John Casey, Author at 1800Flowers Petal Talk

How 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. and Point Foundation Are Teaming Up to Support LGBTQIA+ Students

For over 50 years, June has signified Pride Month in the LGBTQIA+ community. Pride Month has a rich history rooted in the LGBTQIA+ rights movement, primarily commemorating the Stonewall Riots of June 1969 in New York City. The following year, the first Pride March was organized in Manhattan, marking the birth of the modern Pride movement.

In cities and towns across America, and in most corners of the world, Pride Month is marked by celebrations, including marches, parades, festivals, and special events, as well as the flying of brightly colored rainbow flags.

In recent years, businesses have become increasingly involved in Pride Month. Companies from various industries — retail, technology, e-commerce, and entertainment — have embraced the celebrations and actively supported the LGBTQIA+ community. Many organizations now incorporate Pride-themed merchandise, advertising campaigns, and corporate partnerships during the month of June.

We believe that embracing diversity and celebrating the uniqueness of every individual makes us a stronger company.

chris mccann

CEO, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc.

Partnering with Point Foundation

This year, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. is teaming up with Point Foundation to support and empower LGBTQIA+ students to achieve their full academic and leadership potential.

In support of Pride Month and beyond, the company is granting $25,000 in scholarships and funding to Point Scholars. The collaboration aims to help LGBTQIA+ students achieve their full potential, making a significant impact on society.

Helping LGBTQIA+ students for over 20 years

For over 20 years, Point Foundation has been the largest scholarship-granting nonprofit for LGBTQIA+ students studying in the United States. Its scholarships support LGBTQIA+ students as they pursue undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees at accredited universities and community colleges in the United States.

Point Foundation Students on Patio at NLC — Flagship Scholarship recipients pose at the 2022 Point Foundation National Leadership Conference in Los Angeles. (Photo courtesy of Point Foundation)

More than half of Point Scholars are first-generation college students, 24% are transgender or nonbinary, and 84% are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color). Foundation alumni are employed in nearly every field, including law, education, art, politics, business, and medical care.

“We are proud to support all the incredible work the Point Foundation does through its scholarship programs, as well as its coaching, mentorship, networking, and overall supportive community for LGBTQIA+ students across the United States,” says Chris McCann, CEO of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. “We believe that embracing diversity and celebrating the uniqueness of every individual makes us a stronger company.”

How gift-givers can help

Gift-givers can show their Pride by sending a thoughtful expression to loved ones from an exclusive collection of rainbow-themed gifts from 1-800-Flowers.com, Harry & David, Cheryl’s Cookies, and more. Customers also have the option to support Point Foundation throughout Pride Month with a donation upon checkout across the 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. family of brands.

Sunshine Rainbow Succulent — Sunshine & Rainbow Succulent

Also, throughout the month of June, team members of the 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. LGBTQ+ & Allies Employee Resource Group will walk in Pride parades across the country, and the company will host a learning session with Point Foundation for employees nationwide.

Happy Pride Month to the LGBTQIA+ community, its families, allies, partners, and friends!

Women Who Lead: How a Single, Working Mom Keeps a 100-Year-Old Family Baking Tradition Alive

When Agnes Saghatelian first started attending industry trade shows as president of her family’s baking company, she saw firsthand how male-dominated the food industry was.

“Men, primarily, would approach me and say, ‘Can I speak to your president?’ And I’d reply, ‘I am the president,’ and their eyes would just fly right open with surprise. Then I’d hand them my business card, they’d look at it carefully, and then say, ‘OK!'”

That actually didn’t come as much of a surprise to Agnes. “My mother dealt with that same situation for years, and when I’d attend shows with her, men just assumed that there was a man standing behind my mother who was doing the job. The truth is, there wasn’t — it was all her.”

Passing the torch

Agnes is a third-generation owner of the Valley Lahvosh Baking Company, which was started in 1922 by her grandfather, Gazair Saghatelian, a master baker in his native Armenia. For 100 years, the Saghatelian family has been creating deliciously different breads and crackerbreads in Fresno, California, all in the same location, 502 M Street.

Gazair had six children, and when he died in 1982, his daughter, Janet, took the helm of the bakery, with the goal of carrying on the family business. She did, splendidly.

valley lahvosh baking company founder photo of a man. — 1922: *Founder of Valley Lahvosh*
*Gazair Saghatelian*

valley lahvosh baking company woman with bread — 1922: *Founder of Valley Lahvosh*
*Gazair Saghatelian*

Under Janet’s watchful and creative eye, she put the company on the map with the heart-shaped cracker. After that product became well-known, she created other shapes, including stars, minis, and trees.

Agnes spent her childhood helping her mom out in the bakery, and after graduating from Fresno State in 1993, she knew exactly what she wanted to do: “Go to work, officially, for my mom and our business.”

She worked closely at her mom’s side until the latter’s passing in 2010, at which time Agnes became president of Valley Lahvosh Baking Company. “For all those years, I was my mother’s sounding board and confidante, and her closest advisor, so I was prepared to take the lead after she died. But, wow, I had huge shoes to fill.”

