Gales Westlake Garden Center - (440) 871-0808

One of Cleveland's premier garden centers where everything we do is Inspired By Nature.

To say we are simply a garden center, wouldn't give you a complete picture...step inside and find out for yourself.

Oddly enough, the origins of Gale's Westlake began in Akron Ohio. In the early 1950s when Sam "Salvatore" Donzelli returned from naval service after the Korean War. Sam wanted to make a better life for himself deciding to open a business on some of his father's hard-earned investment property.

Sam's initial idea was to start a restaurant, but area residents did not want the traffic of such an establishment and contested it legally. In a final debate Sam proposed this question, "What kind of business would they not object to?" After some discussion, the residents responded with "a beautiful one, a flower business." So in 1953 Belle Rose Florist was born in Akron Ohio, eventually evolving into Donzell's Flower and Garden Center as we know it today carrying vibrant flowers, plants, shrubs, trees, garden supplies, seasonal merchandise and more.

In March 1958 Sam and his wife Bonnie joined the Gale's organization in Maple Heights partnering with William Gale and Gerald Silver while still owning the Akron site. In 1965 Sam and William continued their expansion with the Gale's Westlake location, which is now owned solely by the Donzelli family. In 1968, Sam, William and Gerald, opened Gale's Willoughby Hills. In 1990 Gerald and new partner Burt Young opened the Brunswick store.

Keeping Sam's original vision alive are his daughters Pam Donzelli of the Westlake store and Julie Donzelli Difeo of Donzell's in Akron. Their hands-on education began as small children, hanging out at the store, watering petunias along side mom and dad.

Today there are five store locations. Four in the greater Cleveland area operating under the Gale's Garden Center name plus the Donzell's location in Akron. The five stores rank in the top 10 in sales nationally among independent retail garden centers and rank nationally among all garden centers. To maintain this level of achievement and keep up with garden trends, the company's buyers attend trade shows, nurseries and national management clinics across the country.

In spite of the limited seasonal nature of the garden center business in northern Ohio, Gale's and Donzell's enjoy a thriving year-round business by utilizing what is now a blooming fall and holiday season market.

Through the years, the five stores have transformed themselves into centers for family entertainment, tradition and key supporters of their respective communities. Even as it continues to evolve, it still remains a business of beautiful flowers.

Tags: Garden Center,Gift Shop