Heart of Herbs Herbal School Podcast
Welcome to the Heart of Herbs Herbal School Podcast, with Demetria Clark.
Embark on a journey of herbal wisdom and natural wellness with Heart of Herbs, where we invite you to discover the incredible world of herbalism. Our channel is your gateway to a wealth of knowledge, empowering you to cultivate a deeper connection with the healing power of plants.
At Heart of Herbs Herbal School (www.heartofherbs.com), we are passionate about sharing herbalism's time-honored traditions and modern insights. Whether you're a seasoned herbalist or just beginning your herbal journey, our videos are crafted to inspire, educate, and guide you toward herbal wellness.
Join our community of like-minded individuals who love the medicinal magic found in nature. From herbal remedies and plant identification to hands-on tutorials and in-depth courses, our YouTube channel is your go-to resource for all things herbal.
Expect engaging content, expert insights, and a holistic approach to well-being as we explore the diverse realms of herbal medicine. Subscribe now, and let's embark on an herbal adventure together—where knowledge blooms and wellness takes root.
🌱 Subscribe, and follow – because your herbal journey starts here, at Heart of Herbs Herbal School! 🌱
Heart of Herbs Herbal School Podcast
Building a Sustainable Herbal Business: Cindy Collins' Journey
Heart of Herbs Alumni, Cindy Collins never imagined her kitchen experiments would transform into a multi-million dollar herbal business serving over 70,000 customers worldwide. Yet that's exactly what happened with Euphoric Herbals, now operating two beautiful brick-and-mortar apothecaries and shipping to 61 countries.
As a certified herbalist, former lactation counselor, and birth doula, Cindy brought a unique perspective to product development. Her culinary background proved surprisingly valuable, allowing her to approach herbal formulations like recipes. "I thought about herbal formulations as recipes, and I was like, oh, I could totally make that," she explained. This approach demystifies herbalism, showing how transferable skills can lead to success in unexpected ways.
What stands out in Cindy's journey is her thoughtful approach to physical spaces. Rejecting the dark, cluttered "head shop" aesthetic common in many herb stores, she designed bright, accessible apothecaries that customers of all mobility levels could comfortably explore. This deliberate design philosophy has paid off—some customers drive four hours to visit her locations. The stores serve as "beta test labs" where she gathers invaluable feedback directly from customers, constantly refining her offerings.
Beyond selling products, Cindy has expanded into education, offering workshops on starting apothecary businesses and scaling handmade products. Her $97 workshop shares insights from opening two locations, covering everything from location scouting to permits and launch timelines. For those hesitant to begin without perfection, her advice is refreshingly practical: "Put your ugly out there and do it and know it's going to improve." This permission to start imperfectly might be the most valuable lesson for aspiring herbalists and entrepreneurs who feel stuck waiting for ideal conditions.
Ready to explore herbalism as a business or hobby? Visit Euphoric Herbals online or in-person to experience Cindy's thoughtful approach to herbal wellness firsthand.
Heart of Herbs Herbal School
The Heart of Herbs Podcast with Demetria Clark! 🌿 Tune in for herbal wisdom & wellness tips!
Welcome to the Heart of Herbs Herbal School Podcast, www.heartofherbs.com where we explore the world of herbal remedies and natural health solutions. Before we dive into today's episode, If you want to enroll, use code PODCAST to save 20%.
The content provided in this podcast is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or medical condition. It is always recommended to consult with a qualified healthcare professional
Learn more at www.heartofherbs.com
Let us help you find your herbal direction!
Hi everyone. This is Demetria Clark with the Heart of Herbs Herbal School Podcast, and today we are talking to Cindy Collins, and Cindy is she's just doing all kinds of great stuff, so I'm not going to try to come up with the words to describe all that this dynamo is doing. I'm going to let her share with you what she's doing and what her journey is. And Cindy has taken oh my gosh, like she runs Euphoric Herbals and if you just even look at her packaging, it's so beautiful, it's so, it's so inspiring, just from the packaging, which says to me that there was so much thought put into everything. So you know, the formulas are just going to be just as wonderful. Good morning, cindy. Thank you so much for being here.
Speaker 2:Good morning. Thank you so much for having me on here Good morning. Thank you so much for having me on here I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2:Oh well, thank you. Yeah, yep, I'll tell you just a little bit about a little bit about myself and a little bit about my journey. I am a certified herbalist and I'm a former lactation counselor and also a former birth doula, and that kind of was a bit of my beginning journey and it's always been a bit of inspiration for my product development. I started my business as a hobby out of my kitchen in 2010, selling on Etsy and just making a bit of everything from herbal products. I made me the jewelry and I made baby hats. Whatever inspired me or I wanted to create. I sold it on Etsy with not a clue where this was going to go, you know, as a stay-at-home mom to three boys, you know.
