Bloom’s millions of rainbow-coloured tulips at any time of the winner’s choice up to May 1.The winner will also have the chance to fill their own bucket with as many tulips as they can pick during their visit.“We wanted to find a safe way to allow at least a few people from the same household onto the site to enjoy the tulips while still adhering to provincial COVID-19 guidelines,” said Alexis Szarek, founder of Bloom.RELATED: Fraser Valley’s tulips fields off limits to visitors due to COVID-19To enter, “like” the contest post on Bloom’s Instagram page and follow @abbotsfordtulipfestival, plus tag one friend. Both receive ent... https://www.northdeltareporter.com/community/abbotsford-tulip-festival-holds-contest-to-enjoy-field-of-flowers-all-alone/

The holidays start at the West Coast Christmas Show! - Chilliwack Progress

West Coast Christmas Show and Artisan Marketplace!With more than 300 vendors – including 170+ select artisans – coming to Abbotsford’s Tradex Nov. 15 to 17, this is where your holiday shopping begins and ends.“For a lot of people, the show has become a real tradition – the kick-off to their holiday season,” says show producer Heather Angeard. “With the festive sights and sounds, the free seasonal entertainment, and so many unique gift ideas, this really is a highlight on the holiday calendar.”Here’s a look at why this year’s West Coast Christmas Show is a must-visit: Entertaining Ideas: With your favourite holiday music in the air, and the lights and decorations all around, the atmosphere itself is amazing. The brand new community stage will host a full schedule of entertainment, including local bands and the Royal City Youth Ballet, performing a selection from their Nutcracker!New & Notable: The Community Stage isn’t the only new feature this year. As the show continues to grow, a new exhibitor space in Hall A, “It Takes a Village,” features emerging artists and others whose talents support women, children and others in developing parts of the world.Welcome Home: Beyond your holiday gift-giving, discover e... https://www.theprogress.com/marketplace/the-holidays-start-at-the-west-coast-christmas-show/

Thousands expected at memorial for fallen police officer in Abbotsford, BC - Lethbridge Herald

By The Canadian Press on November 18, 2017.Cst. John Davidson is shown in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Abbotsford Police DepartmentABBOTSFORD, B.C. – The streets of Abbotsford, B.C., will be lined with blue on Sunday as thousands of police officers from across the country and around the world march in remembrance of their slain colleague.Police estimate about 12,000 people – including 8,000 first responders – will attend a memorial for Const. John Davidson.“It’s pretty important for us to come together as a family,” said Sgt. Judy Bird, spokeswoman for the Abbotsford Police Department. “Our family member was murdered. He deserves to be remembered.”Davidson, 53, had served as a police officer for 24 year when he died on Nov. 6, responding to reports of a stolen vehicle.He is survived by his wife and three adult children.A suspect, Alberta resident Oscar Arfmann, 65, has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with Davidson’s death.Davidson began his career with the Northumbria police in the United Kingdom in 1993. He moved to British Columbia in 2006, driven, Bird said,... http://lethbridgeherald.com/news/national-news/2017/11/18/thousands-expected-at-memorial-for-fallen-police-officer-in-abbotsford-bc/

Why this BC CEO swapped his bank job for flower power - Business in Vancouver

Co-ops such as Dairyland (acquired by Saputo Inc. in 2000), B.C. Hot House Foods Inc. (which shrank dramatically following the loss of its marketing monopoly in 2001), and Abbotsford Growers (reconstituted as a for-profit business last year after financial troubles) are all examples.Pringle had become familiar with United Flower Growers during his career at CIBC, but guiding the co-op into the future was a complex endeavour.“I had worked with this company through good times and bad as a banker,” he said. “We have never had financial difficulties, but there were things happening in the industry and the business needed significant change. I did not know how significant that was when I got involved.”Tapping his background in corporate finance, and the advice of accounting firm KPMG and lawyers Farris Vaughan Wills & Murphy LLP, Pringle identified the co-op’s real estate holdings as fundamental to both its long-standing auction and its emerging for-profit business opportunities.Through five years of discussions with its 82 members, the co-op devised a structure that gives growers a controlling stake in the property while allowing non-growers to gradually take an equity stake in the business. Co-op members voted 82% in favour of a plan that promises to support the future development of the flower business.“There wasn’t a simple way to do this in the co-op act,” Pringle explained. “We used a corporate plan of arrangement … [and] created a structure that we hope lasts for decades to come, where [this property] has a business function, it has a return for those shareholders, but it’s controlled and designed to stay in the floral business.”He proudly shows off the six thick binders of legal documentation that culminated with the formation of United Floral Holdings Inc. on September 30, 2015.A few weeks later, the company acquired Kirby Floral Inc., a move that boosted its wholesale business from $10 million to $22 million. United Floral now records about $60 million in annual revenues, about half of which comes from the co-op’s auction sales.The transformation means that Pringle, now 60, can spend more time with his wife, their three kids and his skis.“This has been a very time-consuming few years for me,” he said. “I used to be a very avid skier, and I’m actually getting back into that.”Raised in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Pringle studied agricultural economics at the University of British Columbia before joining CIBC in 1980 just as interest rates began heading skyward. He was in the bank’s special loans division at the time and saw first-hand how quickly things can go sideways.Other experiences, such as serving as an independent director with the Madison Group and chairing the finance committee of BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, gave him further insights into how to build consensus and create value.“I’ve seen a lot of these complicated situations where a lot of people have to come together to find the right outcome,” he said, noting that flower growers should receive the first dividend cheques from the renewed co-op in early 2017.“We hope to start paying dividends to our members next year,” he said.news@biv.com ...

