About Us! 🪴

 Hi!

My name is Shyla and I’m so glad you found Blossom + Branch Houseplants! 🪴

I was born and raised in Holland, and have lived in West Michigan my entire life. I grew up surrounded by small businesses- and was involved from a young age. I was home-schooled and went to work with my mom at her business, Curious Kitty Stamps + Stickers, almost everyday!  I have a very vivid memory of putting on ‘demos’ at her store, such as paper-making!  😀

I have a Bachelor’s of Social Work degree and worked in that field for 10+ years. I was the director of local council of an international girls running program until 2020.
Speaking of 2020- that’s where it all went wrong for me. 😐

I was married to my husband, Jake, and we had a 3 and 1 year old. He worked in Grand Haven. He was diagnosed with Chordoma (a very rare form of cancer) in June 2020 and underwent extensive surgery. During this time, we discovered I was pregnant (surprise!) with our third child. Unfortunately, he died from complications just a short time later in August 2020.

Not even a month after his death the local employer I worked for, for 10 years, decided to get rid of the running program, and let me go. They did not even mention the loss of my husband when they let me go on my first day back to work and I knew right then, that I needed to change directions and work doing something I was passionate about.

I had our third child in early 2021 and life was (and continues?!) to be a crazy blur as a young widow with three children.

I am often asked if I grew up around plants or inherited knowledge and the answer is no! Houseplants came into my life somewhat by accident, but I found that it was something I really enjoyed and was good at.

Working with houseplants and learning the details about each specific plant and genus, was something I couldn’t get enough of. They bring me peace and a sense of calm tranquility (or is that just all the oxygen they create?!) I guess we will never know! They quickly took over my life (and my house) and I started propagating and selling them on social media.

I really gravitate towards the uncommon and hard to find plants, which is why the store has so many of them. I love tracking wishlist plants down for collectors, and getting to help customers with their first plant purchase! I strive to have a wide range of plants for a wide range of budgets.

Blossom + Branch is really a dream come true for me and my family. I know you have several choices when it comes to purchasing plants, but I really appreciate you shopping small and supporting local businesses! I have felt the love of the Washington Square community, and look forward to seeing you soon!