Be it big or small, every great idea is derived from inspiration-and that inspiration can come at any time. For Molly Trio Hiller, that time came at a chance lunch meeting.
“I was having lunch with a friend that was getting married, and she was telling me about meeting a florist who worked out of her home-that conversation sparked the idea [of a studio] in my mind,” says Trio Hiller, owner of Molly’s Flower Studio in Minnetonka, who started off as a CPA at a large public accounting firm and later held positions in the finance departments of Target and Marshall Field’s. “I talked to experts and took a class, but, mostly, I just dug in and started working.”
And dig in she did. At that time, Trio Hiller, who had earned a degree in accounting from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota and had no floral business experience, was looking for an outlet for her creative energy, as well as an entrepreneurial opportunity. Now, 10 years later, she has her own award-winning floral design studio located on her Minnetonka property.
Trio Hiller’s floral designs have been featured at many soirees from corporate events to glamorous weddings-more than 400 in the last 10 years. In that time, she’s experienced many memorable floral design experiences, including a photo shoot for Minnesota Bride, in which she designed and orchestrated a floral table runner that consisted of 600 red roses.
“My corporate events are the most fun,” Trio Hiller says. “One was a wine-tasting theme event with wine-colored flowers. On each table was a different style of centerpiece that was encircled with 40 wine glasses for the tasting. The table styling was visually dramatic as guests arrived.”
Overall, Trio Hiller enjoys being in an industry that is dynamic, trend-forward and artistic. “I like that I am always meeting new clients, working with great vendors and the projects keep getting more interesting,” she says. “The flowers themselves are the most inspirational to me. I walk through the cooler at the wholesale flower market and search for unique blooms in combinations that will make people say, ‘Wow, that is beautiful!’”
