Austin360 blogs > Out & About > Archives > 2010 > December > 05 > Entry
Matched Pair: Sofia and Victoria Avila
Austin floral designers Sofia and Victoria Avila face the question fairly regularly: What color is that?
Sofia: “What would you call that?”
Victoria: “It’s not orange. It’s not peach.”
Sofia: “Apricot?”
Victoria: “Mandarin. Like a mandarin orange.”
In an instant, the extraordinarily close siblings — who start and finish each other’s sentences — had named their future flower company.
Victoria: “Mandarin Flower Co. was born.”
Sofia: “Everyone thinks its because we speak Mandarin (Chinese).”
Victoria: “Or because we have orange hair.”
Sofia: “It was the color.”
No matter what they called it, the Avilas were bound to make a statement with their business that, in just four years, now competes to decorate the top social events in town, often with avant-garde creations.
The sisters were both born in El Paso of Mexican parents, Rosa Maria Avila from Chihuaha, Mexico, a photographer who serves their mentor; and Guillermo Avila, a former stockbroker from from San Luis Potosí.
Yet their narratives part ways at several junctures.
Sofia, 27, wears her copper hair loosely around slightly angular features and green eyes. She attended school in Mexico and the U.S.; wanted to be a ballerina, but eventually graduated from University of Texas, doubling up in Plan II honors and Chinese language and culture.
Victoria, 23, sweeps her auburn hair around dainty bone structure and changeable blue-green eyes. She attended Westlake High School, picked up her grandmother’s love of painting, and now studies Chinese language and culture, like her sister, with a minor in business.
They admit Mandarin has challenged them more than English, Spanish, French or Italian, their other languages. “It’s the hardest thing,” Victoria says. “You have no frame of reference.”
With their matched porcelain features out of a Botticelli painting, the Avilas, whose ancestors immigrated to Mexico from Spain and England, could be mistaken for twins. And their Old World manners remain immaculate.
“It worked,” Victoria says. “We don’t fight really.”
They moved to Austin seven years ago so that Sofia could attend UT. At their father’s insistence, Sofia and Rosa Maria accompanied her.
“We come from an extremely conservative, traditional Mexican family.” Sofia says. “It’s our culture, I guess.”
The floral inclination is also deeply embedded in the family.
“We are the third generation in flowers,” Sofia says. “Our grandmother did flowers in Chihuahua. My grandfather had a ranch and he experimented with cross-breeding unusual flowers and fruits.”
An uncle, Tiburcio Herrera, who studies business and architecture at Texas Tech University, also influences their work, especially the physics of large decorations. Their company’s origin story goes back to a time when they wanted to send their mother some flowers for her birthday, and so went online.
Victoria: “Everything we saw online was A) hideous. B) really, really expensive.”
Sofia: “We could do so much better.”
Though they knew and admired the work of Austin florists David Kurio, Coby Neal and others, they dreamed of trying different approaches, adding avant garde twists.
They researched, took a start-up business course, and sold boutonnieres in the Westlake High School parking lot before prom.
Sofia: “We went from there.”
Victoria: “Everybody thought we were crazy.”
Sofia: “They still do.”
The Avilas big breakthrough came at the Texas Conference for Women at the Austin Convention Center. The keynote speaker was Martha Stewart and the host first lady Anita Perry. The always courteous Avilas met both women before the program.
Victoria: “We wanted magnolias for a Southern effect …”
Sofia: “But they were not in season, so we used corn husks for the flowers.
Victoria: “A little Mexican touch.”
Perry started off her public remarks with: “Have y’all seen the flowers this morning? They are so beautiful.” The sisters’ tablemates cheered and Stewart pointed them out to thousands of women. Perry later asked them to decorate two inauguration luncheons.
This year, the Avilas turned the Long Center stage into a wonderland for the Sabores Auténticos de México dinner, and they decorated the past three Ballet Austin Fêtes, always one of the social season’s top events. Most recently, they built ceiling-to-floor arrangements that represented 10 ballets from Stephen Mills’ 10 years of tenure there.
Despite their successes, party planners still respond to the slender, girlish artists with incredulous looks.
“We have had to prove ourselves at every single event,” Victoria says. “They look at us — so young. Are they really going to do that?”
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By Antonella Manterola
December 8, 2010 12:55 PM | Link to this
Sofia and Victoria are absolutely amazing. I know them well, and I must say they are creative, charming, honest, and responsible. I have no doubt that they will be very successful in what ever they set their minds to. They have a wonderful mother as mentor and example. These beautiful talented redheads will get really far !!!
By Ashley Wassik
December 8, 2010 12:17 PM | Link to this
Sofia and Victoria did our wedding flowers last spring. Their arrangements were the best part of our decor. We get so much joy looking at the photos of my bouquet and cake flowers. While my husband was away training with the army he called the Avilas and asked them to recreate an arrangement from our wedding. Again the arrangement was gorgeous. I love the Avilas for so many reasons.
By leticia arguelles delgado
December 7, 2010 10:24 PM | Link to this
SOFIA Y VICTORIA...ES UN GUSTO VER SUS FOTOS Y SU EXITO EN ESTE NEGOCIO...SOY LA MAMA DE CLAUDIA Y CATY AVILA ARGUELLES...LAS DOS ESTAN MUY HERMOSAS, LES MANDO SALUDOS YTAMBIEN SALUDENME A TU MAMI...
By Liz
December 7, 2010 4:08 PM | Link to this
Sofia and Victoria did the flowers for my wedding. They are both so sweet and had SO many amazing ideas. They did such a fabulous job and were so awesome to work with. They are truly inspiring.
By Anthony Stedillie
December 7, 2010 11:50 AM | Link to this
Sofia and Victoria are without a doubt the sweetest, kindest, most gracious, and absolutely enchanting women you will ever meet. Many, like myself, have been truly blessed to meet and become very close friends of their family.
Sofia and Victoria have more talent and artistic vision in one brainstorm session than most of us have our entire lives. Congratulations to you both for chasing your dreams... I think you've almost caught 'em! Un beso!
By Alana
December 6, 2010 11:36 PM | Link to this
Awesome job girls!!
By Jette Momant
December 5, 2010 4:07 PM | Link to this
Sofia and Victoria are so beautiful, as is their mother. Very nice and genuine ladies that are so talented. I met them a few years ago for coffee at Pacha and I left enchanted by that family.