Behind every great business is a greater woman

valley lahvosh baking company founder behind a counter. — Counter culture: Agnes stands behind her family’s century-long breads

Agnes is celebrating her own anniversary this year — 30 years with Valley Lahvosh Baking Company. But, looking back, she realizes how challenging things were.

“At the beginning of taking charge, and I think I can speak for anyone who takes over a family business, there’s self-doubt, anxiety, and some trepidation about being able to handle the job. I think that’s natural, but the only way to make it work is to dive in and continue to move forward,” Agnes advises.

She also recommends anyone who’s starting or taking over a business, whether it’s a family one or not, to listen to what people have been saying for years.

“To succeed, it is vital to have self-confidence and to trust your instincts. You just need to stay motivated, be in a healthy and right frame of mind, and make sure to keep investing your time, money, and energy in the company, its people, and its business partners.”

For Agnes, that has meant expanding the company’s relationships, looking for opportunities within the food world. Valley Lahvosh sells to a variety of industries, including food service for hotels and restaurants, and retail (including grocery stores), and also manufactures for other private labels.

Family ties

Agnes has also slowly acclimated her own daughter, Danielle, to the business. “I encourage her to do anything she wants in her life, even if that doesn’t include working here,” Agnes stresses. “She’s only a teenager, but she does help out and asks questions about what’s going on.”

More importantly, Agnes hopes that she’s setting a good example for her daughter. “I think she sees how much work I put into the business,” Agnes says. “I also think she’s becoming aware of all the responsibility I have, as well as how accountable I am to all the work and to our wonderful team that I lead.

“At the beginning of taking charge, and I think I can speak for anyone who takes over a family business, there’s self-doubt, anxiety, and some trepidation about being able to handle the job.”
Agnes Saghatelian, President, Lahvosh Baking Company

“I think she also sees that, as a single mom, I am juggling being the head of the company with being the mom of our household. My daughter sees how much work I do on a daily basis and after hours. I know how important it is to make sure she gets the right amount of attention.

“There are times, though, when I’ve had to be honest with her, after some really long days, and just tell her that mom is tired. But I think this is important, to make time for her and to make sure we do things together. I’m lucky that we communicate well. I just hope I’m doing things that make her proud.”

On a roll

Does Agnes think her mom would be proud of her and where she’s taken the business? “Oh, she would be so proud. Oh my gosh, she was my biggest supporter and cheerleader,” Agnes says fondly. “My mom would have loved every second of our 100^th anniversary celebration that that included special sales and store hours, a party, and a proclamation by the mayor of Fresno!”

A lot has changed for the century-old company that Janet didn’t get to see, including all the beautiful photographs posted to social media featuring charcuterie boards and the clever ways they show off their hearts, stars, and tree shapes.

“Mom would get such a kick out of all the wonderful comments people leave. She’d be thrilled with it all, and that makes me so happy.”

Gifts featuring Amazing Women

valley lahvosh baking company celebrating women gift — Celebrating Women Gift Box

valley lahvosh baking company meat box — Supreme Charcuterie Crate

valley lahvosh baking company tea gift — Time for Tea Gift Box

Amazing Women: For the Founder of Undercover Snacks, It’s a Family Affair

Chocolate is one of the most beloved foods in the world. But did you know that while unsweetened chocolate is naturally gluten-free, processed chocolate contains gluten? So, when two of Diana Levy’s daughters were diagnosed in 2016 with celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder brought about by eating foods containing gluten, Mom set out on a mission to find a way that they could enjoy the tasty confection without suffering any consequences.

Fortunately for the Levy girls — Arielle, 25, and Jenna, 21 (Diana also has a third daughter, Jenna’s twin sister Elena, who does not have celiac) — their mother was as qualified as anyone to come up with a solution to their problem: Diana had a small side business making custom chocolates for events.

“As a self-appointed chocolate expert, I started to experiment with ways to make chocolate different, and gluten-free,” she says.

If at first you don’t succeed…

Diana quickly got busy in her kitchen, trying and testing various combinations of chocolate and myriad ingredients. After many attempts, she landed on one that not only was gluten-free but, as far as chocolate goes, made a healthier snack. Undercover was born.

Undercover Snacks founder standing at a table with bags of Undercover Snacks.

Diana spent about five months working on recipes. Every day when her kids went to school, she would write recipes. Then she started narrowing them down, trying to get within certain calorie and nutritional parameters.

“I literally purchased every ingredient under the sun, and I was getting close to giving up — and then suddenly I hit upon these chocolate quinoa crisps and was pretty sure I had found a winner. Once I had the basic idea, I was able to figure out flavors and ultimately packaging and branding.”

So, how did she come up with the name for her newfound snack company?

“We chose Undercover because the snack has ‘healthy ingredients in disguise,’ and we got that motto trademarked,” Diana recalls. Quinoa is naturally gluten-free and provides protein and fiber, as well as iron.

At that point, Diana began pitching the crisps to snack buyers, and getting the product on store shelves, a process that took a little less than two years. The new snack was easy to make, and was gaining traction with buyers — so much so that her husband, Mike, decided to quit his job in finance to help with the business.

