STORY OF MY LIFE

My name is Yuko Kawaji. I am the third generation of a family owned floral business. As soon as I started walking, my mom's flower shop became my play ground. I remember that I used to make small bouquets and displayed them in the store. When some customers picked my bouquets, I was the happiest girl in the world! As I got older, I had an opportunity to learn Ikenobo, which is the oldest Japanese arrangement technique and I found it very fascinating. One day, I was fascinated by a fashion show on TV that featured Christian Tortu decorating a run way with flowers. Then I thought "I wanna be like him!". In 2000, my journey as a floral designer in New York started.

STORY OF MY FAMILY BUSINESS

My family business, Matsuo inc. is located in Gifu City, Japan. My uncle runs a whole sale/retail shop. My mom has a retail shop where all it originally started by my grand parents. My Grandpa used to tell me the story that they used to get flowers from south by train around 60 years ago. I remember he used to tell me the story that he and his co-workers established our regional flower market. Now, two of my cousins mainly operates our business. The systems has changed a lot since the first generation, but the passion toward flowers has never changed.