A tale of two entrepreneurs

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/04/2018 (2972 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Today I want to tell the story of two remarkable business women.

One is Angelina (Angie) Loscerbo, founder of Osborne Florist and the other is Oriana Marinelli, its current owner and landlady of my constituency office.

Angie Loscerbo opened Osborne Florist on Oct. 2, 1972. She bought the former Percy’s Café and in 1982, added a greenhouse which is where my constituency office is now located. In 1999, Oriana started her first business, Baskets Galore and More, in this very same space.

When she started Osborne Florist, Angie and her husband Gaetano lived on Bartlet Avenue. Oriana and Angie like to point out that this business has deep roots in the South Osborne area, given that Oriana was born and raised there too. Dave Ormiston, whose “Ormiston Florist” also had roots in the area, was an early mentor for Angie.  

As a woman in a start-up business, Angie was unusual. She says that there were few women business owners unless it was a family enterprise. Oriana agrees. Angie also points out that the Italian community inspired her and helped her business thrive. She encourages women who are starting a business to learn as much as they can about their own community.

Angie was trained in accounting and Oriana was in banking but each of them came to the florist industry as something they really wanted to do in life. Angie is justifiably proud of her commitment to service and innovation and her many years of knowledge and experience in floral design, customer relations and all facets of marketing. Since Oriana took over Osborne Florist, Angie continues to help out and Oriana credits their strong relationship with giving her a competitive edge.

Last year, Angie did 30 weddings for brides whose own mothers were her customers when they got married!

Oriana and Angie are like family, with memories extending from Oriana’s childhood friendship with Angie’s daughter to their current close relationship. Oriana says that any business is hard and so is very grateful to “Mrs. L” and the South Osborne community. She gives back to the neighbourhood she loves by volunteering with the South Osborne BIZ. And as current owner of Osborne Florist, Oriana’s success is obvious as there are always rows and banks of floral arrangements waiting to go out the door for delivery! Bravo to both of you!