Elizabeth Knispel is hoping a new trendy experience will blossom on Main Street.
The owner of Twill Trade Boutique opened a floral closet within the store this month. Knispel wanted to focus on having flowers that were more unique and interesting than the ones offered at a grocery store. She has found inspiration on social media and what flowers are trendy on Instagram.
Instead of having to travel to Kansas City or Lawrence to get flowers, this gives Eudora residents a place to come while shopping at a local small business, Knispel said.
“In Eudora, we tend to go to Kansas City or Lawrence for an experience and why not just make experiences here?” Knispel said. “We can make those happen in our town.”
After community members expressed interest in the boutique selling flowers, Knispel decided it was time to create her own room for people to build bouquets close to home. It was a project that the boutique had wanted to begin for a long time.
When customers enter the room at the back of the shop, they may see walls covered in lilies, roses, dry goods, eucalyptus, palms and other options that will change on a week-to-week basis.
The closet gives customers the opportunity to create their own bouquets or arrangements in an intimate and creative setting, Knispel said.
Theresa Seiwald bought flowers during the closet’s opening weekend. She described Twill Trade as a “one stop shop” that caters to people of all ages. Since the flower arranging is DIY, the possibilities are endless.
“She is definitely filling a community niche that we didn’t have,” Seiwald said. “I would rather spend my money in Eudora than anywhere else.”
It is a clever way to fill the need for flowers while letting people do it in an affordable way, Seiwald said.
The stems are $1.85 each, or customers can use a size guide to get a small, medium, large or extra-large bouquet. The extra-large option includes 24 stems for $40, or the small package includes seven stems for $12.
The flower service caters to every age group whether for holidays, birthdays or clients because it is customizable, Seiwald said.
“I have not seen anything like this.” Seiwald said. “This is the cutest thing ever.”
Knispel wanted the closet to be open in time for Valentine’s Day so after she put her mind to it, she prepared everything in about two weeks.
When the closet had its soft opening last week, business was steady and became steadier as the weekend went on.
Knispel thinks they had between 20 and 40 customers. On Valentine’s Day, the boutique hosted a braid bar where kids could get flowers braided into their hair.
Chamber President and Eudorable Home owner Courtney Gebauer sees the growing diversity of shops on Main Street as a vital way to get people to spend money locally and get people to travel to Eudora.
“Eudora is definitely becoming, if it’s not already, a destination,” Gebauer said. “There is more to do now on Main Street. You can make it a day trip.”
Knispel gets her flowers from Florasource KC. The woman-owned wholesaler has worked to guide and teach Knispel about the various flowers.
Although she did not know much about flowers when starting this endeavor, Knispel said she has had fun learning and being able to be creative with her arrangements.
Customers can bring in their own vases, buy jars or vases, or use provided paper to wrap their flowers. There is also an option for different membership packages where customers can get a punch card and members can get a monthly bouquet of their choice.
Twill Trade Boutique is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays and Mondays.
Reach reporter Sara Maloney at [email protected]
