Meet Jennifer West | Herbalist & Holistic Wellness Practitioner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jennifer West and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jennifer, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
I’ve often wondered about the impact Plant Mama Alchemy has on the community. At the beginning of the pandemic, I got my answer. I always set an intention to serve and to be a beacon of hope in communities that could use shift in wellness. Plant Mama Alchemy provides accessibility to plant powered herbal remedies with the hopes of sparking a desire to include herbalism in everyday life.

What should our readers know about your business?
When Plant Mama Alchemy was birthed, I was still running a former business that offered similar services and products. After years of not feeling complete with that business’ structure or name, I decided to brainstorm and thus here we are. I can admit, business and passion aren’t often synonymous and there have been some extremely hard lessons along the way. I have a lot of drive to push high quality plant remedies and reconnect people with herbalism, but lacked a lot in structuring Plant Mama Alchemy to grow into self-sustainability. It’s one of those lessons that constantly beat you over the head until you do something about it. So, I signed up for some mastermind groups and go organized. There are a lot of sacrifices and financial hurdles to cross and I’ve learned that as harsh as some of these things feel, they’re absolutely worth it in the end. I’ve learned that you have to stay-the-course no matter what. If you have a vision, see that vision through. You deserve to know the beauty of living on the other side of struggle. Plant Mama Alchemy was in high demand at the beginning of Covid. When Covid hit, like many other businesses we had to pivot and figure out how to continue providing for our customers and clients while navigating these unprecedented times. From this, we birthed Sip & Plant – A Virtual Experience which offered participants an opportunity to build a relationship with medicinal plants by purchasing our at-home gardening kit and joining us for an evening on zoom with their favorite beverage. It has been such a fun ride so far! We also make sure we include a single packet of fruit, vegetables, or herbs seeds in every purchase to encourage our customers to jump on the self-sustainability train and begin growing their own home garden. We look forward to finding other ways to integrate our everyday offerings into the everyday lives of the communities we serve.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Baltimore is the only home I know and it’s full of gems deserving to be explored. The first day my bestie gets to town, we’re hitting our favorite food spot Shareef’s. Shareef’s is a halal-based experience with smacking wraps and platters for the vegetarian and the meat eater. We love to eat! So throughout the week, we’ll probably hit up The Soul & Krab House for steamed crabs and probably eat a dozen or two, and we’d absolutely have to grab a chicken box, a Baltimore staple, with salt, pepper, and ketchup from Royals, for old times sake. For the experiences of peace, we’d head over to The Green House Cafe & Flourish for some vegan eats, raw juice, and boutique finds and take a trip out to Loch Raven Reservoir for a nice hike next to the cool waters. Before my bestie heads back home, we’d hit up Baltimore’s Farmers Market & Bazaar for more food, flowers, and fruit and close out with brunch at Home Maid.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I give all thanks and praises to my late mother, Senora, my world, my foundation, and the very reason I am where I am today.

Website: www.plantmamaalchemy.com

Instagram: instagram.com/plantmamaalchemy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/plantmamaalchemy

Image Credits
Valerie West