OVER 25 YEARS PERFECTING THE BUNCH
We've seen floods, fires, regional labor strikes, and most recently logistical nightmares due to COVID-19, but are always up to whatever challenge comes our way. We remain fully dedicated to our valued partners, staff, and the environment to make sure that our impact is always positive as we work hard with you to bring smiles to people around the world and make the world a more beautiful place to live.
- OCTOBER 2006 -
Approximately 4,500 miles away from his California home, Craig Bushnell stopped to shake sand out of his shoes. His father, Steve, proudly held out his arms over his newly purchased 250 acres of Peruvian desert.
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“Years from now, Craig, when fields of flowers stretch as far as you can see, you’ll look back and remember this moment.”
“Yeah, okay Dad…” he said, squinting at the bright expanse of sand.
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Over a decade later, Steve’s vision has materialized as that sandy expanse is currently covered with over 25 unique varieties of Waxflower; Craig chuckles when explaining how they grow fresh-cut flowers in the world’s driest desert; he shakes his head when he recounts the once-in-a-century flood that washed away over 75% of our production but it also made way for the biggest, most carefully cultivated mass-planting in our company's history.
We've overcome a lot to get where we are today; no matter what our team is fully committed to our mission of maintaining our reputation as the industry’s preferred source of Waxflower during the California off season.
Our promise to you is to grow, bunch, and ship only the best quality flowers for the best price so together we can make the world a more beautiful place, one bunch of flowers at a time!
THE FLORACO FAMILY
STEVE BUSHNELL
Founder/President
Steve always saw himself being his own boss with his optimism and grand ideas. He got his degree in business finance from the University of Utah and did a short stint in law school. He and his best friend Lanny dropped out when the perfect opportunity called them southern California. With the $10,000 they scrounged up, they started a motorized pool cover business that boomed. Steve bought out Lanny and tripled the size of the business before selling the company and semi-retiring at 40.
With his wife Paula, Steve moved to Fallbrook, California to raise their brood of eight kids. Before long, Steve was itching to conquer a new challenge; he bought 80 acres north of town and started growing and selling fresh cut flowers. He saw a huge opportunity specializing in off-season growing and sold his California flower farm, only to move the whole operation to Peru! He appreciates a good steak sandwich, singing competition on YouTube, or even better, a nap. He and Lanny are still friends and Lanny is even a FloraCo investor.
CRAIG BUSHNELL
Vice President
Craig is the third-oldest of the Bushnell kids and his favorite ‘Dad, you’re embarrassing me!’ memory is Steve dropping him off freshman year in high school in their huge refrigerated box truck or weekends spent standing at intersections with his brother and sister selling lilies to passerby.
When Craig was on a two-year volunteer trip in Peru, it was no surprise that his dad had a BIG idea and needed his help. Together they found the 250 acres that would be the new home of FloraCo. Craig speaks Spanish fluently and has cumulatively spent almost four years in Peru over the last fourteen years; he gets a hankering for their ceviche and pisco sours often! He has logged over 50,000 miles on the road doing sales trips and cross-country moves for FloraCo, often accompanied by his wife Jamie. They spend sales trips rocking out to Maroon 5 or Jamie’s epic narration of whatever book they picked for the drive.
Hector is a gem who was found at a neighboring eucalyptus farm in the 1990’s during one of Steve’s visits to scope out the competition in southern California; he was offered a management position with Steve’s first floral endeavor and quickly became his right-hand man on the growing side of the business. When Steve moved production to Peru, Hector was first pick to be the farm manager.
After moving there with his son Jesus, Hector met and married his wife Maria and had two sons, Matthew and Jacob. Hector handles the growing and logistics but is also our very own McGyver with fixing anything and everything that breaks down in the sandy environment that our Waxflower loves but engines do not.
HECTOR RODRIGUEZ
Farm Manager