The sweet aroma of colorful flowers wafts through the air. Potted plants and candles decorate the shelves. In the cooler, an assortment of flowers wait to be picked and arranged into a bouquet.
A floral studio and a mainstream brick-and-mortar retail shop, Saville Flowers reopened Monday, Jan. 8, with a renovated storefront and fresh flowers.
Mark Jones, owner and lead floral designer, said the local business hopes to resolve its functionality issues and increase customer interaction through the renovations.
“We wanted to bring our workshop out front, like how every restaurant has an open-air kitchen,” Jones said. “People want to be part of the action, so we wanted it to feel a little bit more interactive and to let them see the art of floral design.”
Along with offering a catalog of floral arrangements online, Saville Flowers functions as a full-service retail shop, where customers can walk in and purchase hand-tied bouquets, candles and various gift items.
Jones said he hopes the new storefront makes “people feel special and welcome.”
“We want to usher in a new era of what modern retail looks like,” he said.
Saville Flowers opened in 1942 and has been passed down through four generations of family ownership, Jones said. As the current owner, Jones enjoys engaging the community and said he values creating a space “where people want to come pop in and say hello.”
Saville’s fresh flowers and arrangements on display stand out from the other shops on Sherman Avenue, said Evanston resident Marina Hayes.
“I passed the store many times, and they always have their window displays,” Hayes said. “Everything is always gorgeous, and supporting local businesses is important to me.”
Looking to buy a bouquet for a relative who had just graduated from nursing school, Hayes entered Saville Flowers a few days after the reopening with a request for a celebratory flower arrangement. She said she was met with “super helpful” service and a “gorgeous” bouquet.
The business’s floral displays attract Northwestern students as well. As Institute for Student Business Education project managers on the marketing team for Saville Flowers, Medill sophomore Fiona Wu and Weinberg sophomore Phineas Mahlum have worked closely with Jones this past academic year and recently visited the renovated store.
“I actually really like the new design; it suits a vintage flower shop really well,” Wu said. “I thought it was really pretty before — like a cute, small-town flower shop — but now it looks a little more classy.”
To help expand Saville Flowers’s target market to NU students, Wu and Mahlum designed tote bags for the store and are now restyling the website and planning on-campus events for Valentine’s Day and Finals Week.
Mahlum said the employees’ enthusiasm for their work sets Saville Flowers apart.
“Every single time we go in there, within three seconds, someone is already saying ‘Hi’ to me and ‘How can I help you?’” Mahlum said. “They are always super happy to be there and actually believe in the business. It just seems like a big family back there.”
For Jones, continuing his family’s legacy through Saville Flowers drives his passion for building community in Evanston and creating the best customer and employee experience.
“Getting to truly make it my own, carrying it into a fourth generation and making the store be a reflection of my tastes and current tastes has been really special and gratifying,” Jones said.
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @_gracewuu
Related Stories:
— Saville Flowers: Still growing after 80 years
— Ring in the holidays with this month’s most festive Evanston events
— Inspire Through Flowers gives new life and purpose to donated flowers
