Batrisyia Sahbrudin always dreamed of running her own flower shop; it was a dream that was filled with blooms of every variety and colour, a dream built upon the desire to not only bring beauty, but also peace and happiness.
With a passion for art and a talent for handicrafts, she was dead set on making this dream a reality by setting up Herflowerjourney, however unlike the flower shops she aspired towards, her blooms are not grown from seed, they are crafted from felting cotton.
Herflowerjourney was established in January 2021, specialising in making hand-felt flowers, with each flower being unique and containing its own story as a majority of Batrisyia’s designs are commissioned.
From roses to sunflowers and daisies to lilies, Herflowerjourney has an array of life-like blooms that are suitable for anyone and for any occasion; whether as a mere table decoration or a wedding bouquet.
“The idea (to start Herflowerjourney) came when I got inspired by an international florist who had her own flower shop. I dreamed of having that too because I love flowers so much,” the 22-year-old explained.
She then came across flowers that were made out of felt from scrolling through the internet which immediately intrigued her, as it hearkened back to her childhood days of creating felt crafts.
With these inspirations in the play, Herflowerjourney manifested through the marriage of Batrisyia’s love of flowers and her passion for arts and crafts, creating what she believed was a unique business concept, especially for the Bruneian market.
Receiving more than 50 commissions on average in a week, the response towards Herflowerjourney has been overwhelmingly positive with one of her more popular commissions being wedding bouquets for newlyweds for their wedding day and photoshoots.
“My customers have said that its best to have these kinds of flowers so that they could keep it forever as a great memory to remember their special day,” she continued, adding that: “Our felt flowers are more than just artificial flowers, they tell a story”.
“With the majority of my work being commissioned or on request, there is usually a beautiful and personalised reason behind the flowers that my customers choose, along with the colours,” added Batrisyia.
The price ranges between $7 to $16 for each flower depending on the flower type and its complexity. The bouquets would cost a bit more however customers will always have a choice to tailor their commissions to their own budgets.
With Herflowerjourney almost reaching its two-year milestone, Batrisyia how fulfilling running her business has been, for being able to bring happiness to her customers and instilling a sense of magic and wonder in them, by crafting a piece of life-like nature into their lives that would never wilt or die.
“However, the most personal reason for this business journey is for my therapy, it makes me happy doing handmade flowers because I get to create something that helps my mental health,” she added.
Despite the positive trajectory that Herflowerjourney has gone through, it is not without obstacles, especially for a one-person business with Batrisyia noting how time-consuming each commission can take.
Making felt flowers takes up lots of patience, according to the entrepreneur, which may in turn limit the number of commissions she can take at any given moment to prevent any disappointment from her customers.
With Herflowerjourney’s second anniversary just on the horizon, Batrisyia has already set plans on expanding her product offerings, looking to not only include the iconic golden flower from the animated movie Tangled but also set packages that include her felt flowers for different occasions.
“I would also like to collaborate with more local or even international businesses if I have the opportunity. I hope I can grow slowly but steadily and get inspired by all (these other entrepreneurs),” said the youthpreneur.
Batrisyia is also planning to create her own website for her floral felt creations where customers can easily customise their order from the colour of the flower to the wrapping that comes with it.
“I’m very grateful for this opportunity about my flower journey business. I couldn’t have done it without the help of my mom. She was the one who helped me buy my first materials for doing my felt flowers,” said added.
Ultimately for Batrisyia, she expressed hopes that Herflowerjourney would continue growing and stand the test of time, just like the felt flowers that she creates.
Support Batrisyia and help her business bloom further by visiting her Instagram @herflowerjourney and order some felt flowers to brighten up the day.
THE BRUNEIAN | BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
