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Washington Evening Journal
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Cari Anderson fulfills dream of owning flower shop
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
FAIRFIELD – Cari Anderson might be the hardest working person in Fairfield with the number of hours she devotes to her business Petal, which she purchased this past April.
Anderson bought what was previously known as Fairfield Flower & More from Kathy Eklund, located at 100 N. Second St. It was a dream come true for Anderson, who had longed for a shop all her own for 20 years after having worked for other flower shops. Her first six months have been busy, which has been good for revenue but it’s also pushed her to the limit.
“It’s way harder than I thought it was going to be,” Anderson confessed. “Part of it is that I’m a perfectionist and I don’t like to fail at anything.”
Anderson recounted a factoid she heard that the No. 1 reason new businesses fail is that they expand too fast, and she can see why.
“I’m working 100 hours a week,” she said, adding that she’s at the shop until 1 a.m. and then returns perhaps five or six hours later, spending nearly all her waking hours there.
The Union asked Anderson if she was starting to feel burned out from her grueling schedule.
“I’m in it to win it,” she responded. “I don’t have kids and I’m single. I’m doing it for the community, and people have been amazingly supportive of my business.”
In addition to flowers, Anderson offers tons of flower accessories in her store such as a variety of vases, including some new ones shaped like glass purses. She allots space in her shop for products from local vendors selling perfumes, chocolate, tallow butter, jewelry and more. At least 10 vendors are featured, and Anderson makes a point of including products sold by young kids in the area.
“I’m all about supporting little entrepreneurs so they can have businesses, something they’re proud of,” she said.
Anderson is a local gal herself, having grown up in Fairfield and graduated from FHS in 1997. As a teenager, Anderson saw herself as a future politician. After doing her undergrad at Drake University, she moved to the Twin Cities where she worked as a battered woman’s advocate.
She moved back to Fairfield in 2008 and for 16 years worked at Cambridge Investment Research, where she became a marketing business consulting coach, helping to make businesses more profitable. In addition to her role at Cambridge, Anderson has always maintained a part-time job, first at Hy-Vee Floral and then at Fairfield Flower & More under her cousin, Sue Middlekoop, and subsequent owners. Anderson used those years of working part-time in the floral industry to build relationships and refine her skills.
“I’m passionate about this, and to me it’s not just about the flowers, it’s about the experience,” Anderson said. “You’re with people on the hardest day of their life, and on the exceptionally good days of their life.”
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
