Branford, FL Florists

Branford Flower Shop News

Love in the time of coronavirus: Weddings postponed - The Advocate

Hope Looney, owner of JCakes bakery in North Branford, had to let her 10 employees go just to help preserve the business. “We were pushed into a corner in the blink of an eye,” she said. JCakes has been around nearly 30 years and in her 13 years running the business, she’s never had to consider layoffs. She’s had to cancel 40 orders that were scheduled for the next few weeks, but she’s just waiting for more to come, she said. Without large events happening, florists are another domino on the line taking a fall. “The floral industry isn’t in a good place right now — growers to retail, grocery and mass market is taking a hit,” said Nicole Palazzo of City Line Florist in Trumbull. Palazzo said the business has been slowing down, with fewer trucks making deliveries and the demand for flowers overall having decreased. With those canceled orders, if businesses can’t find another way to sell or re-purpose their products, they just have to eat the cost of it, she said. Palazzo said it’s crucial for businesses to examine their contracts to help ensure they’re not wiped out by cancellations. With so much uncertainty about how long these cautionary measures will last, businesses such as JCakes and City Line Florist are doing what they can to adapt. Both are offering no-contact pickups and delivery and trying to find new ways to market themselves. Looney said she shipped her first “quarantine cake” that says “wash your hands” to her friend, and she’s hoping she can do more of them. Antonecchia bought a JCakes sheet cake to get delivered to Yale New Haven Hospital to say “thank you” to the staff. Palazzo is encouraging customers to remember flower shops can help bring relief to some symptoms of social distancing and quarantine. “Right now, people don’t usually think of flowers, but there’s so many studies that sh... https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/Love-in-the-time-of-coronavirus-Weddings-15152335.php

Fifty Years After Newark Burned, Gates Tell Story of Changing Landscape - TAPinto.net

Two downtown corners, one block apart, offer a dramatic example of how much Newark has changed in 50 years.On the corner of Halsey Street and Branford Place are two restaurants and two clothing stores, all of which have one thing in common: corrugated metal shutters, pulled down every evening after closing time. The gates were installed sometime after the civil upheaval in July 1967 that led to widespread looting of downtown stores and prompted shopkeepers – at least those that stayed – to adopt a bunker mentality.One block south near the corner of Halsey and Maiden Lane, the newly opened Tonnie’s Minis bakery in the recently completed Teachers Village looks more like a storefront in suburban Essex County, with a sign touting "world famous cupcakes." There are no gates to cover the expansive plate-glass windows.More than just a visual contrast, the two scenes offer evidence that Newark has finally emerged from the pall cast over the city after the riot that began on July 12, 1967 and lasted for five days.During the riot, looters smashed windows of shops throughout downtown and walked off with inventory – an image seared into...

North Branford Small Business Spotlight: Candi's Floral Creations - Patch.com

Business: Candi’s Floral CreationsOwner: Candice Milliard, Artistic DirectorWebsite: www.candisfloralcreations.comMore from North Branford PatchAddress: 2400 Foxon Road (Route 80), Town & Country Plaza, North Branford, CTWhy start a business in this town?I own a wedding and event floral studio in town. I live in this town and I wanted my shop to be close by. I do have a store front because I think it looks more established than working from out of my home, but it is by appointment only. Half of my shop is a showroom filled with vignettes of various wedding and event themes and where I meet clients. The other half is where I design.What’s the most difficult moment or challenge you’ve faced as a business owner?My business is seasonal and that can be challenging but I try to think outside the box to find extra income during the slow months. I offer holiday decorating for residential and business and will design for some holiday parties. I am spearheading a sidewalk sale August 27, 28 and 29 and all the shops at Town and Country Plaza will be having sales and promotions. If it goes well, we may do one every year.What’s been your favorite moment or proudest achievement since opening?I have been designing since I was 16 so over 25 years and have been designing weddings for about 20 ... http://patch.com/connecticut/northbranford/north-branford-small-business-spotlight-candis-floral-creations

Boynton Beach flower shop donating arrangements to nursing homes and hospitals - WPTV.com

The shop would like to donate more flowers to nursing homes or people who are in the hospital. The shop can be contacted at 561-708-1745.Earlier this month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis banned nursing homes from accepting visitors for 30 days except when a patient is near death in an effort to prevent the spread of the virus. https://www.wptv.com/news/region-s-palm-beach-county/boynton-beach/boynton-beach-flower-shop-donating-arrangements-to-nursing-homes-and-hospitals

After 125 years, Manatee company delivering fresh flowers differently - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

