Business
BY ASIA ARMOUR
The shop provides oral arrangements with owers from local vendors and gift baskets.
Owner Elaine Oulsey-Nevarez said her owers last longer because of a preservative used to hydrate and kill bacteria.
PHOTOS BY ASIA ARMOURCOMMUNITY IMPACT
Elaine’s Florist maintains shop through connections Staying in business for 32 years is no small feat, said Elaine Oulsey-Nevarez, owner of Elaine’s Flo- rist and Gift Baskets in Meyerland, but she accom- plished it by building meaningful connections. What they oer
Elaine Oulsey-Nevarez said she used her corporate background to apply strategy to the business.
a lot of churches, and we donate to all of them because that is my clientele,” she said. “I also belong to several networking groups. People want to work with people they know.” Diving in deeper In addition to her professional network and emphasis on face-to-face interactions, what makes Elaine’s Florist a Meyerland mainstay is its state and national certication as a woman-owned business, Oulsey-Nevarez said. She said it’s helped her secure some of her largest clients. “I look at it as a win-win for the [companies],” she said. “We do great work with high-quality owers, and they work with a woman-owned business.”
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The boutique oral shop, which sells “high-end” oral arrangements, houses plants and gift baskets comprised of gourmet and holiday-themed treats, candies and balloons, was established in 1992. Since then, Oulsey-Nevarez has bought out seven local orists and secured contracts with organizations such as MD Anderson and University of Houston. She credits her shop’s continued suc- cess to networking and community investment. “We have a lot of schools in our community and
BE E C H N U T S T .
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4782 Beechnut St., Houston www.elaines orist.com
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BELLAIRE MEYERLAND WEST UNIVERSITY EDITION
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