Diz's Daisys owner, Julia Park, in her 38th Avenue store.
(Photos credit here and below: Dean Rotbart)
The concept of a “family florist” may at first blush seem an anachronism in today’s impersonal, price-is-all-that-counts, Internet economy.
But serving Denver-area families with birth-to-death floral services, including mostly joyous events in between, is what has sustained Diz’s Daisys and its owner, Julia Park, since 1993.
Park has provided the floral arrangements at the births, communions and high school graduations for some of her clients’ kids. For others, she was the trusted florist they turned to for a Bat Mitzvah and then again a decade later for a wedding.
Weddings are her specialty. With so much else for brides and their families to arrange, Park makes the process of selecting, displaying and transporting all the wedding-related petals a breeze. Indeed, she and her crew frequently are asked to set up the flowers at a church or synagogue and then relocate them after the ceremony to a reception hall.
In this tough economy, where thousands of Denver’s small business owners are bowing under of weight of reduced consumer spending, high taxes and rising fees, Park’s business strategy of high-touch service and word-of-mouth marketing is a model for others to emulate.
Diz’s Daisys is also a reminder – pay particular attention Governor Ritter and Mayor Hickenlooper – that the true character and fabric of Denver’s neighborhoods is vested in its small businesses. Diz’s Daisys buys Colorado products, hires Colorado workers, serves Colorado customers and pays Colorado and Denver taxes and fees – lots and lots of taxes and fees.
Park, 46, a longtime North Denver resident and mother of two, purchased Diz’s Daisys from its founder in 1993 and operated it for many years at Leetsdale and Monaco. When the opportunity arose a decade ago to relocate the business closer to home, she moved to her current store at 2709 West 38th Avenue in the Sunnyside neighborhood and a hop-skip-and-a-jump away from Potter Highlands.
But business artist that Park is, all of metro Denver remains her canvass, with many clients dating back well over a decade. Park proudly displays letters and photos she has received from dedicated customers on the walls of her store and on her Internet site, www.dizs.com.
“How can I convey the compliments we had about all the florals?” writes Rennie Stern. “You put all our visions into a truly special realization – the colors, the styling…your timing and attention to the setup.”
Adds Andre Turrettini, another fan: “Thanks for delivering our wedding flowers into the mountains on such a snowy and icy day! I had friends who were too afraid to drive in the conditions but lo and behold, there was Julia delivering the beautiful flowers at the appointed time in the heart of the storm.
Park knows Denver and Colorado. A native, she graduated from Wheat Ridge High School in 1981 and worked for eight years in Queens (New York) as a manufacturers representative for a machine tool company before returning to the Mile High City.
Flowers were not her “calling,” but Diz’s Daisys was for sale and she seized the opportunity to become a businesswoman.
In addition to serving metro Denver clients, Park still purchases many of her stems from Colorado greenhouses. She participates in the Sunnyside United Neighbors organization and has been taking courses at the University of Colorado Denver.
“While others may choose to expand a small business, we choose to perfect our ability to make customers happy,” Park explains on her web site. Her style reminds me of the “Nordstrom’s Way,” a customer service philosophy of going beyond the expected in meeting and anticipating clients’ needs.
If business isn’t tough enough, Park wrestles with high property taxes, a leaky roof and a relative dearth of foot traffic along her stretch of West 38th Street. As we discussed her challenges on a recent day, flower delivery men let themselves in her back door to drop off her wholesale orders, a couple of long-time clients walk in with fresh needs and she juggles my questions with phone callers ordering same-day and next-day deliveries.
After I leave, Park will deliver the flowers herself or assign the task to her full-time driver.
Park came to my attention because my wife and I were the recipients of flowers sent to us by long-time clients of Diz’s Daisys. I can’t imagine any delivery person for the various chain store florists in town being as concerned for our satisfaction as Park was. (See last week’s Rotbart’s Business Picks-n-Pans column.)
So what does such personalized service buy? For one, my wife and I intend to make Diz’s Daisys our family’s exclusive metro Denver florist. For another, we are – as this column indicates, telling everyone we know that they, too, should give Diz’s Daisys a try.
In fact, I’m kinda hoping to see the formation of a “Diz’s Daisys Chain” of satisfied customers, each referring Park to family and friends and helping her promote and grow her terrific business.
Denver and Colorado need entrepreneurs and business owners with the spirit, determination and level of commitment that Julia Park embodies.
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