Beautiful Flowers and Creative Crafts at Stems

There’s that classic smell of a flower shop when you walk into Stems on the Common. It’s a wonderful smell that makes you think of warmer weather, which is a gift these days. Owner Jennifer Collins took a few moments to talk to Winchester Patch about selling flowers in town.

How long has the shop been here?

The shop has been in Winchester for 20 year.

How has the area changed in 20 years?

Well, I wasn’t here 20 years ago, so I don’t really know. I bought the shop 7 years ago. So this shop used to be over by the Lane Funeral Home on Main Street. That’s where it started when the Gillespies first owned it. Then they moved to Cross Street and then to here for about 15 years.

What prompted you to buy the business?

It was always something I wanted to do, working with flowers. And I’m pretty creative, so I wanted to something that was very creative. So that was my decision.

Well the layout of the shop isn’t what you’d expect for a flower shop. There’s chairs and stools set up.

Well, those are actually from our storage. We’re usually have a ton of flowers on display here. We’re just moving things around.

I see you have glassware and China for sale here to.

Yeah, it’s eclectic. I try to keep things interesting. You know, we’re between seasons right now and so we’re cleaning up and getting ready to bring in stuff for Valentine’s Day. It’s a little difficult when it’s 7 degrees out. Transporting things gets a little bit dicey.

I was going to ask how the winter affects the business.

It’s hard. Stuff freezes within minutes, so everything has to be covered and wrapped. Sometimes the flowers I get from whole sales are damaged in transit because it’s so cold. You have to wait until the season passes. After this week, we’ll bring in stuff for Valentine’s Day.

When is the busiest season for you guys?

Stars in February and goes until June. And through the summer for wedding season.

Who’s the pooch?

Oh that’s Kenzie. I rescued him. He hangs out here all day with me.