I wanted to make a little announcement about our decision at Make Their Day Florist Cheltenham to keep our lovely store in Charlton Kings closed over Valentine’s Day. This year has been the hardest that we’ve ever had to face as a business. The last minute closures, the fear, the cancellations of one of our biggest income streams; weddings, and then all the difficulties that Brexit has raised for us when getting flowers from Europe.
We have battled through and tried to come up with innovative and safe ways to keep going, our delivery service has been booming, able to offer same day delivery to a huge area around Cheltenham, Gloucestershire and a large part of the greater Cotswolds region. We have made so many changes that we are taking forward with us, buying from more British growers, improving our sustainability and coming up with many exciting new ideas.
However I recently had a case of Covid within my wonderful, hard working staff, and although we are no longer in isolation, it has really brought it close to home for me and as a responsible and ethical business owner it has made me think long and hard about how to move forward.
As much as Valentine’s Day is one of our busiest and most profitable times and we absolutely love the love and positivity of this time, I just feel that my staff at Make Their Day Florist Cheltenham, and their families are far more important than any amount of revenue that the shop can generate. We are a team who really care about each other and knowing someone I work so closely with has been feeling so unwell has made me really think about what’s important.
So the current plan is to reopen later in the February half term. I feel that by then, as Spring is coming, the weather is improving, the vaccination program is flying along and we can offer a Covid secure service to our much appreciated customers, we can open safely and be able to supply flowers for your life events, your loved ones special birthdays and anniversaries and Mothering Sunday with slightly less risk.
It will also give my staff members a chance to rest, recuperate and to spend some time catching up on their lives after an exceptionally busy Christmas period.
We have some wonderful ideas for the upcoming months, we will be doing our ever popular Spring Bulb Baskets again, we are very excited to be celebrating International Day of the Woman and have a lot of plans to make the whole year a celebration of the exceptional, strong women making waves about our town and we will be hopefully getting many more of the beautiful weddings we love doing so much.
Although we never like to mention it, we are also here for all of your funeral needs. It’s been a really tragic year for the floristry community as a whole to be doing so many tributes but it helps us to know that we have helped to make an always difficult day slightly brighter with arrangements that really reflect the person whose life is being celebrated. I will of course, be very sad not to be working over this next few weeks. I adore my shop and have worked so hard to build it into the wonderful business it has become. I miss the community of our little street in Charlton Kings and the fabulous customers that have brightened my days with kind words, endless support and an escape from the worries at this time. I look forward to seeing you all again soon.
Izzy x
