Nonahood News: What is your job?

Lauren Brown: I’m a florist by trade, but Poppy Flower Co. is a lot more than just flowers. We’re a retail space and a flower truck. We support a lot of other local businesses.

NHN: What does your day-to-day schedule look like?

LB: That depends on the day. We source flowers that we need for the weekends; we have monthly subscriptions that we deliver every Saturday. We make sure we can find new, fresh, fun flowers to make sure there’s a variety week [by] week because we have a lot of repeat customers. We want to make sure they always have something new to look at. There’s also a lot of community involvement, finding new small businesses that can offer their goods at the shop, all kinds of creative candlemakers, artists, leatherworkers. It’s a lot of networking through social media and partners in the community. We do a lot of community involvement, networking events and special events. It’s a surprise every day, waking up and figuring out what we’re going to do.

NHN: What is the most challenging aspect of your job?

LB: I think weddings are hard because [of] all the girls that work with me, and I take every commissioned piece of work we do very personally. We’re personally entrenched in somebody’s vision of their event. We want to land as close to perfection as we can. I’m always reminding my girls, and my girls are reminding me, to have a little grace because everything doesn’t have to be absolutely perfect. I think having that level of love for the interaction that we build with our clients and wanting to deliver perfection every time – that’s really the hardest part.

NHN: What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?

LB: It’s nailing a vision. And having somebody say, ‘Oh, my gosh, this is beautiful.’ Or even as simple as delivering a weekly delivery to somebody and them opening the door and smiling and just being happy. It’s the reason we do what we do.

NHN: What got you interested in doing your current job in this area?

LB: It started with the truck. My husband is a tinkerer. He had just finished a big project, and he was asking what we could do next. I said, ‘I’ve always wanted a truck.’ Like a 1980s truck … reminds me of my granddad. We scoured the internet [and] finally found one that I absolutely loved in California. When it was on its way here, we got a picture of it on the trailer being hauled across the country, and I said, ‘Wouldn’t it be so cute if there were flowers in the back of it?’ And [my husband] said, ‘Yeah, actually, that would be kind of cool. We don’t have a florist around here. You know, it’d be like … a fun way to engage with people [to spread happiness].’ So we did it. It really started with the truck, not really out of a love of flowers, although it was more of a way to kind of jump into the community.

NHN: Do you have any interesting hobbies, collections or interests?

LB: Our family’s big Clippers fans. We have five kids. We’re a blended family, so my husband has three and I have two, and they are all under the age of 12. They keep us very busy. 

NHN: Where do you see yourself in the next five years?

LB: Doing this, but maybe in a different way. The beauty of having a creative position is being able to evolve. And the beauty of being a business owner is allowing yourself to evolve without really having to get anybody’s buy-off on it. I think that that’s been a really beautiful thing in my life. 

NHN: What would you say is your favorite part about Lake Nona?

LB: I know I keep talking about the community and that’s very cliche, but honestly, it really is. 

NHN: What brought you to Lake Nona, and when did you move here?

LB: I moved here probably about three years ago, but I lived over in Winter Park and Audubon Park, which are a little older. It’s a little grittier, has a lot of small businesses. I met my now husband, and he was building a house in Lake Nona. I thought, ‘I’m not gonna move out to Lake Nona. It’s, like, total cookie cutter.’ But I did. And now, I never leave.

NHN: What would you say to anyone considering a move to Lake Nona?

LB: Do it quick. Find a way to get in; it’s so great. And then, obviously, get flowers.