Flower seller in S.F. Union Square looks for Mother’s Day business bounce

SAN FRANCISCO — Business at Union Square Flowers in San Francisco has fallen of with the decrease in foot traffic but its owner remained hopeful as Mother’s Day approached.

Patricia Lee, has been running her business for 30 years and Mother’s Day is one of the busiest days of the year for her.

“Today is a little busy with Mother’s Day tomorrow. If you come early, you get better picks,” she said.

This year has been challenging.

“You wanna see more people coming back! Not fewer people coming back. It looks a little better but, whenever we hear the news like Nordstrom is leaving, Williams-Sonoma is leaving, it concerns us a lot,” Lee added.

Despite the challenges, Lee is determined to make the most of this weekend.

“We started early today and we still have orders that some people need to pick up and we don’t open late anymore and we stay the latest is 5, 5:30 p.m.,” she said.

By noon, Lee had already seen about 60 customers including Illena Carrillo, who ordered three bouquets for her family.

“I’m born and raised in San Francisco and I work on Fifth and Market and the stuff that we see every day is kind of crazy … I think, after a while, you kind of get immune to everything but it’s so sad because this is a small business and this is what keeps them running and it’s hard to keep a business when crazy stuff is happening here,” Carrillo said.

Lee expressed gratitude for the community support and encouraged others to visit downtown.

“Every city has its share of good and bad. I think, for the most part, don’t look at it like that. Come down, have a good time, just be alert of your surroundings,” Lee said.