An early bloomer: Flower shop under new ownership
Baraboo — Missi Selden got what she wanted five years earlier than expected.
That’s a good thing, right? Well, mostly.
Selden is an entrepreneur who had dreamed for years of owning a flower shop. But she’s also a mother who wasn’t planning to launch a shop until her two children entered school. So when she got the chance to buy Wild Apples, a popular Baraboo floral and gift shop, she faced a dilemma.
The timing wasn’t perfect, but what was Selden going to do, turn down an ideal opportunity?
“This is what I would have wanted to create,” Selden said of Wild Apples, a shop renowned for former owner Jennifer Fox’s unique arrangements and classic sense of style. “Christmas came early.”
Selden worked with Fox for about six months, then bought the shop Jan. 7. Fox said she is retired, spending her days visiting family and taking walks with her 12-year-old Australian cattle dog Grover. She put the business up for sale in February. “I’m essentially going to take a year off,” Fox said. “I think it’s important to do something really, really well and leave it while it’s really good.”
Wild Apples reopened under Selden’s ownership Jan. 21. She expanded the store’s hours and its delivery area to cover surrounding communities such as Portage, Reedsburg, Lake Delton and Sauk Prairie. Selden hired a driver so Wild Apples could serve the out-of-town customers Fox once turned away.
Selden’s passion is flowers, and she plans to develop that component of the shop. She strives to stock more affordable gifts, and plans to sell more fair-trade and all-natural products.
