Although he began his career in IT, Wayne Phan found himself drawn back to nature. More precisely, flowers. As the proprietor of The Flower Room in Newtown, Wayne is successfully pursuing a career, and a passion, inspired by his mother.
“My mother was a florist when she first came to Australia from Taiwan in the 1980s; I came here with her when I was 8. She started doing floristry because there was no other work she could find. I don’t even know how she ran the store without any English! But she did that for 20-plus years,” Wayne proudly states.
Floristry soon became the family business, with Wayne’s brother following in his mother’s footsteps. “My brother got involved with helping mum after school; he didn’t want to go onto further study after Year 12 so he helped out with deliveries and things like that,” Wayne explains. “My brother needed help so I started helping out on Saturdays. I did that for about two years, and I enjoyed it. This was in Surry Hills and my brother’s store is still there.”
As luck would have it, one of the guys Wayne and his brother worked with was quite good at starting businesses. “He found out this business [The Flower Room] was for sale and we took over in 2010, and I’ve been here since.”
What Wayne enjoys most about floristry is the people. “Most importantly, just the people around this community. I do enjoy making things as well, being creative, using different flowers in different seasons, but it’s mostly just the different people that you get to meet and deal with,” he says. “There are a lot of regulars who come in and see us on a weekly basis; we help them celebrate their birthdays, Mother’s Day, get gifts for visitors. They’ve been supporting us for the last 15 years — and we’re still here! I think if you do a good job and do the right thing, you’ll always stay in business.”
The Flower Room sources their flowers from the markets. “Every flower that comes from the market is top quality; the growers have been practising their craft for years and years,” Wayne says. “We try to bring in local flowers first. If locals aren’t available, there is a need to bring in some imports.”
Wayne’s personal favourite, however, is very much local. “I like big, bold flowers like orchids — Australian orchids.”
“My mother was a florist when she first came to Australia from Taiwan in the 1980s; I came here with her when I was 8. She started doing floristry because there was no other work she could find. I don’t even know how she ran the store without any English! But she did that for 20-plus years,” Wayne proudly states.
Floristry soon became the family business, with Wayne’s brother following in his mother’s footsteps. “My brother got involved with helping mum after school; he didn’t want to go onto further study after Year 12 so he helped out with deliveries and things like that,” Wayne explains. “My brother needed help so I started helping out on Saturdays. I did that for about two years, and I enjoyed it. This was in Surry Hills and my brother’s store is still there.”
As luck would have it, one of the guys Wayne and his brother worked with was quite good at starting businesses. “He found out this business [The Flower Room] was for sale and we took over in 2010, and I’ve been here since.”
What Wayne enjoys most about floristry is the people. “Most importantly, just the people around this community. I do enjoy making things as well, being creative, using different flowers in different seasons, but it’s mostly just the different people that you get to meet and deal with,” he says. “There are a lot of regulars who come in and see us on a weekly basis; we help them celebrate their birthdays, Mother’s Day, get gifts for visitors. They’ve been supporting us for the last 15 years — and we’re still here! I think if you do a good job and do the right thing, you’ll always stay in business.”
The Flower Room sources their flowers from the markets. “Every flower that comes from the market is top quality; the growers have been practising their craft for years and years,” Wayne says. “We try to bring in local flowers first. If locals aren’t available, there is a need to bring in some imports.”
Wayne’s personal favourite, however, is very much local. “I like big, bold flowers like orchids — Australian orchids.”
