Breezy Blossoms, a full service florist located in Toccopola, Mississippi, opened shop almost a year and a half ago in January of 2015.
Owner Kalee Ridling says she brought Breezy Blossoms to the historic small town “to serve a community.” She and her business partner wanted customers to know that their business is more than just a flower shop. The store offers flower arrangements, plants, prom corsages and hairpieces in addition to pottery, jewelry and handmade soap.
Breezy Blossoms’ motto “Share the Love”, which was implemented by Ridling’s business partner, shows what type of company it is.
“We wanted something to convey that we are more than just a flowershop,” said Ridling. “We are sharing our love for flowers and people, and bringing the two together in a meaningful way. This conveys that perfectly.”
Housed under the roof of an historic home, Ridling said she “wanted to create something very home-like. Almost like a Grandma’s house.” This unique set up of the flower shop is reflective of the original layout, with the appointment room being a former living room, the kid’s area a previous child’s room and the kitchen as the “working” area in which they design bouquets.
Ridling has been involved in this craft for a while, beginning when she was just a young girl assisting her mother. Later, as a teen, she worked at Magnolia Wholesale Florist where she was exposed to many designs and different ways to arrange, as well as customer service and merchandising.
Ordered weekly and sometimes daily in order to assure availability, Breezy Blossoms gets their flowers from various vendors. Some are even farm direct, which helps with always having fresh flowers.
They offer countless designs ranging from $20 to $70, but the most popular are ones that come in their line of Pablo Sierra Pottery. Upgrading to a pottery container is always an option for any order. Each arrangement comes in its own unique container and/or glassware, and they even offer a 10 percent discount to anyone who recycles their glassware.
Ridling’s favorite arrangements are those she gets to specifically design. “They can just tell me what colors, textures and style and let me do my thing,” she said.
Something else Breezy Blossoms offers is family plot care, helping to maintain gravesites for the loved ones of out of town families by providing fresh arrangements and light clean up as much as requested, especially during times like holidays and birthdays. “We want to be a part of peoples’ lives and serve them as family would,” Ridling said.
Additionally, the flower shop also has an assortment of gifts and keepsakes, which are 90 percent locally and hand made. The items range from pottery, original works of art, ceramic churches, woodworks, fabric arts, doll clothes, hand made and natural soaps, and jewelry. “Unique and one of a kind is our goal,” said Ridling. “My personal favorite gift item is the beautiful flower soap. Hand crafted right here in Mississippi out of 99 percent all natural product. Each flower petal can be used individually and they smell as wonderful as they look. A perfect anytime gift.”
As for the future, Ridling said that “If we stay on this same trajectory…Next year will be fantastic!”
Breezy Blossoms would like to see growth in customer base as well as in the services they offer in the next few years. “I would encourage folks to give us a try just by showing them the love we have for our craft,” Ridling said. “We are striving for excellence everyday and our customers are more than one sale. We want to be an every time shop. Not just a one time shop.”
When she first started, someone told Ridling: “An inconvenient location could be overcome by Excellence in Service.” She tells us that this has proven true time and time again.
Emma Elgrin is a HottyToddy.com intern. She can be reached at emmaeelgin@gmail.com.
Follow HottyToddy.com on Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat @hottytoddynews. Like its Facebook page: If You Love Oxford and Ole Miss…
