Lakeview's Neighborhood Flower Shop Closes After 40 Years

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In 1972, newlyweds Rose Mary Vaccaro Ferrantelli and Biagio Ferrantelli honeymooned in Milan. Here, the couple is pictured outside the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele where Prada, Louis Vuitton and McDonalds now do business. In 1973, the year after they escaped as newlyweds, the couple settled in Edgewater in Chicago to open a small floral shop. Called the Lakeview Flower Shop, the arrangements of lilies, roses and daisies stunned customers. And when new brides caught wind of the magic the couple could create, the business grew and they relocated to Lakeview.

The Ferrantellis have been swimming in fragrant flowers and potted plants for close to forty years, but now, after Mr. Ferrantelli's recent bout with stomach cancer, the couple has decided it's time to close the shop. Years of memories are coming to an end. The remaining inventory is on sale and when it's gone, the couple will move to Gurnee and rest on their plot of land, starting the next phase of their lives together.
· Lakeview Flower Shop [Yelp]
· Lakeview Florists Hang Up Their Shears After 30 Years in Business [DNA Info]