Speaker 2:And since then I've decided to focus on one thing, because I had three businesses at one time, raising three children, and I just thought what the hell am I doing? I can't do all this thing. All these things, it's just impossible. But eventually decided on just what my one thing was going to be that I could have the greatest impact doing. That was the most important thing to me. So I eventually let go of being a photographer, I eventually let go of being a birth doula and decided to focus on herbalism and the products that I was creating in the marketplace and the value where they were hanging.
Speaker 2:So since then I've been doing this I would say full time since 2015. But it really started for me as a hobby in 2010. But 2015, I realized the potential of what I was building and that I really needed to focus on just that thing. But since then, I've opened my first herbal apothecary location in 2018, the first one in Delaware, and then I opened another one in fall of 22 in Maryland and the Annapolis DC area. And so online now to ship to every state and 61 countries, which is bananas to think.
Speaker 1:That's awesome. Oh, so where can people find your apothecaries, like what town and everything so, or the website, so people can get that right at the beginning too.
Speaker 2:Yep. So our website is euphoriceurbalscom and I know it's a little bit hard to spell sometimes and hard to say. I never imagined when I was creating this what it was going to become. I might've thought about something different for a name, but I wanted people to experience happiness and euphoria in their healing and wellness journey. So it's E-U-P-H-O-R-I-C. Herbals with an S at the endcom, and my apothecary brick and waters are located in Milford, delaware, which is central Delaware, and then we also have one near Annapolis is technically Edgewater, so we kind of serve all of Delaware with our Delaware Apothecary location and then our Annapolis one is right between like Baltimore and DC area, so we kind of pull from that area.
Speaker 1:Wow, two great locations. I mean, they're so central, there's got to be a good amount of foot traffic. But I've got to tell people I've seen some pictures of your apothecary. I am eventually going to, I'm swinging by at some point, and they're so beautiful, it's so inviting. Like, what was your, was that idea of euphoria? Was that really like what you were thinking when you were designing the space? Did you work with a designer? Is this all just like pulled out of your head in one section after another? Like, how did you come up with such beautiful spaces?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it was. Really I didn't work with a designer, it was just all of me. But I think I kind of gleaned from my photography and branding experience as a photographer thinking about how does this look, how does this feel? And from traveling over the years.
Speaker 2:Before I opened my first broken mortar, I would travel to any place that sold herbs or teas or anything holistic, and I would drive to neighboring states around Delaware and what I often found is that sometimes they were too dark, they were too cluttered, it was hard to find things or it kind of felt like a hedge shop and I was like, if someone is starting on their health and wellness journey, they're not going to feel comfortable walking into something that feels like a head shop to me or like a smoke shop, like they're not going to feel comfortable that.
Speaker 2:So I wanted to make sure it was bright, it had modern and clean and the colors were warm, and so I wanted to make sure we do have people that will walk in and they'll go. Oh my gosh, it feels amazing in here, and I think that's a combination of a lot of things, obviously, besides the good energy and intention that we're putting in and the amazing team of people that I have working at these locations. I think it's the color, I think it's the aesthetic, I think how things are merchandised and laid out. Of course, it's the smell of all the things that smell so great from soaps and essential oils and herbs and teas. So I think it's all of those things that make for an inviting space where people can feel comfortable, regardless if it's they're new to holistic healing or if they've been on this journey for a while.
Speaker 1:Oh, I cannot even agree more. Like I, through the years I've probably been into a few hundred different apothecaries in the United States and worldwide and one of the things I noticed about a lot of them in Europe is that they did have that clean, open, airy feeling which in the US you don't get. And I didn't want to go into a head shop looking place to buy my herbs because I kind of felt like how long have they been here? Are they moldy and musty? And when you're in a space that's really clean and really inviting, it's it's gotta be like oh, I know exactly what I want. I can see the quality there's no dust, there's no cobwebs. I mean like I I'm just really applaud you for like taking that step and making like what looks like just like incredibly looking spaces.
Speaker 2:Yeah, thank you. Thank you so much. It's definitely been a journey. From each time I got a hold of the physical space and trying to transform it into that has been, especially with two different spaces, I learned so much opening two brick and mortar stores, you know, and they're a little bit different, you know, like one is twice the size of the other to allow for events. The other one, the first one that I opened, is half the size. It's about a thousand square feet, which might seem like a lot, but really it's not. When you get groups of people in there, it gets really cluttered very fast. So I knew with opening my second one that I needed to allow for hosting events, that there could be more mobility and more space for people to move around in there, especially if they had strollers or wheelchairs or kids, that they weren't going to bump into one another and then allow for me to open eventually the smoothie, tea and kombucha bar, like we have in the Delaware one.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that.
