Claudia Campos’ brand-new store in Southold, Jireh Flowers and Boutique (56475 Main Road, Southold, 631-765-8707), opened on Feb. 7 with a pretty-in-pink sign visible from Main Road.
The store is located in the former Ivy League Flowers, and has been renovated and refreshed by Campos.
Campos, who lives in Greenport, has an extensive background in floral design. After a 25-year stint working in Stop & Shop’s floral department, Campos decided to open her own business from home during the pandemic.
“My house was filled with flowers,” she recalls. “I did weddings for friends, prom parties, christenings, and birthdays.”
Last year, Campos signed the lease on her storefront, a cheerful space that combines her floral workspace with a colorful boutique in an effort to generate business throughout the year.
“When the summer season finishes, the flower season starts,” she says.
The boutique features handmade items, some from local artists, including Campos’ own line of hand-poured candles.
“I make new candles for every season,” she says, including off a “magic” chai candle that smells like cardamom and vanilla, a bumblebee candle with a sweet floral fragrance and a cherry blossom candle inspired by the Greenport Cherry Blossom Festival that occurs each April.
The shop also carries a selection of clothes, including robes and summery dresses from Turkey, as well as crocheted bikinis and halter tops. Campos plans to bring in a line of Colombian handbags, some made of leather and some of woven textile. Gift items abound, like jewelry, pillows, chocolates, baby items, picture frames, stuffed animals and balloons. Campos will create custom gift baskets for customers, as well.
In fact, Jireh aims to work with customers to provide exactly what they are looking for no matter the occasion.
“One customer brought me Pinterest pictures showing the arrangement he wanted,” she says. The end result was a trendy bouquet of 25 white roses, 75 red roses and a sprinkling of faux butterflies. Campos asks about the gift recipient’s likes and dislikes or what colors or flowers she should use in creating personalized arrangements. A recent walk-in customer had her create a spur-of-the-moment bouquet of baby’s breath and pink roses for her daughter, who just found out she is having a baby girl.
Campos also creates surprise boxes for occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, thank-yous and gender reveals. These may consist of a lunch box with a sandwich and drink, a bouquet of tulips and a Turkish towel, or other custom items. And stay tuned for summer, Campos says, as she plans to offer workshops on flower arrangement and candle-making on Saturday mornings.
“Jireh” is a Biblical name for God, and also translates to “the Lord will provide.”
Campos says that she used the name for her business because “I want to recognize His presence in my life. We all have difficulties in life, maybe health or economic problems, or loss of work. Jireh is my provider and will be there for me and for everybody. He opens the door, puts food on my table, and takes care of my family. He is my provider, my father, my friend.”
Flowers can be ordered online, by phone, or in person. Delivery is available for most East End addresses, including local hospitals and funeral homes. Jireh Flowers and Boutique is open from Monday to Saturday from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and is closed on Sunday. For more information, check Jireh’s website.
