Herb's Herbs specializes in herbs, peppers
By Janet Kubat Willette
jkubat@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 05/19/2010 3:38 PM
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ZUMBRO FALLS, Minn. — How did a woman with a wall full of backstage passes from her 14 years in the music business end up selling herbs and plants from a southeastern Minnesota farm?
"The love … the joy … how do you explain the drive?" said Sandie Shores, owner of Herb's Herbs of rural Zumbro Falls. "How do you explain the inner motivation to do this?"
Shores, 65, started growing herbs by Carver in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She focused on the culinary herbs and was intrigued by them.
Her life took twists and turns, including her stint in the music business, before she found her way back to growing herbs. In 1985, she started Herb's Herbs near Rochester. At the peak of business, she was growing 10,000-plus garden herbs. She was raising 150 varieties of herbs and selling to people across southern Minnesota.
It was get bigger, grow more and earn more profits.
But "it got to be that it wasn't fun," Shores said.
She started to grow herbs because she liked putting the seed into the soil, nurturing the plant and watching it grow. When her business grew to 10,000 herbs, she was managing people and marketing instead of working in the greenhouse.
She loved the marketing.
"Marketing is my forte," Shores said.
But she needed a change. She sold her business, but not her business name, to focus on writing a book on how to start and run a herb farm. She spent five years living out a suitcase, taking her computer and her horse with her as she researched and wrote the book.
"Growing and Selling Fresh Cut Herbs" was published by Storey Books in 1999 and a second edition was published in 2003 by Ball Publishing. Chuck full of technical and hands-on information, the book is used as a textbook at some colleges and universities, Shores said.
Her itch to return to the herb business drew her back to the Rochester area. When her five-year non-compete clause from her business sale expired, she opened Herb's Herbs.
This time, she's focused on making a good living while keeping the business small enough that she can do it all herself while selling directly from the farm.
"I actually do the work," Shores said. "I mother the seeds. I talk to the plants."
She started planting seeds in late January and her farmyard was brimming with plants in late April, in preparation for her May 1 business opening.
The new place had ready-made herb gardens, 30 varieties of basil, 50 varieties of tomatoes and 45 varieties of peppers.
Shores specializes in peppers and her repertoire includes the hottest peppers from the Guinness Book of World Records.
She has many varieties suited to container gardening, including zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers.
"My goal is to get people to grow their own food as much as you possibly can," Shores said.
The world is a better place when people eat locally and growing their own food gives people a connection, she said.
"It gives us a life connection to who we really are on this planet."
Shores sends her customers home with instruction sheets on their plants. Recipes are also included. She has created 80 original recipes.
After her plant sales wind down, Shores switches her focus to selling items on eBay. She's a registered trading assistant who sells items for people looking to liquidate, especially the elderly. She also sells items she finds at garage sales.
Particularly meaningful for her were the sale of a flapper dress and a miner's hat.
The dress belonged to her client's grandmother, who wore it when she ran a brothel in Virginia, Minn. It went to a woman in England.
The miner's hat with headlight brought $2,000, which helped a woman afford to prepay her burial costs.
Selling the items is her way of helping others by giving back.
Shores also teaches herb gardening classes through Rochester Community Education, writes an article called "Savor the Flavor" in the Rochester Buyer's Guide, consults with people interested in starting herb businesses and speaks at grower conferences.
"I love my life," Shores said. "I can't imagine ever retiring."