We recently connected with Beth Hutchinson and have shared our conversation below.

Beth , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I began working in florals about eight years ago, and it was completely unplanned. At the time, I was working a corporate job as a Director of Marketing for a restaurant franchise and had young twin baby girls to care for. I had a friend who had asked me to help her in planning her wedding, and I had naturally been drawn to helping her with flowers. It was as if my Type A personality just took over and said, “okay, I’ve got this.” After her wedding, there was a sort of snowball effect that took place in which I began receiving more and more requests from friends and family to help them with floral designs for a variety of events. It started off as a fun side gig to work when I was asked, and eventually developed into something bigger. I never saw it expanding to a full-time business, but it just kept growing and growing. In fact, it seemed that every time I doubted myself and my ability to succeed in this line of work, I would actually gain more and more inquiries and clients, which led me to keep it going. However, it was life changes and pandemic that ultimately led me to transition to becoming a full-time floral designer.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Flowers have always been a passion of mine. When I was younger, my dad played a big role in nurturing that passion. He always had various gardens growing in our backyard, and eventually helped me to grow a flower garden of my own. Even as a kid, I would use the flowers from that garden and make small arrangements for family events. It became a thing where my family members and friends would ask me to make arrangements for various occasions and led to me gaining a reputation as the “flower girl” so to speak. This is what led to my friend trusting me to help her with her wedding florals, and all the family and friends who began to ask me to help with their florals as well. In 2020, when the pandemic hit, I was forced like many others to confront the reality of job insecurity and had to get creative with how I could support my growing twin girls. This is when I really began to build my portfolio and decided to commit to this field full-time. It’s been a really incredible journey. At first, I didn’t think I had the talent to make this hobby a career, and often feel like I have to pinch myself and remember that I can do this job and I can do it well.

What began as My Girls Florals, with myself as the sole employee, has evolved into Vintage Floral Designs, where I now have a growing team working underneath my guidance. Our mission at Vintage Floral Designs is to specifically tailor our floral designs to our clients’ visions. I focus on working with our clients through collaborative brainstorming and creative solutions to be able to work within their budget, all without sacrificing what their core vision is for their special day (whether that be their wedding or another special event). In this industry, it’s so important for our clients to feel heard and cared for, and I believe I exceed in just that. I will always work hard to make sure that everything will go as smoothly as possible on my client’s most special days.

I’m proud of where my business is headed in general, but specifically in the way that it’s grown to a point where I can potentially hand it over to my kids to take over some day, as well as now providing others with the opportunity to enter this industry while being supported. I’m so excited to see what the future holds for Vintage Floral Designs.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

I think the most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been the relationships I’ve built with other vendors in this industry, particularly with wedding planners and venues. In this industry, team work really does make the dream work. If you don’t have that mentality, it makes the event planning process so challenging. By building these relationships, I’ve not only been able to make genuine friendships, but I’ve also been able to become a part of this wider network of vendors where we all support each other by recommending our services to potential clients. At this point, a majority of my clients are referrals from these fellow vendors. If there’s any piece of advice I can give to those who are just entering this industry, it’s to really focus on building those connections with other vendors.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

As I’ve shared previously, COVID had a significant impact on the direction of my business. However, it wasn’t the pandemic alone that influenced my decision in transitioning to becoming a full-time floral designer. At the time, I was also going through a difficult divorce, which led me to temporarily moving back in with my parents. It was a particularly difficult time in my life. Having all of these things coming at me at once made me feel like I was at my lowest of lows. But I thought to myself, “you either pull yourself out slowly or stay in it.” I knew I had to do something that would not only allow me to navigate the reality of providing for myself and my children, but also allow me the flexibility to be with my daughters as much as possible. In the midst of all these major changes, one thing that remained constant was the growth of my side job doing floral designs. In fact, every time I wanted to try to go another direction, it seemed that life kept pushing me in the direction of my own business and making this a full-time thing. I just didn’t turn away from it. Of course, there have been a few times where I’ve questioned whether it would have been easier if I’d gone another direction. But life has a funny way of constantly reminding me how great this line of work is. I love that I’m able to be with my daughters as much as I am, and am endlessly grateful that my clients are so accepting of my girls being a part of the process. Whether it be their voices coming through on my final details calls, or them coming with me to set up at a wedding, it’s such a blessing to be able to keep them so near to me during these precious years. I want to be inspirational for others, especially for women who have gone through really difficult situations. If there’s anything that another woman can take away from my story, I hope that it’s this: you can do whatever you put your mind to, no matter what life throws your way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://vintagefloraldesigns.com/
• Instagram: @vintage_floral_designs
• Facebook: @vintagefloraldesigns
• Other: Pinterst: @vintagefloraldesigns

Image Credits
Devon Adrienne Photography Brittani Sloan Photography Rafferty Photo Sandra Armenteros Photography Kelsea Shay Photography Abigail Malone Photography Heather Meyer Photography Winx Photo