Silver Lining...

Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining.

Closing was not an easy thing to do. At the time, I had the heart-breaking task of calling our beloved customers to let them know that we were unable to fulfil their orders, as we have closed as a result of the Government directed COVID-19 Lockdown. We tidied, prepared, turned the lights off, and then walked out of our darling little shop, closing the door behind us.

I sat in my car some time afterwards trying to breathe. I had a massive lump in my chest that the air just could not get around… and then it came. The tears, the terror, the realisation that Things Just Got Real. I started shaking and it took a while for it to stop. The shock of the realisation of what this meant, and the immense responsibility that came with having a team of people you love and respect, whose livelihoods you were responsible for.

The first week was spent in a whirlwind of liberation. Completing jobs around the house and garden I had not been able to get around to doing for far too long. I was like a woman possessed. All that nervous energy had to go somewhere. Then the realisation hit… of what us closing truly meant.

It started with the emails. Customers desperate to send some tribute, remembrance, physical item of love and caring for loved ones they cannot be near at this time. The heartbreak of fear and longing for this time to be over. “Please… if I could just… understand what this means… it’s just so important”. I could feel the burden of responsibility coming back.

Burden isn’t quite the right word, really. I truly love what I do. It was the not doing… the absence of my motto: Say It With Flowers and understanding what this means to so many people of the same thread, the inaction to fulfil it, that held the weight. My hands were tied.

Or were they?

We started speaking with our suppliers. We spoke with our government representative. We spoke with the police. We even spoke with our Floristry Group contacts. We spoke with our team…

…after much reflection, thought, and more reflection, we have decided to start trading out of our Shoreham-By-Sea shop: Walter Smith Flowers. We will take orders online for both shops: www.gingerlilyflorists.co.uk and www.flowersbywaltersmith.co.uk and phone orders for DELIVERY ONLY. We will re-open for contactless deliveries on Wednesday 15th April 2020.

We are unable to offer our usual same day delivery service. It will only be for next day delivery. Please also note, that our flower range will largely depend on what we can get from our suppliers, and will vary day-to-day, but at least we will have fresh flowers!

Together we will get through this.

In kindness,

Angela and the teams at both Ginger Lily Florists and Walter Smith Flowers x