New laundry plant won't necessarily be built in Kelowna - Nelson Star

A publicist for Ecotex said president and CEO Randy Bartsch is out of the country and unavailable for interviews, but issued a statement on his behalf.“We are a proud Canadian company based in Abbotsford with operations in Canada and across the western United States,” Bartsch said. “We are always looking at opportunities to expand and bring our eco-friendly approach to the health care span class="n_ 486 v... http://www.nelsonstar.com/news/371451921.html

The Flower Bucket in Yarmouth County nurtures joy with flowers - TheChronicleHerald.ca

Bucket is a family business, with Fordham’s husband, Darcy DeSutter, helping with tractor jobs and the spreading of compost. Neighbours help with their tiller attachment.The couple, formerly from British Columbia, have lived in Yarmouth County for seven years. Fordham’s love and enjoyment for making bouquets has grown steadily over that time.Creating bouquets with wild flowers and seedheads is one of Lisa Fordham’s passions. This bouquet features wildflowers and material collected oceanside.Lisa Fordham Photo - ContributedThree years ago she read The Cut Flower Garden by Erin Benzakein. Fordham was inspired by the fact that someone was making a living from a flower farm and says she was hooked.“I started really loving arranging the flowers and creating designs. I’m not a florist but I just practiced and practiced. I started growing things that are good for cut flower production. Some flowers are better than others, they have longer vase lives than others.”She likes letting flowers do what they naturally want to do in a vase, instead of trying to control them. She says her mother was like that too. Fordham is also in her element when it comes to arranging material that’s in season locally.“If it’s in bloom and it looks beautiful and it’s going to last in a vase, then I’ll cut it. I’ll cut anything!” she laughs.“I drive around with snippers in my car (for wild material or cultivated, and cut with permission.) You never know what you’re going to see.”Each morning she visits the flowers on their property, cutting those that have reached perfection. These are placed in buckets of water for the day’s arrangements.She custom designs each bouquet according to the price point supplied by each customer, sometimes including plants like basil and mint for their fragrance.Last Christmas season she held a highly successful wreath making workshop. It’s something she plans on doing in other seasons, when she has time.“Everyone made their own and every creation was beautiful and original. There was Christmas music playing, hot cider, it was so much fun.”Fordham says this is The Flower Bucket’s first serious year as a business.She’s learning to accept failures along with success, when it comes to growing specific flowers.“I’m so new to all this and learning as I go. Maybe I won’t grow that flower there next time, or maybe I didn’t start it early enough. I’ve learned to focus on things that need my attention the most.”Once a week she walks her gardens and makes herself a bouquet for the week. “It’s my favourite thing to do on Sundays,” she says.The practice of giving flowers is a wonderful one, she adds, especially because of their finite lifespan.“We all have too much stuff. That’s why I love flowers. You can give flowers to somebody and they get to experience it for a couple of weeks and then it’s done. They don’t have to put it on their shelf somewhere and feel bad if they ever throw it away. It’s like eating food. You eat ... https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/business/local-business/the-flower-bucket-in-yarmouth-county-nurtures-joy-with-flowers-482841/

