SEATTLE — Life moves fast at the corner of 23rd and Cherry - but inside the Flowers Just-4-U storefront, Mary Wesley helps make every moment count.
"I just love flowers,” Wesley said.
She's “Miss Mary” to her customers, who’ve depended on her floral intuition since she first opened her shop in 1984.
Wesley has made bouquets for everyone from Central District neighbors to the Seahawks.
But she said it’s impossible to count the number of arrangements she’s created over the past four decades.
“Oh my Lord,” Wesley said, laughing. "Tens of thousands. 40 years? That's not just peanuts, that's a big number…. I’ve got to tell you, I did flowers for Liza Minelli. We've done flowers for the Mariners."
Her hands have created floral artistry for all manners of celebrations, and comfort in troubled times. Wesley said it all comes from a place of joy and purpose.
"It was just something I loved to do and it was giving something back to my community. We did not have a flower shop in the community,” she said.
Flowers Just-4-U was the first black-owned floral shop in the Central District and one of few in the region. Wesley was inspired to start the business after receiving a bouquet that didn’t match the order.
"My husband at the time would love to give me flowers, and one I had to send back - I just rejected it because it was done so poorly,” Wesley said. "Then I started thinking, ‘We need a flower shop.’ We're not just going to have somebody dump anything over on us. I'm going to give my customers what they're buying, and not garbage."
The community has reciprocated her loyalty and support. In 2020, Wesley faced eviction until people rallied with a GoFundMe and donated enough money to save her small business.
2024 marks the 40th anniversary of her doors opening, and Wesley is still standing (alongside her single employee, Sue Grimord.)
"We're a family, we just are. Makes me cry,” Grimord said.
As for retirement? Wesley already did that, in 1997 - when she ended her 29-year career at Boeing.
The flower shop is her retirement - a second act, proving to be every bit as important as the first.
"It's a very joyous thing. I can never find the words to say it how I'd like to express it because there's not a word yet I think I could use that would really explain how I feel about my career,” she said.
Flowers Just-4-U is open every day but Sunday. It’s located at 701 23rd Avenue in Seattle and arrangements can be ordered for delivery.
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