If you’re looking for a local florist with almost a century of experience, you’d be looking for Pierson’s Flower Shop & Greenhouse.
The family-owned business began in 1928 when Ruth and Roland Pierson moved from Burlington to Cedar Rapids and bought a greenhouse. The couple guided the business through numerous challenges, from the Great Depression to the greenhouse being burned to the flood of 2008, during which the shop was closed for only five months.
Today, Al and Rollie Pierson, grandchildren of Ruth and Roland, run the business and have grown the shop into the Best Florist in the Corridor. Pierson’s now consists of two locations and a professional staff of seven designers, with a combined experience of more than 100 years.
One of Pierson’s unique aspects is its vast selection of plants and flowers, along with a year-round greenhouse that allows the business to grow its own holiday products, such as Easter lilies and poinsettias.
“We have a much bigger inventory than most other greenhouses,” Al Pierson said. “We also specialize in exotic house plants such as orchids, palm trees and other tropical plants.”
In addition to all the regular services of a florist, including bouquets, sympathy flowers and bridal arrangements, Pierson’s offers interior plantscaping. The service utilizes two professional florists who design and plant flora in malls, restaurants, offices and more. The team also visits those locations once a week to take care of the plants, and to rotate out old plants to keep the plantscape fresh and visually appealing.
According to Mr. Pierson, his plantscaping clients include the “who’s who” of the Corridor corporate entities, including Coral Ridge Mall, hibu and Rockwell Collins.
The company has also decided to start holding events in its greenhouses, thanks to Mr. Pierson’s daughter, who was married there, and the growing trend of greenhouse weddings, as seen on sites like Pinterest.
The idea is still in its early stages, Mr. Pierson said, and will require more planning and marketing before it takes off. Due to Pierson’s holiday inventory, there will also be certain times of the year when its greenhouses won’t be accessible as a venue. Other than that, the spaces are largely “ready to go” as a venue space, he noted.
In addition to the many services and products offered at Pierson’s, the company places a special emphasis on customer service.
“We do whatever it takes to please our customers,” Mr. Pierson explained, whether it be a rushed order or a delivery that’s farther than they would normally deliver. “We aren’t allowed to tell a customer ‘no.’”
–Emily Bettridge
TIMES ON LIST:
2 Times on Best of list
