Flowers for Dreams Opens in Parker’s Alley

When the Flowers for Dreams team decided to set up their newest flower shop in downtown Detroit’s Parker’s Alley, co-founder Steven Dyme says he knew the community would be key. Before its official opening in March, patrons were invited to visit the storefront in the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day and nominate their favorite charity.

Flowers for Dreams partners with local charities and donates 25% of its net profits. Dyme asks, “What better way to engage the community and have them greet us with open arms?” The Children’s Foundation was selected as the first nonprofit partner through April, and they plan to announce a new charity monthly.

This is their third location; they’ve got two others in Chicago and Milwaukee. “The Midwest has always been our domain,” Dyme says. “We’re like the only one in the country that’s a regional player, that’s not either only serving a neighborhood, like a local mom and pop, or serving everyone by UPS.” Flowers for Dreams has built their own supply chain, from sourcing to designing to hand delivering.

Stop in and nestled among the daffodils and bird’s nest ferns, find honey from Bees in the D and lavender candles from Detroit Rose. “Every person I’ve met in Detroit cares really deeply about Detroit, and is very protective of the community,” Dyme says.

Along the way, he took care to meet with then-chief storyteller for the city of Detroit – and former BLAC editor – Aaron Foley and others who Dyme thought represent the area’s Black voice to figure out how best to strike a balance between old Detroit and a city in bloom.

1435 W. Farmer St., #120, Detroit