Johannah Brumm’s lifelong obsession with creating beauty is propelling her business through new life cycles and unexpectedly opening doors for budding friendships. Though coming up on her 10-year anniversary as a business owner, florist, event planner, event decorator, and creative class instructor, it’s taken time to shape a business that she’s truly passionate about. 

Initially located at 325 Blount Street in the warehouse district of Downtown Fayetteville, the Downtown Market worked with local farmers and artisans to stock local products including eggs, milk, meats, veggies, candles, soaps and gifts in addition to providing florist services, event planning, event decor and creative workshops.

Brumm said the storefront side of the business did well during the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, they offered delivery and saw an increase in sales as community members' interest in locally sourced products grew. 

But the storefront was never Brumm’s favorite part of the business venture. She says a friend and fellow business owner shared the illustration of a tree growing wild and tangled branches that needed a trim to keep it healthy. Businesses, he said, need a similar pruning every 5-10 years. 

“I was like, ‘Oh my god, you’re right. I’m going to do that.’ and he was like, ‘Do it!’” Brumm shared.

Ever intent on keeping the sparkle in her business venture, she set about selling her remaining inventory in the storefront and transitioning to a new space located at 3005 Sigman St. 

The new space has been a canvas for Brumm’s brimming creativity. 

“The new space is really huge,” she shared, adding that she’d describe it as a “studio.” It doesn’t include a storefront —one of her favorite changes—but does accommodate events. She already has 3 events booked through August. 

She’s spruced the space up with her signature vintage style and dollops of her favorite colors: black, gray and glitter. An 80-foot glitter wall is the perfect backdrop for photos, and a glitter epoxy floor complements the sparkling chandeliers hanging from a black ceiling. 

Brumm’s current class offerings are varied, and she loves creating spaces for people to experience whatever they want: “If you want to make candles that day, you can make candles and then one of your friends can make a flower arrangement or whatever!”

An unexpected result of hosting classes within the community has been seeing friendships form among class attendees. 

“The part that I like about my workshops is that I have so many clients now that have made friends in the workshop, and now they all do them together. So it's just like a cute little group of people,” Brumm explained. 

By far, Brumm says that planning themed parties, baby showers particularly, are some of her favorite events. She loves pulling together props and balloon garlands to create an immersive and aesthetically appealing experience for guests. 

“That’s the kind of stuff that makes me happy,” she shared. 

Whether teaching the community to make disco balls, arranging fresh flowers, or waking up in the wee hours of the morning to tackle events as both decorator and planner, Brumm’s “structured chaos” has one common theme: creating beauty where there was none before. Learn more about Brumm’s creative offerings at ncmilkman.com