New Florist Opening Downtown
Ados Flowers is the culmination of a lifelong passion for Alando McMurtry.
Ados Blooms, 209 E. Wisconsin Ave. Photo taken Sept. 1, 2022 by Sophie Bolich
Alando McMurtry’s passion for flowers began when he was just 8 years old.
His favorites were dandelions, and while others saw them as a nuisance, he said he used to cry when his dad cut down the bright yellow blooms that stubbornly polka-dotted the lawn each spring.
Nearly 60 years later, McMurtry is realizing his dream of opening a flower shop. Ados Blooms, 209 E. Wisconsin Ave., is setting up in a 633-square-foot retail space in the Iron Block Building.
And while the selection there is unlikely to include dandelions, McMurtry’s love of the flower has inspired joy, hope and wonder throughout his journey.
As McMurtry prepares to move the business into its first brick-and-mortar location, he said he’s excited to work with “wonderful wholesalers,” including a seller in Ecuador who will provide tropical flowers for the shop.
“I think that’s going to bring a different swing to the community,” he said. “I think we kind of need that.”
A Milwaukee native, McMurtry has a clear desire to connect with his customers and the surrounding community. Ados Blooms is a Black-owned business, and McMurtry said he chose his downtown location for the tourist traffic and the diversity of the area.
“I was raised in a community where there was just a multitude of cultures, and that’s what I see,” he said. “I see a multitude of people that I want to accommodate: all walks of life and just people in general. And we want to make customer service our first priority.”
In some cases, McMurtry even goes beyond his duties as a florist to accommodate customers. For example, when providing floral arrangements for funerals.
“Being an ordained minister, I think it’s important for me to accommodate families when they’re in bereavement,” he said. “And we really take pride in our various sympathy arrangements, just as well as birthdays and anniversaries and just special occasions.”
The idea, he said, is “to give a warm invitation to the community and let them know that we want to accommodate our community. Sometimes a flower can just brighten up your day where maybe things are not going so good. And sometimes it’s nice to see the word free.”
Hours for the shop will become available closer to the opening date.
The shop will open next door to Midwest Shores, another new business opening soon in the Iron Block Building.
Photos
If you think stories like this are important, become a member of Urban Milwaukee and help support real, independent journalism. Plus you get some cool added benefits.
