Florists began wiring flower orders to each other in 1910, and that network became FTD. Eighty-nine years later its parent set up FTD.com to move the business online. Customers picked a bouquet on the website or called 1-800-SEND-FTD, and a member florist near the recipient made and delivered it. The winged Mercury Man was already one of the best-known logos in retail. FTD.com went public in September 1999, as dot-com flower sellers raced to own Mother's Day.

A 1910 Network, Online

FTD.com was founded by FTD, the floral services company, to run its consumer website and toll-free number. It owned no greenhouses or vans. Orders flowed to independent florists in FTD's network, who did the arranging and delivery. The bet was that a trusted old brand, plus a ready-made delivery system in nearly every town, could beat rivals such as 1-800-Flowers and a wave of startups that were spending heavily to win customers online.

Back Into the Fold

FTD.com priced its offering at $8 a share in September 1999 and listed on Nasdaq. It spent heavily on advertising, then cut back as the dot-com market cooled. Its parent kept control of the company throughout, and the shares held by the public were a small slice. In 2002 FTD Inc. bought out the public shareholders and folded FTD.com back into the company.

Cover: Mercury, Italian. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for winged Mercury in flight (the FTD messenger).