Seed To Stem — Local services in Worcester

Edit: I would like to add that the shop owner has reached out and explained they were not aware of this situation until much later in the day, and they would like to try to make it up. As I mentioned, I have shopped here before with positive experiences so I will try to not let this negative experience determine my complete impression of this small business

Horribly disappointed with my experience today... I have shopped at Seed to Stem a few times in the past and thought they were a great place, but today completely ruined my idea of this business. I was very certain that our shopping appointment had been scheduled for a specific time. Apparently they had made a mistake on their end and admitted that's probably what happened, but they had our appointment in their book for a different time than I had originally scheduled with them over the phone. We arrived at the building what we thought was 20 minutes early, so we decided to kill some time in the antiques shop downstairs. I missed a call from Seed to Stem while we were there. I called back 5 minutes later and explained that I was sure my appointment was supposed to be at 2pm. The girl said she thought that it was a mix-up before calling me and apologized, but now someone else was arriving for a 2pm appointment and we would not be able to enter the store. I was offered a couple inconvenient options (an opening late in the afternoon or tomorrow), which I explained would not work for us. I also suggested that if they had openings 2 hours later would it be possible to push back only a couple of appointments by only 15 minutes to accommodate us for THEIR mistake. I was then told "it would just be too difficult" to contact the other customers and explain a short delay in their appointments. They will admit they made a mistake, but it's "just too difficult" to fix it?! This is just horrible customer service, and gives the impression that they are too lazy to handle their mistakes. We traveled over an hour for a shopping appointment, and arrived early, ready to spend hundreds of dollars today, but now Seed to Stem has lost at least 3 and possibly many more customers because "it was just too...

Seed to Stem is what all plant shops should aspire to!! They represent everything you want in a local shop. Aside from the gorgeous aesthetics, they have an AMAZING selection and wonderful, caring staff. I have over 65 plants and they always have something new and cool. Their selection is constantly changing. You can find trendy plants, hard-to-find plants (I loved the Hoyas on my last visit), and classics. The staff is willing to take the time to talk to you about your questions without making you feel silly and they’ll help you find the proper plant for you, whether you’re a newbie or have a green thumb.

I am a bonafide houseplant fanatic and I am constantly browsing plants at nurseries and hardware stores and grocery stores and on Etsy. With few exceptions, the prices at StS are comparable to the market, if not cheaper. The pricier plants they have are priced that way for a reason—they’re harder to find, especially if you don’t want to buy online, and look well taken care of. Yes, big box stores have cheaper plants but their selection is usually very standard and you can forget about getting any customer service. By contrast, StS has always been so accommodating with giving advice. I even once bought a croton that was constantly dropping leaves and they kindly let me exchange more than 30 days after I’d purchased it. I much prefer shopping at StS instead of a certain well-known greenhouse in CT with much higher prices and poor customer service. I haven’t had any known pest issues from plants I’ve purchased from here, but I’ve begun treating all new plants I bring home.

I live in NYC and try to always stop here when I visit family in Worcester. Even if I don’t buy anything—a rare occurrence that requires a lot of willpower—I feel refreshed after walking through their store. Can’t comment on the crystals or taxidermy, but the displays are lovely and look well-stocked. Consider this rambling review to be a testament of the awesomeness...

This store is undeniably beautiful (it also happens to be next door to a bookstore/cafe, so between the two, covering most of my favorite bases), and housed in such a cool building.

I would give it five stars but there were a couple of bothersome bits for me. I also realize that unless this stuff is important to you it might not matter or affect your experience here but... As someone deeply and professionally immersed in ecology and cultural awareness, it's hard for me to unsee, and so my review is based on MY experience and mine alone. If you don't care about these things, this review does not apply to you. Go enjoy the store.

I wasn't able to immediately discern whether the white sage bundles or palo santo products for sale were sustainably grown/harvested, though, and that is problematic for me. Rampant and unsustainable wild-harvesting of these items for retail is creating problems for the cultures who use these traditionally. Anyone selling them should make an effort to NOT be part of the problem and to educate consumers.

Also, the taxidermy was a little off-putting, especially the non-game animals like the wolf and the zebra. Perhaps there's an interesting story behind it all other than just sport killing or aesthetic - if there is, I would like to know, because otherwise it just looks like someone using a sport kill/purchase as a retail display.

Small signs are easy solutions.

I do give the proprietors 5 stars for aesthetic otherwise though, it is a beautifully laid-out retail display and the selection of plants, crystals, body products and gifts is...