Beauty Blooms at Hightstown Flower Shop

It may be the middle of winter, but Marivel Tenesaca is knee deep in flowers in her Hightstown shop; she is planning a June wedding for her clients.

“The flowers are going to be beautiful, very natural, with calla lilies and roses and 25 centerpieces,” she said. “It’s a big job and not too early to plan all the details; weddings are always such a joy.”

Marivel’s Florist & Gifts, located in Michael’s Plaza on Mercer Street, just celebrated its first anniversary in December. Tenesaca has a talent for cutting and arranging flowers, and a love for them that she says bloomed, quite literally, in her grandmother’s garden in Ecuador.

“I grew up on a farm back home and we had chickens and other animals, but the thing I remember most is the big garden of flowers my grandmother loved so much,” she said. “We would go pick them and bring them to church and my grandmother would say to us, ‘what good children you are’ so I always had happy memories around flowers. Even now, I believe the prettiest roses come from Ecuador.”

Tenesaca and her family came to the United States in 1995, when she was 15 years old. She says the first time she saw flowers in a flower shop they reminded her of home, so she began working in a flower shop. The big step came in December 2010, when, at the urging of her husband, she finally opened her own store.

“I was a little bit scared; I always said it’s not the right time,” she said. “But my husband told me if you don’t do it now, when are you ever going to do it.  I cannot express it enough with words how happy I feel and at the same time nervous. It’s an investment and I don’t expect to get it back right away but I am glad I did it.”

Tenesaca gets plenty of family support, not just from her husband, but from her extended family, which includes her sister-in-law Lucia Leon, and her seven-year-old nephew who tries to help out in the shop whenever he can.

“He likes to help cut flowers,” Tenesaca said. Her family lives in Hightstown, which is one of the big reasons why she decided to open her shop in town.

“This is the neighborhood that I know.  When people come in to my flower shop they are amazed. They say 'oh we have this in Hightstown, this is so beautiful.' They are impressed. Who doesn’t like to hear that stuff? There is a large Hispanic community in Hightstown and we can help with flowers for big events like Quinceanaras, the coming of age celebration in the Hispanic community."

Marivel’s Florist & Gifts serves the greater Hightstown area, including the towns of Jamesburg, Robbinsville, Princeton Junction, Cranbury, East Windsor and Monroe Township. The shop also does a booming delivery business to the area’s care centers and retirement communities. In addition to flowers, the shop also offers gifts, including plush toys and jewelry.

“Flowers are with us for all of our lives, from the day we are born until we are gone, so they help us celebrate all of life’s big events,” Tenesaca said. She is gearing up for a busy Valentine’s Day, but says that flowers speak the perfect language at any time of the year.

“People especially like flowers in the winter because they don’t have them in their gardens,” she said. “But no matter what time of year, they are always beautiful and they help you say everything better – I’m sorry, I miss you, feel better, congratulations, I love you. They are the perfect gift ”