Speaker 1:I love that you're thinking about ways for all of your customers to have a good experience If they've got a stroller, if they're in a wheelchair, a walker there's all different kinds of mobility things stroller, if they're in a wheelchair, a walker there's all different kinds of mobility things and sometimes herbal spaces are not easy for them to get into. And so I just love that, because, to me, I would have loved that when my kids were little and I had like one on my back, one on the stroller, like I wouldn't have to worry about knocking everyone over as I walked through this space. What a cool, what a cool way to present and think about space. So I've got to tell you, I just think everyone who's thinking about opening an apothecary needs to go and visit you and see like okay, this is a good way to do this, this is you know, and to take them, to then take their attention to their community and do whatever. Or maybe one day you'll franchise, maybe you'll be like the first herbal apothecary franchise in the United States or something.
Speaker 2:I've actually gone through the franchise development process and I've gone through that to franchise my apothecary Right now.
Speaker 2:What I've realized going through that, I did that before I opened my second brick and mortar, which was fine, but I felt like if I had opened my second brick and mortar before I'd gone through the franchise development process, it would have allowed me to learn some lessons along the way, you know, and in preparation for the franchise development. So it's something that I definitely do want to do, because there's only so much of me and I do have people, since we do ship everywhere, people are always looking for more locations that we have, and I'm only one person, I only do so much and I can only do so much, well, you know. So it's something that I that I plan to do in the future, when I am able to free up more of me, because once I'm, you know, that's a whole nother business. Franchising it's I just have to be their biggest cheerleader and their coach, and right now I'm leading a team of people, and so right now there's not enough of me yet to do that for somebody else.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, I mean I love it. I just think it would be like such a cool model. I mean we have different kinds of supplement stores and stuff that's just not the same market, and then a lot of people think that there's a lot of intersectionality and a lot of connection in those markets, but in a lot of ways that really isn't. And so, like you know, it is a needed. It is a needed thing in our world, Thing in our world. Look at me, I am over here with all the good, all the big words. So what was your inspiration to go into herbalism?
Speaker 2:So I think for me originally it was during my first pregnancy in 2004, 2005. And I was wanting to pay attention to what I was putting in and on my body as this human being that I was growing. I thought this is really important work. I really should think about that. And that's kind of how it started was just, I was making things for myself. I have a culinary background as a chef, um, so it was so easy for me to formulate. I thought about herbal formulations as recipes and I was like, oh, I could totally make that. And then after my first son was born, you know, I was making diapointments and creams and things of that nature. And then I later worked in lactation in hospitals for a couple of years on the postpartum floor, and then I later became a birth doula. So a lot of the products that I was making were originally inspired for me, and then it was my family and it was my friends, and then it was my dual clients and it continued to grow and expand from there.
Speaker 2:And what I love having about a brick and mortar herbal apothecary it's almost like my own beta test lab, if you will. It's where I can have these great experiences and interactions with customers about what they're looking for, what they like, what they don't like. I'm constantly seeking that feedback from them all the time and how I can continually improve. You know not only the products that we make cause we make about 30 different products, um and but also the products that I carry. You know that we have at the apothecary about what they're looking for and then also sometimes guiding them. You know products that they may think that they want, but also educating them that maybe you actually don't really want that product. You might want something else. No-transcript.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, I mean, watching your career develop over the years has been so inspiring. But not just that. I mean you touched on something I think is really important, and I always say this to people when they call I'm like, hey, are you a good cook? And if they're like, yeah, I'm like you're going to be great at formulation, you know when they're worried about it. And it's cool that you brought that up because, like, the culinary world and the herbal world have been separate for so long but they're really not.
Speaker 1:We've been using food and herbs and healing since the beginning of time and they really are organically like part of the same world, and so I love that you brought that up and that you shared that, that you would have that experience, because I think it really. I think it really helps people think about herbalism a little bit differently, like, oh okay, maybe this is accessible to me. I don't have to be like this master science herbal brain. I can say I know how to, I know how to work with ingredients and food, and I think that's really beautiful. So thank you for sharing that. When you first started off on Etsy, obviously did you think it was going to be here, or were you hoping it would be here one day, or were you just kind of like I'm going to do this so I can fund my passions?
Speaker 2:Right. Well, I think it was when I first started on Etsy. It was like, well, I'm creating these things and I had a dual client. She's like, oh, maybe you should sell your products on Etsy because I would go to. I mean, I've done all kinds of events and I still do events where I did farmer's markets and I did a lot of farmer's markets. I did craft shows.
Speaker 2:If there's anything holistic in my state which there's not a lot in Delaware, it's not a very progressive state that was hard to find, find where I could sell my products at, I was there and I would even bring my baby in tow, so it didn't matter. Like I was there trying to get my products out into my community. And I love to look back and I keep pictures of how my product started because I was printing all my labels on my printer with Avery labels and I was. I was using scrapbooking materials to cut labels. I put my phone number on there. I upcycled baby food jars. I did that for a long time where I would ask friends, um, if you have baby foods, save your baby food jars, Cause I would like to use those jars for to making herbal salves and exchange I'll give you an herbal salve in between. You know, forgive me that, so I would always do that with friends and so that way I was just trying to be sustainable, keep costs down and, you know, and be mindful about the waste.
