Former home of iconic Mount Prospect florist has new tenant

The onetime location of an iconic Mount Prospect business is home to a new business.

Gold + Oak, which specializes in "exclusive lifestyle goods" curated from talented artisans across the globe, held its grand opening Thursday at 100 E. Northwest Hwy.

That's the former home of Busse's Flowers and Gifts, which first opened in Mount Prospect in 1916 and remained in town until relocating to Rolling Meadows in 2019. Since then, the space had been used as a temporary leasing office for the new Maple Street Lofts apartments across the railroad tracks.

Now Katie Papanicholas, wife of Maple Street Lofts developer Nick Papanicholas Jr., has opened the new store, which is described as "a unique space that people can visit knowing that they will find something special."

Its offerings include candlesticks and earrings, kitchen and bar accessories such as glassware and dishes, trays, vases and other home decor items, and rugs and pillows.

The store is exclusive in more ways than one - at the moment, it is open just one day a week, on Thursdays from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Papanicholas said the concept evolved from her work with her husband's company, Nicholas and Associates, and its affiliate company, Wingspan Development Group.

"I do the staging for their models," she said, adding that she also was doing interior design for family and friends.

"We would go to market and buy items. They would end up in my garage," she said. "I would have pop-up shops for friends and family for the last couple of years."

When the Northwest Highway location became available, the items were moved out of the garage and into the new space.

Although the grand opening was last week, Papanicholas said the business has been operating privately since June.

"We just did it by appointment and bringing in different clients," she added. "I never intended to have a storefront."

She took the brown paper off the windows in December for her private shopping events, "just so it would be a nicer experience for the private parties. And people were knocking on the windows and sending (direct messages) on Instagram and calling Nicholas and Associates and wanting to get in. And so as a result, we decided to open the doors just one day a week."

In addition to the Thursday hours, there could be an occasional pop-open during a weekend. She also said the hours will change depending on the season.