“When I started the business, I made sure to have it Women Owned Small Business certified. The program is all about helping working women, promoting women, and assisting them in achieving their goals.”
Diana Levy

It soon became clear that Diana had the “it” factor when she went out to sell the product to retailers.

“Believe it or not, I only recall one time that I was rejected early on. Every place I walked into pretty much put them on the shelves,” she says proudly. “I had a whole big story I was prepared to tell — and then each time the manager just opened up a bag, tried one, and agreed to take them.”

Undercover snacks are sold throughout the country, in such markets as Whole Foods, Kroger, Costco, and Wegman’s, and also found in Harry & David gift baskets.

Selling them was the easy part. Getting them to these outlets was another story. “I realized pretty early on that our biggest challenge was actually going to be making them on a big scale.”

If you build it…

At first, Diana and her small team of Mike and a few friends made the crisps themselves in her kitchen. Then, in 2017, they found a manufacturing site close to where she lives in southern New Jersey, and by the following year, they had their own production facility.

“That all might sound easy, right? But it was anything but,” Diana says with a laugh. “There were many days that my husband and I worked around the clock, and were literally covered with chocolate from head to toe. Just as I was experimenting in my kitchen, we had to experiment with the best way to correctly and safely make the product, and you couldn’t do that without becoming chocolate covered yourself.”

undercover snacks founder family photo. — All in the family: Diana, along with her husband and daughters.

Getting the site up and running was hard. “Neither one of us ever ran a manufacturing facility, so learning all the intricacies was the biggest challenge, and the most important one,” Diana says.

For Diana, it was also important that her company be recognized as woman owned. “When I started the business, I made sure to have it Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) certified. The program is all about helping working women, promoting women, and assisting them in achieving their goals.”

All in the family

The business employs around 50 people, including three young women important to Diana. “My oldest daughter joined the business, and my two younger daughters in college are brand ambassadors, so, along with my husband, we truly are a family company.”

Diana suggests that for a woman to be successful with starting a business, she must be persistent and take chances. “There’s an enormous amount of risk taking involved,” she points out. “And there’s so many unexpected issues that pop up that require you to be nimble and adjust quickly. Just running the business in general is a massive amount of work, and you have to be prepared for that.”

Satisfying work and hunger pangs

But it’s all been worth it, Diana maintains. In addition to being featured in Harry & David gift baskets, Undercover is starting to be sold globally. “We’re in Israel, Japan, and focusing a lot on Canada, so we’re just going country by country,” Diana says. “We’re also on United Airlines in snack boxes, and soon will be handed out on flights, so all this growth means you’re just constantly busy.”

Undercover also recently announced its quinoa crisps will be sold in Publix supermarkets.

However, Diana said she’s not too busy to take a snack break. “After all these years, I still love the product. There are bags of them all over the office, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I still love to indulge in the snack.”

Gifts featuring Amazing Women

Undercover snacks in a box of other goodies. — Celebrating Women Gift Box

Undercover Snacks tapas board spread with cheese, meat and other snacks. — Mediterranean Tapas Board

Undercover Snacks with a box full of tea, honey, cookies and other tea essentials. — Time for Tea Gift Box

How Smile Farms Is Growing New Job Opportunities for People with Disabilities

The series “Growing Smiles” explores the challenges faced by America’s developmentally disabled adults and the solutions provided by Smile Farms, the primary philanthropic endeavor of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. This story explores how Smile Farms is finding job opportunities for people with disabilities at restaurants.

Photo of Manny Irick in the kitchen of restaurant. He was hired through Smile Farms, which helps create
jobs for people with disabilities — Emmanuel “Manny” Irick

By all accounts, Emmanuel “Manny” Irick is a star restaurant employee. “Hard working,” says one of his managers. “A joy to be around,” says another who added words like “confident,” “positive,” and “reliable.”

But Manny almost didn’t have a chance to shine. The 37-year-old from Brooklyn, New York, tried hard, had a goal, and was persistent despite obstacles in finding a job.

About 61 million Americans live with disabilities and struggle to find meaningful employment. Just 21% of people with a disability were employed in 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. By comparison, over 65% of people without disabilities have jobs.

Manny got his chance through a partnership between the Community Prevocational program at League Education & Treatment Center (LETC) and Smile Farms, an innovative program that creates meaningful jobs in agricultural and hospitality settings for adults with developmental disabilities.

Manny’s opportunity arose as Smile Farms was looking beyond agriculture to expand opportunities for the over 270 participants spread out across 11 campuses. For an organization known for growing food, an expansion into restaurants seemed like a natural path.

From farm to table(s)

Smile Farms’ shift to restaurants happened organically, and Manny’s journey illustrates this.

After completing pre-vocational training at League, Manny’s first job was as a Smile Farmer, working at urban farms in the New York area. “It was fun,” Manny recalls. “I learned how to put the seeds in, grow plants, and pick the vegetables when they were ready.”