Speaker 2:And so I never imagined like eventually I did outgrow Etsy, because Etsy became really challenging for me as far as, like, what I could and could put on there, what I could and couldn't say, and that's still important. I understand even more now how the importance of that doing this for so long about the language we use and the products and descriptions, what is on the product, and try not to allude to curing, diagnosing, treating a disease of any kind. But I realized at some point like it's just not necessary for me to be on Etsy. So I eventually did go off Etsy, I went on to another marketplace and then I eventually moved on to BigCommerce and then I moved on to Shopify. I think it was 2015. I moved on to Shopify and decided to do my own website, which is just, it's a never ending project.
Speaker 1:It's a lot of work. You do have a really beautiful website, though. I mean you do have, I mean like it's really it's not only a beautiful website, which I think is important, it's really useful. So you have resources on there for parents and customers, which I think a lot of places miss out on, that way of connecting with people on a different level. So I do think that's really cool. And your product reviews, I mean I mean I almost need to start breastfeeding again just to give it. Yeah, no, my husband just had a. He just fainted. He's out in the field with the animals.
Speaker 2:He just fainted, he's out in the field with the animals he just fainted, he's like no more.
Speaker 1:But I mean it's so great that that you were able to really keep this and keep your vision and keep what was important to you and I think that's a good lesson for a lot of herbal businesses is to keep what's important to you as the herbalist, herbal businesses is to keep what's important to you as the herbalist and I mean with the apothecary, do you find that you are offering a lot of guidance to people when they come in?
Speaker 2:Tremendous amount of guidance to them, um cause. So definitely be educated. Yeah, I think that. So I did do a virtual workshop on, like um, starting your own apothecary business Cause I have a lot of questions about that. And people come to the store. We have people that travel to us from neighboring states, so we have some people that have driven as far as like four hours one way, which blows my mind that people are willing to make that trip. It's incredibly humbling and so I think it's super important.
Speaker 2:When someone is going to start an herbal apothecary, they absolutely do need basic education. You need to know more than your customers, and there's some customers who are going to come in who are going to know more than you, and that's amazing because it's a great collective learning experience and be open to that, not be intimidated that somebody is going to come in and they've been an herbalist for 30 years or they're a nurse and they're an herbalist or whatever type of functional practitioner that they are. They're going to know more than you and that's a great opportunity to learn from them. So I think it's fantastic, but you have to have basic herbal knowledge, because somebody comes in and they're looking at this wall of herbs behind me and it's got hundreds of herbs and they go.
Speaker 2:Is this all tea? And you're like, well, yes and no. And so being able to educate them on how to use the herbs, what form is best, what concentration is best if it's not a dried root, you know, maybe it's an oil, depends on what it is. So knowing how to guide and navigate someone in their health journey, what form they should be using herbal remedies, is so important. You know and being able to caution them if they're taking any medications or there might be contraindications or adverse reactions, because, as we know that herbs are natural but they are not all safe for everybody. And make sure you're communicating communicating that clearly to your customers so that way they leave feeling informed, empowered in the decisions that they're making and so they're going to come back again because you build that rapport and trust. It's's really important.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, no, I can't agree more. I think it's wonderful that people are you know um interested in the workshop that you the virtual workshop that you did, so are you going to be doing that again? Is this something like it's going to be a regular feature and people can go to your website and find out more about it? Because I think that is really needed.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so in the workshop I will be doing it again and then it will be available for anybody to watch on demand at any time soon. So that will be happening later this year, but it's so important. I've had so many questions over the years when people would come in or they go. I'd love to open a workshop. I'd love to open a place like this one day, or this is my dream when I retire. I hear that often and there's room for growth and there's room for abundance for everybody, and you can only serve so many people in your community. And so I really wanted people to feel, if that's something they wanted to do, that to do it in their community, wherever that is, whether it's in the same state that I'm in or if they're traveling from another state. So in the herbal apothecary business workshop, I kind of talk about the four foundational things that I think people really need to know before they go down this process.
Speaker 2:Having done it twice, I learned even more the second time. You know, from talking about location scouting what things to ask when looking for commercial location, choosing the best location, and then also talking about insurance, permits and licenses, and every state has different variations and nuances in every state. Some say that you can't use the word apothecary because people might think you're a pharmacy or they might think you're a dispensary. So knowing the language that you can and can't use in your business name is important. And then we talk about startup costs and talk about ongoing costs.
Speaker 2:And then there's another and education, and we talk a little bit about, like education, what research you need to do before you open your brick and mortar. So it's really the information that I wish I had had before I opened my brick and mortar, so that way somebody at least feels they have some place to start and how to launch. And I put together like a launch checklist starting back like 12 to 18 months before you actually open, cause everything. I love that. They need to know what things may be doing when, when they need to be filing for permits, when they need for licenses, you know, and so that way they're kind of insurance to look into, like when we we have a, a, a business mentorship thing, right, and it's the same kind of thing.
