Artist Feature - Pistil & Pollen
Bringing the outdoors inside is part of my design aesthetic. I have been lucky enough to work with Tricia DiMarco of Pistil & Pollen when finishing up the install of design projects. Pistil & Pollen create thoughtful, local, and seasonal arrangements. Tricia has always knocked it out of the park with curated pairings of fresh flowers for my finished projects. I totally recommend subscribing to the monthly arrangement subscription so that you can enjoy beautiful flowers and foliage delivered to your doorstep right here in Rochester, New York. - Staci
Tell us about yourself and what you do in your business and the industries you work in.
My name is Tricia DiMarco and I’m the owner of Pistil & Pollen. I do everything from client and supplier communication, to guiding the P&P team in design and execution of events. My clients come to me with a vision and as a team, we bring that vision to life. We are lucky to have such a great community of wholesalers and growers in the area who help us to achieve our garden picked style. As lovers of the arts and all things nature, we combine our knowledge of the two in order to create unique and interesting floral compositions.
Why did you choose this particular business to pursue, passion or schooling.
Passion. I never had any plans of starting a floral company in my younger years. I went to SCAD for a BFA in Illustration and my work there was heavily based around flora and fauna. After graduating, I moved to Los Angeles to work for an Illustrator. I needed another source of income so I started working for a Botanical Artist who mainly constructed floral installations for exhibitions and photoshoots. From there, I got another job with a boutique floral studio, The Little Branch. At this point, my illustration work became more of a hobby instead of a career path. After a few years of living and working in LA, I moved back home to Rochester. A good friend of mine (and my first business partner, Michael) was also working in the field of floristry. We wanted the freedom to practice our floral work in the way we wanted to, so we started Pistil & Pollen in order to not have to work under anyone else.
What are some obstacles/wins you’ve encountered along the way.
Starting a company is both fun and scary. Especially scary when you’re trying to navigate growing that company in the era of Covid. I would say hiring a team was the first and biggest obstacle. It’s hard to trust someone else to do even the most minor tasks when those tasks have your name and your brand tied to them. It’s gotten much easier to hand off work to employees over the years as the company has grown and trust has been established among the team. Which brings me right into my biggest win – the team! As the company grows, I get to meet and work with really cool people who I might have never met otherwise. Having a niche company like P&P means that people with the same passions come together to do what they love and that has been the best part of building this.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to pursue the entrepreneur path.
Just start, be passionate, and take your time. If you are doing something that truly lights you up, it will show and the right clients will eventually filter to you over time. Be patient and work hard until that time comes.
Who or what inspires you in your work.
First and foremost, nature will always be my biggest inspiration for the work I do. After these Rochester winters, when the first bulbs start popping up in spring, there is truly nothing better. I am so grateful for the seasons we have here in New York. Each season brings new varieties of blooms and new foliage to work with and each year I try to find something new to add to my list of favorites. The people who inspire me most in my career path are the ones who initially inspired me to get here. Before starting this company, I worked for many different people. They ranged from artists to school owners and even restaurant managers and every single one of them was a woman. And that’s what made it so easy for me to know that I too had the power to do whatever I set my mind to.
What is your favorite/least favorite part of your job.
My favorite part of the job is hearing feedback from the clients I get to work with. It’s usually something along the lines of, “our guests couldn’t stop talking about the flowers all night long, and they’re still talking about them weeks or months or years later”. My least favorite part is something that doubles as my favorite part, haha. Being that I get to work with people when they’re celebrating something! It’s fun. But it’s also a little intimidating when you start to think about someone’s wedding day. A day that they’ve probably been dreaming up for years, maybe even decades, and the responsibility that comes along with that can be a little daunting. But the longer I work in the industry, that feeling turns more into excitement than intimidation.
Where do you see this business going in the next 5 years.
My 5 year plan for P&P includes building a studio from the ground up, on a chunk of land where we can grow some cut flowers. I envision the space developing into something more of an artist studio / art park, rather than just a floral workshop. I’d like a space where my team and I can create all kinds of art forms. Flowers and event work always being our main focus of course. I want it to be somewhere that inspires all forms of creativity. I’ve always had this vision of an “art park” that includes an outdoor and indoor creative space, possibly even a gallery. Maybe that part is a 10 year plan, but you get the idea! This is just the beginning, we’ll see where the universe takes me from here.