Crafted Hospitality, the food service company of celebrity chef Tom Colicchio, has partnered with Smile Farms for over six years. It hosted a campus employing a Smile Farmer, purchased Smile Farms-grown produce to use on its menus, supported its hot sauce, and contributed to its donation delivery service.

Once the pandemic began to subside, restaurants struggled to find workers to staff their kitchens and dining rooms. This prompted a conversation between Craft New York General Manager John Gargano and Diana Martin, managing director of Smile Farms.

“John asked me, `Would you be you be up for trying to get some of the Smile Farmers to work at the company’s flagship restaurant, Craft New York, and its adjacent Italian restaurant, Vallata, in Manhattan?”

The answer was a resounding yes.

Learn more about Smile Farms

Read about the history of Smile Farms and its mission of providing meaningful employment opportunities to adults with disabilities.

Becoming part of the workforce

“Smile Farms workers go through the same process as everyone else applying for a job at Craft,” Martin explains. “Their resumes are sent over, they come in for an interview, and, if they are hired, they get onboarded and trained.”

The initial jobs offered to Smile Farms employees, including Manny, were for polishers, who shine the glassware for the tables. It’s an important job in a high-end restaurant: “Everything has to be perfect,” Gargano says.

Gargano said that the restaurant built a new polishing station and manned it with Smile Farms staffers. “They are polishing the glassware and taking it back and forth from the station to the dining room floor as needed,” Gargano says. “Prior to the Smile Farms polishers, the restaurant’s workers were doing it themselves.”

Good work means expansion of the program

The Smile Farms employees have been extremely beneficial to the restaurant, Gargano says. “Everyone is more productive and efficient, and you’re providing opportunities for someone who might otherwise not have — and that’s something special.”

As a result of the success, Craft is expanding the program to its other restaurants in New York City. “And we’re also expanding at the flagship store. We’re going to go from two workers to five, and, ultimately, with all the restaurants, we plan to employ 15–20 workers,” Gargano points out.

Not only is Craft hiring more workers, but it is beginning to promote, starting with Manny. “He was moved to kitchen prep, which is amazing,” Martin says. “He went to the chef, on his own, and said he wanted to learn how to do kitchen prep, and he loves his new position.”

Manny’s promotion

Manny is thrilled about his rise at Craft.

“It has been great,” he says. “In food prep, I have learned how to make juices, prepare thymes, basils, parsley, how to grate cheese, mash potatoes, and I helped to make cookies. But I didn’t do it by myself; the staff helped me a lot. I also help around the restaurant if they need me.”

“I was happy to have the chance to work. As long as I’m working, I’m happy. I have money to buy the things I need, which is great,” he says.

Pride Month: Supporting GLAAD and the Fight for LGBTQ Representation

GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, has been at the forefront of cultural change for over 35 years. It has helped accelerate acceptance for the LGBTQ community, protected all that has been accomplished, and created a world where everyone can live the life they love.

The organization was formed in 1985 to counter the New York Post’s and other media outlets’ erroneous and inflammatory reporting on the AIDS crisis. Subsequently, GLAAD began to put pressure on other media outlets to end anti-gay defamatory reporting.

Within its first five years, GLAAD offices opened in other cities, including Los Angeles, which became an influential chapter due to its proximity to the entertainment industry. GLAAD has since evolved from a watchdog to a cultural change agent within the film and television industry, working to advance accurate and inclusive representation of the LGBTQ community.

That advocacy eventually led to the annual GLAAD Media Awards, which have been presented for over 30 years. They honor media for fair, accurate, and inclusive depictions of LGBTQ people and issues. The annual event has grown to be the most visible LGBTQ awards show in the world, sending powerful messages of acceptance to global audiences. The 33rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards this year honored such entertainers as Judith Light, Wilson Cruz, Kacey Musgraves, and Michaela Jaé Rodriguez.

Supporting life-changing work

To celebrate Pride Month this June, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. has once again joined forces with GLAAD, strengthening its ongoing relationship with the respected nonprofit. Now through the end of June, 20% of net proceeds from purchases of the company’s special Pride Collection will go to GLAAD. In addition, shoppers will be given the opportunity to support the LGBTQ community by making a cash donation to GLAAD.

To further support the LGBTQ community, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. has made a $25,000 donation to GLAAD. Since 2007, the company has directed more than $200,000 in monetary and in-kind donations to support the organization’s groundbreaking work.

I believe our two missions intersect in our commitment to bring joy into people’s lives when they need it most.

Abdool Corlette

Creative Director

GLAAD

“At 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc., we believe that embracing diversity, and celebrating the uniqueness of every individual, makes us a better company,” says Tom Hartnett, President, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. “We are proud to continue our relationship with GLAAD to raise awareness for its mission, to help amplify voices within the LGBTQ community, and to inspire our customers to give back, as we work together to help ensure there are no limits on love.”

A common thread

GLAAD is motivated by portraying the diversity of the LGBTQ community in ways that drive connection and change hearts and minds. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. is passionate about helping people express, connect, and celebrate.

