Abby Chick Flowers

I’ve been flowering (yes, that’s what all the hip, new kids are calling it these days) for 17 years. In that time, I’ve worked with hundreds of brides, thousands of grieving families, and countless human beings searching for connection. I work for people who are searching for words to express themselves and find that only flowers can truly communicate for them.  

What’s funny to me is that when asked about my floral journey and where I am today, I don’t think of the courses I’ve taken or the skills I’ve acquired along the way. I don’t think about the struggles: the years spent making minimum wage, the long nights, the working holidays (and missing precious family time), the missed girls’ trips, or even the hours spent “doom-scrolling” social media and second guessing my self-worth.

What has defined my journey and my purpose, what has guided me, and what I hold sacred above all other things, are the relationships I’ve forged along the way. Each friendship has been a magnificent, precious thing leading me to the next phase, like a constellation charting my life’s course. This story, my story, is a love letter to each one of them.

I grew up in a middle-class family in the middle of nowhere, Virginia, with few limitations to what I could achieve and a family who would support me no matter what. The only problem was that I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how to get there. I wanted to be an actress, or a singer, just famous for something (actual talent be damned). I tried fashion design, writing, criminal justice, you name it- all before the age of 19. I wanted to create but I had no medium. No matter what new field of study I came up with, at the end of the day, I lacked the drive and the self-discipline to see any of these ideas through. Drowning in a deluge of uncertainty and adolescent angst, I accepted a part-time job as a florist. With no experience and no interest in flowers, it seemed like an unlikely fit, but an easy enough job. Teresa, the sweet and southern manager of the flower shop, was a recent college graduate that had studied hospitality and was most interested in wedding floristry. She was a natural teacher and took care to lead me through those early days with kindness and patience. I liked the fact that people often mistook us for sisters and the fact that she was gracious and forgiving when she caught me playing on the computer rather than working. I especially appreciated her generosity when, on more than one occasion, I arrived, hungover, in ripped jeans and belly-baring tops. Julianne and Sharon, our coworkers, were women in their 30’s and 40’s and I likened the group of us to a younger (spunkier, if you can imagine) version of the Golden Girls. We gossiped and discussed dating, marriage, motherhood, and all the other trending topics for women in the early aughts. These women taught me how to “green down” a basket, stagger my line flowers and build a frame with daisies and mini carnations. I got compliments early on for being “good with color.” On one of my first solo missions to the cooler to pick out my flowers, I brought back a combination of lime green, orange, and hot pink. The trio was surprised by how much they liked my selection, and I liked how good it felt to be praised by my new friends. Sharon’s husband would bring us all lunch from the deli and “Big T” and I would take Julianne’s two little boys on adventure days together. I had found another family, and the flowers didn’t smell half bad.

Over the years, better jobs came along for some and then like clockwork, a fresh hire would move into the fold and require the same guidance those who came before me had passed down. I was lauded for my “natural talent” and gradually more responsibility was given to me. I became a seasoned prom corsage pro, a Veteran of Valentine’s, and could green down a casket spray in 5 minutes flat. Time kept marching on for everyone around me but I felt stuck in place. I kept going back to school trying to figure out what my grown-up job would be while working fulltime as a florist for seven years. I felt stunted and felt despair surrounding my lack of direction. Like this part of my life was merely filler and I desperately needed to figure out what I was going to do for real. All my friends had finished their degrees and I felt like I was falling behind the curve. I feared there was nowhere to advance in my small town and my small life. 

And then, an opportunity to purchase an established (but failing) flower shop in the neighboring city fell in my lap. I wrestled with the decision, I didn’t particularly love flowers, but I was good enough at design, and I’d already invested seven years into the career. I wasn’t sure I would get another opportunity, and even though I wasn’t necessarily passionate about the industry, I considered this a prudent decision and dedicated myself to the shop.

I was now my own boss, with all the newfound artistic freedoms I could hope for. Instead of feeling liberated, I often felt lost. The realization that I could do everything in totally new and different ways from how I was trained was overwhelming.There was a lot of trial and error in those early days, and I often checked in with Teresa, who now owned a flower shop in her hometown. She and my other Golden Girls coaxed me to go to a Teleflora design show for a reunion and some helpful education. While I was there, they encouraged me to enter an essay contest for an education giveaway. Thanks to their encouragement and a strongly composed plea (laced with enthusiasm and desperation), I actually won a scholarship: a 3-day workshop with the incomparable Hitomi Gilliam. I had followed her monthly inspiration articles in Flowers& magazine and considered her the most respected and famous florist out there.

