A POPULAR York florist is celebrating two decades in business in the city.

Acomb florist Floral Elegance, run by Sue Hunter, turned 20 and had a VIP visit from the Civic Party to mark the occasion.

Sue said: "Twenty years means a lot of hard work. We have had tough times - starting a business off during a recession was not easy and we had the Covid lockdowns, but I have fantastic staff in Louise Watkinson and Rae Steel, who are invaluable to me.

"I started the Acomb Alive traders association as Acomb had started to suffer with empty shops, but with the help of the other businesses in Acomb, we bonded together to keep things going and we've got a really strong business community now."

York Press: Acomb florist Sue Hunter outside Floral Elegance with the Civic PartyAcomb florist Sue Hunter outside Floral Elegance with the Civic Party (Image: Floral Elegance)

As The Press reported earlier this year, the business was accepted as a full member of the exclusive Good Florist Guide, the gold standard of floristry and the only merit-based guide in the world for florists.

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Sue said: "I started the business after becoming redundant and I went off to Askham Bryan College to study floristry. I have always loved flowers, but when I started the course it was never my intention to open my own business, but it just goes to show that you can change your career later in life - I was 46 when we opened, and before that I worked for Thomson Holidays as a merchandiser.

"My advise to anyone would be to follow your dream, but make sure you have enough finances to get you through the first two years, because they are the toughest.

"I' want to keep the business going - I can't see me retiring - I want to keep it going for another 20 years!

"I'd love to thank Louise and Rae drivers, drivers Chris Brown and David Connor, Nige Goodwin my long suffering partner and stand in driver and my sons James and Andrew."