SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
After 10 years in business, Rebecca's Flowers is up for sale - but the owners aren't looking to toss the bouquet to just anyone.

Richard Birch, above, and his wife Rebecca, have put Rebecca's Flowers up for sale. Birch said they're being picky about who they will sell to. - Jessica Davey-Quantick/NNSL photo

"We're being a little bit picky because we don't want to turn this into just another little hole-in-the-wall shop," said Richard Birch, who owns the store with his wife Rebecca. "We do a tremendous business here all over the North, and we want somebody that is going to be able to continue on or even make it grow more."

Birch said the right person to take over the shop will need a love of art and design for flowers, and have a knowledge of the flower business.

Rebecca's Flowers is one of two flower shops servicing Yellowknife. Birch says the sale is something he and his wife have been thinking about for a while, and have already had "no less than a dozen different parties" show interest.

They're offering their business as a turnkey operation complete with stock, contacts and even staff for the right person, as well as training during the transition, which could include conversations with the former owners and even in-person help during extra busy times, like holidays.

In addition to the Birch's, the shop also employs between three and five people, but can spike up to 12 employees during the holiday season. Birch said he's hoping whoever buys the shop will retain the staff.

Stacie Smith, owner of Flower's North, said she's not planning to buy them out and form her own floral dynasty in Yellowknife.

"Thought about it, but their asking price is above and beyond what I would even consider purchasing for," she said, adding she could "definitely" handle the volume if her shop was left the last florist standing in Yellowknife. That said, she's hoping someone else will step up and take over Rebecca's Flowers.

"We'll be sad to see them go, I definitely wouldn't want to be the only flower shop here in town," said Smith. "If I were a monopoly, I mean it would be great in my mind, but also you want to have a competitor that you can work off of."

The Birch's, originally from California, have spent nearly 25 years in the North, designing flowers and working with the Glad Tidings church as ministers. Birch said after the business is closed, they hope to spend more time with family in Alberta, as well as focus on their ministry across the globe.

"We're going to do a lot of travelling," said Birch.

He said there are lots of areas the store hasn't been able to break into, because he and his wife's ministry work has taken time away from the floral business.

"It's a fantastic business," said Birch. "I mean yes we do funerals and things like that, the sadder things, but there's also a lot of real joyous things in this."

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