Self-serve flower cart in North Vancouver delights neighbours - North Shore News

Klausen says she was inspired to open the self-serve flower cart in front of her house after noticing how common this kind of makeshift commerce was in smaller communities around British Columbia, such as the Gulf Islands or some places on Vancouver Island. “We were driving by and there was this little cart and it just said, ‘Self-serve apricots,’” says Klausen, recalling a recent trip to Duncan. “I just thought it was so interesting. I’d never seen anything like that and then just driving around the island I saw them everywhere.” Klausen has been a florist for six years, but it wasn’t until this year that she was determined to start her own business, which she called The Bird of Botanicals. An advocate of the sustainable farmer florist movement, Klausen’s goal is to showcase the beauty of West Coast flora while promoting local growing. “A big thing for local florists that I follow is: grown, not flown,” she says. “This is the very first year I’ve actually started growing flowers myself. Prior to that I was just buying flowers from the auction out in Burnaby.” But like many businesses this year, a lot of Klausen’s plans were put on hold when the COVID-19 pandemic ramped up. Suddenly, farmers markets weren’t open and person-to-person contact was essentially barred, which made selling her flowers more difficult. That’s when she had the idea to set up her small cart. “I figured most people were stuck at home, their only outing of the day was a walk around the neighbourhood, so I thought people would love to see some flowers,” says Klausen. “Lynn Valley’s got a small community feel to it and I felt like it was a trusting enough area that it would work well.” As seen in #LynnValley #FlowerCart #selfserve #... https://www.nsnews.com/community/self-serve-flower-cart-in-north-vancouver-delights-neighbours-1.24179798

Founder of Victoria's 'cheeky' flower count, dies at 97 – Vancouver Island Free Daily - vancouverislandfreedaily.com

The Victoria woman who started a light-hearted campaign to count flower blossoms sprouting in British Columbia’s capital when much of Canada remained locked in winter’s grip has died.Norma Fitzsimmons, whose annual Greater Victoria Flower Count signals the early arrival of spring in Canada’s warmest winter city, died Friday, July 24 after suffering a stroke. She was 97 years old.This year’s 45th annual flower count, held March 4 to 11, saw a total of 45.9 billion blooms recorded in Greater Victoria.“I don’t think she meant to get under anybody’s skin,” said granddaughter Sheri Bourrie. “It was just a cheeky way of being, ‘Hey, look at us and look at how fantastic Victoria is.’”Fitzsimmons, born in August 1922, never left Victoria and stayed in her home overlooking scenic Cadboro Bay until the final two weeks of her life.Flowers were her lifelong passion and served as her way of helping people and promoting Victoria, known as the City of Gardens, said Bourrie.“You didn’t ever go to her house and there wasn’t a flower arrangement,” she said. “Even the last time we visited her the... https://www.vancouverislandfreedaily.com/news/founder-of-victorias-cheeky-flower-count-dies-at-97/

Even in health emergency, Mother's Day takes the cake for B.C. bakers and florists - CBC.ca

Mother's Day — it might even mean family dinner at home is impossible. But many flower shops are bakeries are still open and are working double time to help fete the mothers of British Columbia. Derek Major, left, picks up his order from Sam Solis Friday afternoon. (Harman/CBC) 'It's just something happy' Solis said other florists are dealing with an unprecedented rush, but as many businesses struggle during the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand is welcome. One of his customers, Derek Major, comes by to pick up an arrangement. He said he used to live near Solis's shop who was his go-to neighbourhood florist. "We're pretty loyal to local small businesses," Major said. "It's really important to us, especially with all that's going on." The flowers are for his wife, he said, who gave birth to their daughter 19 months ago. "It's just something happy," Major said. "It's just a nice thing to do." Trafiq had to turn down customers starting Monday of this week. (Harman/CBC) 'It's been overwhelming' In Vancouver, Shauna MacNeil, co-owner of Trafiq bakery in Vancouver has been delivering bad news to customers all week: they're sold out, too. Since Monday, she said, every item has been spoken for as people get ready for Mother's Day. "It's been overwhelming," MacNeil said, adding that her staff — normally 20 employees, but now down to six at most — will box up as many as 600 items on Saturday. Shauna MacNeil said hundreds of bakery orders will be boxed up Saturday ahead of Mother's Day. Her staff has gone from 20 people to five or six due to COVID-19-related layoffs. (Harman/CBC) "It's something we're all looking for: comfort food, Mother's Day cakes, things that make us happy as a family." MacNeil said other bakeries along Main Street are busy as well, but meeting demand has been a challenge with what she describes as exacting standards for baking and ing... https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/coronavirus-covid-19-mother-s-day-b-c-1.5562832