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About Coast river business journal. (Astoria, OR) 2006-current | View Entire Issue (July 20, 2022)
FEATURE STORY COAST RIVER BUSINESS JOURNAL JULY 2022 • 5 Continued from Page 4 coordinator before being sent to Washington to help open a Japanese steakhouse in Bellevue — Ascend Prime Steak & Sushi. “Unfortunately, I lost my job there when the pandemic hit. It threw a wrench in things, just like the recession did for my mom and her business,” she said. Landing on her feet “I had small, online business called ‘Whoos Art Kirkland’, which was making custom gift baskets and calligraphy signs. So when I lost my job during the pandemic, I went full force and grew my busi- ness as much as I could, since I didn’t have any other income. And it took off like crazy.” The custom gift baskets were especially popular, which Johnson partly attributed to the pandemic. Baskets and calligraphy are among her specialties. She knew at an early age she had a knack for artis- tic writing. “My mom said I wouldn’t go to bed without a pen and paper in my hand, since I was 3 years old. I started practicing calligraphy around age 10 or 11, when they started teaching cursive in school I found it really intriguing,” she said. Her artistic writing came in handy. “I can’t tell you how many cards I fi lled out that said, ‘I’m sorry your wedding got cancel ed because of COVID ‘ and ‘I’m sorry I can’t make it because of COVID ‘ over and over. Because of all those sales in the custom gift baskets, it made my business more legitimate. I went from 250 sales to more than 1,000 per year. Now ‘Whoos Art’ is too big to run out of my house. The whole reason I wanted to pursue a storefront was because I wanted more room to pur- sue ‘Whoos Art Kirkland,’ and I thought what goes more with gift baskets than fl owers? So I decided to bring fl owers back into my family. Move to the coast In August 2021, Johnson relocated from Bel- levue to the Long Beach Peninsula, where her mom has lived the past fi ve years, working for Peninsula Pharmacies. Meanwhile, Johnson became aware that nearby storefront space was available along Bay Avenue in Ocean Park. “Vince and Alissa [Stevens] saved the day. I got this location and my house is just right around the corner. I get to bring my little girl Harper and my dog ‘Josie’ almost every day,” she said. Johnson offi cially opened the storefront on May 2, and has been pleasantly surprised by the early success. “It’s been amazing. I get tons of people coming in the door saying that they’re so glad that a fl orist is back on the peninsula and that they’re happy to have a one-stop shop for gifts, houseplants — even some clothes,” she said. (Actually, Nansen Malin operates a thriving fl ower business in Seaview.) In June, Johnson quickly sold out of dozens of Hawaiian leis during high school graduation week. Carnations, pictured on right, have been among the fl owers species that have been more scarce lately, Johnson said. PHOTOS BY LUKE WHITTAKER “It’s come full circle,” Johnson, 28, said turning to a chalkboard sign on the wall, the same sign that adorned her mom’s former Utah-based fl oral business nearly two decades earlier. “I was surprised how popular they were. As soon as I posted about them, they sold out within three days,” she said. Johnson has also hired her fi rst employee, a ded- icated delivery driver. “We deliver to the whole peninsula and as far as Warrenton,” she said. popular native sword ferns. “It’s funny, because people from Kansas or Ala- bama will order sword ferns, because they don’t see them at all. It’s not something that grows locally for them, and we have it everywhere here.” Johnson’s personal favorite flower is the Gerbera daisy. Supply chain The ongoing COVID pandemic — a boon for the online business — has added some supply bur- dens for the storefront. “You wouldn’t ever think it, but there’s a fl ower shortage. There’s year-around fl owers that are typ- ically accessible anytime that I can’t get,” Johnson said. “White carnations have been so hard to come by.” TO HELP YOUR BUSINESS SUCCEED. Big box competition Big box stores that increasingly sell fl owers have sapped business and sullied the reputation for smaller, family-owned fl oral shops. “Some people are hesitant to buy fl owers because they think they’re only going to last a week. Sadly, that bad rep comes from the grocery stores, where those fl owers have sat on a truck for a really long time in transit, so they don’t last. People some- times have the misconception that fl owers come from the same place no matter what,” Johnson said. Johnson does import some fl owers, including the leis from Hawaii and a few fl owers from regions renown for growing particular species, including Thailand and Ecuador. “I import my roses from Ecuador. Ecuador is known for their roses — they’re massive compared to those grown in the U.S.” Other fl owers and plants are sourced from her personal garden, including calla lilies, foxglove and Joe Schulte 503-738-6836 Market President, Commercial Business Development, Oregon Coast Region jschulte@fibrecu.com 2315 Roosevelt Dr. Seaside fibrecu.com Federally Insured by NCUA Social Media
