B.Willow — Attraction in Baltimore

supported since i moved to bmore 4 years ago. many strange situations but i continued to support.

during a free pot event, i realized i would be waiting in line for another hour to have my plants attended to for free.

i saw people going in, coming out and leaving so i figured i would see if i can pay for my repots instead. got in line. person ahead of me GETS A NEW PLANT REPOTTED.

i ask for a single plant to be repotted as it had the most urgent need. the person at the register told me “to respect the people in the free line, you will have to wait”

it felt very pointed, very deliberate and condescending, as if i wanted to “skip the line”

I also asked if I could drop my plant off and come back, and the person at the register kept saying “we need to respect the line” it felt like I was being treated differently than the person i literally watched get a repot. I dont know if they were even charged for the repot. I didnt ask. I felt like the cashier wanted me to feel bad and like I disrespected the event. I stood in the line for 30 min. I was happy to pay for my plant as it really needed help. instead, i was told i was being disrespectful.

I asked, even if I pay? thinking about the person that was standing in the line in front of me that was spoken to with kindness, respect, and got a repot.

Since this is not the first time I have been here and felt like I was being treated differently than others, I quietly picked my plants up and left.

I will never be recommending this plant shop again to anyone I know.

Stem and Vine is an amazing plant shop, its Black owned, very chill, beautiful plants, and I have NEVER felt overlooked, dismissed, and ignored like the many times I have patronized B Willow....

I’m writing this review almost 2 years post-purchase because I feel like this is worth mentioning especially to newcomers in the plant world. I think this is a beautiful and well kept shop with very knowledgeable staff. HOWEVER I’m giving 3 stars instead of a full house because I do feel that the way my plants were potted were aesthetically motivated ONLY, and that wasn’t disclosed to me. I have a beautiful golden pothos that came in a kokedama ball, and a marble pothos that came in a glass vase with shells and rocks atop the soil. For over a year, I kept these babies alive but there was never any new growth and they never seemed to thrive. I tried everything as far as fixing the environment to better facilitate the health of these plants but they would just not take to anything I tried to adjust. Fast forward to about 2 months ago, a friend of mine who owns a plant business helped me to repot my plants, as she felt the way they were potted initially was the cause for them to be so stagnant. As soon as they were dismantled and potted by her, my pothos began putting out so much new growth that I’d say each plant is at least 3 times as large and I’m constantly noticing them putting out new growth! I really feel like this shop I purchased from should have known better how to pot these plants so that I may have been able to enjoy them at their fullest, and so they would grow.. as they were both completely stunted for the entire time...

Disappointing. I see other reviewers saying the same, you’re treated like a ghost and don’t even get a hello. I was also the only Black person in this store, in a highly gentrifying area so I’m not really surprised. Glad I didn’t spend money on bad consumer service.

Edit to respond to the owner’s reply: Every negative review is about costumer service. You have to work on your consumer service dynamic as that is the recurring theme of every negative review regardless of the context of each visitor who was unhappy. As far as the context you have below, that’s really not the full story, after other customers were taken care of I was ignored and one of your employees as an afterthought mentioned asking questions as they walked past me towards some back room that I was near. When they immediately greeted the new customers that walked in after me, I looked up at your employee and told them I don’t feel comfortable spending money here or feel welcomed, then I left. You say that I left shortly after, but reasonably why would I stay any longer and devalue myself, my time, or where I...