Arts & Flowers Leeds: Cross Gates florist prepares for one last Valentine's Day on Austhorpe Road
Valentine's Day is back this week, marking one of the busiest time of the year for this Cross Gates high street staple.
For more than 50 years, florist Arts & Flowers has been the go-to spot for Leeds’ last-minute romantics scrambling for a bouquet.
The Austhorpe Road shop - now run by second-generation owner Kirstie Lancaster-Gillson, alongside her daughter Leah Cale - has seen the same Valentine’s Day rush every February since opening in 1973.
Kirstie told the Yorkshire Evening Post: "We'll probably get at least 70 to 80 people coming on the day for an order, and they want it delivered within an hour.
"That is pretty much impossible, because we’ve got a list of people that have already ordered. And the phone generally rings at nine o'clock: 'I ordered some flowers, and haven't got them yet. Where are they? Is your van driver out?'."
Arts & Flowers was the brainchild of Kirstie’s father, Roy, who began growing flowers at the family’s property on Manston Lane from a young age.
Kirstie said: "He always was a grower. He grew chrysanthemum blooms and dahlias and tulips and daffodils and used to sell them back into the wholesale market.
"I was only three at the time, and my brother was eight when dad came home one day and said: 'I've bought a flower shop'."
Since that day, Arts & Flowers has been a family affair, with everyone from grandparents to cousins, husbands, and daughters pitching in. The word "Arts" was included in the name to secure a front-page listing in the Yellow Pages.
Kirstie recalled: "I used to come to work with my mum, Jenny, pulling heads off flowers and driving her crazy.
"I swore I’d never work here, but as a kid, you always get dragged in. My dad’s favourite saying was, ‘If you employ them at 13, they’re employable at 16.’
“It took me years to understand that, but now, I really do."
Jenny remained a cornerstone of the business until she passed away in 2005, and Roy continued to share his passion for flowers with the family until his passing in 2013.
The end of an era
After 50 years in the same location, Kirstie and her team have become as much a part of Cross Gates as the shop itself.
She said: "A lot of people say that what they like about us is we know them. So once they purchase from us we get to know their likes and dislikes.
"I once got told a sentence that it took me a few years to really understand; a lady once said to me that you don't change your florist, because it's like going to your doctor.
"You go through every step of life with them; the birth, the marriage, the birthdays, the anniversaries, and sadly, the end-of-life scenario, and I kind of understand that now."
But by the end of the year, Arts & Flowers will be closing its doors on Austhorpe Road.
This isn’t the end of the story - it’s the next chapter. Kirstie and her team are moving back to where it all began in the early ‘70s: Manston Lane.
She said: "My dad and I always discussed that perhaps the ideal place to build the shop would be where we live.
"I never thought it would come to fruition, and it's been a very, very long, determined task.
"And it wasn't because I wanted to leave the High Street, it's because I wanted to provide a better experience.
"Because I think as things have changed, we in generations change, so we expect a different buying experience.
"And I think people want experiences more than purchases."
With the move, Kirstie plans to open a cafe on-site and offer more classes, including wreath-making and flower-arranging workshops.
But before all that, her focus is on this week - on Friday and the Valentine’s Day rush.
She said: "If you haven't guessed what that man wants to buy his lady, then you aren't gonna have any customers.
"You have to be on top of your game to make sure you've got everything ready, because you've got one day to sell them products."