In The Hood: February
Spotting a Need
Initially, Nancy had no interest in bees. At the time, Fred, now 69, a small-scale commercial beekeeper, worked for theCalifornia Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Nancy had left what she calls her “piddly job” in hopes of starting a more fulfilling career. With Fred’s encouragement, Nancy looked at the amateur beekeeping market and saw a need for a local supplier.
“I took a class on bees, which got me interested in bee behavior,” she says. With a college degree in psychology, apiculture was a natural fit. The organization and structure of bee culture fascinated her. “Behavior of all kinds generally interests me,” Nancy says. Asher interest and knowledge base grew, the store flourished.
Initially, Nancy peddled beekeeping supplies, but “beekeeping is a spring business. We couldn’t be open year round that way,” she notes. So she diversified, adding candle making supplies and classes, health foods, gift items and soap making supplies — all rooted in bee products.
She cultivated a steady clientele for medicinal and health products, including royal jelly, pollen (used to treat allergies), raw honey and propolis(a natural antibiotic).
The charming store features a variety of candles, creams, lotions and cosmetics— among them the ever popular Burt’s Bees brand. Some years, the candle making supplies and gifts outsell the beekeeping supplies.
Honey by the Dozens
The store’s single-most important product, however, continues to be honey. SBS carries a dozen different varieties of local honey: orange, blackberry and wild-flower, as well as honeycomb, creamed honey and honey candies. In all, honey sales amount to approximately 25 percentof SBS annual revenues.
Continued...
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