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Business is blooming for local florists on Valentine's Day

Mercedes Cortazar Anderson, owner of Mercedes Flowers, shared how Valentine's Day preparations for her shop start months in advance.

AUSTIN, Texas — For florists nationwide, Valentine's Day is one of the busiest days of the year. 

Mercedes Cortazar Anderson, owner of Mercedes Flowers, has had flowers around her since she was a young girl. With a family business that dates back over 50 years, her shop creates unique works of floral art. 

The native Texan said her custom flower designs may be more expensive than the arrangements at the grocery store, but she invests in her flowers and her customers do, too. 

The planning for Valentine's Day starts early. Anderson explained that she typically starts planning on floral orders in October and September. 

"January 1st is when you should be ordering. You think that you'll wait until the last minute because the florist wants to get rid of their designs but no, there will be very little left," Anderson said.

Growing up in the flower business, Anderson developed a passion at a very early age. Anderson said she watched her grandmother and mother make a life out of designing floral concepts.

Mercedes Flowers offers a special package that Anderson calls the "Big 3." Customers give the florist three of their most important dates – like anniversaries, birthdays and holidays – and she will deliver flowers on those special days. 

"The main flower that you show up with for the person that you're interested in or you love, the peony is the most request[ed] flower for us. It's huge. Right now, they're coming from Israel," Anderson said.

When it comes to picking out the perfect Valentine's Day bouquet, if this is your first Valentine's Day with a special someone, Anderson recommends light pink or blush colored flowers. 

"Red can also stand for respect, respect and admiration, which I think is beautiful. Yellow is more friendship," Anderson said.

Anderson said during the COVID-19 pandemic, business was booming for her because people were sending flowers as a way to communicate since they couldn't physically see each other. Going into the rest of the year, she encourages shoppers to support local if they can. 

"Just remember to support your local shop today. Go to them first. Go to their website, see what they have available, try to go with them," Anderson said. "That's speaking from the heart."

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