John (left) and Sally Kobylinski recently sold their Orlando flower business to industry outsider Susan Lo (right).
Upon retiring, many florists sell their business to a relative, a long-time employee, or a peer in the industry. But what if that isn’t an option? In the January/February issue of Floral Management, florists Sally and John Kobylinski share with writer Sarah Sampson how they finally found a buyer they trusted would be a good fit for their shop.
The Kobylinskis weren’t thinking about retirement until someone inquired about buying their business, In Bloom Florist in Orlando, Florida, in 2020. Though that offer didn’t pan out, it set in motion the couple’s exit strategy.
“Once we started thinking about it, we realized we were ready,” Sally says. “I’ve seen brands locally where it appears they didn’t have a plan, and then I watched their brand slowly dying. We thought, ‘If we don’t actively do something, we could be the aging, tired shop.’ Not making a decision is making a decision.”
Mindful that their legacy depended on finding the right owner, they scrutinized buyers’ business acumen, intention to be hands on, and personality.
“It was important to us that we sell to someone who was kind and who would take care of our employees,” Sally says. “It needed to be someone who would continue the brand, the legacy of caring for the community, who was committed to carrying on the same structure.”
Five offers and two years later, last October they sold to Susan Lo, a veteran business owner with experience in the notoriously challenging restaurant industry. The Kobylinskis were excited Lo lived less than 10 minutes from the store, was eager to learn from them, and wanted to keep their company culture in place. (John is staying on for a year to help with the transition.)
“The quality is going to stay,” Lo says. “The service is going to be like it is — if not better — and we are carrying their view and legacy. It’s about instilling that old way of doing things, but perhaps bringing new technology and efficiencies to the process.”
Read more about the Kobylinksis’ and other florists’ retirement process in the January/February Floral Management feature story, “What’s Your Exit Strategy?”
Katie Vincent is the senior contributing editor for the Society of American Florists.
