MY LIGHT BULB MOMENT

Celebrity florist Vic Brotherson

Vic BROTHERSON is the owner of the florist Scarlet & Violet. Loyal clients include nigella Lawson, Sophie Dahl and kate Moss. Vic lives in London with her husband, Simon, and daughter, Betsy Scarle, 19. I HAD a conversation with Mum not long ago and she said something about me being ambitious. I looked at her as if she was mad. I never think of myself as a businesswoman. I’m just a florist.

I studied fine art at university, but didn’t have the confidence to be a painter. I had to find a job and Mum was working in Notting Hill at the time and told me a flower shop was opening around the corner.

I’d had no training, so it was a case of making it up as I went along. I hadn’t enjoyed university. I studied at Oxford and was surrounded by people I didn’t understand, so finding a group of girls who worked hard but had a laugh was wonderful.

I met my husband and we moved to Edinburgh on a whim, but I missed my friends and sisters and couldn’t find a job as a florist. So we returned to London and our daughter, Betsy, arrived. I decided to launch my own florists, figuring that if I worked for myself I’d have more time to spend with my daughter.

It was my lightbulb moment — but it backfired! I thought I’d work four days a week, but I was completely snowed under. It was the right decision, but my day still starts with a trip to the flower market at 4.30 am.

We’ve done loads of exciting dos, including Kate Moss’s wedding. We didn’t know it was Kate’s for quite a long time; they kept it secret.

With hindsight I’m glad, otherwise it would have been nerve-racking. I’ll never forget seeing the gorgeous bridesmaids walk down the meadow walkway outside the church with my flowers.