Local florist rooting for more games at New York

PLEASANTVILLE - Gerad's Florist and Decorators landed a big job last weekend. Out of state, important people, fancy setup.

There's only one ironclad rule, the client said.

No red.

The Main Street company's six-member staff is decorating the Legends Suite Club in Yankee Stadium for the World Series. Any visuals suggesting support for the Phillies, Gerad Gantert's favorite team, would be ill-advised.

Tickets for seats in the luxury Legends Suite, behind home plate, cost more than $1,000 during the regular season. The exclusive club is reserved for Legends Suite ticket-holders.

Gerad's is preparing the club for the first two World Series games, which are in New York. Those games will be followed by two or three in Philadelphia. If neither team has won four games by then, there could be one or two more games in New York, which likely would mean a return gig for Gerad's.

"I think, for all fans, I'd like to see it go the full length, get all the (ticket) revenue for both cities," Gantert said.

"That's a political answer," teased his wife, Eileen, who is not a baseball fan. "I want to go back. I want the work."

The man in the dog-chewed Phillies cap winced when he was asked whether he would prefer the Phillies win in five games or lose in seven. He paused for a moment, then chose the former.

"We want the work and the Phillies to win," Gerad Gantert said.

How did a company 131 miles from Yankee Stadium get the call over Gotham's florists? Eileen Gantert admitted she was surprised to get the call: "I actually thought she would find it simpler to use someone from up there."

But the Ganterts keep their connections. "She" is Margaretann Quinlan, who first did business with Gerad's when she worked for Blue Heron Pines Golf Club in Galloway Township, Eileen Gantert said.

Quinlan later handled catering for the Atlantic City Convention Center and worked for Resorts Atlantic City. Now she manages the Legends Suite Club, and she called Gerad's earlier this month to broach the possibility of hiring them for the playoffs.

Existing bookings elsewhere prevented Gerad's from decorating the club earlier in the playoffs, Eileen Gantert said. They were available for the World Series, but as poor weather and Los Angeles Angels' victories extended the American League Championship Series, it became clear Gerad's would be working on short notice.

"We didn't know we were a full go until Sunday," Eileen Gantert said.

Quinlan, who could not be reached for comment, sent Gerad's some photos of locations in the club that could use flowers and decorations. A table reserved for first lady Michelle Obama would need a centerpiece.

The Yankees wanted more colors than just their navy blue. Gerad's complied with 214 pieces in a variety of hues, save for Phillies red.

The company was planning to assemble and pack the truck until 10 p.m. Tuesday, then leave at dawn today in the hopes of setting up at 9 a.m. Their deadline is 4 p.m., four hours ahead of game time.

After a night at the Bronx Howard Johnson's, there will be less work Thursday, Eileen Gantert said. They will freshen and replace the flowers as needed.

Then the Ganterts and their employees will head home, waiting for 50 baseball players to determine whether they'll get another bite at the Big Apple.

Contact Eric Scott Campbell:
609-272-7227
ECampbell@pressofac.com