Hi Stephanie, thanks for joining us today. Often outsiders look at a successful business and think it became a success overnight. Even media and especially movies love to gloss over nitty, gritty details that went into that middle phase of your business – after you started but before you got to where you are today. In our experience, overnight success is usually the result of years of hard work laying the foundation for success, but unfortunately, it’s exactly this part of the story that most of the media ignores. Can you talk to us about your scaling up story – what are some of the nitty, gritty details folks should know about?

BOA began in my garage in 1996. It was a one-man show. I met with clients at my dining room table, and designed the all of the wedding designs in my garage. During those first few years, I was the everything- building and creating systems, knowing that I would build a team in the near future. In 2009, I took a leap of faith and rented the space where we are currently located. One of the first new team members was an office/admin assistant. It was the turning point in our business. Once I was not attending to all of the nitty-gritty details, I could focus solely on designing and creating amazing weddings. Today, we have 8 core team members and a part-time/freelance team to assist us on the weekends.

Stephanie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

A second-generation floral designer that started my career in a small Texas town flower shop owned by my mom. I moved to Southern California and continued my design career working in one of Southern California’s most prominent flower shop and design studios. Once I moved back to Texas, I managed a large retail florist in Houston, before moving to Austin and opening Bouquets of Austin. At Bouquets of Austin, we create and design for all types of weddings. With over 26 years of experience in the area, we are so proud to be on many referral and preferred vendor lists. I credit our longevity to beautiful designs and really listening to our customer’s needs.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Our reputation is built upon solid customer service (brides can be tough customers) and designing and delivering a quality, beautiful product to every wedding that we are lucky enough to be a part of.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

We are in constant marketing motion- our customers are usually a one-time purchase. We depend upon strong referrals from both wedding venues and other wedding pros.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.bouquetsofaustin.com
• Instagram: Bouquetsofaustintx
• Facebook: Bouquets of Austin
• Linkedin: Bouquets of Austin
• Twitter: BouquetsofATX
• Yelp: Bouquets of Austin

Image Credits
Vanessa Smith Photography