Speaker 1:It's like you know, it's not just about getting t-shirts printed. You need to make sure your building's accessible. Are you going to have available bathrooms? How is the lighting, you know like what kind of insurance. So I love that you've put that all together. I think that's amazing and I definitely look people. If you're going to do something like this, you need to check this out, because and how much is the cost?
Speaker 2:of that um. The live workshop is $97. That's it. That's it.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, if someone is interested in this and they don't invest in $97, then I don't know what to tell you, because that's an incredible deal.
Speaker 2:I talk about the different apothecary business model types because I think there's so many types as well, and the pros and cons of each of them, and for something for them to think through, from whether you're just doing consulting or whether you're doing retail, whether you're doing retail and events or whether you're doing retail and food and beverage service all the pros and cons of each of those that you have to think through for in advance, because otherwise you'd get started on this journey and you're like, oh, you know what, actually I don't think I want to do that or I want to change mine. You can always pivot, we can always change our mind, but before you get too far into it, it's good to consider the pros and cons of every business model. Which one's best for you, based on your skill set and your experience and your education?
Speaker 1:Oh, skill set and your experience and your education. Oh yeah, I love that. And I think the thing is is that people have to be kind to themselves, because usually you know what we always like. We find that people, people change, they start off and they're like all I want to do is be a consulting herbalist, that's all I want to do, right. And then, like a few months later, like, oh, I don't want to do that, I want to do this instead. Or and to be kind with yourself as you go through the journey and figure it out, you may be like, hey, I want to start with a tea room and all we do is blend a blah, blah, blah, right. And then you're like, no, I want to have a more full, fully functioning a puff carry. And then other people like I just really want to sell teacups only.
Speaker 2:And that's okay. And so, to be kind to yourself, did you have moments where you're like I should have been kinder to myself during this process? Yes, so I realized that after I opened my second apothecary, probably about a year into it, realizing that I made things way harder on myself than necessary Because I'm kind of like a go hard or go home type of person and I'm all in and I realized that I probably made it a lot more challenging for myself than I should have. I mean, I could have opened when opening my second location. I've been in a different state, so that's just challenging unto itself. And then more than an hour away from the other one, and then I have to go over a bridge, right. So just logistically that made it challenging.
Speaker 2:So I could have opened another location in another town in the capital of Delaware, closer to me, because I already had a customer base throughout the entire state. So that would have been kinder to myself if I had just been like okay, we don't need to go so far to have an impact. I could go 30 minutes. It doesn't have to be too far to have an impact. So that was one, a huge lesson for me going. Oh, I probably made things way harder for myself and way more expensive for myself opening in another location, but obviously it's been great character building experience and it's allowed me to learn all of these things which I'm like I got to put this in a workshop for somebody else so that way, when they're thinking about opening their own brick and mortar, apothecary things that they might want to consider.
Speaker 1:With the connection we have in the world nowadays, there's definitely no reason not to invest in someone else's knowledge to help you get to the next level you know, so something like this, I think, is amazing. I'm so glad that you offer this. There's so many things with setting up a business and since this is like a specific kind of business, I mean people are really going to have the opportunity to get your experience really really narrowed in on something. See me over here with my hands. I'm going crazy.
Speaker 2:No, but I mean, like you know, they're really going to be.
Speaker 1:You're going to help them. I'm going crazy, no, but I mean, like you know, they're really going to be. You're going to help them. You can help them pinpoint exactly where they need to go, and I think that's something that when people start business, they don't realize that they need to do. They just want to be all things, all herb all day long, all that you know, and that's really hard, you know, that's really really, really hard, and having a resource like what you're offering, oh, I would have loved that back in, like 1996.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. Well, I think it's important for people to give them to understand they don't have to be all things to all people. So just because you're serving customers and clients and they think you should offer this product or this service, you don't have to right. You know, I've had people ask about consultations and that's a totally different skill set and that's something why I wasn't entirely sure when I opened my brick and mortar, did I want to do that? Right, I didn't need a decision about that.
Speaker 2:But as I got further into it and I was like, oh, you know, that doesn't light me up and I feel like I'm not playing in my strengths, I felt my strengths are running this business. So I eventually did bring someone onto my team who's a certified herbalist, certified nutritionist, and so she's worked in my brick and mortar and now she's available for virtual consultations. So I said you know what? I don't want to do it. I'm going to have somebody else on my team who can do it and bring them into my sphere, somebody that I know and trust and that I've thoroughly vetted that they can do a good job, you know, under my brand, under my business, and so now somebody else I can refer them out when they are looking for an herbalist, for a consultation.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that. Pay the experts yes, you know, pay someone who's in love with the job to do the job right. I think that's really. I think that's really great that you shared that. But I also think it's really brave because I think sometimes, especially in herbalism, there can be at times very much a scarcity mentality and so people feel like they have to be everything to every customer and client and it's like that's one way to just wring the rag out. I mean, you're just going to be, you're not going to last long. If you, if you, want to live like that, it's really really unsustainable. So I love that you're queuing on this like sustainability aspect so it can be a lifelong career.
