(This article was originally published in the Feb. 2 print edition of the Herald)

Galen Kusic, Editor

“I can’t wait to show Benicia the sweeter side,” said Sweetness & Light Flowers & Events Creative Director and CEO Wendi Phillips, as she prepared for her ribbon cutting on Jan. 16 and grand opening party on Jan. 18.

Phillips has had her own flowers and events business for nine years, and has been working in the flower industry for over a decade. Sweetness & Light Flowers and Events has been featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, Style Me Pretty, Inspired by This, Wedding Chicks, 100 Layer Cake and more.

Sweetness & Light has the entire town buzzing about the new flower shop, located at 301 First St. in the courtyard, nestled between 621 Gallery and Benicia Plein Air Gallery. The shared space is a unique setting that Phillips, a Vallejo resident, knew was the perfect location for her shop – a place where she can, “help people solve problems and brighten up their day.”

“The small town feel instantly felt good to me,” she said. “Ever since I started doing flowers I wanted to open up a shop. Once I had a small bit of experience working in a flower shop, I knew that I would love it. I love people coming in and seeing folks over and over again.”

The picturesque setting is welcoming and calming as customers have the opportunity to experience beautiful flower arrangements, bouquets, vases, cards and other gifts. At the same time, it provides a place to gather, congregate and further Benicia’s mission to be a community-first city.

“I think First St. is great, but one of the things it’s lacking is those communal spaces to gather, said Phillips. “I wanted this to be an inviting spot where you could grab a cup of tea and come hang out.”

And while Phillips is all about community, she’s also doing all she can to reduce the carbon footprint and use locally-sourced, sustainable flowers that aren’t harming the environment, or her customers.

“I like to keep everything as local and sustainable as possible,” said Phillips, who sources flowers from Berkeley’s Jutta’s Flowers, growing all of their seasonal blooms on a rooftop.

Roses and tulips come from sustainable Sacramento farm Menagerie Farm & Flower, and she shops at the flower market in San Francisco, where she mainly contracts with wholesaler Torchio from Santa Cruz. Phillips emphasized that most of the flowers you get at larger chain stores are imported flowers from Ecuador or Colombia. While the flower prices are cheap, poor working conditions and destructive farming practices using harmful chemicals negatively impact environmental justice communities. These flowers also don’t last as long because they’ve been shipped from thousands of miles away, and chemicals are used to preserve the flowers.

“Having locally sourced flowers make them last much longer,” she said. “You won’t get any flower packets here.”

At the same time, she has cut down on unnecessary packaging – all gift packaging is from recycled materials. She also composts all green waste.

“If we all start making choices like that, we’ll all be better for it,” she said. “Businesses have a choice to make better decisions for consumers. As a business we have the obligation to be stewards of our planet.”

Phillips takes pride in her business being able to do it all, whether it’s flowers by the stem, making arrangements, weddings and events, funerals, prom, banquets, etc.

“The community has been so welcoming, I can’t get my doors open fast enough,” she said. “I feel like Benicia is all about sharing, and I just want to share flowers with people…This is the craziest realization of a lifelong dream.”

While Phillips found flowers on accident, she is fulfilling her dream of helping others and doing what she loves, while giving back to the community and enhancing Benicia’s economic vitality.

To learn more or begin working on you next flower arrangement or event, call Wendi at (707) 652-5599 or email at wendi@sweetnessandlightflowers.com.