By Wendy Von Vries
It all began when I was a teenager. My mother, Annabella, fell in love with a small flower stand nestled in an alleyway by Mill Valley Market. When she wasn’t working at what was then Marin General Hospital, she was attending my track meets at Tam High School or spending her weekends at the flower stand, crafting flower arrangements with an artistic flair and intuitive touch that quickly caught the city’s attention.
My childhood was filled with memories of racing by the flower shop on my bicycle — pedaling, not electric — grabbing a dollar for lunch at the Mill Valley Market and receiving warm hugs and kisses from my mom. As time passed, my parents bought the flower stand, and my mother began sharing her passion by teaching floral arranging to the community and our entire family. By 1990, the small stand had blossomed into a vibrant, bustling flower shop, handling weddings, events and designs for every occasion. My father, Lars, after retiring early from his construction business due to a nail-gun injury to his eye, took on the role of accountant, diving into a new world of sales tax filings, payroll and profit-and-loss reports — tasks that he handled with meticulous precision, all done by hand with a magnifying glass. He made hand-drawn annual graphs of the shop’s progress. He never owned a cellphone or computer. Today, as my husband and I strive to keep up with Excel spreadsheets and modern technology, I’m in awe of how amazing my father was. Together, my parents cherished their days at the shop, the soothing sounds of flowing water and the lush greenery surrounding them making it a peaceful place to share their joy of flowers with our beloved community.
Our family’s flower shop, Mill Valley Flowers, has grown with the help of every family member, from buying and processing to designing and delivering. My mom spent 30 years of her life training and inspiring women, including me. Many team members have been with us since before they could drive, and they now bring their own children in to intern with us.
Beyond teaching me the art and joy of flowers, my mother also nurtured my passion for event coordination and the importance of building strong relationships with customers and suppliers. We spent countless hours inspiring one another. My journey took me to Europe, where I pursued a design internship and earned my certified event planning degree at Sorbonne University. I eventually launched a successful events company in Paris, France, and later expanded to Barcelona, Spain — a venture that continues to thrive today.
When my father died during the pandemic in 2020, and my mother’s grief became overwhelming, I returned home from Europe to be by her side. The soothing sounds of the creek and the lush greenery surrounding our shop continue to make it a sanctuary of beauty and reflection and now healing. Though my mother is retired, and my father is gone, their warmth and creativity remain a constant source of inspiration. I am deeply grateful for the confidence my mother placed in me to carry on our local family business and her legacy. My husband, children and I will continue to support local festivals and our family’s passionate conservation efforts and, of course, hope to live up to my parent’s high standards, generosity of spirit and love that define Mill Valley Flowers.