Speaker 2:So thank you 100% and I think it's just being honest with yourself and awareness of going. Can I do this and can I do it well and be proud of what I, what it is that I'm creating, whether it's a product or a service. You don't have to make and do everything that somebody says that you should do. You know we have enough ideas of our own that we have to say yes and no to, and we just have to be very conscious of going. What can I do within you? Know my ability and my skills and my scope that's going to do a good service to my customers.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, I can't agree with that. More so, speaking of customers and speaking of products, what are? What is your favorite product that you sell? Not? Necessarily your bestseller, like what is the one that you're like.
Speaker 2:This is my baby I know, while we are most known for our lactation supplements, because that really helped us expand it and we have over 70,000 customers that we have served, which is mind blowing. You never thought that. From Etsy you know in every 61 countries. But I feel like one of our best sellers to me is the menstrual melody tea, because of the reviews are just life-changing for people and it's incredibly humbling to read about someone's experience where they would be debilitated during their menstrual cycle. They couldn't go to bed, they were popping Motrin left and right and they were miserable and so and then they found that this tea really gave them life back to themselves during that season of the month where they could actually cope and they didn't have to not go to work, they didn't have to go engage their children helped with their hormone balancing and helped with their quality of life. So I feel like that is one of our best products as far as the tea goes.
Speaker 2:As far as topical salves, we make a couple of different salves. I feel like to me that is the awesome salve. I've had people it's been used in ways that I never imagined, so I love getting customers feedback from it. I made it originally as a diaper ointment for yeast rashes when my children were little, and I've had people use it for hand, foot and mouth disease. I've had people use it for ringworm. I've had people use it for on their pets where nothing the vet prescribed would get rid of it. So the reviews I mean I've got like 6,000 reviews on our website, which is amazing. So reading these reviews and how people use these products is. I read every single review that comes in because I wanna know what's working and what's not working and where we can improve upon. Um, so I love the feedback from the customers that we serve online and in store on a regular basis.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that. I think it is interesting how um customers will use your products in ways you've never intended. I have a story. It was 2003. We were selling some shampoos at a food co-op and so we had our phone number on it. This is back in the day, right? Avery Labels, baby. And I get this voicemail and I wish I had saved it. Then the guy's like dude, I can't tell you how much I freaking love the shampoo. Oh, it feels so awesome, my whole head's tingling. I love it, you know. And he's going on and on and he's like but it doesn't taste good though. And my husband listened to it with me and he was like, oh my gosh. And I was like okay, now I need feedback, edit the label. Not for human, but okay, now I need feedback, edit the label.
Speaker 2:Not for human pencil. Oh my goodness, yes, yes. What a learning opportunity.
Speaker 1:But it's like the reviews are. I mean, the reviews are good Even when they're not good. You can find a way to make things better and use it for inspiration. So I think it's really good that you point that out. Like we're always trying to be better, we're always trying to take things to the next level for our customers, and I really love that you infuse that into your work, because you can see that when you go to your website and you check things out, you can see that you guys are listening, and so I think that that's really important for businesses to think about. Like, how can I be better? Is there? Is there any upcoming events or anything that you want to share with our listeners that you're doing? Are you going to be starting classes or workshops soon? Anything like that? Yeah?
Speaker 2:So we have um at at our Maryland store. We do events every single month, some that we teach and some I bring in people from the community to teach Um just because we have. When you're running a retail store, you can only do so much, and also it's important to bring in experts from the community who are going to be no more in their area. And again, just minding your scope, I think is super important. So at the apothecary I teach a natural remedies for beginners. This is a great basic one. This is in person. I've done this online because, again, since I serve customers everywhere, just the basics to understand, so they feel comfortable when they walk in to understand there's herbs, capsules, teas, essential oils and how to use them and which ones are the best to use for most everyday common ailments. So that's something that I teach at the store and I've also done virtually, so I'll be doing that again for my customers. And then so in our Maryland store. So we have a make and take fire cider workshop. I have somebody else that works at the store and she teaches a detox your home class, and so that's all about like, what are the toxins that are lurking in your home and the toxin burden that's building from, yes, your plugins, your air fresheners, your laundry detergent, your pots, your pans but what are some ways you can identify where these are hiding in your home and make healthy switches and your cleaners? So I let her teach that, because she does a great job at that, and that is all on her. And then I have people that come in to teach. I have another herbalist in the area and she's going to be teaching a class on spiritual herbalism. It's a three-part series class and that's in person, and so she is an ancestral herbalist, and so I am super excited for her to teach about spiritual herbalism, because that is not my wheelhouse I would not even know where to begin on that, and so I'm super excited to feature her. And then we have somebody coming and teach a class on yoga and breath work. So those are some of the classes that we do regularly, and then we'll do more.
