A young girl rides the bus downtown for music lessons with her older sister as a child. They get off the bus and walk down the street, passing Markowitz Florist. The girls pass by a boy, the son of the original owners. He hands each of them a flower.

That girl’s name was Virginia Cerio, and more than three decades later, she now owns that store. Her sister teases her, “Well then, am I going to get free flowers when I go by the store?”

Frankie Prijatel | Senior Staff Photographer

Cerio, a lifelong Syracuse resident, has been the owner and operator of Markowitz Florist for 30 of its 83 years in business. During that time, she’s seen history pass through her shop and through the city itself, almost as parallels.

Naturally, Valentine’s Day is the busiest time of the year for Markowitz Florist. Cerio estimated that she receives at least a couple hundred orders this time of year.

For obvious reasons, Markowitz’s most popular items for the season are red roses, but she also offers arrangements of flowers with typical Valentine’s Day colors: red, pink, white and purple. Bouquets come in all shapes and sizes.

With the craziness of the season, it’s not easy for Cerio as the only regular staff member at the shop. As owner and operator, she usually does everything from start to finish. From designing to delivering to bookkeeping, her duties are “extensive.” She often sources from friends and loyal customers for an extra hand designing and delivering bouquets for Valentine’s Day.

While things may get hectic without the trained and skilled help Cerio needs, business, like business in the city of Syracuse, has declined for Markowitz Florist. Cerio attributes some of the decline to the internet, noting that sales have gone down. Shopping at local businesses keeps money in the community, but the internet takes money out of the city and transports it somewhere else. Cerio used to receive up to 350 Valentine’s Day orders before the internet.

“It’s not like that anymore at all. The floral industry has changed,” she said.

It would seem as though Markowitz Florist could be a microcosm for the city as a whole.

“I’ve lived here all my life,” Cerio said, speaking slowly. “I have seen Syracuse when it was excellent, and now how it’s really gone way down in quality.”

Like Syracuse itself, Markowitz Florist wasn’t always facing economic downturn. When it was founded in 1934 by the Markowitz family, there were up to 70 employees working for the small shop. Deliveries were made via bicycle. Cerio said many people have told her that they used to work for Markowitz at one point in their lives. Business was improving, just like the Syracuse economy.

Years later, Cerio acquired the shop from her husband’s friend, who is also her daughter’s godfather. She had her own floral shop, but when the family friend decided to move into floral wholesale, he needed someone to take it. He gave Cerio first dibs on buying it, and she was in. She’s had it ever since, and has loved connecting with people. It’s her favorite part of the job.

“I’m so sorry that the internet has really destroyed our industry, but I love talking to the customer,” she said, “and hearing their different stories.”

Some of her customers have been with her since she’s been there, and they sometimes end up becoming friends. These are some of the people she calls on when things get busy for Valentine’s Day and on other holidays.

There’s one customer who always pays her bill in person.

Cerio gives her a flower each time she comes in, just as the Markowitz son did for her when she used to walk by the shop.

Published on February 13, 2017 at 9:36 pm

Contact: cmrussel@syr.edu | @caseymrussell