Flowers & Weeds — Attraction in St. Louis

I chose Flower and Weeds for my wedding floral option since I live out of town and wanted to support a local shop from my St. Louis which is where I am from and where the small wedding would be. I called 3 weeks before the event to have a $70 bucket of loose flowers put aside so I could make my own bouquet and boutonnieres. I provided a list of 8 flowers I was interested in and said I didn't want pink or red and no roses. I gave them a card number that I was told would be as a hold on the flowers until I pick them up since I would be using a different card to pay.

When I arrived to pick up my flowers it was not a bucket of loose flowers but a pre-made bouquet and there wasn't one of the eight flowers I asked for. When I said it was not what I asked for and it wasn't enough flowers a staff member said there was some confusion and she had to see what else was available since they had a lot going on. When she came out she brought me mums. I don't mind mums but for bridal flowers that felt insulting. Being already flustered I said I could probably make those work for boutonnieres but I needed more options. When she went in the back I could hear everyone back there snickering about me which made me extremely uncomfortable. The staff member then brought out a bucket of 3 different flowers that were mostly pink and some marigolds. She told me that because I did not want pink or red it limited my options and "they were trying to make other dreams come true in the back." This immediately made me feel that what I ordered and my wedding the next day was not their priority and not as important. I was ready to leave so I took whatever I could knowing that nobody else in town would be able to provide for me last minute.

When we went to pay the woman said they were already paid for. They ran my card already without my consent after telling me it was only for a hold so I could use a different one. Once we got in the car I felt cheated since we still did not have enough flowers and I didn't get what I asked for. So I had to go to Trader Joe's to buy extra flowers (they had 3 of the flowers I wanted) to fulfill everything I needed.

When I emailed the owner about my issue this is what she replied:

"I’m so sorry your experience was not a good one. We had three huge weddings that weekend and we did have specific flowers that we save for those weddings. All I can say is that it was a confusing experience for us and I am sorry if that confusion and chaos led to you feeling like we were snickering in the back. We were just trying to figure out what happened. As for (staff member, keeping name private), she has abruptly decided to leave the shop. It is unfortunate that your wedding day was aligned with our tumultuous times. All I can say is that yes, we are a small business, but we are also people. People make mistakes, people have really hard days. Relationships are tough, and communication is even tougher sometimes. I’m sorry you didn’t speak with someone who was more understanding and caring for your needs. This is something I never want to hear. We wear a lot of hats and had a lot of fires cooking that day. Again, I’m sorry you had a bad experience. Please let me know what we can do. If you give me the last four digits of your card I will refund it the $70."

I appreciate the owner giving me my money back but I read her email as if my wedding was not as important as the bigger ones. I work retail and understand people have tough days but it is not fair to take that out on a customer who is giving them money and had called with plenty of time to fulfill a special order. Especially knowing they have a big day in less than 24 hours.

I had to think about what to write for this because I understand this is a small business and reviews mean a lot, but my experience really upset me and after telling friends what happened a few had also felt the staff was rude and pinned the blame on them for their mistake.

I support local businesses that listen and appreciate their customer base and this place did not make me feel one...

I love flowers and weeds they have knowledge staff and are usually helpful with questions. I’ve been a regular here since 2015. recently there is a staff person that has made me feel unwelcome. My first interaction with them was on v-day wknd. I bought a plant and pot for my mom and asked to have it potted (paid service) she told me they wouldn’t be doing that today because of the holiday. I didn’t see a sign and was the only person there so I thought it was odd but didn’t question it. Today though I came with my dog and had been there for 30mins looking at different plants. I already had multiple plants on the counter and was taking one look around for pots. My dog barked at a pretty excited toddler a few times. The family went outside and I continued looking. From the counter this person asked if I needed help. I thought it was odd since I clearly didn’t but i said no and I kept looking. I happened to turn back around a few minutes later and she was just starting at me holding the cat. I definitely could be reading into things but I decided to not hang around any longer. I got the feeling she didn’t like my dog barking, idk and also don’t want to assume but it was...

I go plant shopping all over the city. This place is way way way overpriced. I live local and used to live a block of so away, years ago. So I dropped off a friend who had come by for a visit and was so excited to stop by and check out their plants. I picked up some seed packets that looked cool to try and grow. Didn’t look at the prices, not broke and they’re just seed packets. I just keep looking around and I’m floored by what they are asking for the same plants everyone else has. I went to pay and I jokingly said to myself, these 2 packets of seeds are going to cost me over $10 here. It sure was. I saw one person leave and I walked around alone on a Saturday afternoon. Gardening centers are like madhouses this time of year on the weekends. Maybe take a walk around your neighborhood and tell me your prices are going to keep you in business… Unless you want a stick in dirt for +$25 or a crazy priced Venus fly trap go somewhere else. I will go to plant stores over and over looking for new plants/gardening inspiration or maybe good deals, but will never go back to Weeds...