I came back from that remarkable trip utterly shell shocked by the talent of my peers and, while it was inspiring, I felt lightyears behind. On my return home, I practically bought stock in midollino sticks and aluminum wire and vowed to become the most trendsetting florist in my small town. I felt invigorated and started to think about floristry in a new and exciting way. It was an art form, not the factory-line industry I had known all these years. Artistry was the heart of this profession and for the first time, I felt proud to say I was a florist and saw a world of possibilities beyond what I had known working in a small town shop.

Not only had this opportunity opened me up artistically, it opened me up to my first lesson in managing. Up until that point, I had always had a mentor to look up to. Now, I was finding myself in uncharted waters as a boss. I was the delegator, the leader, the mentor, and I was also lost in that role.  

I had been lucky to find a cast of delightful (if not revolving) characters but had rarely created long-lasting working relationships. My best help with the day to day design work was young, raven-haired Tiffany. I enjoyed this Star Trek watching, book-loving woman well enough, even though she was irritatingly quiet and didn’t laugh at my jokes. She was a diligent worker, a compliant employee, and a good role-model for the other staff. Even though I liked her, I wasn’t sure she liked me or my “managerial style,” plus she had little interest in making a career out of floristry (which I could understand given my own hesitancy). Overall we had managed to coexist and weather for a few years with little turmoil and occasionally even found ourselves standing on leaf-covered common ground. 

Upon return from my Teleflora trip, I chose to channel my creative energy not only into myself, but my team. I wanted them to fall in love with design as well. I had us watch design videos on youtube, I made-up fun design competitions, I had them mimic designs we saw in floral magazines, and I took them on road trips to design shows. They humored me and found my new obsession with techniques and mechanics to be endearing, if not a little annoying. But this mission to make my staff get in touch with their inner artists was my first foray into being not just a business owner, but a boss. Through my growing passion, I was able to communicate better my goals, brand, and style for my business, and my employees were better able to express themselves artistically (and even emotionally). My little “obsession” with design and artistic experimentation was an opportunity to grow and forge relationships with my employees and it was turning us into a family unit. And my constant, most unlikely partner turned out to be the formerly distant and uninterested (albeit reliable as hell) Tiffany. As our relationship grew, so did her voice, and she began teaching me invaluable lessons about how to be a supportive coworker, a more empathetic boss, and a better human in general. I was astonished by and appreciative of her work ethic, insight, and growing investment. And even though she still doesn’t love floral design, I like to think she at least loves working with me. 

Thanks to cosmic serendipity, I was introduced to my next step in my flower journey. A happenstance occurence put me on the phone (before sliding into dm’s was a thing) with THE Holly Chapple. After a brief meet-cute she connected me with her dazzling daughter, another Abby. I was transfixed by Abby immediately, the way she spoke about flowers and design was full of such passion and was so new to me that I had a gut feeling to hire her before a formal interview. It wasn’t long after she started that I began to understand why she talked about flowers that way. Through her eyes, I could see them differently. She showed me how the shape and colors of flowers could bend, blend, dance, and communicate when placed next to each other just-so. We spent those early days (and still do) dreaming up amazing installations, palettes, podcasts, and helpful industry tools. We gushed over insta-artists and their work that we admire. After 10 years of working with flowers, I finally was falling deeply, hopelessly in love with them. In becoming my employee, and then my best friend, and even leaving me to go onto other florist adventures, Abby gave me the greatest gift: passion and purpose. 

Abby also spoke on my behalf to her mom who sponsored me so I could attend the Chapel Designers New York conference. It was a unique opportunity to unite with designers and educators (including my main boo, Hitomi). Holly introduced me, the new kid and one of the only retail designers in this exclusive group of designers, as someone who could impress all of them with what I could do with only $35.00 in an arrangement. It made me feel special and exceptional in the presence of elite, luxury wedding and event florists. She encouraged me to continue pursuing my floral education and extended my floral family well beyond what I had ever imagined. During this trip, I had one of those moments that will stay for me for the rest of my life. I got a feeling in my stomach, the same one that I got right before I kissed my husband for the first time, the same one that I had on the phone with Abby for the first time, an undeniable feeling of rightness in the universe. The moment where you know that you are exactly where you are supposed to be and that your life will never be the same after. I felt that I wanted to be a floral designer forever. And I wanted to be a student of floral design forever. And, after this new experience, I wanted to teach too.

