Ever So Special

Some florists are built around the bouquet; this Sparkhill shop is built around the whole errand. Flowers, the chocolates that go with them, the balloons, the hamper and the card all come off one counter, and it has been done from the same address since 2011.

What to come here for

The bread and butter is everyday gifting done properly: birthdays, anniversaries, a new baby, an exam passed, a get-well, an apology that has to arrive today. The staff are used to being asked to assemble the whole gift rather than just the stems.

What sets the shop apart in Birmingham is a properly stocked Islamic range, which most florists simply do not carry. Hajj and Umrah gifts, Ramadan hampers, prayer mats and the Al Shifa get-well hampers sit alongside the flowers, so a send-off before a pilgrimage is an ordinary order here rather than an awkward request. Weddings follow the same logic: besides bridal work and buttonholes the shop makes garlands, flower jewellery and floral hand bracelets — the vocabulary of South Asian and Muslim ceremonies.

Schools, businesses and event organisers are among the regulars, and the shop lists BBC Studios and the NEC spring flower fair among its credits. Funeral tributes are made to order across the full range, and the shop states it can turn that work around the same day.

Delivery and urgency

Same-day delivery runs on orders placed by 2pm, six days a week — there is no Sunday run, so a Sunday emergency becomes a Monday one. The shop drives its own routes across the south and east of the city, taking in Moseley, Kings Heath, Hall Green, Sparkbrook, Alum Rock, Edgbaston and out towards Solihull and Walsall; anything further afield is passed to a relay service rather than made here.

Two details are worth knowing. Click and collect works on three hours’ notice, often faster than waiting for a delivery slot. And orders can be placed over WhatsApp with a photograph of the finished bouquet sent before it leaves the shop — the most useful thing when you are ordering from another city. The shop also warns that some hospitals no longer accept fresh flowers on the wards, so check before sending.

Highlights

• An Islamic gift range, not a token shelf. Hajj and Umrah gifts, Ramadan hampers, prayer mats — a genuine gap among the city’s florists.
• A photograph before dispatch. Order over WhatsApp and you approve the actual bouquet, not a catalogue picture.
• Collection in three hours. The quiet shortcut when the delivery slots have gone.
• Garlands and flower jewellery. Asian wedding work made in-house rather than subcontracted.
• A named award. The shop cites a Three Best Rated listing among Birmingham’s top three florists.

Where the flowers come from

The shop names no market, auction or grower and says only that stock is refreshed constantly; if provenance matters to you, ask at the counter.

The shop, the service and what else they do

A conventional high-street shop with a counter and a window: you can walk in, see what is in the buckets and have a bouquet made while you wait. That matters more than usual here, because a good half of what is sold is not flowers at all — chocolate and Ferrero bouquets, cakes, fruit baskets, balloons, teddies, perfumes, candles and vases. One stop instead of three is the whole point of the place.

When to come and how to get there

The shop sits on the main corridor running south-east out of the city centre through Sparkhill, a short walk from Sparkhill Park and served by the buses along it; Moseley, Sparkbrook and Hall Green are minutes away.

Plan around the peaks. Valentine’s Day, Mothering Sunday and Christmas are the national ones, but Ramadan and the two Eids drive a second calendar here that most Birmingham florists do not track. On those dates the same-day promise is the first thing to give way. One note for anyone ordering out of habit: 8 March is an ordinary working day in Britain, while the British Mother’s Day moves each year and is the busiest day in the trade.

Questions and answers

Will they deliver today?

Yes, if the order is in by 2pm and the address is on the local route, Monday to Saturday. There is no Sunday delivery.

Can I collect it myself?

Yes — click and collect works on three hours’ notice, and in a rush that is usually the quickest route.

Can I see the bouquet before it goes?

Ask for it. Orders taken over WhatsApp get a photograph before dispatch, which is the practical check when ordering from a distance.

Do they do Ramadan and Hajj gifts?

Yes — hampers, prayer mats and framed pieces are a standing range here, not something brought in on request.

Do they make funeral tributes at short notice?

The shop says it can produce funeral work the same day. Timings are tight in that situation, so ring rather than fill in a form.

How do I know the flowers are fresh?

We repeat no freshness guarantees on anyone’s behalf. The shop is a walk-in with an open counter, so the honest check is the traditional one: look at the buckets before you buy.

Opening hours