“Meet Emma: Founder of Lily and Bee Florist – Expert Florist with 36+ Years of Experience and a Passion for Floral Design and Teaching”

Hello and welcome to Lily and Bee!

My name is Emma and I'm the face behind Lily & Bee

So here I am! What do you need to know about me?

Well, I’ve been a florist since I was 15, I came as a Saturday girl and 35 years later I'm still here! (I'll let you do the math!). I am qualified to level 4 in City and Guilds and have 35 years industry experience.

I love all aspects of floristry, but weddings and events are my true passion. Nothing beats that feeling of seeing a bride’s face, that moment she sees her bouquet for the first time, (even though I still feel sick every time I knock the door with the bridal flowers!).

I am a qualified floristry lecturer and assessor with over 9 years of teaching experience.

I am passionate about British flowers and try to use locally sourced British flowers as much as possible. My style is a very relaxed country vibe and I love to use seasonal colour pallets.

Here at Lily and Bee we are trying to be as plastic free as possible, so no cellophane here! In the spring of 2021, I planted a small flower patch that I cut from, I already have plans to expand it in 2023. I dream of a large field of British flowers to tend to in the not too distant future!

Lily and Bee is named after my grandmother, Beatrice and her twin Lilian. Lily and Bee is a studio-based florist in the village of Southwick just outside Portsmouth. We also have a pop-up flower cart at Southwick village store and tearooms that is stocked with seasonal floral arrangements each weekend.

I would spend my whole life outside if I could! There is something magical about watching the seasons come and go and the joy of planting a tiny seed and watching it grow and blossom into a beautiful flower.

I’ve worn many floristry hats in my 32 years. Saturday girl, Senior florist, Manager, Freelancer, Business owner, Employer, Teacher & Grower. But as long as I have flowers in my hands, I'm happy!