Today we’d like to introduce you to Allison McGeary.
Hi Allison, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My path to floral and event design has been a winding road — from changing majors from economics to architecture in undergrad, to a master’s in architecture, to a handmade home goods business, and finally into events and flowers. Each unexpected turn shaped how I design today.
In college I began my freshman year intent on earning my degree in economics. Having loved an architectural design class in high school, I decided to take a Roman Art and Architecture class. That class changed everything. It fed my love of architectural design and art history, and I was hooked. I signed up for a design studio and went on to complete my degree in architecture, followed by a Master’s in Architecture.
At the end of grad school, I found myself wondering if I actually wanted to practice architecture professionally. The honest answer was no. Fortunately, the program honed skills that would transfer to a variety of design pursuits. I learned the value of rigor of process, the power of self-editing and the necessity of understanding what currently exists in order to test what could be. The studio environment — the critiques, the constant push out of my comfort zone — made me resilient, built my confidence, and helped me find my design voice.
After graduation, my husband and I moved from New York to Los Angeles. I explored set design, architecture, and product design. Eventually I started a small nursery decor business, making handmade frames — some hand-painted with milk paint, some covered in designer fabric, later incorporating vintage nursery rhyme pages from old books I sourced on eBay and at flea markets. I secured orders with independent boutiques from San Diego to Seattle. It was a tough business to run solo — fabricating, marketing, selling, delivering all myself — but I loved meeting and talking with the boutique owners, learning so many new skills and working for myself.
When we moved back to Pittsburgh, I was ready for a change, and had always been drawn to event design. I started my own event planning business. I loved the fast pace of events, the clients I met and the variety of event styles and designs I was able to work on.
At trade shows, I’d put together flower arrangements for my table to make it feel more welcoming — and it wasn’t long before potential clients started asking who’d done the flowers, and whether I would do theirs too, in addition to the planning. It genuinely took me by surprise, but I was thrilled at the response to this new-found outlet for design. I eventually decided to transition exclusively to floral and event design.
At the time, event design wasn’t broadly understood in the Pittsburgh market — the idea of a florist also designing room layout, linens, tabletop elements, lighting, and prop design was foreign to clients and planners. Today it’s much more mainstream, and clients and planners alike understand and appreciate our ability to design florals as an integrated component of a larger, more comprehensive event vision. Everything I’ve learned along the way — conceptual design, marketing, sales, production, fabrication, architectural design — is used daily in the studio. I’ve been involved in events since 2004 and 20+ years later, I still look forward to going to work!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No — and I wouldn’t want it to be. I firmly believe the toughest challenges teach us the lessons that help us grow and improve.
In the early days, there were planners and other vendors who were hesitant to work with a new designer. I had to earn that trust from scratch. Then came the practical lessons: figuring out what to prep ahead of time versus what has to happen on-site, working within real time constraints, and learning time management the hard way — sometimes by spending all-nighters working against deadlines. Client criticism really stung at first, but it pushed me to become a better listener and communicator, which serves every part of the business.
COVID brought its own reset — learning to specialize in areas of floristry we hadn’t worked in before, and figuring out how to manage staffing and schedules around requirements that previously hadn’t existed. Since COVID, the landscape of the floral industry has changed significantly too, with product cost increases, farms closing which creates new availability and sourcing issues, and shifts in the workforce.
As an event designer, though, you learn to constantly be ready to pivot. It’s the nature of event work. With so many moving parts in each event, it’s inevitable that something will come up requiring last-minute changes. Staying calm and meeting those challenges with the confidence of experience and expertise is one of the hardest things to learn, and part of what makes the work so exciting.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Allison McGeary Florist, Inc.?
The studio specializes in custom floral and event design for weddings, private celebrations, corporate events, and fundraising galas. Our clients have a strong appreciation for gorgeous flowers and high-level design. They want more than flowers in a vase — they want an environment that tells a story and feels considered down to the last detail. From the first consultation through the final walk-through, we design each event to feel entirely its own.
My designers and I treat every event as genuine creative expression, not just an arrangement of flowers — and clients feel that intention the moment they walk into a space we’ve created. We’ve built our reputation on artistry and reliability: being the team that can design and execute a creative vision flawlessly under real-world pressure. Nothing makes us happier than a beautiful event and a genuinely happy client.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
Reading blogs, books, articles, and everything I could find on event and floral design was my strategy for teaching myself the basics when I first started the business — and I still do this as a form of continuing education and inspiration. Learning from others in the industry is one of the best things you can do.
Not everyone knows this, but the sport of rowing is a huge part of my life. I row on a competitive masters team, and the lessons learned in training and competition carry into every part of my life: teamwork, setting and resetting expectations of what’s possible, using competition as a means of growth and skill-building, stress relief — I can’t say enough good things about it. I’ve even built a small rowing library over the years. One of my favorites is Better Great Than Never: Believing It’s Possible Is Where Champions Begin by Lindsay Dare Shoop, the story of coming into a sport later than most and excelling to the highest levels — including an Olympic gold medal. Her honest accounts of testing herself to go beyond and the setbacks along the way are captivating. She maintains a remarkably determined and steadfast pursuit of her goals despite the struggles and frustrations. It’s an inspiring reminder that we can achieve things most people would say could never happen, if we simply remove our self-imposed limits and embrace the journey.
A couple years ago, I decided to learn beginner French. I started with lessons on the free version of the Duolingo app, and discovered the Duolingo French Podcast on Spotify along the way. Two of my favorite episodes are “Le Surfeur sans limites” (“The Surfer Without Limits”) and “Le Vigneron Rebelle” (“The Rebel Winemaker”). The first tells the story of a surfer who lost half his leg in a shark attack off the coast of Réunion, but turned his rehabilitation journey into a nonprofit that gets other amputees onto surfboards, and later partnered with another surfer to design a better prosthesis built specifically for surfing, skiing, and snowboarding. The second follows a winemaker fiercely committed to honoring the winemaking traditions passed down by his grandparents — from tilling the land with horses to following biodynamic production methods — defying the modernization of his industry at the expense of the wine, in favor of what he believes is the true essence of good winemaking.
These books and stories are favorites because they speak to a resilient, determined spirit. I admire and relate to them. My path isn’t always the direct one, but there is real joy in defying what I think is impossible and proving it possible. This enthusiasm pushes the studio to be better and to provide better work for our clients. It shows in our work and I’m very proud of that.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.allisonmcgeary.com
- Instagram: allison_mcgeary_florist
