How do you create a new tradition within an industry that has seen little change since Queen Victoria was widowed in 1861?

This is the mission of Memory Box Flowers, an innovative horticultural funeral gift company developed by Nick Sykes as part of first ever cohort of University of Staffordshire’s MSc Entrepreneurship, for which he gained a distinction.

This start-up business took its first tentative steps into trading in late 2023, gradually to build confidence and refine the offering, and was formally launched at The National Funeral Exhibition in June 2024, a biennial event which is seen as the Super Bowl for the funeral industry.

Memory Box Flowers offers a new and meaningful way to support the bereaved and grieving through the natural symbolism of flowers. Nick supplies funeral directors across the UK with bespoke, personalised boxes containing seasonal flower bulbs, which members of the congregation take home from a service and plant in their gardens in memory of the loved one. These colourful flowers bloom every year, bringing joy and gentle remembrance.

Nick said: “This unique product meets a profound emotional need in the bereavement process. The gift of a Memory Box helps mourners find comfort and connection during one of life’s most difficult and distressing times, transforming sorrow into a lasting celebration of life, remembrance and renewal.”

Nick’s entrepreneurial journey began while he was still working as a manager in the NHS. On Christmas Day 2021 I lost a close friend to pancreatic cancer.

He said: “Attending her funeral was an emotionally jarring experience, it felt joyless, cold, and hollow. I remember thinking: “There has to be a better way to honour a life.” That moment was the seed from which Memory Box Flowers grew. I envisioned a way to support others going through loss, offering something gentle and beautiful that could help them grieve in their own way and heal.

“Combining this vision with my background in healthcare and my appreciation for nature, I developed a line of high-quality, eco-friendly memorial gift boxes. Each box contains garden-ready flower bulbs, biodegradable packaging, and personalised dedications.”

Thes boxes are sold B2B to funeral homes, celebrants and end-of-life professionals who offer them to families as part of funeral packages or personalised services.

The early customers were across Stoke-on-Trent but since the successful NFE debut the business is developing at pace and Nick now supplies funeral homes from Hampshire up to Yorkshire. He has expanded into custom collections for new markets which include pet bereavement, legacy and memory for charities, and providing natural sustainable promotional giveaways for large events, the very first of which was Stoke-on-Trent LGBTQ+ Pride in 2024.

Having recently acquired new premises, at Crewe Hall, Memory Box Flowers will be recruiting permanent production staff by the end of 2025. Plans are underway to import bulk volumes of Tulip bulbs from farms in the Netherlands and early stage marketing to enter the USA pet bereavement market from 2026, where production will based out of Dallas, Texas.

Memory Box Flowers has entered the Start-up Business of the Year category of University of Staffordshire Business Awards.