A Blossoming Black-Owned Floral Shop
Interview with owner of Always in Bloom Sharon Monteiro
By: Raquel Reis
Always in Bloom Owner Sharon Monteiro
Tell us a bit about yourself, your store, and what prompted you to start your business.
“My name is Sharon Monteiro. I am a resident of Rochester, Massachusetts, born and raised here. I started doing flowers at the age of 18. There was a flower shop at the end of my road and I applied for the position. I didn’t know anything about flowers and my mentor taught me everything I know. I have been in the industry now for 40 years and have had generational customers and repeat customers over the years. I finally had the opportunity to open up my own store in 2009. I thought it was a little bit crazy and it wasn’t my idea but it was basically handed to me. I said, “Yeah, let’s go” and I took the opportunity to go ahead and do that with a partner at the time. My partner lasted nine months and then I said OK here I am, in it alone and I have to work at this. I am used to working for other people and other people's money. When it came to having my own business and not having the revenue that I needed to really open up the store that I thought would be great for the area, I knew I needed to do, a lot of hard work.
I got creative in getting local artists to come into my business and I would sell their products to the community and everyone would love it. When I am buying for the store I look for different and unique things to bring in. Now, I can say I own just about everything a floral/gift shop can provide. It’s a very large store and it’s a lot of work. We do not only sell flowers and plants. We are into gifts, we are into jewelry, we are into Dorothy Cox Candy and we have a wide range of deliveries anywhere from in the Southcoast, to Boston, the Cape, and Providence. We do a lot of weddings and average about 35 to 40 weddings a year.
I couldn’t do all of this without a great team of designers. I have some of the most talented designers here in the Southcoast! I am finding after 40 years in the business my industry seems to be dying as far as floral designers as the industry is becoming much more cut and go. I’d like to say that I’m really blessed that I’ve had the opportunity to grow this business and to be a Black business owner because more has transpired than I ever could have imagined. My designers are all so special to me. My daughter, Tori, was supposed to go to Temple University last year. But, because of COVID-19, she’s home. She said one day, “Mom let me get on the designing bench.” And I said, “Tori, there’s no way. You need years and years of experience.” Tori is now one of my number one designers and I’m very proud of her that she is now a part of the family business.”
With a beautiful store and set up, your company goes the extra step to appeal to both the eyes and souls of your customers. How has that customer-oriented mindset played a role in your business overall?
“As far as my customers and my community, I love them. Customer service is number one here. We know our customers by name. We know what they like. We know what they don’t like and we work hard to make sure that everything we do is appeasing to our customers. Like I said, I have generational customers: I am not only serving the grandmother, I am serving the great-grandmother and now I’m serving the grandchildren. Being in a small community and being on the water, I kind of know what everybody likes. However, I am very happy in the last few years to see some changes in people’s interests. The generational aspect is still there but the younger kids are ordering more modern, funky and contemporary pieces. With a lot of new homes coming in, people want something different than what they are used to. We are able to provide that. We have one of the largest selections of unique flowers in the area and I’d like to say our gift options have also drawn the community in. When I first opened they knew who I was from way back at my first store and of course I had been to every florist shop from here to New Bedford to the Cape so people knew me. When people found out I was opening the store they came and helped build this company.
Always in Bloom is not just a flower shop. The shop is filled with handmade wares and unique creations!
Within three years things were happening. I did a Cape Verdean wedding and we got into Southern New England magazine which is a big magazine and the following year we got on the cover. That spoke volumes. It’s all been by word of mouth that people get to know me. It’s a flower town and it's a tourist area. People love giving.. When people are having dinner or need a hostess gift they ask “Where can I get good flowers or a gift?” Everyone says, “See Sharon.” It’s a lot of recommendations and referrals from the community and in the schools. Old Rochester Regional and Tabor Academy have been awesome to me and it’s because we give a good product at a moderate price. We accommodate those who want 300 to those who want 20 and nobody’s ever treated differently. Customer service is number one and I think that’s what a lot of people notice when they come in here as they say “Wow! You guys are so nice!” and we just go with it.
We have parties about four times a year with an open house. Being Cape Verdean, I love to cook and when we throw a party we throw a party! We have a lot of giveaways, bring in different foods, provide a caterer and we invite the customers to have a glass of wine or a cup of coffee. They sit, they mingle, they meet other people. We’ve had very successful open houses over the past few years.
This year we have to do something a little bit differently but I am in it to win it. Covid is not going to take us down! We are going to have to work harder and think of different things to bring the consumer in or to go to them. We have no problem delivering. We do corporate parties, and we do a lot of everything.
I like to reach out to My Cape Verdean community or the Black-owned businesses and Black community in general. There are not a lot of us down here in this little town and I like to reach out to anyone that I can.”
Always in Bloom was voted #1 Florist in Marion, Rochester, and Mattapoisett. What does this mean to you as a small business overall and especially as a Black-owned small business?
Always in Bloom, your one-stop shopping place for flowers, plants, fine gifts, & art.
“Very, very, very, very, proud and humbled. Like I said, I couldn’t do it without my team. I have great team members and designers and we all work together to move this business forward. I used to say I can’t wait to see my name in lights and I always tell my team and everyone that comes in that as I grow, you grow. We are on a mission. I tell everybody stay in your lane, do your job and we will get rewarded in the end. The business has grown so much! I am very proud to be voted number one florist because that was huge for me and huge for my staff. That took us to a new level and we decided to think out of the box because we don’t want to be like every other typical florist. Come on in and experience the difference. We are constantly thinking “Let’s go and see what else we can do. Let’s see what’s trending out there not only in the floral world but in the real world overall and let’s hone in on that.” We continue to do all of those things.”
How has your business evolved over the past few months in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement.
“With the Covid-19 pandemic, I was fearful at first how we were going to navigate through this considering we were relying on our weddings, holidays, graduations and proms. I have to say I am not where I should be, but I am very grateful and thankful that our doors are open and we are continuing to keep the momentum going to get ready for the holidays. Easter and Mother’s Day were amazing this year. Everybody needed to send something to somebody because you could not go to brunch, go to lunch, or see your family in person. We also supported nursing homes during the pandemic. We had people donate $10 to $20 worth of flowers, the store would match their purchase, and we would bring it over to the nursing homes.
The community has been really good at supporting me. They know me and they always ask me how I am doing through all this. They are also concerned with the Black Lives Matter movement and they all tell me, “Sharon we support you” and I know they love me because if they didn’t they wouldn’t be here.
Now in our small community we have the group Tri-Town against Racism. They are doing a very good job with educating and bringing awareness to our Tri-Town community which is predominantly white.”
Sharon’s daughter and top floral designer, Tori Monteiro, also commented on the community and stores involvement with the Black Lives Matter movement:
“They are hoping to bring support and education to the schools and it’s nice to see that there is now circulation with talks and discussions throughout our community. This is very helpful because that is not only meaningful to Black people but for the community all together. We will continue to grow and evolve as a community just like we say when it comes to growing flowers.” 🌱🌱
Visit Always in Bloom At 454 Wareham Road in Marion, MA. They are open Monday-Friday 10-5pm and Saturday 10-3pm. 🌻
Family business duo, Sharon and Tori Monteiro, at Always in Bloom.