In Full Bloom Suncoast Florist

Back in the day, if you wanted meat, you went to your local butcher. If you wanted fish, your local seafood market was the only place to go. And those flowers for the dinner table? Of course! The local florist could help.

Now, in age of efficiency, pretty much anything is available through online order or a one-stop modern grocery store … even those flowers.

“There is no denying the fact that Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and Publix had a huge impact,” says Jeff Gordon, owner of Sarasota’s longstanding Suncoast Florist. “It used to be a florist was the only place to get cut flowers.”

To keep up with the times, Gordon leaned in on more than a decade of wholesale cut flower experience, adapting his business model to compete.

“We are not traditional florists,” he says. “We sell a lot of flowers by the stem and the bunch and are competitive with all the markets around here.”

Five years ago, Gordon also followed a natural expansion opportunity driven by his love of the wholesale bunch distribution.

“I wanted the chance to get as many flowers in as many people’s hands as possible,” he says of his decision take his flowers to market.

He brought son Logan on board to help make it happen—first overseeing a presence at the Sarasota Downtown Farmers Market, and now hosting booths at two other local farmers’ markets.

“I get to have more of a personal relationship,” says Logan Gordon. “I can sit and talk to a person about what the flower is, what it’s doing, how it’s grown, and how it is going to age over time. So, they know what to expect.”

The Suncoast Florist booth is laid-back, offering flowers by the stem so you can create your own bunch. Or, if you are in a rush, snag one of Logan’s unique bouquets, which he makes custom week-to-week. Need flowers on a nonmarket day? Walk-in customers can still have a farmers’-market-like experience at the Suncoast store—instantly surrounded by buckets of flowers, wafting floral sweetness, and visions of succulents and live Florida-grown plants all around.

Although variety is important to Suncoast, the conscientious sourcing of the flowers is and always has been a key part of the business.

“We source sustainably grown flowers purposefully,” says Jeff Gordon. “It’s a trend the industry is headed toward anyway. And it’s good.”

Suncoast seeks locally grown flowers despite the fact that the Florida flower market is struggling due to sprawling development and Hurricane Charlie.

“It used to be that between Charlotte and Manatee counties there were some major producers,” he says. “And there is extraordinarily little now.”

He purchases flowers from boutique flower growers whenever available, offering locally grown calla lilies and sunflowers and Lakeland-grown snapdragons. Much of the greenery that is used in arrangements and bouquets comes from his own back yard.

And although Jeff Gordon estimates that 90% of flowers sold in Florida come through Miami from Central and South America as well as Europe, Suncoast patronizes international sources that follow best practices in growing methods.

For example, Central and South American growers are serious about a “Save Our Jungle” certification, awarded to those implementing integrated pest management for soil health in addition other important aspects.

“They also take good care of their employees,” he says.

The Gordons’ passion for the future of the sustainable and local floral industry continues to grow and they offer value to their community as they also take steps toward creating their own growing program.

“We’re testing a few things, both hyper-local and in Tennessee,” says Jeff Gordon.

Tennessee’s climate would allow them to grow high-demand flowers like peonies and hydrangea—which don’t grow in Florida.

“We are figuring out what is going to work best at what times—seeing what we can establish year-round and what will be seasonal and really how to even to do that,” says Logan Gordon, who is working on his own succulent growing and distribution business as well.

“If you have got $3 left to your name, spend two of it on food and one of it on flowers,” he says, paraphrasing an ancient proverb. “Food feeds your body. Flowers feed your soul.”

Walk-ins are welcome at the Suncoast Florist shop, located in the plaza at the corner of Beneva and Bahia Vista. In addition to the Sarasota Downtown Farmers Market, they can also be found at the Phillippi Farmhouse Market on Wednesdays and at the Englewood Market on Thursdays. suncoastfloristry.com