Photo by Joselyn King Laupp Florist owners Brian Gessler, left, and wife Ginny Gessler take a breath following a busy holiday season at the shop.

WHEELING — Brian Gessler and his wife Ginny Laupp Gessler — owners of Laupp Florist in downtown Wheeling — want the community to know they aren’t closing their shop.

But they would like a little more time to smell the roses, carnations and other flowers they sell to customers.

The business is for sale, but the Gesslers really want to remain a part of it in some way after being involved with the shop for more than half a century. Brian said he put in as many as “85 to 90” hours a week during the holiday season providing needed flowers to customers.

“I feel good, though. I like working,” he said. “We don’t want to retire. We kind of just want to mellow out.

“But the shop is for sale. We’ve had some interest, but nobody has written the check yet. If we don’t sell it, we’re not going anywhere.”

Founded in the 1860s by the Laupp family, Laupp Florist is the oldest flower shop in the state of West Virginia. Brian and Ginny are the fourth generation in the family to operate the business.

Brian said he started out as a coal miner in the early 1970s, and often experienced work stoppages and layoffs. His father-in-law, Bill Laupp suggested he come work with him and Ginny at the flower shop.

That was more than 50 years ago.

When it began in the 1860s, Laupp Florist was located at 405 North Front Street on Wheeling Island. In 1902, it moved to the 1300 block of Market Street in downtown Wheeling in a building that would have been in the WesBanco parking lot.

In 1934, there was a temporary move to 1105 Chapline Street before the flower shop opened close by at 1109 Chapline Street in 1936. Laupp Florist was a staple on Chapline Street until the year 2000, when the shop was razed to make way for the new federal building in Wheeling.

The Gesslers then built a new building on the opposite side of the street behind the YWCA Wheeling building. They got to pick their own address, and chose 1109 Eoff Street.

Laupp Florist has operated from that location ever since.

The building has off-street parking, and a modern workroom with a climate controlled delivery area.

“We’re just going to continue to do what we can as we go,” Brian said. “We had a good holiday season. I was shocked. I’ve talked to other florists in Pennsylvania, and they thought it was kind of off. I’m hoping it’s not.

“We’ve got two items left in the cooler (as of Tuesday afternoon). That’s it.”

Brian doesn’t know what the future is for downtown Wheeling — or if retail stores will ever return.

“Maybe mom and pop stores will pop back up again,” he said. “That’s kind of cool. But it’s different. That’s for sure.”

Brian also isn’t certain what his own future is once the store is sold. He said part of any deal probably would require that he be permitted to remain on the job “for at least a couple of months” to work alongside the new owners and make certain they have an understanding of the business.

“We want whoever takes it over to succeed,” Brian said. “We don’t want them to fail. That would be kind of dumb.”

Brian acknowledged he would miss the grind of coming to work at the flower shop.

“It tears me up when I think about it,” he continued. “I have been coming to work here for 26 years and doing the job for more than 50.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I really don’t. Maybe I’m going to work here part-time,” he said.