Two women holding hands adorned with rainbow bracelets

“I believe our two missions intersect in our commitment to bring joy into people’s lives when they need it most,” says Abdool Corlette, creative director at GLAAD, who leads all creative projects for the organization – in addition to being an award-winning filmmaker. “Whether it’s the act of shining a spotlight on someone’s story or acknowledging how much you appreciate them with a bouquet of flowers, the power in taking the time to tell someone you see them and want to celebrate them is an act of beautiful joy that can go a long way.”

Abdool feels the pandemic taught him not to take joy for granted – which has impacted his work in positive ways: “It’s been crucial to my work to be intentional about creating content that highlights how resilient and powerful LGBTQ+ people are.”

According to Abdool, corporate support, like that from 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc., allows GLAAD to continue its culture-changing work to accelerate acceptance for the LGBTQ community. “GLAAD will be able to continue programs that create real impact, from our news and rapid response work to hold media, government, and notables accountable for their actions toward the LGBTQ community, to our consulting work in Hollywood to improve the representations of LGBTQ people in TV and film.”

The collaboration is personal

The collaboration with 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. also has special meaning for Abdool, who is a budding green thumb.

“While I’ve always loved plants and flowers, my interest in taking care of them significantly changed during the pandemic,” he explained.

Like many people navigating the pandemic over the last two years, he found himself working from home more and having more time.

“The simple happiness in seeing something grow and thrive has been transformative for me and my space in many ways,” he says. “Having something positive to focus on does wonders for your mental health.”

Unna Bakery Founder on Being Persistent While the Cookie Crumbled

Unless you were born in Sweden, or have visited the country, you probably don’t know about the tradition of women congregating in a daily break ritual called kaffereps that started in the mid-18th century.

Coffee, tea, and homemade cookies were the centerpiece of what was usually a beautifully set table, with fresh flowers and nice porcelain. For a hostess to serve fewer than than seven cookies at her kafferep was considered stingy, and anything more was viewed as boastful. Seven was the magic number.

“Some say the kafferep helped launch the Swedish women’s rights movement of the early 1900s,” says Ulrika Pettersson, founder of Unna Bakery. “It was also the precursor to the fika (pronounced fee-ka), a coffee break that thrives in Swedish homes, offices, and cafés today. According to custom, you should have coffee or tea, and a cookie, at least once a day.”

Lessons and traditions from Grandmother Rut

Unna Bakery with a grandmother and two young children. — Two faces that every grandmother can love, especially Grandmother Rut. Credit: Charlie Bennet

Memories of her own kaffereps with Grandmother Rut were the inspiration for Ulrika to start Unna. “My Grandmother was the kindest person,” Ulrika recalls. “She always had time for a hug and a fika. She loved baking and cooking, and put lots of love into it, and even more butter and cream!

“I would help my grandmother bake those cookies and help her prepare the kaffereps. I would even ride on the back of her bike when she shared those cookies with friends who lived by the lake in Östersund, in northwestern Sweden, where I grew up.”

Eventually, Ulrika and her husband, Erik, left Sweden and moved to New York City in 2008. She worked in graphic design for years, and during that time she could not get those cookies — or the special kaffereps with her grandmother — out of her mind.

So she started baking them herself.

“I gave them away to my neighbors and friends, and they all absolutely loved them,” Ulrika recalls. “Along with all the compliments, we came to the realization you couldn’t find these types of cookies in the U.S., or at least in New York City.”

Relentlessly going door to door

In 2013, Ulrika was thinking about what to do with these cookies — which included cardamom crisps, coconut oat butter, raspberry jam drops, brown butter with almonds, and vanilla sugar — she also was contemplating a career change. “At one point, I decided to stop thinking about it and just do it!”

“I hounded these shops until they finally said yes, and one day I realized that I was making cookies for about 50 customers. I just wouldn’t take no for an answer.”
Ulrika Pettersson, founder of Unna Bakery

After researching how to go about making and selling her own cookies, she found an incubator in Manhattan where she could start baking. She paid rent by the hour and got to work. “And then I determinedly went to my favorite shops on the Upper East Side, walked in cold, and convinced them, over a period of several visits, to start selling my cookies.”

From there, Ulrika set out to add more stores to her roster of clients, visiting numerous specialty food shops in Manhattan. At first, she got mostly rejections, but she did not give up — and her persistence paid off. “I hounded these shops until they finally said yes, and one day I realized that I was making cookies for about 50 customers. I just wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

Having it all while having a baby

Three years into the venture, Ulrika caught a big break. Whole Foods started a local producers program and chose her cookies to sell in four of its Manhattan stores. “Then other chains started to pick up my cookies, and I realized I had to go bigger.”

unna bakery lemon lime cookies — Who wouldn’t be all smiles after starting their own business?

Through a mentor she met at her incubator space, she found a manufacturing facility in New Jersey. “My mentor was invaluable in helping me take my business to the next step, introducing me to buyers, brokers, and distributors,” she says. “However, he didn’t need to find me a graphic designer, since I do all the packaging designs myself!”

For Ulrika, the biggest benefit of being a business owner is that she is her own boss — but there’s a flip side to that. During this period of growth, she also gave birth to her second child, which led to many long days.

