Sarah
223 N College Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80524
“When I was little, I would make potions in my parents’ yard. I would go pick plants, and I would make potions and try to get my family members to drink them—which they never did, which was good cause I’m sure those plants were not safe—thinking I could cure them.”
Sarah’s childhood curiosity turned into a career. She is now the longtime founder and owner of Golden Poppy Herbal Apothecary in Fort Collins.
She’s lived in Colorado for most of her life. As an undergrad in Fort Collins, she began studying naturopathy, but she grew discouraged by the fact that, at the time, Colorado didn’t license naturopathic doctors.
“I ended up Google searching herbalism because I know that herbalism is a big part of naturopathy, and I discovered there was such a thing at the time as herb schools . . . and one of them happened to be in Boulder”—her home town.
“I called the program director—this was on, like, a Thursday, and the program was starting on Monday—and I asked if I could come to sit in on the first day of classes and see if it was something I was interested in. Halfway through the first day, I was like, ‘Oh yeah, this is what I’m supposed to do.’ . . . But my mom’s like, ‘What are you doing? What is an herbalist?’”
Herbalism wasn’t popular back then. But Sarah believes her early hop onto the trend helped her store succeed: as she made her way through school, she realized that her old college town lacked an herbal apothecary—it was the perfect market.
“I knew there had to be other people up here like me who are really interested in plants and natural health, and nobody was doing it yet.”
Sarah started Golden Poppy to create a space where she could talk to people about her passion—and then help them on their healing journeys. She’s met challenges, such as learning how to manage employees and working inside COVID protocols. The pandemic was a strange time for the business: “People expected us to have a lot of answers that we didn’t have. People expected us to have some herbal remedy for COVID or prevention. But we didn’t know anything about it either.” Then, as pandemic protocols began drifting away, Sarah and her fellow herbalists saw many “confrontational customers.”
But political diversity doesn’t bother Sarah. It’s part of why she loves Colorado, and as more people flock to make the mountains their home, she remains open minded—even when change brings new irritations.
“I grew up camping, and I never had to make reservations for camping. Now, if I don’t book reservations in January for my summer plans, I don’t get to go camping. And that’s been a weird and obnoxious shift. But also, I recognize that it’s amazing that more people do want to experience nature, because I feel like the more people who want to be out in nature, the more people who will care about it and work to protect it.”
There is one aspect of her home state’s culture that she hopes will always remain the same: friendliness.
“It’s not like southern hospitality–style friendly, but it’s also not East Coast gruffness. We’re welcoming, we’re open, and we’re kind in a very down-to-earth, genuine way. I just hope that it continues to be that way.”
