Editor’s Note: The Pivot Point is a new video series that explores floral professionals’ bold decisions and transformative journeys.
After semi-retiring from his internationally recognized event design company Ian Prosser, AAF, PFCI, AIFD, found himself at a pivot point.
In 2023, he was ready to hand the reins of Botanica Design Studio in Tampa, Florida, which he founded in 1989, to his daughter Zoe Gallina, AAF. But with a high-profile career spanning 50 years, including hundreds of events with six-figure floral décor budgets, what would his next chapter bring?
Prosser’s elaborate event work has attracted attention on an international scale and lead to prominent roles such as design team member and chairperson for two US presidential inaugurations, and high profile clients including Queen Elizabeth, Elton John and Tom Cruise, among others. A renowned educator who’s passionate about giving back to the industry, he was recognized with the Society of American Florists’ Tommy Bright award in 2019, and the Paul Ecke Jr. award in 2012. Most recently, Prosser received SAF’s prestigious President’s Award in 2024, in recognition of his 20 years of leading the floral design committee at SAF’s annual convention.
With more time than he’d had in 50 years, how would he focus his energies for the coming decades?
In this video, Prosser shares how he knew it was time to step back, and what led him to focus his energies on a project that merges his passion for high-end event design with teaching: The Ian Prosser Legacy Experience.
Amanda Jedlinsky is the senior director of content and communications for the Society of American Florists.
