Annapolis flower seller displays a friendly face and radiant bouquets: "Kindness always pays."

BALTIMORE - If you walk through downtown Annapolis, a friendly face stands on West Street next to a large stand of fresh-cut flowers.

Darim Traore, originally from West Africa, is best known for brightening people's day with his smile and different types of radiant bouquets.

If the sun is shining in Annapolis, there's a good chance Traore is selling those flowers at his stand outside of Reynold's Tavern with a huge smile on his face. 

But Traore has a powerful message about kindness and paying it forward.

As he greeted people walking through downtown Annapolis, he reminisced about how he ended up there.

After spending some time in America in his 20s, Traore went to Canada where he received his accounting degree.  But, here he is, selling flowers.

Traore sometimes helped run his brother's flower stand in Washington D.C. before preferring his own outdoor office. 

"I didn't know I was going to find myself here today selling flowers," Traore said. "Life always reserves you a surprise. That was my surprise."

Traore enjoys talking and meeting people and sharing some of his life stories.

He came to America for the first time in 1993 from Mali, West Africa.

"I thought I was going to go work in an office or whatever and then finally I fell in love with doing this thing," Traore said.

Traore says he feels the love from people in Annapolis, which makes his job even more enjoyable.

"They love me and I love all of them too and they show me every day," Traore said. "Even the time I lost my mom, that's the time I realized the kind of love people have for me in this city."

"He makes everyone in Annapolis smile and we really appreciate it," one customer said.

The biggest message Traore shares is that "kindness always pays."

"If you are kind, people will love you and you'll find kind people everywhere you go," he said. "That's something I experienced in Annapolis."

Darim's flower stand is open from 10 a.m. to sundown Tuesday through Sunday, between February and November. He is located outside of Reynold's Tavern on Church Circle in downtown Annapolis.