Valentine’s Day is a busy time for Rosa María Cisneros Andrade. As the owner of RMC Floral Designs, she’s preparing for lots of orders.
“Oh my gosh! I’m busy here with lots of red roses, white roses, plant, orchids, balloons, cards, chocolates,” she said.
Helping Cisneros Andrade handle the rush is a brick-and-mortar space in Cedar Hall in the U.S. Bank Center on Fifth Avenue. Before this year, she ran her whole business out of her home. Now, she’s operating a pop-up in the ground floor space through our Seattle Restored program.
“It’s not as stressful,” Cisneros Andrade explained. “I feel a different sensation in my life, I feel grateful.”
Seattle Restored, managed in partnership by Good Business Network of Washington, pairs small business owners with vacant commercial spaces for pop-up activations. This program is part of our work to open economic opportunities in the real estate continuum, from pop-ups to models for ownership. By providing access to commercial spaces, we’re helping entrepreneurs of all backgrounds access commercial spaces and try out their business model without taking on the complete financial risk that comes with starting a business.
Cisneros Andrade’s journey to her first store started in 2000 in Mexico City. She left her job to pursue her dream of starting a floral design business. At that point, Cisneros Andrade says she had never made a floral arrangement before, but she knew she wanted to do something creative.
She studied floral design professionally and her business continued to blossom. She makes arrangements for a wide range of events, blending modern floral design with sustainable practices. As a Latina floral artist, Cisneros Andrade uses flowers to inspire celebrate cultural identity and leave a lasting, emotional impact. She opened her business in Seattle in 2021 after moving from Mexico City, creating bouquets and arrangements in her home.
Cisneros Andrade was exploring networking and other opportunities for small businesses when she discovered Seattle Restored. She moved into the space in Cedar Hall last July, a move she says is helping grow her customer base.
“There are so many people walking around the building for the hotel, for the offices, or for Olympia Coffee,” she said, noting people pop in and she’s able to make them a bouquet in about 10 minutes.
The space is creating opportunities for Cisneros Andrade to grow her business in multiple ways. She says she’s learning more about owning a business, from marketing in real time to getting a better understanding of cash flow. It’s also helping her build a community. As a self-described “creative educator,” she offers monthly workshops so others can learn the art of floral design. For Cisneros Andrade, it’s about more than learning how to arrange flowers; she hopes to inspire connection and creativity with everyone.
“It’s teaching people that floral arrangements are not only putting flowers in a vase or with paper,” she said. “Imagine what people feel when they receive your floral arrangement. Flowers transmit emotions through the colors, the smells, the forms.”
Cisneros Andrade’s pop-up is scheduled through March 16. Now that she’s experienced running a business in a physical space, she knows having a brick-and-mortar shop is part of RMC Floral Designs’ future. As she explores where that space will be, she knows one thing is for sure – she’ll continue to share her love of floral design with the community.
“Transmitting my passion for flowers with people is amazing for me,” she said. “Seattle Restored is amazing. Every day I take a minute for gratitude for this opportunity to follow my dream.”
Since its launch in 2021, our Seattle Restored program transformed more than 100 vacant storefronts into pop-ups, boosting local business sales and foot traffic in neighborhood shopping districts. In 2025, we activated 72 pop-ups in Downtown and Lake City.
If you own a property and would like to find out more about how to partner with our Seattle Restored program to fill your vacant retail space, contact the program at info@seattlerestored.org.