Speaker 2:And then online, I will be relaunching another online course how to grow your handmade products. So that's something I feel super passionate about because of my skills I had learned when I started making these products as just a hobby. I never imagined that I would have to teach other people how to do them, that I would figure out how to scale them, that I would scale them away, that whether I'm making it in-house, so I have a warehouse and I have a team of people that work there. When I say team, it's two or three people, it's not a massive team, we're still a small team. But how do you grow your handmade products so that way you can build them, so that way, if you need to teach other people how to do that, how do you figure out the cost of these products? How do you figure out how to price them? How do you figure out the psychology of pricing? How do you know how to sell them online Marketplaces, your own website, social media, events?
Speaker 2:So this is another course that's called Handmade Business Mastery for Beginners. Yeah, so I want to teach people how to grow and scale their handmade business because I mean, I've learned that over. I mean I've developed products that have been able to accumulate more than 70,000 customers and grow my business to more than $5 million in revenue through direct-to-consumer not selling on Amazon and with some wholesale partners and just my products alone. So that's something I want to teach people If that's what they want to do grow their handmade products if they're trying, whether that's jewelry or whether that's hat making or soap or whatever it is that they're creating, they want to grow and scale it. I'd love to be able to coach them through that.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's awesome. Oh, I'm so excited. I'm so excited you were like the perfect person to do that. You know, I think that and I'm sure you talk about this in that class. But, like, one of the problems is when herbalists are starting out, they're like I'll sell more if I price it at $2 and it costs me $1.79 to make. And it's like, and I'm always telling students no, don't you know, don't do that, don't do that. And I love that that you're. You know, you're going to have a resource for people so we can say go to go, go check out this class. That's specifically about this thing that you're trying to do, because I think sometimes people think one class should teach them everything in the whole wide world about you know things, and it just doesn't work that way. There's too much detail and information, so that sounds like a really detailed class.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, much detail and information. So that sounds like a really detailed class, yeah, yeah, and I'm breaking it up into three different parts because there's so much from like if I put everything I've learned into one single class, like one area from like shipping 9 million pages, it would be so much.
Speaker 2:And we have shipped. I've learned we do our own fulfillment at our own warehouse and so I've created so many systems within a warehouse from a manufacturing schedule you know, from shipping systems and to build those systems and how to teach others how to do what you've created. So it's one thing when you're one person doing everything and I've been there and done that and I still do probably way too much of my business but it's really important when you're growing your handmade products that you kind of have a plan on how to grow and where to grow. How do you bring sales in person and online? I still do community events. I still do advertising because it's so.
Speaker 2:Even though I have grown my business in such a way online, I can't take for granted, just because of that, that I assume that people know about my brand. They don't. So I still get out into my town where my apothecary locations are. I still set up as a vendor with a lot of our products featured that we make and manufacture, but also just branded awareness for the apothecary and the other things that we offer, even if we don't make them. I want to make sure that we are a resource in the community so people get to learn about us.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that and I think it's important to remember even though everything is everything's online, everything's online right, that doesn't mean that the impact that you can make in your community as being a valued business in your community doesn't exist. You know, it's like it's so important for herbal businesses to have everyone in town know who they are, because it really helps give validity not to the only just the field, but but to the education and the practices. And you know, yes, this person is offering a viable business that benefits our community because you're paying taxes, you're, you know you help keeping the lights on in the city by all your hard work and it makes the community have ownership. You know they want you to be successful and they want you to, you know, be considered a contributor and I think it's good that you do that and you go out and let people know hey, we're here.
Speaker 1:We participate because it isn't just like truck driving companies that participate. You know, it's all of us out there, you know. So I love that you are doing that and and being visible that way. Yeah, absolutely yeah.
Speaker 2:And I still say a lot, say yes to a lot of different events. You know and I think that's important um, that people want to get to meet the owner. They want to get to meet the formulator um.
Speaker 2:Whether you have a brick and mortar apothecary or whether you're just a handmade business, people are. You need to get out in their community because people need to connect with you and who you are and why you make what you do and the impact that you're going to have. You can you don't want to hide behind the screen all the time. You need to connect with your customers and your potential customers. That's really important.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that. Well, thank you so much. I'm so. I'm just so glad we were able to get this all sorted and scheduled, because I think that what you're bringing into the herbal world is very inspiring for new students. I think it's inspiring for herbalists that are you know. Oh, I'm thinking of retiring and I'd love to open. A lot of our students are in the retirement age and they, like, want to start a business one day for their second act and and I think it's great that that you are going to have these resources available for people who want to do that and look at things in a different way. So that's super exciting. I'm so glad you were able to take the time and, you know, talk with us today. It's just been so great. Is there any like leaving thoughts or words or wisdom that you would love to share with our listeners?
