From Social Sharing to Full-Time Business With FLRL by Esther

In many ways, Esther Pak, founder of FLRL by Esther, perfectly exemplifies a new era of entrepreneurship: After facing the burnout of a corporate job, she turned to floral arranging for a creative outlet. But what began as a way to share her arrangements with friends quickly blossomed into a full-time career shift.

Now just over a year old, FLRL by Esther has given Esther the opportunity to lean into her creative side, designing arrangements for individuals and major brands from her apartment and working with her business partner, Mara Burke, to manage operations.  

A foundation of creativity and connection

“Art and music have always been encouraged and celebrated in my family,” Esther says. “I was a classical musician my entire life, studying violin through college. Entering the workforce, I was stripped of that outlet and found myself searching for a way to express myself.”

When she started making arrangements and thrifting vases, Esther turned to Instagram to share her creations—but they soon caught attention outside of her circle. “I started sharing floral arrangements I made with flowers from grocery stores and different bodegas,” she says. “From there it took off—brands, creatives, and photographers started reaching out.”

Even the early days of the business were rooted in community: FLRL’s first customers came from Esther and Mara’s immediate circle and personal referrals. They then started hosting events and pop-ups, which organically put them in front of their target audience. 

“We’re so lucky to be based in New York, full of creatives pursuing their passions. I learned that there are many industries FLRL could fit into,” Esther says. “That’s when we started proactively reaching out to brands and businesses who might share similar visions and could use florals to carry out their message.”

It was really validating and fulfilling to find myself back in the creative world,” she adds. “It confirmed to me that this was always my path!” 

Growing into a website

With so many moving pieces to manage—while getting a crash course in business operations—starting a website can be far from urgent for a lot of new businesses. But, like many entrepreneurs, Esther quickly outgrew the Instagram selling model.

“Instagram is a great way to share our work and connect with the community, but isn’t great for placing orders,” she says. “Messages would get lost, especially since we’d need to collect information like addresses, budgets, etc. via DM.” 

Having a website gives FLRL by Esther a single place to collect project information, highlight their work, and share more about what they do with potential clients and customers. 

Plus, for a business like FLRL, where aesthetics are a selling point, a website builder that offers creative freedom is key. For Esther, that’s one of the perks of Squarespace. 

“Floral design is one form of my personal expression, so I try to carry that same mindset into other parts of my business,” she says. “Squarespace makes it really easy to adjust layouts, colors, fonts, and personal logos in a way that's true to our brand. It was also a great way to legitimize our business, instilling confidence to our customers that we provided true and beautiful arrangements,” Esther says. 

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A command center for business admin

The need to formalize and streamline operations is one of the biggest motivators for business owners to start a website. For Esther and Mara, their website allows them to simplify the basics of running the business—and explore new opportunities with the time saved.

When asked about the Squarespace tools that are most valuable for their business, “Our most used tool would definitely be the invoicing feature,” Esther says. Invoicing on Squarespace includes a dashboard to create, send, track, and collect payments for branded invoices, plus client documents like proposals and contracts.

“Our offerings range from single arrangement orders to large scale events, so this tool makes it easy for us to accommodate all order types,” she says. “The invoicing feature also makes it super easy to calculate sales tax, automatically applying to physical items invoiced, which is just one less thing I have to worry about.” 

Alongside invoicing, Esther cites contact forms as one of the tools they use most to keep FLRL running smoothly. Forms offer a hands-off way to collect leads on for potential events and client inquiries, and customization capabilities help them get necessary details upfront. “From there we can easily facilitate consultations and already have an idea of what the client might be looking for,” Esther says.

And more time for what matters

With additional Squarespace features, like an online shop and a Square POS integration, FLRL by Esther has been able to get creative with their offerings and events. “We recently hosted a pop up where customers were able to build their own bouquet, selecting from a variety of flowers,” Esther says. “Each bouquet was uniquely priced based on flower type and stem count. The Squarespace app made it easy to select specific flowers and input their quantities, spitting out a final subtotal. The tax calculation and ability to integrate with Square POS for tap pay made it a super seamless experience.”

Having a website to take care of some of the more repeatable tasks of the business has been important too. With the business pieces handled, the team can spend more time on the parts of the job that inspire them and allow them to connect with clients. 

“Automation features like triggered email replies and scheduling tools help cut down time spent on administrative tasks,” Esther says. “That allows me to dedicate energy to other aspects of our business like designing, growing, and meeting people in the community.”

Esther’s advice for fellow entrepreneurs

“One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned through this journey is to trust yourself and what you’re setting out to do. Everyone (including yourself) will have an opinion and naturally instill doubt in you,” Esther says. “The only thing you can rely on is the confidence you built from doing something you’re passionate about and doing it well. Confidence comes from knowing that you’re capable, especially when you’re faced with challenges. 

When you believe in your vision, that energy carries you through the difficulties and sets the tone for your success. Trust yourself first—everything else will follow from there.”

For FLRL by Esther, the journey is just starting: One of Esther’s next goals is to upgrade the studio space to allow for experimentation with bigger installations and concepts.

“I’d like to prioritize working with clients that challenge me to push my creativity outside the box. Learning from others with beyond-life imaginations has been the best part of this job and I’m hoping it will launch FLRL to the next level.”

Inspired by Esther’s story? Make a home for your next creative idea on Squarespace.