Montville Florist Wins Big Award [VIDEO]

Lynne Gaffney, who runs Montville Florist with her sister, Leah Van Ness, has been named Connecticut Florist of the Year by the Connecticut Florists Association.

“It was a surprise!” says Gaffney. “Our store is small, Montville is tiny, and we were up against stores from Greenwich, and Bridgeport and Hartford…”

It’s the top award that the association gives.

According to the Connecticut Florists Association website, the winner is someone who has “made outstanding accomplishments in the florist business,” who has worked in the industry in the state for at least five years, has “given exceptional time and service to the floral industry,” has public and civic involvement, and has been a leader and innovator in the industry.

“We’ve been very active in the state floral industry,” Gaffney says. “Connecticut has the fourth-largest floral expo in the United States. Isn’t that funny, little Connecticut? We’ve both been very, very active in bringing designers in and working with these designers,” she says.

For seven years, Gaffney says, she was on the board of directors of the association.

"Because of that, we got to know a lot of people in the state of Connecticut, got to work with world-class designers, got to see trade people in a different way… and  we got to know a lot of people, and a lot of people got to know us. And liked our work..

"It was a very big honor," she says. "They say it’s our windows. That’s my sister. She does our windows."

The store's windows are beautiful and whimsical and full of the feeling of the seasons and the holidays.

“We change our windows all the time,” Gaffney says, “and they’re legendary.”

The sisters make sure that they are on top of the trends in the industry, in terms of their stock and their approach. Right now, they say, compact and brilliant arrangements are what’s new – including color combinations that might not have been welcome in the past. Fuscia and orange, chartreuse and purple, the brighter the better.

The shift toward brighter colors might be a simple trend, Gaffney and Van Ness say, but might be a response to the economic times.

“People need that vibrancy to lift them up,” Gaffney says.

Look for blog posts in the Local Voices section, coming soon from Montville Florist!