Jess & Max

Jess and partner Max began Forward Flora in Nashville in 2021 after a lengthy and colorful 12 year stint in NYC.
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With 8 years of experience in the botanical and floral design industry, including serving as a breakdown manager with Garbage Goddess in NYC, Jess brings a deep knowledge of event production and an understanding of the current realities of botanical waste behind the scenes of the event industry. Jess is still involved in the day-to-day creation of florals as a designer and freelancer, and this hands-on experience motives FF's participation in the entire lifecycle of botanical matter. Her to-do lists are elegant and her spreadsheets are colorful, Jess combines creativity and practicality. Jess handles the pre-breakdown logistics and the floral connections post-event as FF builds bridges with natural burial sites, community organizations and local businesses to donate recycled blooms.

Max comes from a background in film and video production, having spent many a late night as a workflow producer for TV and film in NYC. In 2020 Max jumped aboard eco-breakdowns with our friends Garbage Goddess in NYC and got to see behind the curtain of floral events and the amount of botanical material that tends to end up in landfills being diverted in a sustainable and creative way. Max, the ever-balanced Libra, oversees on-site breakdown logistics, compost runs and hardgood returns and is a tetris master of packing trucks.

Bringing thoughtfulness & intentionality to the post-party
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At Forward Flora, we want to provide care, creativity and intentionality to the after party. Our eco-breakdowns focus on diverting compostable materials from landfill, ensuring that reusable mechanics like chicken wire & water tubes can live to see another day, and offering florists and creatives in our community the peace of mind to rest and take night off.
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Extending the life cycle of natural materials beyond the event spotlight through community and creativity
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Forward Flora seeks to honor and embrace natural materials at all stages of their lifecycle. While events highlight florals at a specific moment in time, we want to continue the appreciation of nature’s bounty though it’s decline and decay and ensure the enjoyment of flowers is accessible to the community. Whether it’s contributing blooms to natural burial sites to add a layer of nitrogen to the soil and honor those who’ve passed, donating petals to local dye artists, or repurposing florals into bouquets and composting the remains for topsoil--we want to build bridges to carry the journey of flowers forward until they find their resting place back in the earth.