EDGEWATER -- When major flooding hit DMApothecary twice in its first two years in operation, owner Deirdre Austin thought it might end her business.
The water wrecked Austin's homemade soaps and caused the ceiling to collapse. It forced the apothecary to close down for 11 months out of its first two years in business, while the business still had to pay rent.
During the months the store was closed, Austin kept her online shop going and held pop-ups at festivals during the summer. It also allowed Austin and her son, co-owner Matthew Walcott, to retool the business.
Now, DMApothecary is reopened at 5230 N. Sheridan Road and has debuted a tea bar, where the mother and son make healthy tea drinks and sell loose-leaf teas.
The business has launched a line of homebrewed health teas and converted half the store into a tea bar with seating areas so customers can try flavors. It has 36 teas in stock, including blue raspberry, lemon myrtle and peach hibiscus.
"I started this expansion of teas because I wanted flavorful teas, and I really think about people having an experience when they drink my tea versus just drinking tea to feel better. Medicinal doesn't always have to taste medicinal, right?" Austin said. "I don't want my elderberry syrup to be just a cold and flu remedy. I want to help you with breathing. I want to help you if you have pain. I want to help you sleep. So, I always layer on when I'm making brews."
Austin added teas and herbal remedies to her wheelhouse when she was diagnosed with kidney failure, and she credits her tea consumption with helping her overcome it. She then decided to share her remedies with the community
"It was really just to get myself healthy and keep myself out of the ER," she said. "The whole line is all designed to keep the body as alkaline as possible but also help to lower blood pressure and cholesterol and keep your liver, kidney and colon working as functionally as possible."
DMApothecary was opened by the mother-son duo in September 2022. The D stands for Deirdre and the M for Matthew, her 23-year-old son, who recently graduated from Columbia College. A graphic designer, he painted the flower and leaf murals on the walls and designs all the T-shirts for sale.
Making her own plant-based soaps has been Austin's passion since she was 8 years old and learning recipes from her grandmother. When Austin grew, she kept up the hobby, making her own lotions and beauty products to help manage her allergies.
After a long career in big-box retail, Austin was encouraged by her mother to start an online apothecary shop in 2014. After her mother died two years later, Austin retired and began working to bring a storefront into reality.
The business suffered some early hardships, with flooding causing it to close in early 2023 and again later that year.
The closures caused confusion for some customers and neighbors, Austin said.
"A lot of people were shocked to see us at the markets because they assumed we were gone, and I know that because I don't see a lot of the same people coming back," she said. "But the community has been great. We've become a little neighborhood gift shop, so that's helped us a great deal."
With the flooding issues hopefully in the past, Austin is excited to start a new chapter for her business. A ribbon cutting was held at the renovated store in early September.
For Austin, celebrating those two years of resilience feels important because they survived through community support. She still keeps monitors scattered around the shop to catch water before it does any damage. Near the register, a blue piece of tape stuck to the wall marks how far the water rose during the flooding.
If the tea business takes off, DMApothecary could build on that line of business, Austin said.
"I'm hoping this is a pivot into the right direction," she said. "We're looking forward to expanding into another location and taking teas to another level so people can drink healthier."
DMApothecary is open noon-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and noon-5 p.m. Saturdays.