ROANOKE, Va – Flower shops in the Star City are gearing up for what they say will likely be the busiest Valentine’s Day yet.
George’s Flowers is celebrating its 40th Valentine’s Day in Roanoke this year.
Each year the shop brings in two large trucks to help deliver flowers across the city. Staff says the phone has been ringing off the hook for the last two weeks, but some customers have placed orders almost a year in advance.
“This year, in particular, has been challenging, we have some major issues going on, we have COVID to consider so we have a lot of new protocols in place to keep our employees and our customers safe,” Owner George Clements said.
Clements says that their business model has made it easier to adjust to COVID-19 guidelines throughout the pandemic.
George’s Flowers brings in a dozen contracted drivers to help with Valentine’s Day deliveries each year.
But things could be complicated with more people ordering their flowers early because the holiday falls on a weekend and the potential for winter weather over the next few days.
“Luckily it looks like the cold temperatures are not going to be a problem for us this year, although we could have frozen precipitation, which can make deliveries much slower and slow us down and also if we have ice completely stopped deliveries,” Clements said.
Clements says they have been letting customers know about the potential delays for the last week or so.
The store will also be updating people on social media if deliveries are impacted.