Linda Markee (left) and Alisha Markee-Ala (right) stand in front of their new studio on Cottage Street.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo
EASTHAMPTON — A floral design studio that has been entrenched in the community for over a decade is opening its first brick and mortar store at 32 Cottage St.
Bouquets of the Valley, which formally started as a home studio business in 2012 by mother-daughter team Linda Markee and Alisha Markee-Ala, is having a soft opening during the week of Sept. 23 and a ribbon cutting ceremony on Oct. 10 at 4 p.m.
“We want to have something for everyone,” Markee said of the new shop. “We love being a part of Easthampton and Cottage Street.”
The mother and daughter duo started Bouquets in the Valley because Markee spent a lot of her time creating floral designs for people before they started the business, and Markee-Ala grew up fascinated by the medium of floral design.
According to its website, Bouquets of the Valley offers all types of flowers for different events such as weddings, proms and funerals, along with flowers for holiday décor and for different seasons.
“Weddings and events have been that probably the largest part of our business,” Markee said. “And we certainly continue to welcome wedding couples and, and they’ll now have a space where they could even see more of our work and come in and visit with us.”
The new location will havehome, garden and gift items along with fresh flowers by stem or by arrangement. Markee said that the mother-daughter duo will also be able to host their multiple floral classes and workshops for adults and children inside the shop.
“We really see our space as being a place that we can bring the community together and enjoy gardening and home flowers,” Markee said.
That ethos of bringing the community together is wholly reflected in the business’ core values of loving all, providing focused service that is unique to a customer’s needs and protecting the environment at all costs, especially when it comes to growing their own flowers or locally sourcing their flowers.
“One of the things we like to do within our business is to educate people about the floral industry,” Markee said. “It can be very, very difficult environmentally, so we try very hard to locally source our flowers.”
When asked about what drew them to the location, Markee said that she has always admired the ebullience showcased on Cottage Street thanks to the many shops, restaurants and other businesses present on the strip.
“We have always enjoyed shopping there and getting to know the businesses there,” said Markee.
“It’s special because we live here in Easthampton and we’re active in the community,” Markee-Ala said. “We’re excited to be in like what, what we consider the heart of Easthampton Cottage Street and the cultural district.”
The hours of operation for the new shop will be 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursdays, noon to 4 p.m. on Sundays and then 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays or Saturdays, though Markee said that the shop may be open later Fridays if they have events.
Residents are welcome to join the ribbon cutting in October with city officials and other business representatives that plan to be there, according to Markee.
Readers can also visit the shop’s website to learn more about what they offer: bouquetsofthevalley.square.site/.
