As soon as someone walks into Daisy Blue Naturals, they’re immediately greeted with an aromatic smell of essential oils and some hot tea of the day.

On Feb. 1, Daisy Blue Naturals had a soft opening at their new storefront at 311 Main St. N in downtown Austin, the site of the former Belles and Beaus.

Store manager Stephanie Winter was ecstatic over the launch of the store, having been hard at work remodeling the space with her husband since May 2018.

“This is definitely a body, mind and soul focused health store,” Winter said. “We felt that people in Austin have been looking for this type of business by going to Rochester and even to the (Twin) Cities. Now, this store provides these products and accessibility that’s much closer.”

Daisy Blue Naturals, a company based in Albert Lea, opened in 2001 when Jena Thompson, founder and CEO of Daisy Blue, started making cosmetics and body care products using only natural and holistic ingredients.

Thompson originally made products in her kitchen. The company quickly outgrew the space, moved into her basement, and eventually into a 1,200 square-foot shed.

Opening up a storefront in downtown Austin was something that had always been on Thompson’s radar, as she missed the customer interaction after having mostly sold Daisy Blue products online and through consultants. By having a physical store, she felt that she could offer more diverse products that customers couldn’t get online.

“I’ve had dreams to have a wellness place like this,” she said. “We wanted to have a place where the focus would be on natural health-related wellness.”

Inside the space are shelves lined with body care products, such as lotions that target specific skin conditions like eczema, as well as teas for different difficulties related to pregnancy, such as teas to stimulate breast milk production and to alleviate morning sickness. Customers have the option of purchasing bulk teas, bath salts or soaps (even having the option of cutting their own bars and pay by the ounce) or natural cosmetics.

Hanging on displays were essential oil diffuser necklaces along with lava stone diffuser bracelets created by an Austin woman to sell in the store. In fact, Thompson shared that many of the products that are sold in Daisy Blue Naturals are from local businesses that focus on natural wellness and emphasized Minnesota makers.

“Our essential oils were all created in Albert Lea,” she said. “We’re carrying their products, showcasing them and promote their products here.”

For Valentine’s Day — or for any other occasion like a baby shower or just treating oneself — customers can create their own gift boxes to give to their loved ones made up of Daisy Blue Naturals products or some locally made pieces of art like jewelry or coffee mugs in the shape of a whale.

“It’s still a work in progress,” Winter beamed. “Signage will be made, and the store will evolve.”

A perfect partnership

Even as the store continues to take shape, Daisy Blue Naturals hasn’t picked a solid grand opening date yet. Rather, Winter and Thompson want to continue gauging what the community’s needs are before deciding.

Winter said that there was a period of time a couple of months ago that she didn’t know if her wellness store would even open in downtown.

“I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to do this,” she said. “Then I met Jena. I would not have been able to do this without Jena.”

After talking with Thompson, Winter realized that the types of products that Thompson created were something that Winter wanted to sell in her store and a partnership soon blossomed by chance and by opportunity. There’s a lot of future plans that Winter and Thompson hope to implement once traffic picks up in the store. Their overall vision was to have educational opportunities for the public to stop in and learn more about natural health and wellness, as well as possible DIY classes for making their own body and healthcare products.

“You don’t know if something is good for you or not, and with natural ingredients the risks are so slim,” Winter explained. “You want to trust what’s good for you. It’s not just about retail for me. It’s about the community learning about what we’re offering and educating them.”

Those feelings were shared by Thompson, who felt her main passion in life was to create something that’s simple, as well as maintaining the quality of life for people using ingredients that don’t harm the body.

“What drives me is how people tell me that a product made a difference in their lives,” she said. “Austin has supported us well from what I can see, and I envision people coming into the shop and learning more about the mind, body and soul experience. I want to change people’s lives and get them back on track with their health.”