Speaker 2:I think it's important. I love the quote do what, do what you can with what you have Right? So sometimes I think we're so scared to put our products or services, whatever out in the world because it's the first edition, it's the first version of it and we're like, oh, I know it could be so much more Right. So put your ugly out there and do it and know it's going to improve. You know, if you I mean you can find products, pictures of the products that I created when I first started and I have revised them multiple times, over and over and over and just keep working at it.
Speaker 2:I think that's really important. Don't give up on it just because it doesn't look the way that you think it's going to or it doesn't present the way that you're wanting to. I mean, I'm launching these courses. This is a whole new type of arm of my business, if you will, and there's a lot for me to learn and I'm like I'm just starting, so giving myself grace in that I'm just starting. I'm just learning this. This is a different way I can serve my customers and my clients, but it's going to get better and just be stick to it and just continue to improve over time and that you're not going to master it in three months or three years. This is just part of the journey.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean we're, we we've rewritten all of our manuals probably about 15 times, so I get that you always have to like you know I talk funny, so I write funny. You know, like I just I don't know I lived in like too many places to have a regional dialect or thought process and so, yeah, like I have to learn and and rephrase things and go through and my materials over and over again, and you know you have to do that with products too. I mean your materials are your products, but I mean like so I love that you're saying put the. You know you don't have to strive for production, not perfection. Get it out there, then fix it. You know, always, always be better. And I love that you shared that, because I think it's important for students to like hear that and be like okay, it does not have to be perfect it.
Speaker 2:You know, my little printed Avery label is a good place to start and don't be afraid of the feedback that you're going to get At first. I think when you first start it really wounds you. When you get that feedback that there's your product missed the mark or it didn't get the results or somebody had a problem with your product. I think don't take that personally. It's constructive criticism for you to use to be able to improve. So I think just kind of developing that thicker skin and just knowing it's going to be okay if it misses the mark the first time or the second time, there's room for improvement in that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I mean, and you can, definitely, you know, you can learn. It's just, that's all herbalism is is a constant path of learning, changing and growing as things alter in our field, right? So why wouldn't it be with product development and customer interactions? And you know so I think it's good that you point that out and highlight that how important that is to your business, because, you're right, there are people who probably would hear bad feedback, or maybe not even bad, just like something and and just stop, yeah, and then their greatness, they'll never be able to share it because you know cause, we're all wounded, right. We're all wounded individuals, right, no one gets out of here alive, but I mean, like you know, so I think it's that's a good thing to like remind people of. So thank you for reminding us of that. Yeah, absolutely, thank you so much for being on today and thank you for sharing so much valuable information. I just really appreciate it.
Speaker 2:Thank you. Well, thank you for the invitation and the work that you're also doing to bring you know, to be a catalyst for to bring other people to life and to realize their potential and to kind of step into this industry and this field, because it's really it's such a great beginning, because it was a beginning for me when I took the Heart of Herbs and when I think it was with my second son, I think I took it. I feel like it was like 2007,. Maybe that was the first course I took and so it was a catalyst for me and it was just for me. It was just personal education and enrichment.
Speaker 2:I never knew when I took that that it was going to turn into something beyond just my personal education, because I was just devouring all the books and I knew I needed some type of course to kind of guide me, and so it was such foundation for me and I said, once I started I was like, oh, I'm going to be on this journey for a while. I realized this is something I do not attain. I'm a natural. I do not attain herbalism. This is a lifelong journey. I have to be okay with the growth and that's that's what I still continue to do to this day. When I'm driving back and forth to my apothecary locations on my hour and 10 minute drive, I'm listening to podcasts all the time, learning and growing nonstop.
Speaker 1:Oh, yeah, it is. And I take classes all the time, like even ones about taking care of goats, even though I don't have goats, because my clients have goats and they want to be able to use herbs with their goat. I mean like I'm serious, like the extension service never gets enough of me. But I mean like I'm serious, like the extension service never gets enough of me. But I mean like you know. So I think it's good that you shared that. Yeah, it's a, it is a process, it is a lifelong commitment. No one's gonna, no one knows everything, and if they tell you, they do run.
Speaker 2:Run Absolutely, absolutely. That's a really herbal relationship.
Speaker 1:Red flag Absolutely.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. That's a really herbal relationship. Red flag Absolutely, absolutely. So I appreciate that work, the work that you're doing. It was a catalyst for me to get started on my journey.
Speaker 1:Oh well, thank you. That's really nice of you to share. So thank you so much for being here, and I cannot wait for people to hear this, because I think they're just going to be so inspired by your journey and realize that there are ways of doing things where you can honor your commitment to your community and your family and yourself, and still have a sustainable and equitable business. So thank you so much for doing what you do. Yeah, thank you, thank you, bye, bye.
