EP #64: Blooming Resilience: Kristen Bullard’s Journey with Full Bloom Florist and Community Connection

What Makes Kristen Bullard with Full Bloom Florist a Good Neighbor?

Can fresh flowers truly transform your day? Kristen Bullard, the dedicated owner of Full Bloom Florist, thinks so—and she's here to share why. In this heartwarming episode of the Good Neighbor Podcast, Kristen takes us through her inspiring journey from starting Full Bloom from scratch six years ago to becoming a cornerstone in the community.

You'll hear about her expertise in sourcing the freshest blooms from Holland, Ecuador, Colombia, and California, and debunk myths about flower longevity. Kristen's passion for connecting people through floristry, along with practical tips on keeping your flowers fresh, makes this a must-listen for flower enthusiasts and curious minds alike.

Beyond her thriving business, Kristen opens up about her personal life, sharing delightful stories of short trips with her spirited 80-year-old mother, her love for fishing, and socializing with friends. She also reflects on the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the courageous move to a warehouse just before the lockdowns and finding ways to keep her staff motivated and working. Kristen’s story is one of resilience, community, and the simple joys of life.

To learn more about Kristen Bullard and Full Bloom Florist, go to: https://fullbloom.shop/

 Full Bloom Florist
  204-720-5883

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Sophia Yvette.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast.
Are you in need of a flowershop?
Surprisingly, one may be closerthan you think.
Today I have the pleasure ofintroducing you to your neighbor
, Kristen Bullard, with FullBloom Florist.
Kristen, how are you doingtoday?

Speaker 3 (00:26):
I'm doing great, Sophia.
How are you?

Speaker 2 (00:29):
I'm great.
We are so excited to learn allabout you and your business.
Can you tell us a bit aboutFull Bloom Florist?

Speaker 3 (00:38):
I sure can.
I started Full Bloom fromscratch almost six years ago.
Started Full Bloom from scratchalmost six years ago.
We do everything under thefresh flower umbrella, so
everything from intimate dinnersto hundred centerpiece events
and everything in between.
We have a large daily businessand do weddings and all kinds of

(01:01):
events, including the corporateevents and then nonprofit
events as well.

Speaker 2 (01:11):
And how did you get into this business?

Speaker 3 (01:15):
You know I have always had just kind of a love
for people in general and I'vealways felt called to connect
people.
Ask all my friends from highschool.
They certainly know that I'mthe nucleus for all of the get
togethers, and so, taking that astep further, flowers really do

(01:38):
serve as a conduit inconnecting people.
People love getting the flowers.
Their face gets really excitedand happy and then the first
thing they do is reach for thecard.
They want to see who sent themand what the card says.
So flowers are just a reallyinteresting, cool, special way
to connect people and thatreally is the driving force

(02:02):
behind my passion and havingfull bloom.

Speaker 2 (02:07):
And what are the myths or misconceptions in your
industry?

Speaker 3 (02:11):
That's such a great question.
You know a lot of people say,well, I don't like roses because
they only last two days, or Ilove hydrangea, but they just
don't last.
And, honestly, and there's justa couple of things that you can
do super easy, that that makeit really that that is a myth

(02:34):
that you can have roses forupwards of two weeks.
You can have hydrangea forupwards of two weeks and not
putting them by a hot window orhaving hot air coming down on
them or clipping the stems everythree or four days and changing
out the water.
That will keep them fresh for along time.
Now, that being said, I buyeverything from Holland, ecuador

(02:58):
, colombia and a little bit inCalifornia, so getting mine
straight from the farm makes abig difference versus getting
them at like a grocery store,because those flowers have sat
in a warehouse for a couple ofweeks prior to actually hitting
the shelf, so you've already gota much older flower at that

(03:19):
point.
But when you order from aflorist or certainly I can speak
for full bloom you know ourscome directly from Colombia,
ecuador and Holland and a littlebit from California, so you
can't get them any fresher andthey certainly should last if
you take care of them.

Speaker 2 (03:37):
And outside of work.
What do you do for fun?

