A Salinas landmark since 1945
In 1945, Walter "Dutch" Swenson and his wife, Bessie, purchased Salinas Nursery Florist on Front Street — now the site of Hayward Home Centers — and renamed it Swenson's Flowers. Five years later, they relocated to a new building they constructed at 220 Soledad Street, where they steadily grew the business over the next decade. It was during this time they hired their first employee to make deliveries: Edward Silacci, a young man with a deep love for flowers. Edward's passion began in childhood, helping his mother in her award-winning garden and selling fresh-cut blooms at a roadside stand he built at age 15.
As the business flourished, a move to a more prominent location at 70 W. Alisal Street followed in 1961. In 1966, Dutch and Bessie welcomed Edward into the business as a partner, renaming the shop Swenson & Silacci Flowers. A subsequent move two doors down in 1969 to 90 W. Alisal Street marked a new era of growth. When the Swensons retired, Edward took over as sole owner.
Through the 1970s and 1980s, Edward's business savvy and eye for cutting-edge design propelled Swenson & Silacci Flowers into becoming Salinas's largest florist. Edward also expanded the offerings with a curated line of gift items. In 1993, Edward's son, Mark Silacci, joined the business after earning his MBA from Santa Clara University, bringing fresh ideas and energy that led to continued expansion.
New locations followed: Monterey in 1995, North Salinas in 2000, and in 2001, the flagship 10,000-square-foot store opened in South Salinas. As Swenson & Silacci Flowers grew, Mark consolidated operations into this main facility, investing in advanced technology like top-tier routing software to optimize service and efficiency.
In 2017, Mark expanded into the wholesale market by acquiring Matranga Floral, Monterey County's premier wholesale florist. Housed in the flagship store, Matranga offers a wide variety of fresh flowers, greenery, containers, and florist supplies to professionals and DIYers alike, with delivery reaching as far as the Central Valley and San Luis Obispo County.
In 2025, Swenson & Silacci Flowers moved into a new, state-of-the-art facility just down the street, featuring a larger design room, expanded cooler space, and a more efficient layout for wholesale operations, bringing new flexibility and capacity to the business. Today, Swenson & Silacci Flowers continues to thrive under Mark's leadership, upholding the tradition of offering superior design, the freshest flowers, and the finest service to Salinas and beyond.
