Southside Blooms | Flowers That Empower

Every Flower Has a Story. This One Starts on a Vacant Lot.

On Chicago’s South Side, in a neighborhood that has been called a food desert, a violence hotspot, and a forgotten community, Quilen and Hannah Blackwell saw something else entirely. They saw possibility.

In 2020, the couple — rooted in their Christian faith and their decade of living in Englewood — launched Southside Blooms, a farm-to-vase floral enterprise under the umbrella of their 501(c)(3) nonprofit Chicago Eco House. The mission: transform vacant lots into solar-powered flower farms, and transform at-risk young people into skilled florists, farmers, and small business professionals.

Today, Southside Blooms operates urban farms across more than 10 acres in Woodlawn, Englewood, Pilsen, West Garfield Park, and Gary, Indiana. Their workforce development program employs young people ages 16–24, training them as flower farmers and florists — not for 10 weeks, but for as long as they want to stay. “We are the job,” Quilen says. “We are the careers.”

The flowers they grow are pesticide-free. The packaging is compostable. And 100 percent of proceeds flow back into the program — funding jobs, farm operations, and futures.

Southside Blooms has been featured on CNN and NBC 5 Chicago. In December 2025, founder Quilen Blackwell was named CNN Hero of the Year — and announced Southside Blooms would expand to Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood.

From weddings to corporate events to everyday bouquets, every Southside Blooms purchase is an act of community investment. Every stem grown here is a job created, a lot reclaimed, and a young person given a future worth building.

Order online with nationwide shipping, or subscribe to their seasonal CSA flower delivery. When you buy from Southside Blooms, you’re not just buying flowers. You’re buying into the South Side.
southsideblooms  | @southsideblooms