SLO flower shop moves to new downtown spot — and it’s triple the size of its last location

Kaytlyn Leslie
·2 min read

Open Air Flowers has moved to a new, larger spot in downtown San Luis Obispo — and its owner said she is excited for the chance to stretch the longstanding business’ legs.

“To make this big move, it feels a little bit surreal,” owner Lisa-Marie Dietz told The Tribune on Friday.

The flower shop, which previously occupied a small 265-square-foot spot on Osos Street, moved to the corner space at Osos and Monterey streets at the start of November. On Saturday, it celebrated its grand opening.

The business replaced Brown Butter Cookie Company, which moved to a new location on Higuera Street in May.

The new flower shop is about 750 square feet — roughly three times the size of its former location. Dietz said that’s been a marked improvement over the old spot where a lot of the business had to be conducted on the sidewalk to make up for the lack of available inside space.

Open Air Flowers has moved to a new location in downtown San Luis Obispo, at 1003 Osos St.
Open Air Flowers has moved to a new location in downtown San Luis Obispo, at 1003 Osos St.

“We were so used to the space, and now we all of a sudden moved to this big space,” she said. “And it’s like, how did we ever make it in that small space?”

That isn’t the only recent change for the 28-year-old business: Dietz bought the flower shop just last year from former owners Leslie and Vance Weber when they retired.

The Webers opened Open Air Flowers in 1982 in Laguna Village, then opened the second location downtown in 1995. The Laguna Village spot changed hands and names in 2007, according to previous Tribune reporting, becoming April Flowers.

Dietz had been a longtime employee at the downtown shop when the Webers approached her about taking it over, she said.

“It’s like Open Air Flowers 2.0,” she joked, noting that most of the current core of employees have worked for the business since before it switched hands. “In my mind it has changed a little bit, but nothing crazy.”

The shop still offers a selection of flowers and greenery, as well as a range of pre-made bouquets, according to Dietz. It also takes online and phone orders.

Open Air Flowers has moved to a new location in downtown San Luis Obispo, at 1003 Osos St. The shop sells potted plants, greenery, flowers by the stem and pre-made bouquets and arrangements.
Open Air Flowers has moved to a new location in downtown San Luis Obispo, at 1003 Osos St. The shop sells potted plants, greenery, flowers by the stem and pre-made bouquets and arrangements.

Beyond being larger, the new space also offers more visibility for the flower shop, which now dominates a major downtown corner.

That fact hasn’t escaped Dietz.

“We’re super excited to be even more part of downtown than we have been for the past 15, 20 years,” she said.

Open Air Flowers is open at 1003 Osos St., Monday through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.