Shop selling flowers and sweets swamped for Valentine’s Day

GAUTIER, Miss. (WLOX) - Valentine’s Day is dominated by the sale of flowers and sweets. For shops that sell both, it’s a nonstop rush. Flower Patch in Gautier is one of those shops.

“People like a personal touch. We’ve been here for so long, and having the gift shop and the bakery, it’s the one-stop shop because people know they can come here and find just about anything they need,” said Malanda Schmitz, a seasonal florist at Flower Patch and daughter of the owner.

For the last two weeks, Flower Patch has taken orders for the holiday, and last-minute orders keep pouring in. The shop has been so busy, in fact, the owner unplugged the phone.

“[There is] not enough time to answer the phone. We had too many orders and couldn’t fill them all,” said owner Etta Saxton. “We had to turn the phones off since eight o’clock this morning.”

Saxton has owned the Flower Patch since 1971. She has seen decades of Valentine’s Day lovers come and go. At her side amidst the organized chaos are her twin daughters: Malanda Schmitz and Melinda Read.

Schmitz lives in Tampa, Florida, and visits during busy holidays like Valentine’s Day. Read bakes full time at the shop.

“I don’t know what I would do without them,” Saxton said.

Despite the hectic holiday, the message of love isn’t lost in the busy shop.

“I was thinking this morning, with so much going on around the world that’s chaotic, this is the day for love,” Schmitz said. “People celebrating and just loving one another. We need more of that.”

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