Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to DEan Labadie. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

DEan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

Never give up, failure is not an option. When times get tough get creative. We often give flowers away at that time. During covid we would give flowers to the people lined up for testing. We also gave arrangements to all first responders and service groups

DEan, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I came to Davis to get a masters in horticulture after getting a BS from UC Berkeley. I started several jobs, landscaping, landscaping maintenance and selling vegetable on the street. My friend said sell flowers, no one is selling cut flowers. Not the florists or supermarkets. One day I opened the newspaper and a local drug store had buckets on sale. I had $50 in my bank and I was going to UCD and putting my wife pregnant wife through school also. So I decide to start selling flowers on the street. I bough some buckets and a few flowers from a wholesaler in Sacramento. My buddy said come to the SF Flower Market and I will show you around. I had a Volkswagon that I drove to SF at 2 AM and started my flower business. I would initially go to SF on Wednesdays they sell Wed-FRi afternoons. The city would not give me a business license at first but I was selling on private property with the owners permission so I suggested that I should be able to sell there. About a month later they came to me and asked what the name of my business was. I was in the process of appling for a contractors license and had called what I thought was the State Licensing Bureau but was actually a private licensing school. I said I wasn’t interested so he said I would never pass without his class. I ended up taking the test and failed but I missed three 5 questions on the test about the care and conditions of the plant Strelitzia Reginae so I read up about the plant, took the test again and passed. My friend from Berkeley called his shop Blackfoot Flowers so I told the City ok call it Strelitzia I don’t expect to be doing this long. Fifty three years later I am still in the business. We are the largest retail,wholesale,wedding and event flower operation in Nothern California with over 35 employees now.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Hard work, persistence, never say die. We sold fresh flowers at reasonable prices. Hire dedicated employees and mentor them. Get creative when needed and try new ideas.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I was never able to secure financing initially, not till years later. I self invested from sales.

Contact Info:

• Website: strelitziaflowers.com,
• Instagram: @strelitziaflowerco, @strelitziaflorist, @jdwholesale
• Facebook: @strelitziaflowerco, @jdwholeflowers