“I really struggled with finding balance in my life. As I started to grow, I was getting up at the crack of dawn, going to the stores to buy my own ingredients, mostly in bulk, and I’d carry all that on the subway, since I couldn’t afford to take a cab or hire a car. I should point out I’m not very strong, so this was very hard work,” Ulrika laughs.

Back then, she would routinely come home around 7 p.m., and then she had to put her mom hat on. “While the task of starting your own thing is exciting and fun, there were days when I was just so exhausted, with too many orders and screaming kids, that I thought, ‘I just can’t do this anymore.’ But you know what? You just persevere and keep hoping and keep moving forward, and that’s what I did.”

Honesty and pride

Ulrika’s path to success was not without its missteps. There were times, she says, when she was too trusting of people who did not have her best interests at heart. “My advice is to be super careful about anyone who wants to help you. Do research on them, check their backgrounds, do your due diligence. It’s true what they say: You do learn from your mistakes.”

Looking back, Ulrika is glad she did not listen to her dear Grandmother Rut, who, sadly, died two years ago. “When I first told her that I was doing this, she thought I was absolutely crazy. And when I started to become more successful, she still thought I was crazy, but I know that there was a part of her that was very proud.”

Gifts Featuring Amazing Women

Celebrating women gift box with Unna Bakery cookies and other snacks. — Celebrating Women Gift Box

Unna Bakery with a s'mores kit. — S’mores At-Home Roasting Kit

Unna Bakery with a box of tea, cookies, honey and insulated mug. — Time for Tea Gift Box

Effie’s Homemade Co-Founder on Starting a Biscuit Company from Scratch

Effie MacLellan grew up in Nova Scotia eating something called oatcakes, which are biscuit- or cracker-like oatmeal flatbreads that have been a part of the Scottish diet since the 14th century. Effie’s family recipe for oatcakes was already generations old when she moved to the suburbs of Boston after she got married, and she put them out for friends, family, and guests when they visited.

Effie's oatcake biscuit founders standing outside. — Effie’s Homemade founders and friends, Joan MacIsaac
and Irene Costello.

Her daughter, Joan MacIsaac, remembers how everyone loved her mother’s oatcakes. Whenever Effie was baking, the aroma — and, soon after, the word — spread throughout the neighborhood. Children came running to Effie’s kitchen, lured by the irresistible smell of her oatcakes. As Joan grew up, the oatcakes influenced her decision to make food a career.

After receiving her culinary certification, Joan moved to Seattle and became a chef at several high-profile restaurants. Eventually, she returned to Boston and started her own catering company. It was there that Joan met up with an old acquaintance, Irene Costello, who eventually became her business partner.

“Joan and I had known each other from high school,” Costello says. “We were in different grades; however, a mutual friend introduced us, and I ended up helping her when she catered events, in my spare time, and that’s how it all began.”

Leaving the corporate world

But Costello had a decision to make before she joined Joan’s business full-time. “I worked in the corporate world doing finance for many years, and it’s true what they say: I saw the glass ceiling. I was coming up on a milestone birthday, and I didn’t want to be in the same place I was for the next milestone birthday. I wanted something different.”

Costello ended up taking a leave of absence from her job to become more involved in Joan’s business. She took a culinary class at Boston University and received her Culinary Arts certification — and never looked back.

The two women realized that there was something about Effie’s oatcakes. “We started thinking about launching a line of cookies or crackers or biscuits, with the oatcake as the base. We just knew that they resonated because when people would take a bite of the oatcake, the expression on their faces was like, ‘Oh wow!’ They just made people happy,” Costello explains. “We kicked around other ideas, but they just didn’t pan out.”

A star is born

Determined, the two women decided in 2007 to develop a business plan. “This was around the time when the financial crisis started, and banks were going under, so it was not the most conducive time to start a business. Nevertheless, we launched in 2008, named the company after Joan’s mom — Effie’s Homemade — and we’re coming up on our 15^th year in business this month,” Costello says.

Effie's oatcake biscuits founders smiling at the camera. — When a snack tastes this good, it’s no reason , Joan and Irene
are all smiles.

The oatcakes are still at the heart of Effie’s Homemade, but the company has since expanded its selection. It now offers seven types of biscuits, ranging from almond and cocoa to rye and walnut.

One of their proudest moments, Irene says, was winning a sofi award, “the Oscars of the food industry,” as Costello calls them. “We won the gold award in the cracker category as part of the Specialty Food Association’s 2021 honors, and that’s a big deal in the $100 billion-plus specialty food industry.”

Be prepared for a bumpy ride

For Costello, getting a company off the ground and making it successful was the hardest thing she’s ever done despite her strong business background. “This was the first company I helped start, and it was super challenging. Lots of risks and unknowns, particularly in the consumer-packaged goods industry. It’s not for the faint of heart, and we’ll admit to shedding some tears a few times along the way, particularly during the first few years when we weren’t making any money.”

In the end, though, the hard work paid off, even if things didn’t get any easier. Every day still signals a new adventure “To be sure, we had lots of help along the way from people who were always available to provide advice,” Costello admits.

