Flower trucks are fairly new to the pop-up scene, with the majority of them located in larger cities in the South. Jessica Weiss fell in love with this “budding” trend while visiting down there. Her job as a traveling nurse was fulfilling but left her creatively starved, and she wanted to bring the joy of do-it-yourself bouquets closer to home. And so her journey to join her love of flowers and community began.
Weiss’s first task was to find the right vehicle to house her business. Although most pop-up floral businesses were set up in open-bed trucks or walk-in vans, Weiss set her sights on something more unusual. She scoured local classifieds for weeks and finally discovered an old two-horse trailer for sale on Facebook Marketplace. After taking a year to renovate and customize her new digs, she was ready for business, and the newly minted Bar Fiore hosted its first pop-up event in September 2020.
Weiss spent the summer of 2019 working on a flower farm in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which solidified her desire to stock Bar Fiore with blooms from small, locally owned businesses. Her flowers come from a variety of local growers, including Tarry Grove in Ontario and Flowerwell in Brockport. Because her flowers are locally sourced, they always reflect the fresh colors, scents, and spirits of each season.
Although Weiss is certified in floral design, she encourages her customers to assemble their own bouquets when they visit. She finds great satisfaction in educating people on the different flower varieties and pushing them to be creative. “There are so many flowers that people don’t know about, like lisianthus,” she says. “I try to label all the flowers so that people know what they are. It’s fun to educate people on the different varieties and what it takes to grow them.”
The Bar Fiore trailer had a busy first season, attending seven pop-up and three private events in six weeks. Weiss is taking the fall and winter seasons to fine-tune her business plan and schedule events and will host more pop-up events come spring 2021.
The process of setting up shop at events all around the area can be stressful, but it’s all worth it when Weiss sees her clients with their finished bouquets. “I get to see people in their best state and create something beautiful with them. It’s an all-around positive experience.”
For more information on Bar Fiore, visit barfiorewny.com or follow
@bar_fiore_flowercity on Instagram.
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