How one twenty-something Schertz woman took a childhood passion for tea and fashioned it into a new business.
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Story by Pamela Price
According to Arianna Heyward, the origins of her business, Flower Girl Apothecarie (Facebook | Instagram), date back to when the founder was a young girl, one with a particular fondness for tea.
“Whenever I was feeling upset or just needed to talk I always shared a warm cup of tea with my mom or my dad, when he was home,” said Arianna, whose father served in the U.S. Navy.
The humble act of sharing tea and conversation with her parents during childhood often helped return the pep to young Arianna’s step. Later, after college and working in the field of interior environmental design for a few years, Arianna found herself needed a different kind of refreshment.
“In my early twenties there were a lot of stressful things going on: relationships, friendships, health scares. One day I came across an article on herbs, and it piqued my interest.”
The article led her to do a little research, and soon she discovered that the study of herbal medicine could lead to a new career path. With the support of her parents, she did just that. Not long after Arianna finished her studies, her Flower Girl Apothecarie bloomed in late 2017.
“I often get questions about the name I chose, but I was called a ‘flower child’ as a girl. It just kind of stuck with me when I was thinking about names,” she said.
Today Flower Girl Apothecarie offers an artisan line of all-natural, organic, handcrafted small-batch teas and wellness products at area markets, pop-up shops, and online. Based in Schertz, Arianna crafts her products in San Antonio. Delicate and beautiful to behold, her signature teas are a far cry from the dry, scratchy leaves you may find in lackluster supermarket tea bags.
“Tea and tisanes can definitely be whimsical, yet there is an art to the blending of tea. Usually we think about mouthfeel, taste, and the energetic qualities of each herb used in a blend. It may take a few iterations to get the blend or ratios more or less ‘right,’ as not all tea leaves are created equal, and neither are fruits, herbs,or spices. Teaching people about tea and tisanes is something that gives me a lot of joy, and I’m looking forward to sharing my knowledge and experiences with my people. One of my goals at Flower Girl Apothecarie is to make high grade loose leaf teas accessible and less intimidating.”
Arianna also hopes to help foster wellness in her customers.
“All of the materials we use are carefully and thoughtfully selected to serve a purpose . The products we create are crafted in hopes of providing our customers with a pure, vibrant source of self-care while also utilizing the beautiful plants that God has provided us with to use to aid in our overall well-being and also for our enjoyment.”
For this enterprising young woman, self-care is more than mere indulgence.
“We only have one body so we it’s really important to take care of it. Dealing with a health scare is what made me stop and think, ‘I need to take better care of myself.’ It made me take a closer look at what I was putting into and onto my body,” she said. Arianna believes that self-care leads to better care of our loved ones, too. “If we are taking care of ourselves, it is much easier to take care of others because we’re not pouring from an empty and broken cup.”
Since she’s running her start-up business while also working full-time, Arianna said she’s learning how to juggle adult responsibilities alongside grown-up dreams. “I love what I do, and I love meeting everyone at different pop-ups and bonding over tea. I think all entrepreneurs have the moments where we wonder, ‘Am I really about to do this?’ If you have an idea, please chase after that dream regardless of your age. I’m in my late twenties now and starting the second year of my business. But I often think that if I had decided not to start when I did, I wouldn’t have crossed paths with some of the wonderful people who have become such blessings to me!”
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