“The specialty food industry is terrific. We’ve made so many friends and connections, and everyone is so willing to help in this space. I can’t emphasize it enough,” she says. Her advice to other women starting their own businesses? “Ask for help, and you’ll find out that most people are willing to give you 15 to 20 minutes of their time and share their knowledge, which is a great gift because there is just so much to know and learn.

“As your business grows and becomes bigger, you will be faced with more challenges. Your budgets get bigger, your distribution channels expand, and you hire more people. What started out as something small begins to grow, and while that is great, it can be a race to keep up.”

For that reason, women-owned businesses should look to take advantage of all the opportunities that are out there for them, Costello says. “You have so many more resources than you did 20 years ago. There are women entrepreneur business networks, certification programs, and start-up, women-only incubators and labs. It’s important that you utilize all the help you can get and know that you can’t do it alone.”

In addition to having her cookies featured in Harry & David gift baskets, Irene also takes great pride in Effie’s being on grocery store shelves. “It’s so great to see it at Kroger or Whole Foods, and to have friends say, ‘Oh, I saw Effie’s in my grocery store. It really makes you appreciate the journey.”

Photos by Kathryn Costello

Celebrity Chef and Author David Burtka on Throwing the Perfect Pride Party

The pandemic is easing, and restrictions are largely falling away. All this just in time for June and Pride Month and the many LGBTQ+ parties and parades that fill the first month of summer. In 2022, revelers will be able to party in person to mark the global celebration of LGBTQ+ life and history.

As we return to some semblance of normal, many people may need a refresher on what it takes to put together a Pride party. That’s why we reached out to actor, author, and celebrity chef and party planner David Burtka. In addition to being an all-around creative guy, he’s also the husband of actor Neil Patrick Harris, and most proudly, the father of twins Harper and Gideon.

Hosting the perfect Pride party

Burtka literally wrote the book on parties. Life is a Party is all about celebrating life through events, great food, tasty drinks, enjoyable activities, and lively music. Burtka’s tome offers comprehensive tips from meal and snack planning to flowers to decorations – pretty much everything it takes to create a memorable production.

To celebrate Pride, you need people who are game for anything.

David Burtka

Celebrity chef and author

“I think anyone can have a perfect Pride party, and one of the first things to do to make that happen is to invite fun and happy people,” he explains. “To celebrate Pride, you need people who are game for anything. We all know the LGBTQ+ community loves its parties and being together to celebrate one another, and Pride month was designed just for that.”

Burtka also says to “make sure the drinks are flowing, and that there is a bit of food, so you don’t get your guests too tipsy. And, finally, a great playlist of music is a must since the songs you choose can have a major impact on how the guests feel.”

Picking the perfect Pride party menu

In terms of food and an appropriate menu, we asked Burtka what kind of food works best for a Pride party.

“That’s easy,” says Burtka. “Color! There are many things you can use to make out a rainbow that reflects the Pride flag. Since a lot of LGBTQ+ people and others coming out of the pandemic have become body-aware again, you want to make sure the guests eat right. Thus, you can make healthy options like a vegetable tray laid out in a full rainbow – red peppers, cherry tomatoes, radishes, purple cauliflower, mini blue potatoes, green celery, cucumbers, beans, yellow pepper, carrots beans, orange peppers, and carrots.”

Burtkaalso says that you can do the same thing with a fruit platter. “Fill the plate with red berries, watermelon, purple plums, figs, grapes, blueberries, green apples, kiwis, grapes, yellow peaches, pineapple, oranges, and mangos. And don’t forget about those rainbow Jell-O shots and rainbow-dyed Rice Krispies treats.”

Decorating the Pride party

With all the colorful food, you might be wondering how to go about matching the party decorations. Burtka recommends hanging rainbow flags and an array of rainbow-colored balloons.

“Many companies sell rainbow pool floats, sprinklers, and slip and slides,” he says. “So, take your cues from the vegetable and fruit trays and make separate flower arrangements down the center of your table with the colors of the rainbows.” Some ideas: for pink, roses, zinnias, and Gerber daisies; for purple, carnations, and lilies; for blue, thistle, and hydrangeas; for green, mums, carnations; for yellow, orchids, sunflowers, and daisies; and for orange, Dalia’s and marigolds.

Finally, as an avid music lover, Burtka feels music is instrumental (pun intended) for a great Pride party. “There are so many pride anthems from which to choose from, and that will get the crowd pumped up,” he says. “Spotify and iTunes have great playlists, but no Pride party should be without a good mix of tunes.

Pride party parting gifts

You want people to remember your party beyond June, and one way to do this is by providing parting gifts. Burtka thinks the best way to do this is by keeping it simple.

“Set up a photo booth where people can decorate frames, and then they can take selfies and photos of themselves for a keepsake,” he says. “Or perhaps go a little deeper and send folks home with a little history on gay pride with books like the Velvet Rage, When We Rise, or the children’s book This Day in June.”