Speaker 3 (03:41):
Well, I love to have fun.
I like taking short trips withmy mom.
She's 80 years old and she isjust like you would think she
was 60.
So I really really enjoyspending time with her,
especially since I work a lot.
I like to fish because I loveanything water related, so I

(04:03):
love to be in the sun and thebeach, the lake, just whatever,
just really like that.
And then I also really likesocializing.
So I like doing, you know,going to ball games and hanging
out with friends and having youknow entertaining in my, in our
home.
Those are some of the thingsthat I really like to do, okay.

Speaker 2 (04:27):
And let's go ahead and change gears for a second.
Can you describe one hardshipor life challenge?
You rose above and can now saybecause of it, you're better and
stronger.
When I say that, what comes tomind for you?

Speaker 3 (04:40):
Well, actually, covid comes to mind.
I was a year old business andhad just moved in, moved my
florist into a warehouse theNovember prior to the March of
2020.
And my people just wanted towork.

(05:01):
My staff really just wanted towork, and so what I did?
I ultimately knew that, eventhough I wasn't on the list of
essential businesses, I knewoutside of that I fit all the
criteria, and so I called thegovernor's office and explained
to them that, while I wasn't anessential business, people still
had birthdays and anniversariesand had babies and events, and

(05:26):
assuring them that we couldsuccessfully do contactless
delivery.
I had less than 10 people on mystaff and operated out of a
warehouse.
It was still really importantto have that human bond.
It was a little daunting and itwas a challenge for sure,
because I didn't want to have tolay off my staff.

(05:46):
They needed to be able to putfood on the table and they
wanted just to be able to work.
And so, after a littlepersuasion on my part, the
governor's office sent meverbiage and allowed us to
continue to operate, and it wasgut-wrenching because I was one
of the only floors in the areathat could be open because I

(06:09):
happened to be in a warehouse.
So it strengthened me a lot.
It pushed my limits a littlebit, but it was really, really
gratifying and I thought, man,if we can make it through that,
we can make it through anything.

Speaker 2 (06:24):
Most certainly Kristen.
Please tell our listeners onething they should remember about
Full Bloom Florist listenersone thing they should remember
about Full Bloom Florist.

Speaker 3 (06:34):
Well, you should know that our service is
unparalleled.
I have built this business.
I built this business on.
You know, people say, built iton a shoestring, I built it on
half a shoestring, and I builtit on the premise of the golden
rule, which is to treat everyonethe way I want to be treated.

(06:57):
And that's what we do here.
In every aspect of this business, from delivery to taking the
order to making the arrangements, we treat people the way they
want to be treated in this, andI have a pretty high bar.
I I expect good service,because in most cases, good
service doesn't cost a dime, andso what we do here is just make

(07:23):
sure that everyone has a goodexperience.
And during the high volume youknow, valentine's, mother's Day,
uh, during those times, ifsomething falls through the
cracks, we have a no questions,no pictures required policy and
we'll replace and make it rightto ensure that everyone
ultimately can say that, even ifthere was a glitch, they had an

(07:45):
excellent experience.
And I think, between havingfirst class white glove service
coupled with the freshestflowers possible, full bloom is
is truly just a great option asit relates to fresh flowers in
this area in North Texas.

Speaker 2 (08:06):
And how can our listeners learn more about full
bloom florist?

Speaker 3 (08:11):
And how can our listeners learn more about Full
Bloom Florist?
Yeah, sure, so we can.
You can always go to thewebsite, which is fullbloomshop,
and Instagram.
Facebook is at Full Bloom TX.
And then also we are opening asecond location in Salina and

(08:34):
that is opening October the 4thnext Friday and if you just tune
into Facebook or Instagram, forsure you're going to know a lot
more about what's going on.
We're about to get realaggressive on doing some fun
things for the fall and moreaffordable things to give

(08:55):
everyone an opportunity and beable to have fresh flowers in
their home or for their event.

Speaker 2 (09:02):
Well, Kristen, I really appreciate you being on
the show.
We wish you and your businessthe best moving forward.

Speaker 3 (09:10):
Thank you so much, Sophie.
It's really been an enjoyabletime with you forward.
Thank you so much, Sophie.
It's really been an enjoyabletime with you today.

Speaker 1 (09:15):
Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor
Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on
the show, go to GNPFriscocom.
That's GNPFriscocom, or call469-221-9345.