Local Business Hall of Famer Carol Riggs talks about Sturtz and Copeland's past and her future

Although she grew up in Littleton, Colorado, when Carol Riggs came north to attend CU Boulder, she found a home in East Boulder County. In the years after graduation she worked at, then purchased and grew Sturtz and Copeland Florist to where it was consistently named Boulder's best florist by The Boulder Weekly.

Riggs integrated into the business community in Boulder, and settled in Niwot to raise a family. As a testament to her achievement, she was inducted into the Boulder County Business Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2020, though her induction ceremony was delayed a year due to the pandemic.

"I've always appreciated being part of the Boulder community," said Riggs. "When I first started, there weren't that many women doing this. I was always welcomed to the Rotary (and) to community organizations. I felt that the Boulder community gave me a good life as far as making enough money to raise my kids. And I never felt like I could do enough to pay it all back."

Riggs recalled her earliest days owning Sturtz and Copeland. She purchased it in 1976 during a time when the United States was celebrating its bicentennial, the area's granola culture was strong and the television show "Mork and Mindy" was still two years from its debut. She said, "The business was over by Boulder High at that point, and it was mainly a florist shop, though we had a lot of green plants which had really taken off by then."

Over the years, Sturtz and Copeland experienced a great deal of change. The city required the business to move in the early 1980s. She said that while it was hard on her, there was a silver lining as moving to the new location on Valmont Road allowed her to add the garden center which had a big impact on the business.

Riggs estimates the business is bringing in five or six times the revenue it did in the 70's and added a variety of business lines through the years. And it's hard to talk about the shop without mentioning its well-known mascot, the parrot that was a Mother's Day gift to Riggs. "His name was Lindy, Lucky Lindy, for flying. He was always at the shop, part of the shop," she said.

But with as much change as her business has already seen, it has recently experienced one of the most dramatic: Riggs is no longer the owner. Last March she sold the florist business to one of her designers, Sarah Schmitz, who worked for the business just as Riggs had when she started. The land on which the business was sited wasn't part of the sale, so Schmitz moved the location across town to 35th and Arapahoe.

The sale of the business didn't include Sturtz and Copeland's beautiful greenhouses either. Those were donated to the MASA Seed Foundation. "They meant a lot to me," Riggs said. "I wanted them to have a new life. A good life. I was happy that they wanted them,"

Although she is no longer the owner of Sturtz and Copeland, Riggs is moving on to a new business venture: real estate. Along with her daughter and son-in-law who are also Niwot residents, Riggs and her partners are building condominiums on the land upon which Sturtz and Copland was located. Once the structures are built, the group plans to manage them.

This time of transition offers Riggs a chance to consider all she has experienced. "When I look back at my life, I can see that the business gives me community. I always felt that I had a business that made people happy. They liked coming in, shopping there."

Riggs added,"I"ve loved all my years there and love the way the community treated me. I don't know how I could pay it all back. It was a good thing."