Happy to chat or whatsapp. WELL, we thought we would take a minute to introduce ourselves, friends Jo and Michaleen, behind `Fabel & Bloom`. To give you a bit of background on how we came to start our business. We are both new nanas team, and we our thrilled to share our story with you all. To get down to really telling our story of how `FABEL & BLOOM` came to be, we have to go back to the end of
2021. It was a November night, the night before Michaleen`s wedding, two second cousins twice removed, decorating a manor house for the thanksgiving family wedding. Both had designed the wedding florals and all arrangements for the wedding party, for the church and the reception. Both sat there sharing a cuppa and a sit down, when Michaleen asked Jo why they both didn’t go into the wedding and gift arranging business as they both enjoyed doing it so much. Michaleen had watched Jo grow as an acclaimed professional florist working for a local family business as a single mum and Joanne had viewed Michaleen`s journey working long hours within management in local government, also as a single mum. Both excelled at party organisation, floral design, event management and creating `special life moments` never to be forgotten. Skip ahead a bit … Michaleen suddenly found herself receiving news the night before her honeymoon, that her job might be deleted, a role she excelled at, meeting many famous people, helping local representatives, business, community and voluntary organisations with profiling themselves and fundraising in the local area and organising events for 2 to 500 people. Distraught and annoyed --- she had to have a think about her future and with the help of her new husband, her son and Joanne, decided she couldn’t keep waiting for budget cut after budget cut and left her 35 year management role. So more cuppas shared, more chatting together, getting more wine (renowned as reasonable drinkings), experiencing profound love... and loss of both of their Mum`s (Ann and Valerie) and more recently one of their best friends Paul - they felt that they needed to seize the day, and could do anything as long as they had each other. Side by side as family and more importantly friends, they decided to set up a business together and get into flowers and gifts. The floral arrangements always had called out to Jo, with their eyes on trying to find the next trend and something a little different, using their combined very green skills (for Jo) and business skills (for Mic). Both found themselves at an important time in their lives – THE MENOPAUSE – the madness that comes with that, the self-doubt and the `what the hell is happening to me` feelings. Watching the Davina docu, bought the two menopausal minds together even more, with both of their foundations and skills, HRT gave them the strength to go for it, to test them, to challenge them and then …
THEY WERE TO BECOME NANAS. They were at a crossroads. They loved their jobs (but you know how that went), they love their families (spoiling them and caring). They had so much warm and loving energy to give, they decided they would start a business built from that love. They believe that love has many silhouettes and forms. They now provide flowers, wedding and gift arrangements for `life`s special moments`, with the same care, kindness and consideration they would want to receive themselves. They created something together to bring others joy, smiles and happiness – as they themselves navigate the beginning of their home business journey, through this wild and unpredictable time, because they want to build a future. Jo`s a professional floral artist, Michaleen`s an event manager. But they are both new Nanas – and `Fabel & Bloom` was also born – `Finlay' (for Michaleen`s grandson) and `abel` taken from Mabel, Joanne`s lovely granddaughter. Then `Blooooooom` … because of the menopause madness… and the need for us to bloom, thrive and grow during this time and the launch of our own business. Nice to meet you. Happy to help you.
