SHE always found ways to make money somehow. In college, when Valerie Villar-Zayco needed funds to go to Boracay with friends, she would sell stuff like charm bracelets or jelly bags.

?I suppose it started off as a means to an end, until I realized that I was enjoying myself,? she recalls. ?That?s when I started selling things not just to make money but more for the thrill of making a sale.?

With her mom in real estate and in the flower business, Valerie knew about sales and marketing from an early age. A degree in Management Economics from the Ateneo didn?t hurt either, and soon enough, she found herself working for her mother after a stint for an overseas bank.

In 2007, Valerie hit upon an idea that would soon bloom into her own business. ?My sister and my brother both had babies within a week of each other,? she recounts. ?They were the first two grandchildren in our family, and being godmother to both turned me into a major baby fanatic!?

While surfing web sites that offered unique gifts for new mothers, she figured she could just as well offer them herself. Why not baby bouquets and flower arrangements made of baby clothes rolled into floral shapes instead of actual flowers? she thought.

?My mom had a flower shop when I was growing up and I?d often watch the staff make floral arrangements. I put my skills to the test, made a bouquet and realized it looked really good. And the rest, as they say, is history,? she says of the venture she decided to name Baby Blossoms by Valerie.

Although she had originally planned Baby Blossoms to be a mere sideline she could run from her condo, the encouraging response convinced her to make it a full-time business.

Thanks to word of mouth, Baby Blossoms by Valerie soon became a thriving concern. ?My early clients were friends and relatives, but after the first month, I started receiving calls and queries from people who said they?d seen my bouquets at baby showers or baptisms or had received them as gifts and now wanted to return the favor,? she recalls.

?Today, 80 percent of my clients are people I didn?t know before. I sometimes get surprised when I get orders from celebrities and famous personalities, but I think what?s most flattering is when I get repeat orders.?

She has since expanded her business to include crib sheets and customized arrangements which go higher than the P600 to P1,550 price range of her baby bouquets.

Baby Blossoms is pretty much a one-woman operation, with Valerie sourcing her silk flowers, purchasing the baby items and making the arrangements herself. It?s a winning idea, she says.

?It?s a two in one product: a flower arrangement that?s sure to make a new mom smile at the same time that it?s made of functional items for babies. My products thus become more than just gifts, they?re conversation pieces and ice breakers at showers and baptisms.?

Technology has been a crucial boon to Baby Blossoms, says Valerie. ?The Internet has been instrumental in the growth of my business because it is through e-mail and my Multiply site that I am able to reach out to potential clients,? she says, adding that her floral arrangements themselves make for good marketing tools.

Although she eventually wants to expand, she?d rather keep her business as personal as possible in the meantime, ?so that I can ensure that the quality stays the same.?

Valerie, who recently married banker Paco Zayco, says she looks forward to having babies, who can try her products first hand. ?I?d love to have children of my own in God?s time,? she says. ?Right now, though, I enjoy watching my niece and nephews grow.?

Valerie says Baby Blossoms reflects her sense of style and substance. ?I?ve never been one to choose quantity over quality. I always put a lot of care and thought into every bouquet I make to make each one unique in terms of how it?s packaged and what items are in it. My bouquets are so ?me.??

But the business has grown to be more than that for her. ?It?s allowed me to make a living while owning my time. I also love the fact that my products are related to the celebration of births, of God?s little miracles,? she says. ?Making these floral arrangements is also quite therapeutic for me, almost like a hobby!?

For more information, visit www.valerievillar.multiply.com, e-mail babyblossomsbyvalerie@gmail.com and text 0929-1644311. Ready-made bouquets are available at Mpulse gift shop at Makati Medical Center and at Saddlebrown gift shop at the Manila Polo Club.