Tiger Garden unveils new, floral shop atmosphere
By Alice Roach

Students walking through the halls of the Agriculture Building may have noticed a familiar room with a face-lift. Tiger Garden is bearing a new face after renovation efforts this summer. The shop still provides a real-world experience for aspiring designers and entrepreneurs, however.

Tiger Garden, located on the main floor in the Agriculture Building, operates as the University of Missouri’s student-run floral shop through a partnership between the Division of Plant Sciences and University Bookstore.

According to Dr. Mary Ann Gowdy, MU horticulturalist and Tiger Garden faculty manager, the new business was “taken from a quasi lab and turned into a design shop.”

Plant sciences major Jill LeRoy works in the newly rennovated Tiger Garden floral shop in the Agriculture Building. The shop is a joint venture between the Division of Plant Sciences and University Bookstore and provides students with hands-on retail experience. Photo by: Kyle Spradley

One of the major improvements included relocating a cooler from the bookstore to the shop. With that move, Tiger Garden takes on more of a floral shop atmosphere. 

“We’ve never had a shop,” Gowdy said. “Before, they (customers) were limited to what was in the cooler. Now they will get the service of any traditional flower shop.” 

Other improvements include painted walls, cleaned cabinets, new design tables built by students and a welcoming window display.

In addition to the new look, Gowdy anticipates developing a unique line of MU-related products created specifically for Tiger Garden. The store soon will be featuring boutique items such as jewelry and picture frames made by people connected with the university.

“It provides customers with unique products and showcases CAFNR folks’ unique talents,” Gowdy said. 

Tiger Garden also will offer typical services as any other floral shop would. The store’s staff offers fresh-cut floral arrangements, either pre-made or ordered, as well as silk arrangements. Designers create arrangements for banquets, luncheons and other special events.

Besides providing the MU community with a full-service floral shop, Tiger Garden gives students from a variety of degree programs real-world experience. The operation has maintained an educational motive since its inception in 2000.

“It provides students with retail floral experience and creates an entrepreneurial spirit in students,” Gowdy said. “It gives our students real-life experience. They have opportunities to observe excellent mentors. It’s all good publicity for the college to show what we have to offer.”

The partnership between University Bookstore and the Division of Plant Sciences reinforces the goal of providing a floriculture experience for future floral designers. The bookstore’s role is providing funds for hiring a coordinator and attending to marketing. Profits from floral sales will then, ideally, cover the bookstore’s contribution.

Tiger Garden student manager and floral designer Jill LeRoy sees working at Tiger Garden as an important part of CAFNR. “We make it (the college) look good,” LeRoy said. “We want to push helping people acquire skills to start their own businesses.”

LeRoy, a junior plant sciences student, has worked at Tiger Garden for two years. During that time, she prepared for the future by learning “design skills and mechanics of making an arrangement — what it takes to be a successful business owner.”

Tiger Garden also fosters a partnership between the College of Human Environmental Sciences and CAFNR. Susan Nack, a freshman interior design student, sees how her work with Tiger Garden will provide useful experience for the future as an interior designer. 

“Designing flowers is visualizing color and planning in your head,” Nack said. “It relates to what I want to do.”

Gowdy would like to see Tiger Garden spark an interest for floral design in students. Her goal includes offering a floral design class in conjunction with Tiger Garden. She also would like to see the shop produce enough business to support a staff member at the shop from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the business week.

Tiger Garden is in the Agriculture Building across the hall from the Gary L. Dickinson Student Achievement Center. It currently is open from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday.

> Back to Corner Post Home