Wayzata West Metro Chamber

A Q & A with Candlelight Owner Lesa Fenwick

Q: In what ways did candlelight need to pivot during this time?

Patrick Busch at Len Busch Roses is on the board of the Society of American Florists and saw what other states had done – passed an exemption for the local shops to continue with no-contact porch deliveries, similar to what Amazon and FedEx/UPS are doing with boxed flowers.  So to encourage the state to support their local small businesses, they helped organize a sort of petition. Florists wrote and signed letters and they delivered all our letters (along with MANY flower bouquets) to the Governor’s home.  It was an effort of Len Busch Roses, Bachmans, Koehler & Dramm and the retailers as well.
 
The campaign really hit to the fact that flowers and plants are scientifically proven to improve people’s mental health and well being.  Green plants are natural detoxifiers and produce oxygen in the home!  What is most important about us continuing to deliver flowers and plants, is that we can send love and a little springtime to the elderly in nursing homes and those in the hospital.  It is so difficult for family members to not be able to visit their loved ones and they want to be able to at least send “something” to help cheer them up.

Q: How has your delivery processed changed?

There is no proof that the virus can live on fresh flowers or plants (yay!) but even so, we are sanitizing vases before packaging and telling customers to unwrap on the porch and leave the packaging outside. We are sanitizing our hands before and after each delivery and not coming near the recipients after we’ve dropped at the porch. We’re calling it a Ding Dong Ditch, Floral Style!

Q: In what ways can the community best support local businesses?

I think the best way the community can continue to support the local businesses right now is doing exactly what we’ve been doing: sharing posts, purchasing from those that you can purchase from, calling your favorite shops and checking in on them.  I’ve been overwhelmed with the care that my customers have shown during this time – every phone call I get starts with “HOW are you doing?” and it’s heartwarming.  Share those social media posts!  Leave reviews!  I’m also writing three letters a day and mailing them to my loved ones.  Even a simple “I miss you, I love you.” can go so far.