Friends in bloom

Cookham friends Claire Woods and Chantal Williams have launched a floristry business with a difference in Marlow. Bloom & More, situated at Spittal Street, provides flowers for weddings, special events, vase services for the home and offers interesting plants and one-off vintage pieces. They are also starting a Flower Club, so watch this space...

 

Bloom & More was created when the opportunity arose to take on an already existing but vacant stall in Marlow. Claire and Chantal met through their children at school, and were brought together by their love of pairing floral materials with lifestyle products and wanting to share this passion with
customers. They have over 25 years' experience in the floral retail industry, and have worked for some of the most highly regarded florists in London, as well as creating flowers for weddings and events in Europe, Tokyo, New York, Seoul, Brisbane and Sydney. I caught up with them to see how their business is going...

 

Chantal: 'We identified a niche in the market for unique, interesting floral creations, bringing clients beautiful, seasonal flowers combined with a friendly service. So Bloom & More was born.'

Claire: 'In just two weeks since opening, we’ve had people asking us to see them about flowers for their businesses, restaurants, offices and have already had many wedding enquiries. As a result, we decided to extend our opening hours to cater for shoppers and visitors to the area on a Sunday.'

Chantal: 'As part of our initial marketing strategy, we are leaving bouquets in random locations, then asking recipients to post a photo of the flowers and "like" on Facebook.' 

Claire: 'I have two gorgeous children. They are my inspiration to be so driven as I would like to inspire them to try hard in all life's possibilities. My floristry career was sparked by my mother’s enjoyment of her garden and her teaching me about the love of flowers. My career spans over 25 years, working for Jane Packer, a large-scale florist, for 17 years, managing and teaching at her flagship store in London.

   'I was very lucky to travel to New York, Seoul and Tokyo to create weddings, parties and teach for Jane. Latterly, I have been working in the commercial 

floristry arena for a supplier where I designed for Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury's, again visiting top growers in Colombia, South Africa and Holland. I feel very blessed to have had these opportunities but the next step is to give it a try for ourselves.'

Chantal: 'Our business has grown organically out of our shared love of flowers and natural materials as well as inspiration from our travels and life's adventures. I have also worked for Jane Packer. Working in this part of the world, we have the most amazing selection of high-quality products, so much inspiration week after week, season after season.

   'I moved from Australia three and a half years ago. Moving to England provided me with an opportunity to take a break from my role as a special needs advisory teacher and to follow a life-long interest to work creatively with flowers and plants. Now with both kids at school and time
on my hands, I have been able to dedicate time to expanding my skills and knowledge in floristry.'

Claire: 'We are soon launching a Flower Club where we will run floristry workshops to teach techniques and ways of working with flowers. For example, there will be workshops such as wreath-making in the lead up to the festive season.' 

Chantal: 'I love the physicality of our job; the bustle of the market, the hefting of the buckets, the grubby hands at the end of the day, down to the detail of the work that goes into creating something special for our clients. Each day brings something different.

   'I'm a great believer that life puts you where you need to be. The site was vacant so we jumped in. I am also very keen for our children to witness the process of growing a business – taking a risk, believing in yourself, lots of hard work, learning as you go and mostly to follow what you love to do. With our business the decisions are ours and the success of our venture rests with us, and that's exciting!'

Claire: 'Yes, the best part is it's all ours and it's very exciting. Every day
is different as each day brings another season and the next bloom for
us to enjoy.'

Chantal: 'There are no bad bits yet, maybe frozen toes in winter.'

Claire: 'My favourite flower is any seasonal flower as it is only there for a 

short time and then you have to wait for nature to do its thing and then it will be back again for us to enjoy. Good things come to those who wait; Narcissi, Hyacinth, English Ranunculus, English Sweet Peas and Poppies. There are too many to mention but we will be stocking many of these.'

Chantal: 'I think we all look for symbols in our lives, and flowers and their scents can hold special meaning and memories for people. It's lovely to 

share some of those special moments with people. Just the other day I made a bouquet for a 40th wedding anniversary with roses similar to the ladies' bridal bouquet, it made her day!'

 

Good luck, girls! 

 

Bloom & More’s shop front is open Thursday- Saturday 9.30am-5.30pm, and Sundays 11am-4pm, and other times by appointment.

 

For more information, visit 

Facebook: bloomandmore

Twitter: @bloom_more