Business is blooming at Central Park Flowers

CLARKS GREEN — Central Park Flowers was voted “Best Florist” by Abington Journal readers in the Best of the Abingtons competition.

The flowers shop currently occupies the former CVS building on 100 South Abington Road.

Owners Dorian and Eloise Butovich, who reside in Glenburn, provide unique, out-of-the-ordinary arrays of flowers along with normal stocks as well. Their flowers include ones that are grown outside the country, such as Dutch hydrangeas, Italian ranunculi, orchids from the Philippines and roses from South America. They purchase them from flower markets in Manhattan as well as auction houses in Holland.

“That helps us to keep our prices as low as we possibly can,” said Dorian. “And quality is ensured.”

Especially with Japanese flowers, which Dorian mentioned are expensive due to their longevity and Japan’s high-quality growing system.

There are certain types of flowers that Central Park Flowers don’t carry such as carnations, mums or lilies, but can be available through client’s request.

Dorian and Eloise always make sure that their regular customers, whether they come in the store every week or are members of the subscription services, receive a different batch of flowers each time.

“If it’s different colors to different types of flowers, that’s where seasonality helps us,” said Dorian. “Things from like chocolate cosmos to anthuriums (grown in summer).”

Central Park Flowers can provide any types of flowers whether in season or not. But there are arrangements that are more popular in this season of summer. An array called Daily Bunches, which consists of roses, sunflowers, and delphinium, are one of the best sellers this time of year. Dorian mentioned that customers have been buying them for barbecues and outdoor parties. Another arrangement is the Abundance of Love, which is comprised of over 40 roses in shades of white, blush, pink and lavender. Sweet like a Peach offers peach garden roses and light pink alstroemeria with tiny accents of yellow. Each bouquet is meticulously wrapped in recyclable paper, not plastic.

“Trying to do the right thing for the environment is very important to us,” said Eloise.

Central Park Flowers began inside a 500-square-foot location in Olyphant in 2009. Dorian and Eloise later moved their business to another location in that same town. They needed a bigger space to sell their giftware and open a cafe. Since the majority of their clientele is in the Abington area, they decided to purchase the 10,000-square-foot building, which has been vacant for six years, on Abington Road in February 2022. They have been repurposing it to be the new home of Central Park Flowers and to open a cafe under the same roof. A mural in the back of the building and an outdoor sign have both been created by local artist Eric Bussart.

Giftware for sale includes vases, tabletop ware, candles and other decorative items. The cafe will soon be ready. It will feature French and Italian fare. There will be a full-service coffee menu, which will have brewed teas and iced specialty drinks. The espresso drinks will be prepared by a machine with a four-part filtration system. Dorian and Eloise have been updating their customers on when the cafe will be complete. As of the end of July, it still needs two weeks of construction and three to five weeks of inspections.

The flower shop’s name is in reference to New York City, where Dorian and Eloise resided originally. Dorian has been working in the floral business for 30 years. When he was 16 years old, he started out driving and sweeping for a flower shop in New York.

Central Park Flowers has 10 employees ranging from drivers to designers. There will be more employees once the cafe is open. Deliveries are made up to a one-hour away from the store. Dorian and Eloise have happily traveled to other states and countries for floral shows. They cater to any mood or occasion whether it’s happy like a birthday party or serious like a funeral. They appreciate the support of the Abington community, including Abington Heights School District, where they have been making flowers for proms and more recently, the high school’s graduation.

“We’re so grateful that the community chose to honor us,” said Eloise. “It’s very much our pleasure to serve the community. We’re there for so many milestones and occasions.”

Being of Ukrainian descent, Dorian went to two on trips to western Ukraine, where he provided medical supplies to soldiers. He also handed gift cards to refugee families. He has a Go Fund Me page, in which he is raising funds for ambulance for Ukraine. He plans to drive the ambulance to help patients in Bakhmut, Ukraine in November.