A family-run flower shop in Portage la Prairie is preparing for its busiest time of year as Mother’s Day approaches. Mil-Jeanne Flowers & Axcenz, owned by Kyle and Alicia Pettinger, is working hard to meet the growing demand for flowers, gifts, and arrangements.
Kyle Pettinger, who co-owns the shop with his wife Alicia, says Mother’s Day is one of the most important holidays for their business.
“Mother’s Day is certainly up there." Pettinger says. “We get multiple siblings sending to mom. It’s grandma, it’s stepmoms. There’s all sorts of different dynamics.”
Mil-Jeanne Flowers: A family tradition
Mil-Jeanne Flowers has been part of the Portage la Prairie community for more than 65 years. For over 45 years, it has been owned and operated by the Pettinger family. Larry Pettinger, Kyle’s father, began working at Mil-Jeanne Flowers in 1975, later purchasing the shop with his wife Doreen. In 2014, Kyle and his wife Alicia took over the business, continuing to grow it into a beloved community staple.
A heartfelt thank you to moms
For the Pettingers, Mother’s Day is not just about flowers—it’s about expressing gratitude and appreciation for the mothers in people’s lives. Kyle reflects on the different ways customers express their love:
“It’s funny how we see that in this business. You just learn to appreciate what a mom is to somebody and why they call that person mom."
Kyle and Alicia aim to make each order special for customers, focusing on thoughtful gestures that reflect the unique bond between mothers and their families.
"I think any mom out there would say that all they’re looking for is to be acknowledged,” Kyle says.
Busy days ahead for the family-run flower shop
The shop is preparing for a high volume of orders as Mother’s Day approaches, with flowers, gifts, and customized arrangements being prepared.
“We’ve certainly seen some pre-orders, which we always appreciate to try and get ahead of things. And then the girls here, we’re working on preparing arrangements. We have the website loaded up,” Kyle noted.
Kyle adds that the team at Mil-Jeanne Flowers is ready to meet the demand and keep things running smoothly.
“We’ve done it for a number of years, and it goes pretty smoothly. We always hope for not too many hiccups and just to make sure that we get everybody something special for Mother’s Day.”
Navigating challenges: Tariffs and other hurdles
While the Pettingers are excited about the upcoming holiday, they also face challenges in their business, particularly with the impact of tariffs. Kyle says that while they’re committed to offering a variety of products, they’ve had to adjust some of their purchasing decisions.
“We’ve started avoiding some of the companies that we’ve previously dealt with, and we’re sort of holding off to see what changes might take place in the next few months,” Kyle explains. “We try not to focus our attention on too terribly much to distract us from just what we are in control of, because there’s certainly things in business that you control and other things that are out of your control.”
Despite the uncertainty, the Pettingers remain focused on offering quality products and customer service.
“Alicia does a tremendous job. She’s always researching lots of companies and looking out for new Canadian companies,” Kyle remarked. “We’ve been doing it for a number of years where we’ve transitioned to a lot of Canadian companies. It’s kind of convenient that this hasn’t hit us quite as hard as where it might have 10 or 15 years ago when lots of our companies were American or were represented by American companies. We’re starting to deal a lot with some of the European ones.”
A final thank you to moms
As Mil-Jeanne Flowers prepares for another busy Mother’s Day, the Pettingers want to take a moment to thank all mothers for their love and dedication.
“A big thank you to all the moms out there,” Kyle says. “And of course, to my mom and to my wife Alicia, who has our two boys. She’s an incredible mom too. Have a happy Mother’s Day weekend. Hope it’s beautiful weather and everybody can enjoy it with somebody special.”