“When I started horticulture classes in 1978, I never thought I would own my own flower shop,” says Lynette Marsack, owner of Kraatz Flowers. Lynette, born and raised here in Mount Clemens, started working at Kraatz in 1980. She worked there full-time until 1985, when she married her husband Bill and raised two boys, Nathan and Taylor, and has now owned the shop for 23 years.
The shop, which is soon to celebrate its 75th anniversary in business, was started by Leslie and Emma Kraatz, along with their children Arlene, Janet, and Paul. There were thirteen greenhouses and a small house on Ferndale Street, “a gravel road that ran parallel to what is now Groesbeck,” says Lynette. In 1949, when Groesbeck was completed, the Kraatz family decided to open a retail flower shop.
When Leslie and Emma retired in 1965, says Lynette, the children and their spouses took over. Arlene had gone to school for bookkeeping, Janet went to the American Floral Art School in Chicago, and Paul studied Floral Horticulture at MSU, so they were well-prepared to run the business. “The business flourished,” continues Lynette, and even had a satellite store at Macomb Mall. Over time, however, the expense of heating the greenhouses and the development of cross-country flower shipments made the greenhouses unprofitable, so they were torn down one by one and the property sold.
By 2000, the Kraatz children were ready to retire, and Lynette and her husband Bill decided to buy the shop. Unfortunately, Bill passed away unexpectedly in 2004, scuppering their plans to tear down and rebuild the original 118-year-old building, which had fallen into disrepair. In 2010, Lynette relocated Kraatz Flowers to its current location at 301 Cass Avenue.
Lynette had other challenges to content with. “I had only been a designer,” she says, “never wanting to involve myself with the financial end of the business.” Fortunately, she had family and friends to help, especially Marilyn Harder, “my mentor and dear friend,” who Lynette misses every day since she passed in 2021.
Despite the challenges, Lynette has found pleasure and success in owning her shop. Business boomed shortly after the pandemic began, as people sent flowers to loved ones they couldn’t see in person.
“We are more than just flowers,” she says. “We have a unique gift line, as well as a large assortment of plants.” Lynette offers flowers for every person in your life, from mothers to sisters, grandmas, friends, teachers, and pastors. For Mother’s Day, Lynette suggests roses, hydrangeas, tulips, and Gerbera daisies, or if the mom in your life enjoys gardening, “a nice blooming plant or hanging basket she can use outside.”
“Our flowers have a longer life than most because of the way we process them as soon as they come in,” she adds. A big proponent of “recycle, reduce, reuse”, Lynette also trades flowers for vases. “Everyone has extra vases hanging around,” she says, “so bring in a box and receive a lovely bouquet!”
When I started horticulture classes in 1978, I never thought I would own my own flower shop.