Just Vino wine bar is getting a neighbor. Bloom Florist and Special Events Planning has signed on for 1,300 sq.ft. of first floor space in the Granite Works, 846 Main Street at Virginia. The flower shop expects to have a 'soft opening' in mid-March and hold a grand opening the first or second week of April.
Bloom Florist is a new division of Hale Northeastern, Inc. The trade show and exhibit decorator has a long history in Buffalo. The company had its start in 1901 during the Pan American Exposition.
From the company's web page:
The Pan American Exposition was lacking in its needs for decorating support, so a local florist named George D. Hale stepped in to fill it. This is how Hale was born.
Initially only decorating with lattice and ferns, George D. Hale extended his services by using festooning, bunting and flags to add more festivity to the Pan American Exposition. By going the extra mile and paying attention to the finest detail, George's work paid off and he began receiving calls for decorating needs of expositions in cities such as Pittsburgh, Chicago, Detroit and Kansas City. The company prospered and grew.
The firm, located at 828 E. Ferry Street, continues to grow today. Due to repeated customer requests, a floral division was launched within the company and will soon have a Main Street presence. Hale's Orlando Diaz will be Bloom Florist's Creative Director .
Diaz has over twenty-five years of creative experience and is excited about the shop and location.
"Granite Works was our first and only choice," says Diaz. "The location is terrific, we're near the Medical Campus, and the area is up and coming."
Commercial spaces feature full-glass storefronts, high ceilings and brick walls.
"The building itself was screaming for a florist shop," says Diaz.
Much of the block's revitalization can be credited to Granite Works. First Amherst Development Group rescued a blighted row of four buildings dated from the 1850's to 1890's. Once threatened with demolition, the buildings were combined and restored. Granite Works offers 28 one and two-bedroom loft apartments on the upper floors and 4,600 sq.ft. of ground floor commercial space.
Looking for appropriate tenants, First Amherst has been patient and careful with its leasing efforts. Just Vino opened in the building's corner space in late-2008.
With the two leases, two additional commercial spaces remain including the ornate Granite Works storefront on the north end of the complex.
Since Granite Works welcomed its first residential tenants in 2006, several other projects have bloomed on the block. ZeptoMetrix is renovating a long-vacant historic mansion at 878 Main Street for its new corporate offices. Dan Campieri opened his 888 Main restaurant in 2007. Hospice is upgrading the façade of its two-story building at 892 Main. Closer to Allen Street, the City is planning to save the façade of the historic Summit Building at 918 Main Street while a redevelopment plan for the property is prepared.
Bloom Florist will feature cut flowers and arrangements focusing on both the retail side and special events planning. The shop will also carry specialty gifts, candles and unique vases. "We will be carrying a great line of vases from Toronto," adds Diaz.
Get Connected: Bloom Florist, 716.887.3863; First Amherst Dev. Group, 716.839.1400
I'm happy to see them moving in.