Granville Semmes

Who is Granville Semmes?

Granville Martin Semmes II was an American businessman, entrepreneur and gemcutter. Semmes was the founder of 1-800-Flowers, a floral retailer, gift and distribution company in the United States.

Semmes was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. He earned a bachelor's degree from Duke University. Semmes served in the United States Navy before moving to New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1949. Semmes first worked at Whitney National Bank. He then joined the staff of WWL-TV as an advertising account executive, where he worked for thirty years.

Semmes is best known as the founder of 1-800-Flowers, a telephone business which allowed consumers to order flowers using a credit card without having to visit a florist. Semmes came up with the idea for the business while taking a shower. He was friends with both a florist and an executive for a telephone company. Unfortunately for Semmes, the telephone number for his proposed 1-800-Flowers was owned by a truck driver who lived in Wisconsin at the time. Semmes flew to Wisconsin, where he purchased the phone number. In addition to 1-800-Flowers, which Semmes launched in the 1980s, the company has expanded to the Internet with 1-800-Flowers.com.