A bouquet from She Loves Me. Photograph by Meghan Graham.
If you’ve walked past the Petworth flower shop She Loves Me recently, you may have noticed it’s closed. But don’t freak out—the business isn’t shutting down. It’s just expanding and opening two new locations.
Yes, that’s right—two! This summer, She Loves Me will open a new flagship location in Eckington, as well as a smaller store in Barracks Row on Capitol Hill.
Owner Holley Simmons opened the original Petworth spot in 2019 and quickly made a name for herself selling flower arrangements, dried floral bouquets, and house plants, as well as offering workshops and florals for weddings and events. Simmons—a former journalist and co-founder of local makers group The Lemon Collective—also pivoted to delivering flowers in the area once the pandemic struck and events were cancelled.
Simmons says she loved the original Petworth space, but she quickly realized her business was outgrowing the small spot. She started poking around and found a space in the forthcoming JBG Smith multi-use development Quincy Lane, which will also house a Union Kitchen and the first local Brooklyn Boulders climbing gym. Her new spot will be attached to the lobby with multiple entrances and two walls full of windows, so she can bring in more houseplants. The Eckington shop will be twice as large as the Petworth one. That means plenty of room for multiple work tables, a bar just for dried florals, and the space to finally host workshops and events in-store, as opposed to third party locations.
The Eckington space will also have an expanded collection of home goods with an emphasis on women makers: think cards, jewelry, and candles (She Loves Me is working with a local candlemaker to create its own scent), as well as planters and vases. Folks can also pop into the store and have custom bouquets made on-site, as well as pick out dried flowers by the stem or in pre-made bouquets.
And as for the Barracks Row location—well, Simmons didn’t originally intend to launch a second store there. But then her friend, restauranteur and chef Aaron Silverman, approached her about a new spot he was launching in the area. The mixed-use locale would serve as an event space and catering kitchen for Silverman’s Rose’s Restaurant Group, which is behind Rose’s Luxury, Pineapple and Pearls, and Little Pearl. It’d be empty during the day—did Simmons want to use it as a flower shop then?
“That was not expected. But when an opportunity like that comes, I feel like you have to say yes,” says Simmons. “So yeah, now here I am opening two stores.”
Simmons calls this second spot a “store-lette,” as it will be much smaller than her original Petworth location. The vibe will be more grab-and-go; the bouquets will be made at the Eckington site and brought over, so folks won’t be able to customize them in-store. But it’ll also have a collection of home goods similar to the Eckington spot.
Also on the docket: debuting the She Loves Me flower trailer. Simmons purchased a trailer on Craigslist during the pandemic and converted it into a mobile flower shop, and she plans to take it to farmers markets and events across the city starting later this spring.
Simmons anticipates the new stores will be open by late June or early July, and she is very, very ready. “I’ve been working out of my house for the last several weeks,” she says. “So even talking about this gets me so excited.” Until then, she’s in full planning mode and getting ready for post-pandemic weddings, workshops, and events to return.
And, yes, opening two stores at once is just the tiniest bit stressful. But Simmons is eager for the opportunity to spread her love of the plant kingdom with a wider base. “Educating, informing, sharing knowledge—it’s like, one my favorite things in the world to do,” says Simmons. “I’m excited to be able to host people and share the wonderful world of flowers with them.”
April 23, 2021 at 10:46PM
https://www.washingtonian.com/2021/04/23/she-loves-me-is-opening-two-new-flower-shops-in-dc/
She Loves Me Is Opening Two New Flower Shops in DC - Washingtonian
https://news.google.com/search?q=Flower&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
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