FERN TORONTO, owned by local resident Traci, has been providing beautiful, fresh flower bouquets and arrangements to customers for over 20 years. Some of her customers have been consistently ordering from her since her store first opened. She focuses on environmentally friendly flowers and materials. The flowers are grown locally and she doesn’t use environmentally destructive materials like florafoam to put together her arrangements.
Flowers are a passion and a way of life for Traci. She started off her career in auto sales and convinced a local flower shop to let her volunteer there so she could spend more time around plants and flowers, and ended up managing the shop a short while later! “I love how flowers make people feel,” said Traci, who also expressed how they have been a source of personal buoyancy for her during challenging times.
Flowers are a unique industry, as they are highly perishable, so running a flower shop requires a special understanding of supply and demand. Her customers range from corporations purchasing for events, to people purchasing arrangements for weddings and funerals, and frequently as gifts for family or friends hosting dinners or other get-togethers.
Online orders are a big part of her business, and it’s easy to support her local shop and get arrangements delivered when you’re too busy to stop by a store. She offers same day delivery in M and L postal codes throughout Toronto for orders placed by 9am six days a week.
Not only does Traci run a local, independent business, she also goes out of her way to support them, never shopping on Amazon and walking and biking around the neighbourhood to pick up what she needs.
Traci remembers the excitement people had to support small businesses during the pandemic and has seen a decrease in that more recently. “We should remember that the things we cared about during that time still matter. It hurts my heart when I see a local store close,” said Traci. “That’s why I love Haystack’s website. It lets people find products easily and support independent stores.”
FERN recently relocated to 81b Haig Ave, Scarborough ON M1N 1R4 near Kingston and Warden and the store is open by appointment.