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Oyster Pointer Salutes: FruitFlowers™ blooming daily in lush Port Warwick
By Tess Goldblatt

Remember the scene in Willy Wonka when he sips a drink from a gorgeous yellow flower and then eats the cup? He “mixes it with love and makes the world taste good!” With a passion for food, FruitFlowers™ General Manager William Talbott blooms tulips made from marshmallow-stuffed strawberries and daisies cut from the freshest pineapple and melon. Vegetables crudité never looked so enticing as they do in Veggie Vantasia™. Watching Talbott’s wide-eyed 2-year-old son, Aiden, anxiously reach for the colorful edible fruit flowers takes one back to Wonka-land where the world tastes good.

“I was a chef for many years, and quality is my main focus,” Talbott says with pride. Talbott and his wife Rachel share 30 years of culinary experience, and opening a FruitFlowers™ franchise in Port Warwick seemed like a natural progression for them. Talbott’s uncle, Charles Stern, is their managing partner, handling the administrative details, allowing Talbott to focus on the customer, the product and its quality.

“I never give anybody second-day product. Everything we make is made the day of. I get fresh fruit delivered daily, and I expect only the best quality produce. I use several produce suppliers, and they know I’ll go where I get the best. We’re often imitated, but never duplicated,” Talbott adds.

Talbott loves working in Port Warwick as much as he enjoys preparing the edible bouquets of fruits or vegetables. The free live concerts on the lush lawn on Wednesday evenings in the summer make for ripe opportunities to give away free samples of his edible fruit flowers and chocolate covered strawberries. “I was born and raised here but this new kind of urbanism was new to me and I like it. It’s inviting.” Talbott praises the Port Warwick atmosphere and its great shops and restaurants.

Talbott’s FruitFlowers™ franchisor gives him a protected delivery area that includes Williamsburg, Smithfield and the entire Hamptons Roads area. He receives orders from as far away as Canada for local delivery of his no-preservative fresh fruit and vegetable creations in refrigerated vans. The van driver returns from a day of deliveries happy to report to Talbott “plenty of oohs and ahs today.”

Talbott recommends refrigeration of the arrangements until they’re needed, and they can sit out for about two hours without any concerns. Their largest bouquet of fruit flowers serves 125 people, making it suitable for weddings or other large celebrations. Ordering early for special occasions helps Talbott ensure he’s chosen the very best produce vendors for the job.

Talbott receives a call from a customer needing to send a fruit arrangement to a bereaved family. He works out the delivery details with as much care for the grieving family’s special needs as he shows for the preparation of the fruit itself.

Talbott’s customer orientation leads him to stay in touch with customers who want to be in his e-mail club.

“I may give them a recipe I enjoy, or a shout out about a new product,” Talbott explains. “I’m a foody. It’s what I love to do.” Talbott, too, mixes it with love and makes the world
taste good.