The company ships to a variety of retail chains and independent garden centers. You can find Manatee Farms products at more than 150 retail florists throughout Florida, 50-plus independent garden centers from Naples to Central Florida, and at supermarkets, such as Albertson’s and Safeway, as well as wholesalers and brokers nationwide.Flowers and feelingsThough the business depends on executing the logistics of delivering fresh products, Preston is equally comfortable talking about the value of what Manatee Fruit Co. brings to its customers.“Flowers are a business of feelings," he said. "There’s a saying that flowers are the language of love, and they really are. When you think about the unspoken word, the word you can never really say, you can say that with flowers.“Flowers fulfill that moment when no one really knows what to say, and we’ll always need that.”That's the message of the company's latest transformation.Hurricane Irma slowed the rollout of the company's re-branding effort last year, damaging several buildings, including greenhouses and a packing house that was built in 1926. But by April the new Manatee Farms brand was fully formed and public with a new look, feel and focus as well as  name.Cortez Floral and Manatee Floral, two companies under the umbrella company Manatee Fruit Co., were consolidated.Beyond fresh, sustainably grownManatee Farms now is offering “choices that matter” to consumers that care about how the products they buy are produced. The goal is to attract, engage and inform consumers and to be as transparent as possible about where and how their flowers are produced.Robert McLaughlin, chief sustainability and marketing officer for Manatee Farms, has largely spearheaded the re-branding.“This is the decade of responsible choices, and that resonates with consumers,” McLaughlin said. “We focus on eco-friendly flowers and plants, ensuring that they are certified so that we can ensure that every flower is held to certain standards.”According to Manatee Farms, its eco-friendly flowers also are good for the people who work on the farms that grow them and means that “every purchase helps improve the lives of farmworkers by providing fair wages, health care benefits, education programs and employment of women.”The company requires that farms they work with have sustainability certifications, such as USDA Organic, Rainforest Alliance or Fresh from Florida. According to the company, certified farms employ 60 percent women and are far more likely to offer higher wages and produce higher standards of living for their workers.Many of these farms also use integrated pest management as opposed to heavy pesticides, meaning that more common-sense, long-term practices are used to achieve the same results. Examples are vacuuming pests out of plants and using organisms like spiders to eat harmful pests, such as thrips, which puncture and damage plants.Getting the word outIn an effort to create a more direct link between customers and its product, the company is placing interactive digital kiosks in some stores that can help educate consumers about where their flowers come from.“We want to create a source for the consumers so that we’re reaching out in different ways and allowing access to all this information right in the retailer,” McLaughlin said.The ultimate goal is to attract customers, engage them, inform them and send them to the retailers that carry the Manatee Farms brand.For McLaughlin, part of the re-branding is taking into account a balanced three-pillar approach when talking about environmental sustainability: environmental, economic and social.“There tends to be a lot of misinformation. You can have something be organic, but that has nothing to do with whether or not you have chemical runoff,” McLaughlin said. “It’s about more than just having certifications or seals on a product.”Preston has seen a lot of change at the family company over the years, and someday there will be others in the family making the decisions right there beside him, he said, and maybe after him, too.But if Preston has his way, one thing will remain constant: the business will continue to serve the community and people will continue to feel good about the brand.“Branding is... https://www.heraldtribune.com/news/20180611/after-125-years-manatee-company-delivering-fresh-flowers-differently

Florists face Mother's Day coronavirus quarantine challenges - Yahoo Finance

I don’t think it’s going to compare to orders from past years because of the selection,” she added, noting that they can only get basic flowers like daisies, carnations and lilies from wholesalers in Florida and California at the moment.31 percent of Americans reported buying flowers for the occasion." data-reactid="23" Beck's is just one of many local florists throughout the country dealing with supply chain issues during a time of year when many are ordering flowers. Last year, 31 percent of Americans reported buying flowers for the occasion.sluggish demand." data-reactid="24" And down south, some florists have been able to reopen, but they're also facing supply challenges and sluggish demand.HOUSE PLANTS BLOSSOM INTO BIG BUSINESS FOR STARTUPS" data-reactid="25" HOUSE PLANTS BLOSSOM INTO BIG BUSINESS FOR STARTUPSDespite industry-wide challenges, digital flower space seems to be blooming. New York-based 1-800 Flowers, which delivers fresh stems and gifts nationwide, on Thursday reported a total revenue increase of 12.2 percent for the first quarter.p class="canvas-atom canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)--sm Mt(0.8em)--sm" type=... https://finance.yahoo.com/news/florists-face-mothers-day-coronavirus-195151555.html

Mother's Day Flowers a Challenge Due to Coronavirus, So Order Early - TMZ

The good news ... some retailers were able to have a decent haul over the Easter holiday, and people like Christine Boldt, Exec. VP of the Association of Floral Importers of Florida, and Dave Pruitt, CEO of the California Cut Flower Commission, believe there could be a major bounce-back for Mother's Day. Boldt predicts the flower biz will do 70 percent of its normal volume this year, while other officials expect it to be even higher due to increased delivery orders ... especially because many families are unable to celebrate in person due to stay-at-home orders. The consensus -- place your flower orders early. That way, there's plenty of time to determine how to get flowers from point A to the all-important point B ... Mom. https://www.tmz.com/2020/04/27/mothers-day-flowers-coronavirus-problems-demand-order-early/