Not long after my life changing trip to New York, I began working with my Teleflora Board unit to bring a wedding design program to our area. We scanned the list of designers and immediately decided on asking for the brilliant Vonda LaFever to be the showcased florist. She happily accepted and I nervously rearranged my entire store knowing that a floral legend was going to be working in it for a couple days. We worked closely and I tried to soak up every ounce of brilliance she delivered that weekend. After producing a phenomenal wedding show, I eagerly volunteered to be the lucky one to drive her to the airport. I inquired about what a professional floral educator actually did from day to day and she explained the company she was working for and how they helped retail florists succeed in the changing world of floristry. They merchandised ecommerce websites, had team training and education, profit trackers, the works! They sounded like a perfect fit for my business, and I jumped at the opportunity to become a member. I had learned in my business that no one can do it alone and there is always room for growth. I’d like to say it was the years of a successful partnership, staggering profit increases, and endless support that proved Vonda and her team were what made me believe in her so much (and yes that’s all true) but if I’m telling the story honestly, I had one of those same gut feelings on my ride back from the airport with her, and when had those served me wrong? I decided then and there to follow her wherever she would go.
When I look back on my journey, I find myself leaving out all the hard work and the struggle in favor of the enchanted version, because guess what? That’s the way I feel about it. I feel like I’m a marvelous contradiction: the girl who fell into this career, but also the woman who chooses it. Yeah, I didn’t even want this job. Sure, I wasn’t even sure about owning this business, but when I got into it, there was no way other than onward. And onward looked a lot like putting myself out there when I was scared, asking for mentorship, asking the world for inspiration, asking my staff to believe in me, and asking me to invest in myself. Thanks to these efforts, I feel like a success in my business and I’m proud of the designer I’ve become. I’m passionate about what I do and who I get to serve. But the most delicious fruits are the relationships I've cultivated along the way. Truthfully, these relationships are the reason, the impetus, and the inspiration for what I have and what I have created. I wanted to make going to work feel fun every day just like when I started, so I became a boss that valued the people working there professionally and personally. Some of my closest friends and greatest advisors are current and past employees. I wanted to be an educator, so I took every opportunity to be educated. I expressed my aspirations to my mentor, Holly, and when it came time for her to take the main stage at AIFD, she made sure I was there with her team. I made good on my promise to follow Vonda, wherever she would go, and when it was time for her to start her own company, I was among her first to sign up for membership. Even now, even though I’m the boss, I’m seeking mentorship. I’ve had the privilege of studying with Natalie Gill and Amy Balsters, both of which are not only terrific educators, but are now my cherished friends. Friends that make me realize I don’t need permission to teach, I’m already an educator and mentor to my staff (thank you for that major coaching moment, Amy). Teresa, Julianne, and Sharon and I still meet up for design shows and occasionally they take pity on me and help out on busy holidays. This year, I'm teaching alongside Holly at a floral association and soon I'll be joining Vonda at Flower Clique to bring educational resources to retail florists just like myself. I found a true, albeit unlikely, friend in Tiffany and nine years later we are raising our little girls together and rarely leave the shop each day without an I love you shouted in the others’ direction. And when I get done with writing this, I’ll be calling Abby, or maybe Alyse, or Julia or any of the other incredible friends not even yet mentioned in my journey. All wonderful people who help me grow and dream and achieve. Hell, maybe soon, I’ll be calling you.

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Abby Chick has devoted her career to retail floristry, including her own shop, Blakemore's Flowers in Harrisonburg, VA. Through her innovative style, continued education, and business acumen, she has turned her brick and mortar into not only a successful shop for daily work and funerals, but also an impressive event studio. She has been published in Florist Review and Floral Management magazines and was a featured educator at the Fleursociety Summit. Her passion for the floral industry has led to collaborations with Holly Chapple Flowers and Flower Clique to bring educational resources to the floral market.