Page 38 - BusinessWest June 13, 2022

Women in Business
Growing Desire
TBy George O’Brien
ina D’Agostino says she’s always been entrepreneurial, and has long had a desire to start a venture of her own. Until very recently, though, the timing just wasn’t right.
By that she meant that she was either busy raising children and working part time, a period much earlier in her career, or working full time, as in very full time, promoting and staging events for CityStage with Springfield Performing Arts Development Corp., until 2018.
“I think that fire, and that interest, was always there,” she said. “But life did not allow me to test those waters and jump in.”
And when it did allow her to jump in and eventually launch Blooms Flower Truck and Studio, the timing could hardly be consid- ered ideal. Indeed, she opened the doors to the truck in the middle of the pandemic, when operating any business was a stern challenge.
In some important ways, however, the pandemic inspired this entrepreneurial gambit, she said, adding that, for her (and many oth- ers) that challenging, unprecedented period brought with it time, and reason, for introspection and a focus on what’s important.
And for her, this meant finding work that ... well, isn’t really work. Flowers are more of a passion, she said, and working for herself brings rewards on many different levels.
“COVID forced a lot of people to focus on what motivates them and interests them and makes them happy,” she told BusinessWest.
Tina D’Agostino
Plants Some Business
Roots with Blooms
For many, the pandemic was a time for introspection, for thinking about what’s important in life, for finding what makes one happy. It was that way for Tina D’Agostino, who, after landing in the corporate world following two decades of work at CityStage, decided she wanted to “pursue a career I could love again.” That pursuit led to Blooms Flower Truck and Studio, a business that brings a passion for flowers and some entrepreneurial fire together in the same mobile venture.
38 JUNE 13, 2022 WOMEN IN BUSINESS BusinessWest