38 THE QUEENS COURIER • QUEENS BUSINESS • NOVEMBER 11, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
queens business
Family-owned fl ower shop opens in Glendale
BY ALICIA VENTER
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
A new fl ower shop has opened in
Glendale, and owners Yovanty Benitez and
Heidy Suarez received a warm welcome
from the community last month.
A&M Glendale Florist, located on 68-45
Myrtle Ave., hosted a grand opening on Oct.
26, co-hosted by New York State Senator
Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr., Assemblywoman
Jenifer Rajkumar and community advocate
Connie Altamirano.
“During these tough economic times partly
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is
always great to be a part of a grand opening
for a local business,” Senator Addabbo said.
“It signifi es positive change and optimism
for a new beginning.”
Benitez and Suarez, who are married and
have two daughters, now own three shops
together in the Queens area. Th e fi rst shop
started in Astoria, Queens, 15 years ago,
and since then, their business has spread
throughout the borough.
“I work with the whole community
around here in Ridgewood, Glendale and
Middle Village, doing all diff erent types
of fl ower design services for all locations,”
Benitez told QNS. “So since we were doing a
lot of work in the area, I decided to open up
a new location to provide a better service to
my customers.”
Originally from El Salvador, Benitez was
17 when he came to New York. Now 39, he
currently resides in Queens Village, managing
his businesses with his family and
employees, all of which attend the ceremony
that he called a “ very beautiful experience.”
He takes pride in his small staff and family’s
role in the business.
“Th is is a very nice experience,” Benitez
said. “Everything is going well so far.”
Addabbo was excited to welcome the family
owned shop, as clear in the welcoming
ceremony where he had nothing but kind
words in support of the new business.
“Local businesses are the backbone of our
economy, providing local jobs,” Addabbo
said. “I am thankful and proud to be a part
of the A&M Florist opening, to celebrate
the start of what we are all hoping to be a
successful business. I wish the new owners
much success in this endeavor and welcome
them to the Glendale community.”
Th e shop serves Glendale, Maspeth,
Ridgewood, Rego Park, Middle Village,
Forest Hills, Elmhurst and Woodhaven.
For more information on their services,
visit glendalefl orist.net.
Astoria-based White Coff ee reaches highest industry certifi cation for food quality
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
For more than 80 years, White Coff ee,
a family-owned and -operated company
based in Astoria, has been committed
to ensuring its product’s quality by meeting
the strictest industry standards from
sourcing to brewing.
White Coff ee recently announced that
an audit this year with the Safe Quality
Food Institute (SQF) resulted in a Level
3 certifi cation, the highest level awarded,
with a 97% audit score, earning the highest
category “excellent” rating.
White Coff ee boasts more than 400
unique fl avors and blends and currently
has contracts with several high-profi le
chains like Entenmann’s, Joltin’ Joe, First
Colony specialty coff ees and Jim Beam.
Th e SQF Program is a rigorous and credible
food safety and quality program that
is utilized by brand owners, and food service
providers worldwide. Recognized by
the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI),
the SQF system of food safety and quality
codes are designed to meet industry, customer
and regulatory requirements for all
sectors of the food supply chain, from the
farm to retail stores.
SQF Institute is the single most trusted
source for global food safety and quality
certifi cation, ensuring that White Coff ee’s
manufacturing practices are held to the
highest standard.
“Our team does a great job in ensuring
that our customers receive excellent foodsafe,
consistent quality products,” White
Coff ee Executive VP Jonathan White said.
“We are proud to earn this recognition
and we will continue to improve our
facility and manufacturing processes to
off er state-of-the-art products in specialty,
retail and food service channels.”
White Coff ee, located at 18-35 Steinway
Pl. across from the Steinway Piano factory,
started out as White-Kobrick coff ee in
1939 sold America’s most beloved dark
beverage to offi ces. When founder David
White decided to branch out on his own
that same year, White Coff ee continued to
sell primarily to offi ces.
Th e company has earned other important
certifi cations including “Certifi ed
Organic” by Quality Assurance
International, “FairTrade” by TransFair
USA, “Rainforest Alliance Certifi ed”
by Rainforest Alliance and “LEED
Certifi ed” by Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design and the U.S. Green
Building Council.
The A&M Glendale Florist storefront.
Screenshot via Google Maps
White Coff ee, located at 18-35 Steinway Place in Astoria.
Photos courtesy of Yovanty Benitez
New family-owned business A&M Glendale Florist celebrated their grand opening on Oct. 26.
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