Maria Cermeno, owner of Blissful Blooms flower shop in Aurora, opened her business on Aug. 1. (David Sharos / The Beacon-News) The current pandemic that has devastated so many businesses in a way actually helped launch one of Aurora’s newest ventures – a flower shop known as Blissful Blooms on the second floor of Warehouse 55 at 55 S. Lake St. in downtown Aurora.

Owner Maria Cermeno, 28, of Naperville said the opening of her shop on Aug. 1 was the result of promoting and honing her craft through pandemic-based workshops along with the opportunity presented to her by Mark Allen, who leases the Warehouse 55 building and offered her space.

“I started working in a flower shop five years ago in Naperville and by the third year I knew that I wanted my own business,” Cermeno said. “I started going out and doing workshops after I was done working at the florist shop. There were small businesses and restaurants I knew and people would let me use their space. It turned into some pretty good cross marketing.” Maria Cermeno, 28, of Naperville, opened Blissful Blooms flower shop in August at Warehouse 55 at 55 S. Lake St. in downtown Aurora. Cermeno said she never intended on becoming a florist and was planning to be a nurse but the stint at the Naperville flower shop changed all that.

“I was going to school and did the flower shop as a way to have some money and create a balance and I started as a store manager,” she said. “I also did some social media and worked on the website, but after a while, things got busy and the owner said, ‘I need more designers and would I help out a little’ and so I did.”

Cermeno said over time, her skills improved as she took in tips from other designers as well as things she learned from looking at books and watching videos.

“Over time, you develop your own style and you also learn about how to create the vision customers are looking for,” she said.

Before the pandemic struck, Cermeno said she was doing pop-up events in the Aurora area while working from home and that she had to switch gears as the days and weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic wore on.

“The shops were closed and I thought, I have to do something, and I started hearing about all these suppliers and their inventory going to waste as people weren’t ordering flowers,” she said. “I wanted those suppliers to still be around, so I started doing arrangements and deliveries for Easter and Mother’s Day and it went well.”

“I thought to myself I’d wait until next year (2021) but then the second floor of Warehouse 55 opened and while I was sort of intimidated at first, Blissful Blooms happened,” she said.

“I think having Maria (Cermeno) is a good fit and our personalities click,” Allen said. “She’s been here almost two months and everyone loves the flower shop and the displays. We both like a lot […]