The Significance of Flowers in the LGBTQ+ Community

Flowers have long been associated with the LGBTQ+ community. Some of the connections are out in the open, like all the colorful flowers that adorn the floats featured in Pride parades each June. But some of the links are much more discreet and date to a time when being “queer” was frowned upon, sometimes ridiculed, or worse.

“Flowers have been a part of the LBGTQ+ community for centuries,” says Jackie Lacey, president of the American Institute of Floral Designers and director of education and industry relations at Floriology, powered by BloomNet. “There are many floral symbols that include the ubiquitous green carnation, the evolution of the pansy, and, more recently, the emergence of rainbow roses.”

The subtle message of the green carnation

The green carnation is one of the most iconic flower symbols in LGBTQ+ history, attributed to legendary gay playwright Oscar Wilde, who asked actors and friends to wear green carnations at the opening night performance of his play Lady Windemere’s Fan in 1892. Subsequently, Parisian gay men began wearing green carnations in public to send a message to other men that they were gay.

The pansy as a putdown

Flower symbolism has been overtly hurtful to the LGBTQ+ community, too. In the 19^th century, the use of the word “pansy” as a description of gay men carried an undercurrent of negative connotations. “During the Victorian era, the pansy became adversely emblematic of gay men,” explains Lacey. “The pansy, as a flower, is delicate and weak, and people began associating the pansy with gay men, who they perceived to be weak individuals.”

According to Lacey, the pansy flower is now looked at in a more positive light. “I think we prefer to look at it differently since the flower is so bright and beautiful and comes in so many colors, like the rainbow flag, and all of us within the LGBTQ+ community.”

The rainbow flag and flowers

The rainbow flag is the worldwide symbol for gay pride, and its design first appeared in the 1970s. San Francisco County Supervisor Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person to hold public office in the U.S., asked artist Gilbert Baker to create a positive symbol for the gay community. Baker wanted each color of the flag to represent a message. Red represents life, orange for healing, yellow for sunlight, green for nature, blue for harmony, and purple for spirit.

“There is a strong association with the use of rainbow roses in today’s market, in relation to the rainbow flag, and a connection of how flowers were used to comfort the victims and survivors of the Pulse shooting in June of 2016 and other hate crimes, particularly the recent escalation of hate crimes against transgender people,” says Lacey, who also leads the LGBTQ+ and Allies employee resource group at 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc.

Lacey also points out that the colors of the rainbow flag and rainbow flowers represent all the many different types of individuals who encompass the acronym LGBTQ+ and the community’s shared history. “We are not a homogenous group. We come in all shapes and sizes, just like flowers,” he says. “Collectively, we look at the positive end of a rainbow as our future has evolved and changed, particularly during the last 50 years, when we’ve gone through so many ups and downs.”

Flowers and the AIDS crisis

The traverse from tragedy to triumph can be told from the point of view of long-time San Francisco florist Guy Clark, who was featured in the searing documentary We Were Here, about survivors of the early days of the AIDS crisis.

I did the best I could to accommodate everyone during that difficult time.

Guy Clark

Guy’s Flowers

June 2021 was the 40^th anniversary of AIDS being officially identified as a disease in the U.S. Coincidentally, 1981 was when Guy set up his floral business on San Francisco’s famed Castro Street, the unofficial hub of gay life during the early ‘80s. “At first, I was so full of optimism and hope for my business and so excited to be in the middle of the gay capital of the world,” Clark remembers. “Then, horribly, the AIDS crisis began.”

*Guy Clark’s flower shop opened in San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood in 1981.*

Clark recalls arranging, selling, and donating flowers for hospitalized patients, funerals, and life celebration ceremonies. “I did the best I could to accommodate everyone during that difficult time. One day you would see someone that you saw every day, and then they would just disappear. It was a catastrophe.”

By the end of the 1990s, when retroviral drugs became available, the crisis began to ease, and life changed for Clark. “I feel fortunate every day that I am still alive and still selling flowers 40 years later,” he says. “Now, I’m happy to say that I’m busy designing arrangements for gay weddings, and like the funerals during those dark days, my customers want the designs bright, colorful, big, and bold. Thankfully, that’s how our community rolls.”

Understanding the LGBTQ+ community through flowers

“A lot of our community embraces a positive outlook since we’ve overcome so many challenges in our lives,” Lacey says. “We embrace color a lot, so the art of flowers is joyous, and it helps lift us up, particularly when gay marriage finally became legal.”

Flowers symbolize what we’ve been through together and look forward to together.

Jackie Lacey

Director of Education and Industry Relations

Floriology

At his wedding five years ago, Lacey made sure that all of the flowers used were in shades of red since it is his favorite color and has a strong and vibrant hue. “We had various red flowers including orchids, roses, anemone, and anthuriums. The colors of the flowers blended so wonderfully and made the setting so dazzling. It was like a dream.”

For Lacey, flowers bind the past, present, and future of LGBTQ+ history. “Flowers symbolize what we’ve been through together and look forward to together. I always say, plant seeds of desire, water them with education, and watch them grow with knowledge. And, the same could be said with how people can come to understand LGBTQ+ history and learn more about our community.”