August Newsletter
FLOWER SHOP CHRONICLES
Behind the Name of Bell and Trunk
Sustainable Weddings
Flowers Get a Second Act at SF General
“When one tugs at a single thing in nature he finds it attached to the rest of the world.”
Behind the Name of Bell and Trunk
"Bella Trunk”? Or "Bell and Truck”?
I get asked almost daily to enunciate the name and explain its roots. It does seem a little mysterious, hinting at Victorian-era trips on ocean steamers, or maybe some kind of safety feature on tractor trailers.
In fact, we do have a history, but maybe not what you’d suspect.
Bell and Trunk derives from the names of two of our founding mothers — Pam Bell and Mary Trunk. The project began in 1990 when Mary and another partner decided to start sell flowers out of a cart on a Potrero Hill street corner. They had no way of knowing their little business endeavor would change hands twice and become the life calling of its present day owner 30 years later.
Mary told me she started the business with an investment of $600, quickly made a $35 profit, and grew it from there. She brought on Pam six months after the startup, partly because the original business partner couldn't hack the bone-chilling summer mornings and pre-dawn trips to the flower market.
The new business partners complemented each other: Mary liked to keep her head down, focusing on projects and handling the finances. Pam liked to use her experience in hospitality to connect with people and drum up accounts. Each said the other was an incredibly hard worker.
They also had a knack for ignoring the naysayers and sticking to their vision, even without a background in business. They took a course for female entrepreneurs and got a $5,000 loan.
"If we knew how to do a business plan we never would have done it," Mary told me.
After squirreling away enough profit the two flower mavens moved into their first storefront, a shared space next to Goat Hill Pizza on Connecticut and 18th streets.
On Mother's Day in 1997, a reporter from the San Francisco Chronicle Magazine walked into the flower shop and asked for three wedding bouquet samples. Even though it was one of the busiest days of the year, Pam and Mary dropped everything and threw together stems of freesia, calla lilies, roses and other blooms. They didn’t expect much would come of it.
"There they go, we'll never get anything back," Mary recalled thinking. But the following month, Bell and Trunk landed on the magazine cover along with a big inside spread in The Chronicle's June wedding issue.
"From that day on, business skyrocketed," she said.
Bell and Trunk Flowers in the 1997 June wedding edition of the San Francisco Chronicle Magazine
Mary later decided to go to grad school to pursue a filmmaking career and sold her portion of the business to Pam, who handled the business independently until she decided to sell to a Potrero Hill neighbor, Maxine Sui, a former pastry chef burned out on the fine dining scene.
Maxine shadowed Pam for several months until they were kicked out of their space on Connecticut Street. Fortunately for them, a hair salon at 1411 18th Street was going out of business, opening a prime spot for a flower shop in 2000. That’s where we are to this day.
Over the past couple of months, I not only got to know Pam and Mary, I also got reacquainted with Maxine. Pam and Mary and I exchanged many emails, phone calls and texts. Mary Trunk is now an award-winning director and producer of documentaries in Los Angeles, CA. She's also a professor in the Film Department at Mt. St. Mary's University. Pam Bell is a life coach, event planner and manager at Alexander Wine Growers. She also teaches flower arranging classes at an organic flower farm in Healdsburg.
Mary Trunk is an award-winning director and producer of documentaries in Los Angeles, CA. She's also a professor in the Film Department at Mt. St. Mary's University. In 1990 she "drove through Potrero Hill and thought they needed a flower shop," she said.
Pam Bell is a life coach, event planner and manager at Alexander Wine Growers. She also teaches flower arranging classes at an organic flower farm in Healdsburg. "I have to admit my home looks like a flower shop." she says.
Maxine and I sat down on the bench next to my flower shop in June and got caught up on the 13th anniversary of the day we went to City Hall together and transferred the business from her name to mine. Maxine sold Bell and Trunk to pursue her dream of opening a little breakfast place. Her restaurant Plow is one of the most highly rated farm-to-table restaurants in San Francisco with hours long waits on the weekends. We still see each other regularly since our businesses are just blocks apart.
Maxine Sui, a former pastry chef and florist, sold Bell and Trunk to pursue her dream of opening a little breakfast place. By 2010 her restaurant Plow would be one of the most highly rated farm-to-table restaurants in San Francisco with hours long waits on the weekends. Maxine and Vanessa still see each other regularly--their businesses are just blocks apart from each other in Potrero Hill.
Like me, all three of my predecessors considered their reign at Bell and Trunk a very special time in their lives and are happy to see it thrive. I find it exciting that these women are doing what they love, are successful and living life to the fullest. I can relate. And I’m forever grateful to them: I wouldn't be here if it weren’t for all the steps they took to make Bell and Trunk the mighty, magical little place of love and beauty it is today.
Bell and Trunk has changed hands and weathered a lot of ups and downs over the past 30 years, yet one critical thing has remained constant: the enduring loyalty of our customers. Dr. Tim St. Clair, a Potrero Hill neighbor, stopped into the flower shop a couple of months ago and reminded me that he was friends with Pam from the start.
That’s how this little history project began.
"I think Bell and Trunk had endured for many reasons,” he said, but maybe the most important is not so much making the books balance or even making all our deliveries on time.
“It has always been a warm and inviting space," Dr. St. Clair said.
We try to keep that atmosphere fresh every day. It feels really good to keep creating a livelihood in a neighborhood that cherishes and supports its small, independent businesses. And it’s also great to think that friendships among women can have such a long-lasting impact.
Sustainable Weddings
Anne and Jacob's Wedding was at Baker Beach on July 3rd, 2021. Photo by Nicholas Horton Photography
Climate change is real and Bell and Trunk customers care, which is why we are doing everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint.
The ceremony flowers in the photo were created without the standard floral foam and plastic, which clogs our landfills and pollutes our environment. We compost all of our green waste, repurpose leftover event flowers, and use organically and locally grown flowers whenever possible. We support businesses that share our ideals, such as Boxcar Flower Farm in Oakland and Gather Flora, a new flower vendor specializing in local blooms at the San Francisco Flower Mart. It's both challenging and rewarding to get fresh, modern and thoroughly satisfying results while doing our part to keep our planet healthy.
"The flowers were my favorite part of the set up." said Anne.
Photos by Nicolas Horton
Photography http://njhorton.com
Flowers get a Second Act at SF General
We often have a lot of leftover flowers after large weddings and events. They don’t go to waste. Flowers can help people get through tough situations. That’s why we partner with the Mental Health and Rehabilitation Center at San Francisco General, which works flowers into therapeutic activities for patients in need. Elisse Azofeifa is not only the program's Activity Director, she is also a Bell and Trunk bride. "The patients really light up and are so thankful," she said.
“You cannot get through the day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make. ”