During the past several weeks, residents and visitors alike have seen some of their favorite stores and restaurants close their doors. In addition to the weak economy, the oil spill problem which started with the explosion of an oil rig off of the Louisiana coast in early April has taken its toll on numerous businesses.

There are some local businesses, however, that have not only survived one of the worst economic quandaries of our time, but have thrived and grown their business, and even helped others in the process.

One year ago, Terri Long and her daughter Candice Osborne opened Wildflowers Boutique in Orange Beach. Offering current fashions and accessories for women as well as candles and other items, Long and Osborne just wanted to have a successful small business. They, like so many other locally owned businesses, had no idea what was on the horizon.

Even as hard times hit, with fewer vacationers than ever, and what many have called as a bust of a tourist season, Long says her faithful customers have made her shop very successful, even during the bad times following the spill.

“Our business has just been unbelievable, and we are so appreciative of  the support that we have from our locals,” Long said. “We do very little advertising, but they continue to support us.”

Long says customer service as well as her desire to give back to the community, is something that has helped her to be successful.

“We do a lot of charity, we support lots of local events at the schools, and we would rather use our money to donate back to the community than to advertise,” said Long.

Long and Osborne have no way to gauge how the oil spill has effected Wildflowers because they have only been opened for a year.

“We’ve only been here a year, so there is no way to know. But what really helps us is that we have new merchandise arriving daily, and other than the five different styles of jeans we carry, we keep our prices under $50 dollars.”

So is it just the low prices that has helped Wildflowers survive?  How has this little bouique managed to enjoy such a thriving businesses, while others have suffered so?

“I think it just it has been our customer service. They see Candice and me in here and we have really gotten to know our customers. If we know their style or know what they like, we will call them when we get something in that we know they would like and we’ll put it on hold for them. Customers like that special attention that they don’t get at the big stores.”

In celebration of their first year, Wildflowers is going to hold a special one-year anniversary event.

“On Thursday night, Oct. 21 from 6 until 8:30 p.m. we will have Cary Laine, a local musician who recently played at Bayfest, here playing her music. We are going to give away gift cards, girt certificates, we are going to have specials and we have all sorts of gifts for our customers. We just want to show them that we truly appreciate the support that they have given us the past year,” said Long.