Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in training & education but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Shana Lipner Grover, Co-Owner of Sage Country Herbs, located in Vista, CA, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

We are the Sage Country Herb School of Botanical Studies. We began as a field botany apprenticeship and have developed a hybrid online school studying the local flora of Southern California and a 2-year program for herbal medicine and nutrition.

Our customers are hikers, gardeners, campers, landscapers, herbalists, survivalists, and anyone seeking empowerment through a connection to nature and their community.

Tell us about yourself

My name is Shana, and I fell in love with the outdoors as a child after eating sourgrass while picking strawberries with my mom. Little did I know then that 20 years later I would teach others to identify and eat the same plant in the field.

After completing four herbal schools and many science courses in college, I was inspired most by my experience in the field. The difference was a connection. Learning about plants in their ecosystems and becoming bioregional aware of the food and medicinal plants was empowering and raised my quality of life.

This drives us to do what we do, so others can create the same opportunity by connecting to the abundance of their communities and resources.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

We are most proud of our relationship with local agriculture and educating people about their connection to food and medicine. Over the years, we have helped create a mutually beneficial relationship with local farms and resources to make our community more substantial and self-sustaining.

For example, we teach Eat Your Weeds workshops on farms, which encourages more people to be actively involved with where their food comes from and gives direct support to our local farmers. Some of these local farms have started including nutritionally dense edible weeds for sale at their farm stands and educating the public on how to use them.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

We started as a field school with minimal class sizes. We needed to develop an online program to bring these ideas to a broader audience. Maintaining the focus on connection but reaching out to people in different communities with online content.

This required developing a new skill set and rising to the challenge of this unique opportunity to grow with integrity.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Love what you do. It takes a lot of work, so you must enjoy it to stay passionate.

Do it with integrity.

Seek out a community to connect with. We are all stronger when we work together.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.sagecountryherbs.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SageCountryHerbs/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sagecountryherbs/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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