New Business Blooms: Roots Flower Co. Opens in Cloudcroft
Get to know Cloudcroft's fresh floral boutique owner Shanna Waitt with the Reader

“I feel like we've come full circle—I always wished somebody would put a flower shop up here. I would never have thought that I would have moved home and would have been the one doing it.”
Shanna Waitt and her family recently returned to Cloudcroft and are now opening a new floral shop, Roots Flower Co., located at 62 Curlew Place, just across the street from the hardware store.
The shop’s grand opening is this Saturday, February 1st, with a first-come-first-served free flower bar. Their regular hours are Tuesday-Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Shanna and her husband, James, share their story with the Reader in their newly remodeled storefront on a crisp January morning. The following interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Lost Home, Restored Heart
“We lost everything in our lives other than our lives.”
James Waitt opens up about the housefire that destroyed their home shortly after the Waitts moved to Cloudcroft in 2022. They lost everything, and the blaze burned Shanna’s forehead and arm.
Gesturing to the petite flower shop, James adds, “This has restored her heart.”
“It’s been a labor of love,” Shanna says.
The shop opens this Saturday after months of preparations. Before the floral shop, Shanna worked for two years with Cloudcroft Municipal Schools, her alma mater.
Shanna graduated from Cloudcroft High School in 1997 and has deep Cloudcroft roots indeed. Her father’s and mother’s families, the Millers and the Stones, were longtime mountain residents. Think: Miller Flats—Waitt’s family ties trace back seven generations.
“We joked that we could probably do flowers for all of our cousins’ weddings and never have to open a store for everybody else,” James laughs.
“After graduating, I went a couple of years down at New Mexico State University. Then, I decided to move to California and finish school there. And just stayed away for 20 years. You know, life happens. We got married and had kids. And we moved here from Denver,” Shanna recalls.
“The older that we've gotten, we've really wanted to get out of the city—too crowded. So we came back to my nephew's wedding, and I think at that point James got to see some of the country up here.”
“We decided to move home, and it's been great. We had the fire three months after we were here, so that's been hard. But honestly, I don't know if it were not for that, I would be so embedded in the community. Because a lot of people blessed us during that time.”
“It was hard. Then, I went to work at the school. I’ve been in education for quite a long time. It was hard leaving that. I was an Educational Assistant in the Special Education (SPED) department. SPED is where my heart is. Man, I love those kids. It's really incredibly rewarding.”
A Leap of Faith
Shanna remembers wishing Cloudcroft had a flower shop.
“The whole time I was gone, there had been so many times when I wanted to send my mom or my sister flowers. There have been so many times where I've wanted to send flowers or condolences for people that we know that have passed away, and I've never been able to get flowers up here.”
The interview continues after this brief message. Cloudcroft Reader is proud to be sponsored in part by great businesses such as High Altitude, your favorite little outdoor store on Burro Avenue.
“It's a scary career change at the age of 45. Because this is not what I have a degree in. I was a business major, and did marketing and advertising. I did a lot of web stuff, and then I got into education, and I've been in education for a long time.”
“I think it took a leap of faith. I don't know; I think the fire changed some things, too. I stayed in it for a really long time. It was scary. But I just decided, Okay, this is what I've got to do.”
“And Anna (Glidden) was one of my biggest cheerleaders. I honestly don't know if I would have had the courage if it weren't for her. She was like, You just need to honor your feelings and try it.”
Blossoms, Blessings, and Bio-Friendly Business
“I care an awful lot, so putting that little extra in there is important to me. We're a family of faith, too. I bless everything that goes out and pray—just even for comfort and peace,” Shanna says.
“Sustainability is super important to me.”
“The furniture has either been consigned or used. I'm trying to leave as little footprint as possible. My ribbon is plant-dyed, and I’m adding recyclable ribbon to my bags. Even the foam that I use is made out of wool instead of regular flower foam, because the flower foam is made up of tiny little plastics. So bad for you. I'm trying to be organic even with my plant foods, and using less chemicals.”
Business has been blooming even before the shop’s official opening. Weddings, business orders, memorials, and more have kept Shanna busy—along with finishing her floral degree.
“I'm trying really hard to be earthy and green and natural and use what's around me.”
Roots Flower Co. has several custom bouquet offerings in the works:
Extra-small (under 10 stems and greenery) at $25.00
Small (10-15 stems and greenery) at $35.00
Medium (15-20 stems and greenery) at $55.00
Large (25-30 stems and greenery) at $75.00
Extra-large (30-35 stems and greenery) at $100.00
Shanna also plans to specialize in sprays, wedding bouquets, seasonal offerings, and more.
Shopping Local
“So that has been my biggest challenge, getting flowers up here,” Shanna says.
Any fresh goods-based business on the mountain faces the difficulty of balancing inventory needs like supply and demand. The Waitts have spent the past months finding fresh vendors and are currently using distributors from El Paso, Albuquerque, southwest New Mexico, and Tularosa.
“I have appreciated everybody that has allowed me to bring them flowers while I'm not open. To be honest, it benefited me more than them because I was working through distributors and seeing who gave the best flowers and who didn't. Sometimes I'll order flowers through the mail and they'll get here and I'll lose 20% of my stock right off the bat.”
“I try to also support small businesses as much as I can. There's a flower farm just outside of Las Cruces, in between Las Cruces and El Paso, called Calhoun Farms. I want to get most of my flowers from her. She's out of season now, but that's where I get all my dried flowers from, too.”
The shop will carry dried flowers, plants, and small gifts, along with their fresh flower offerings.
“There's a farm that's in Tularosa, Floren Family Farms, where I’d like to get lavender from. I'm trying to stay as local as I possibly can. I think I have figured out a couple of distributors that I love. One of them is in Albuquerque, DWF. They actually have a refrigerated truck, so my stuff gets here a little bit fresher and quicker and doesn't have to go through the mail and get packed up, and things get broken.”
“Even my hard goods are coming from Albuquerque. Supporting those small businesses is really important, and keeping the money here in the community is super important, especially for us up here on the mountain.”
Mountain Roots
“I’m back to my roots.”
“I feel like the first half of our lives we want out of these small towns and move as far away as possible. But then that last half, you realize small isn’t bad, and family and friends are what matter most. Then you spend the rest of your time trying to get back and get as close as possible.”
“I've appreciated everybody up here so much. I'm not even open yet, and I have just had so much support. It's overwhelming.”






Select Interviews with The Reader:
Cloudcroft Beauty: The Art of Hair and Mountain Life with Anna Glidden
From Water to Roads: How One Grant Writer Shapes Cloudcroft’s Future
Cloudcroft’s Real Estate Market: Checking in with Local Guru Justin Muñoz
A Day in the Life: Revealing Visit With Our Own Sacramento Hotshots
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