Megan

Which course did you study at Tallulah Rose and when?

The Tallulah Rose Original Career Change Course, 2023-2025

What did you most enjoy about learning online?

The flexibility to work around other commitments, and ability to budget and plan for upcoming
lessons, but mostly; the fantastic resources that we have access to and the ability to revisit as often
as needed. I lost count of how many times I rewatched ‘the hand-tied bouquet’ lesson!

What has been your career highlight so far?

This may be small to a lot of people, but my first online order, which quickly preceded some of my
busiest weeks to date. It felt like an important moment; a turning point for me and my business,
after building it up from (quite literally!) the ground up.

What is the best part of having your own floristry business?

I get to be creative every day. Building and running a business requires so much creative thinking,
and I really enjoy feeling confident to at least give things a go, trial ideas and develop my style and
identity.

The variety of work opportunities and the ability to choose work which aligns with your vision too. I
also love the challenge of working out how to actuate an idea; how you can make something work in
a practical sense, not just visually.

The people I have met as a result of owning a business as well! They have been uplifting and so
generous with their time and knowledge, including another Tallulah who convinced me the career
change course was right for me in the first place.

But I’d be remiss to not state the obvious: The flowers: they’re what got me here in the first place-
the joy they bring is unmatched, and a car bursting with flowers does not get old!

What’s the best piece of advice Rachel gave you?

Eat the Frog!

Base your business around your vision and core values. Build that first; dissect it, dissect it again,
until you know it inside out and the rest will fall into place!

I found it a challenge to get through the business modules where this is explored, as I naturally just
want to do the creative, fun bits, but I was disciplined with myself, and worked methodically through
these. I am so glad I did, Rachel was absolutely right, of course!

Every step past that point has felt relatively straight-forward and easy as my vision, and my core
values have driven every decision, and I am confident in what these are and what they look like for
me.

What would you say makes your floristry business unique?

I make effort to use British grown, seasonal flowers and foliage all year round. This has forced me to
be creative; to study the flowers and foliage and be confident in these. I love championing beautiful
seasonality in my work.

My core values drive my business and the choices I make for it, and I am always looking for ways to
keep improving.

I also have a creative background, which I still engage in, and I think this gives me a unique
perspective too. I really enjoy using different colour combinations or throwing an unexpected
ingredient into the mix, every now and then.

Is there an opportunity that springs to mind that Tallulah Rose gave you the confidence to
pursue?

I have put myself out there as much as possible in the last year. I’ve not always had a response, as I
am still new to it, but I am more than happy to throw my hat in the ring for opportunities and I’m
happy to approach other businesses and people in the industry. This in itself, is a big achievement
for me.

When I am approached to provide flowers for an occasion, I feel excited and happy to say yes,
whereas nerves would have been a barrier in the past. They’re still there, I don’t think they ever go
away but I feel I can harness these into positive action now.

I would not have felt confident to pursue any of these without Tallulah Rose, so can I say all of
them!

What does a typical floristry day look like for you.

Typically, I like to start the day (or at least the week) with admin (EAT THE FROG!). I like to plan out
my week ahead, allocating time for ‘growing’ and ‘floristry’; when I need to cut/ order flowers, how
many stems are required that week etc. I check emails and enquiries and ensure I get back to these
in a timely manner.

After this, it’s difficult to describe a typical day, as there isn’t really such thing for me, but as I grow
some of the flowers I use, I usually will have some seedlings that need to be checked on, so I will pop
out to the greenhouses in the morning to do this.

Once that’s done, I will either have a ‘growing’ day or a ‘floristry’ day, making up any arrangements
needed.

I like to carve out some time in the day, at least once a month for creative play. This might seem
frivolous to some, but it is one of my commitments I made to myself; to continue to hone my craft
and challenge myself to work with whatever is available that week. I want to be the best I can be,
and getting time to experiment with flowers is paramount.

Currently, it is prep season for all the festive season, so typical days involve visiting the wholesalers,
drying flowers for workshops, arranging pre-orders for fresh flowers, booking people onto workshops, creating social media posts, creating example wreaths for the website, and making dried
flower arrangements too, so they are ready to rock and roll.

What is your favourite British flower that you grow and why?

There’s so many, but it has to be Roses! They are the quintessential flower of Summer in my eyes.
They evoke so much for so many and ooze romance and charm, but from a growing perspective;
they are easy-going, strong and super resilient. They really help to ground me and connect me to the
seasons, which is important for my work.

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