How can I find out if a business is still open? (Vernon, NJ)

Factual Questions
1

This is kind of a weird question, but here goes. I needed to send a same-day floral arrangement to someone in Vernon, New Jersey. I found a florist online from that neighborhood, found the basket I wanted, ordered it, got a confirmation, yadda yadda. Everything automatic.

But when I tried calling to find out roughly when today the delivery will be made, there was no reply at the number given on their website. Several times. I let it ring for a minute each time.

Also sent an email to them at the address listed on their site. No reply yet (though that’s a bit more understandable).

Now I’m worried. My own stupid fault for not doing better due diligence beforehand. All references to this shop – their Facebook page, a Twitter account – seem to stop in 2010. Heck even their Google map photo is from 2009.

I guess I’m asking: how can I find out if I’ve just tossed $80 down the drain? Any recs on a good way to ID a possibly defunct business?

(And if anyone’s in Vernon, NJ and happens to know… that’d be awesome! The company is Lily of the Valley florists.)

2

There’s a review on Yelp from Feb that seems to confirm they were open as recently as Valentine’s Day, at least…

3

Thanks, amaguri. I don’t know if that’s the same company – that one’s located in a different NJ town, though it’s quite possible they’ve moved. Seems odd that they wouldn’t have updated their website, especially the phone number.

Oy. To quote Han Solo, I’ve got a bad feeling about this…

4

Since you ordered it on line I assume you used a credit card. In that case if the flowers don’t arrive you can always have the credit car co cancel the transaction

5

Very true, Old Guy. I’m on the phone with the Wellington NJ “Lily of the Valley Floral Arrangements” – their website at lilyofthevalley.com is identical to the vernonnjflowers.com one, except the phone numbers are different.

So far the woman on the phone is trying to find my order… and now she says nope, not in the system, and they don’t deliver to Vernon NJ at all. Just tried calling the Vernon NJ chamber of commerce, and they’re not available now. What. the. hell?

This is like a bad Twilight Zone episode. “One woman. Trying to buy flowers, a simple gesture of thank you. She didn’t realize she’d entered a doppelganger where flowers don’t exist, where her order doesn’t exist… where she doesn’t exist. All she did was walk through the door… to the Twilight Zone.”

6

Okay, I just noticed that I misspelled the town name. It’s Verona NJ, not Vernon. Not that this is helping me. Argh.

7

It looks like you got both of the web site URLs wrong too. This is probably the one you used. It’s very similar to many other florist sites, because they’re all part of United Florist Network. BTW, that last florist is the one in Wallington (not Wellington) that you spoke to.

So the only evidence of a problem I see is that the Verona florist didn’t answer when you called. Could be simple phone problems. Or maybe you dialed wrong, then hit redial to automatically and conveniently retry the wrong number over and over. :slight_smile:

I think you’re worrying over nothing.