Avon Valley Floral hosts annual open house and
The Atlantic Canada School of Floral Design
Atlantic Canada
If you are a florist in Atlantic Canada looking for the latest in
industry trends and informative design seminars, then you have probably
attended Avon Valley Floral’s Open House and The Atlantic Canada School
of Floral Design.
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| Pictured from left are: Kathy Mustard, Steve Baldwin, Douglas MacArthur and Kim Dodge. |
The open house was conceived by Douglas MacArthur,VP Marketing and Sales for AVF. The first open house was held at Royal Gardens in November 1980 and they have run continually since that time.
This past year at the 26th annual open house on Sept. 17, 59 florist shops from the region were represented at the design show, which was titled Capture The Feeling. Commentated by Kathy Mustard, president of Creative Floral Concepts, it featured designs by Sandra Miller, Paul’s Flower Shop, Saint John, N.B., and Sherri Dixon-MacLeod, Bouquets & Baskets, Cornwall, P.E.I.
A highlight of the day was a presentation by Luc O’Reilly of Sierra Flower to McKean’s Flowers Ltd., New Glasgow, N.S., and Avon Valley Floral, in recognition of their continued support of the Sierra Eco program.
The floral school began as “success seminars” 14 years ago and, like the open house, allowed florists and their staff an opportunity to raise their awareness and understanding of their industry and to develop and improve on their skills.
Four years ago this seminar concept evolved into The Atlantic Canada School of Floral Design, which combines seminar sessions and a hands- on element of learning through instructional demonstrations, plus student participation involving the creation of floral designs in a classroom environment.
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| Sierra Flower presented Eco awards during AVF Open House 2006. McKean’s Flowers Ltd. of New Glasgow, N.S., and Avon Valley Floral received the Sierra Eco Florist category award. Pictured from left: Sandy McNail, AVF, Tom Makin, McKean’s, Luc O’Reilly, Sierra Flower and Suzanne Makin, McKean’s. |
The Atlantic Canada School of Floral Design ran from Sept. 18 to 20 and was facilitated by Kathy Mustard and assisted by Kim Dodge. This year’s theme was focused on flowers for the celebration of life. Kathy, Kim and Steve Baldwin, the director from Wallace Funeral Home, worked with the class to help them better understand the creative process and also the practical requirements when designing floral tributes.
The year 2007 will mark the 65th anniversary for AVF and it is anticipated that the annual open house and floral school will reflect this significant business achievement.
Submitted by Linda Smith
British Columbia
Senka Florist was established in 1995 in Whistler, B.C., by Kaoru Nakahama, AIFD, and Hidemi Ono. The business has grown successfully in the past 10 years along with the resort of Whistler, B.C. Senka Florist now has two retail locations, one located at Nester’s Market and the other in the Fairmont Chateau Whistler. All flowers at Senka come fresh from the flower auction in Vancouver bi-weekly, depending upon the clients’ needs. As well as providing floral arrangements for conferences, Senka has offered classes in floral design for clients’ at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler.
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