In need of an art credit to graduate from high school, Madeline Ricketts decided to take a floral design class, thinking it sounded fun. It didn’t take long for her to fall in love with it.
Eventually, her newfound love for florals turned into her own business venture called Trophy Blooms. Launching her website right out of high school and working by herself throughout college, Madeline now has a Southlake storefront, a host of regulars and a booming business — all at the ripe age of 22.
CULTIVATING TROPHY BLOOMS
Almost immediately after graduating from Byron Nelson High School in 2017, Madeline decided to do floral design on the side to make some extra money. With a website made by her sister, Hannah, Trophy Blooms was born into existence.
“We started with the designer’s choice arrangements and all that type of stuff, and we just launched it,” Madeline says. “I made a Facebook post about it like, ‘Hey, I do flowers.’ Then… it just started to go up from there.”
Madeline entered the University of North Texas as an education major, but it was Trophy Blooms’ early days of success that led her to rethink her plans.
“The more I did it, I’m like, ‘OK, this can be my career,’” Madeline says. “So I changed majors [to] hospitality management.”
From then on, Madeline only had flowers on her brain, booking her first wedding when she was just 19 years old. She was a one-woman show, making every single piece for her first wedding — and every wedding after.
“It was stressful, but I was proud of my work, and it was exactly what [the bride] wanted,” Madeline says. “I would stay up all night long for days, and I’d get it all laid out… by myself in my parents’ laundry room. That’s where I did all my work during college, and that’s where I did my work for my first wedding.”
Working 10 weddings during college on top of miscellaneous events and orders, Madeline says she sometimes left class early to get flowers ready.
“It was a difficult balance for those four years, but I think it was definitely worth it, because I grew my business and I feel like I learned a lot that way too,” Madeline reflects.
GROWING A STOREFRONT
In early February, Madeline — with just one semester of college left — began to look for a storefront for Trophy Blooms, having saved the last four years of revenue.
“I’m going to be here every day, all day, so I can’t do it during college,” Madeline says. “So as soon as I graduated with my degree, I could be at the store every single day.”
Driving around in Southlake, Madeline noticed a space available to lease at 335 N. Carroll Ave., tucked between Nothing Bundt Cakes and Posh Nails & Spa.
“I’m like, ‘I should check on that and see if it’s still available, because what a great location,’” Madeline says. “It’s the right kind of foot traffic, and it’s in the square.”
After inquiring, Madeline submitted her application, which included a business plan, a record of her prior sales and her vision of what she wanted the shop to look like, among other things.
Her application was approved only days later.
“When I heard it got approved, I was like, ‘Wow. OK, so it’s happening,’” Madeline says.
After getting the lease all squared away, renovations on the space — which had a past life as a tutoring center — began near the end of April.
The renovations were extensive. New flooring, ceiling tiles and lighting fixtures were installed, and new furniture was placed. Hannah and Natalie, Madeline’s mom, also helped paint the mural on the back wall.
“It felt a little surreal,” Madeline says. “Especially when the flooring and painting was done.”
With each passing day, the renovations got closer to finishing, and Madeline’s vision for Trophy Blooms got closer to coming to fruition.
Before she even knew it, Trophy Blooms was ready for its grand opening.
PROVIDING FLORAL SUPPORT
It was a little bit rainy outside when Trophy Blooms officially opened on May 22, and Madeline was feeling a little restless.
“I was so nervous and was like, ‘What if nobody comes?’” Madeline says. “But the turnout was so great, and I had so much support and love from the community, family members and friends.”
Southlake Town Square provided a balloon arch for the opening, Hannah made custom cookies for customers and Trophy Blooms was officially in business.
“I like the interaction with the customers, and I like everyday orders,” Madeline says. “It’s been my dream to have a storefront and a shop where people can come in and talk to you, pick out what they want and get gifts.”
Lori King, one of Trophy Blooms’ regulars, first visited the shop a couple of weeks after it opened.
“I have been blessed to know Madeline and the Ricketts family since Madeline was a little girl,” Lori says. “I watched her grow up and run her floral business from her home during college, so when I heard she was opening a storefront, I knew that it would be something special.”
Lori gets flowers delivered weekly to her office on top of her other floral needs.
“The variety of flowers that come in each and every arrangement is different than you will see anywhere else,” Lori says.
While Trophy Blooms also sells gifts, flowers are the heart of the store. In addition to providing florals for weddings and funerals, Madeline and her employees also host floral workshops and make everyday arrangements.
“[Customers] love them,” Madeline says about the workshops. “They’re like, ‘I’m going to be back next month. I want to come to all of them.’”
True to her love of connection, the workshops Trophy Blooms hosts also provide an outlet for customers to collaborate with each other and meet Madeline.
“I enjoy seeing the people meet new friends and interact with each other. And I enjoy meeting them and creating relationships with them,” Madeline says. “It’s a good time all around.”
Trophy Blooms’ manager Jewel Dent joined the shop after working as an EMT during the early days of the pandemic and has known Madeline since high school.
“I was kind of tired of it and beat down,” Jewel says.
After texting her to get some advice, Jewel says Madeline invited her to come work with her at Trophy Blooms.
“It’s really awesome,” Jewel says about working with Madeline. “We stay so busy, and the weddings are super fun.”
Along with Jewel, Madeline is proud to have five employees working with her at Trophy Blooms.
“Doing floral and all of that is a dream job for a lot of people,” Madeline says. “Being able to give that to all these other women has been just amazing — that something that you start can provide for other people.”
Providing for others is part of who Madeline is, and she does that through her floral designs. As the pandemic endures, Madeline continues to make flowers for COVID patients.
“That’s been something that I’ve enjoyed — giving them flowers to try to make them feel better,” Madeline says. “Sometimes you get down looking at all the sympathy [and] funeral [flowers], but then you remember that you’re bringing something that brings joy to other people, and it makes it all worth it. And we get to create them with love for those people.”
TENDING TO TROPHY BLOOMS
With nearly six months of storefront ownership under her belt, Madeline is not slowing down. In the short term, Madeline wants to continue to grow Trophy Blooms’ clientele and book more events, while in the long term she wants to expand into new locations throughout the Metroplex.
“We only go so far in our delivery range,” Madeline says. “[With more locations], I can grow my business, give people more management opportunities, give people more jobs and more flowers.”
Though she’s younger than most business owners, Madeline isn’t letting her age hold her back.
“Some people don’t have as much faith in you when you’re a young business owner, but you have to brush it off,” Madeline says. “Say, ‘OK, I know what I’m doing. I have my own clientele and my own people that support me’ and then continue on that way. Or else you’ll get discouraged because people will treat you unfairly because they think you’re too young.”
Ignoring criticism about her age, Madeline lives to spread joy through flowers — no matter the event, circumstance or reason.
“A lot of people think flowers are a little old school, traditional,” Madeline says. “But the smile and the happiness that gets put on someone’s face when they receive flowers is always [in style].”
Whether it’s flowers for a child after their dance recital, arrangements that line a wedding aisle or bouquets that express a person’s condolences, Madeline and her team are here to give back in the best way they know how.
“Each event and type of thing that you get to do [in] floral is special,” Madeline says. “It means a lot that we get to provide that way of showing your love for somebody. That’s one of my favorite things about being a florist.”
See Madeline and her team’s work in action at our fifth annual Women’s Luncheon, presented by Texas Health Southlake, on Oct. 8. Reserve your tickets today at 817Tix.com.