Founded by Shawn Gibson and Michael Pellegrino in 1997, Teatro Verde has been the preeminent destination for flowers, gift and home decor items in Yorkville for 25 years.To celebrate Teatro Verde’s beautiful new location at Yorkville Village, near the 18 Hazelton Avenue entrance, we asked Shawn to share a few of his favourite spots in the neighbourhood, and what a perfect day in Yorkville looks like to him.Tell us about your new space!Déjà vu comes to mind when I think of our new home. Customers have told me they felt 14 years younger upon their visit to our new/old location at Yorkville Village.We’re delighted to bring back more of the Teatro Verde “je ne sais quoi” spirit with the larger space, which features higher ceilings, large exterior windows and even more unique products. The response has been overwhelming.

Why do you love the Yorkville area?Yorkville Village is a great place to shop, it has many individual, unique stores that are often owner-operated.Yorkville Avenue is growing and expanding, too, and I can’t wait for Balenciaga to open their large storefront—I’m looking forward to shopping the unique finds there!

What are some of your favourite spots in the neighbourhood?I love to start my day in Yorkville by grabbing a coffee at Jacked Up Coffee right next door to us, they do a great job. I’ll sometimes grab my lunch at Whole Foods, but when a friend or a client wants to do lunch, I like to go to ONE Restaurant at the Hazelton Hotel, or Café Boulud at the Four Seasons Hotel.