Guests, friends and the able people behind 1st Flower Avenue pose right after the blessing rites of the new store located at B. Inting St. Ext.

1st Flower Avenue, Tagbilaran City’s foremost flower and plants authority, is blooming in its new location and going bolder and better than ever.
The flower shop announced its new location at Doc Camz Bldg. along B. Inting St. Ext., Tagbilaran City following blessing rites on July 28, 2022.
According to Dr. Veronica Modequillo – Chatto, one of the flower shop’s owners and stylists/artists, the flower shop offers flower arrangements and designs for all occasions. It has well trained florists and stylists specializing in all events like weddings, birthdays, inaugurations, etc.

Some of the products being offered at the 1st Flower Avenue

Wide varieties of flowers are available to cater to the customer’s preferences, she said.
Dr. Chatto further revealed that their materials are sourced from Holland and others are planted in Baguio City.
Moreover, the flower shop offers tulips, lilies, carnations, roses, snapdragons, alstroemerias, hydrangeas, orchids, gerberas mums and other imported flowers.
The 1st Flower Avenue Flower Shop is managed by Patricia Ysabelle Chatto, Dr. Chatto’s daughter with the assistance of Bohol store supervisor Nisa Dairo.
During the launching of the flower shop in its new location, 1st District Cong. Edgar Chatto with Balilihan mayor Pureza Veloso-Chatto and Vice

Dr. Veronica Chatto (left) is shown in the photo with Fr. Lito Geangan (center) and Balilihan mayor Pureza Veloso-Chatto (right) during the blessing rites of the new shop of 1st Flower Avenue.

Mayor Trisha Chatto graced the event.
HOW IT ALL STARTED
1st Flower Avenue is solely owned by spouses Efren Chatto (former Balilihan vice mayor) and Dr. Veronica Chatto. The couple also owns flower shops in other parts of the country under the banner of King Louis Flowers and Plants Inc. The couple is a major supplier of flower and plant materials in the Philippines where they provide stocks to other flower shops on both wholesale and retail bases in their outlets.
The Bohol Tribune managed to have a one-on-one interview with Efren Chatto, the elder brother of Cong. Edgar Chatto, who can be considered as among the top producers of flowers and plants in the country today.
Efren told The Bohol Tribune that long before he became vice mayor of Balilihan, he was already into the agribusiness industry. His foray is indeed in the agribusiness focusing mainly on flowers and plants.

This is the interior portion of 1st Flower Avenue being blessed by Fr. Lito Geangan as Efren Chatto, Dr. Veronica Chatto and Balilihan mayor Pureza Veloso-Chatto witness.

He said that it all started in 1982, when he was still working with Manilabank. The bank, he said, ventured in the agribusiness projects, at a time when he was one among the officers of the bank who was asked to organize the agribusiness venture focusing on the Baguio operations.
Efren said tnat he liked being into farming as he found it to be quite challenging. One could say that he is among the original “plantito” before the term even became a fad.
In 1992, his superior at Manilabank died; he then decided to continue the agribusiness with his late boss’ adult child. He decided to pursue a venture into agribusiness even though at that time the industry was still in its infancy.

Efren related that most of the planting materials his business uses in its farms, come from abroad mainly from the Netherlands or Holland. There are some materials coming from the United States, but most of these are from Holland.
He then uses the materials and plant them in a farms located in Baguio and Bukidnon where the climate is cold and conducive to growing several varieties of flowers and plants.
He mentioned that he and his wife, Veronica, who is a dentist, ventured into the flower shop business after acquiring an existing flower shop in Baguio.
At first, both of them didn’t have any clue on flower arrangement and styling. Eventually, Veronica took the cudgels and took formal studies and techniques in the USA and Europe and has become the venture’s chief stylist and artist.

Dr. Veronica Modequillo-Chatto answers questions during a live radio interview via the mobile phone conducted by the DYTR & BOHOL TRIBUNE’s anchorpersons – the sister tandem of Ardy Araneta-Batoy and Gloria Leodivica-Araneta of “SMILE”, Philippines. This took place over Open Forum on July 28, 2022.

All of their flower shops have seasoned flower arrangers who are able provide the desired designs to clients, Efren quipped.
Efren added that his company is supplying flowers and plants to other flower shops including the location popularly known as the Dangwa Flower Market, which is the Mecca of flowers located at the heart of Manila in specifically in the Sampaloc district.
He related that at the height of the pandemic, when the flower shops closed, they weren’t able to sell many flowers, but as the economy reopens, the flower shops are now getting stocks from them.
It is true that during the pandemic, the market was limited to funerals driving the demand as wedding events were sparse and so were the demands for flowers. Yet, Efren is now bullish with the change in the economic landscape. The couple is trying to cater to the increasing demand

for flowers as there are now more events like weddings, birthdays, etc.
While it is true again that the demand for flowers for any occasion hasn’t returned to the pre-pandemic levels, yet the business is coping with the changing times as, now, flower shops are using online platforms to sell and order flowers, Efren told The Bohol Tribune.
He said that 1st Flower Avenue here will be venturing on the online fad soon but his flower shops in other places are already providing online services.
FAME IN THE WORLD FLOWER COUNCIL Efren is currently the chairman of the World Flower Council (WFC). This council is an organization of flower shop owners and florists from all parts of the globe where they can exchange ideas, designs and meet other like-minded individuals. Efren serves as the top official of the WFC in the entire world.

WORLD’S TOP PLANTITO. Efren Chatto is the current chairman of the World Flower Council, an international organization of flower shop owners and florists

He used to be the founding president of the WFC Philippine chapter with his wife, Veronica, also enjoying the opportunity to occupy the said position some time as the president of the WFC Philippine chapter.
FOR THE LOVE OF FLOWERS
Efren shares a piece of advice to those who want to get into the flower agribusiness: they should commit to the business totally. If a person would venture into agribusiness with partial focus, the venture is bound to fail.
He said that in agribusiness, there are plenty of challenges like pest management, cost and even marketing of products.
Expect to work hard in agribusiness in order to succeed and only those who have the passion will reap the benefits of this industry, he mentioned in the interview.

Guests, friends and the able people behind 1st Flower Avenue pose right after the blessing rites of the new store located at B. Inting St. Ext.

IN A BLOOM HUDDLE. Balilihan mayor Pureza Veloso-Chatto (left, standing) and Cong. Edgar Chatto (right. seated) engage in a “flower” conversation with The Bohol Tribune’s Associate Editor Dave Albarado (center, standing) at the sidelines of the launch of 1st Flower Avenue’s new location along B. Inting St. Ext.