Jonathan Vang had his eye on a brick building near the Five Points train trestle for a couple of years before he decided it would be the perfect place to open a plant store.
The building, which was previously an eye doctor's office, had been empty for a few years after flooding. Vang lived nearby, and when he finally decided to rent the space, he had to do a lot of work to get the property ready.
“When I came in here, it was like a scene out of Jumanji,” Vang said. “There was vines and all these ceiling tiles were gone, AC was broken.”
Now, the vines that once sprawled throughout the building have been replaced by houseplants.
Vang opened his store, Blossom Plant and Produce, on Aug. 15 after soft opening on Aug. 3.
The store opened with a selection of indoor plants and products to care for them. Many of the plants are tropical. The shop also carries produce, like local tomatoes and peaches, as well as boiled peanuts.
Vang has been passionate about working with plants since he was a kid, he said. He has always wanted to be his own boss and work with his hands, and he wants to teach his kids to do the same.
“They're 3 and 5, but I’m starting to teach them how to work with their hands, to understand what work means,” Vang said. “Not just playing on the tablet and stuff like that, because I think it's important to stay grounded and be close to your roots."
Vang has also brought on Billy Guess, a local plant enthusiast to help care for the stock. Guess said he saw an article about the business on Facebook and drove over to talk to Vang, wondering about a job.
A sign reading "$8 Succulents" hangs above assorted succulents under pink lights at Blossom Plants and Produce on Aug. 19, 2024. Blossom Plants and Produce, located on Blossom Street, is new to the area.
Guess previously worked in landscaping, garden design and art, and he said he was excited to be hired in order to learn even more about plants and his local community.
“In my last position, I kept being promoted and promoted further and further away from the customer and from the plants,” Guess said. “This is back down to base level: order plants, sell plants to customers, and that's what I like doing.”
Guess said the store is a great place for college students returning to school to get houseplants for their dorms and apartments, at any difficulty level. And once the fall months come around, Vang is hoping that colorful pumpkins and chrysanthemums will pull in more traffic.
The shop is available for private events. Vang also wants to host oyster roasts and bluegrass music nights. General manager Genevieve Taylor said she is excited to see them offer more services after construction finishes.
“I'm hoping that we'll be able to kind of fulfill a need among the local communities and neighborhoods regarding the needs, being a place you can shop for a plant, for a gift and being able, of course, to bring fresh produce,” Taylor said.
For his next renovation project, Vang is building an overhang to expand the plant selection, which will include outdoor plants that can be seen from Blossom Street, as well as building a stage for community events.
The store, located at 1924 Blossom St., is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 1 to 4 p.m. on Sundays.