Who we are
The People’s Apothecary operates at the intersection of wellness, sustainability, and social connection. Our storefront will feature a vibrant herbal café offering organic, hand-blended teas, ceremonial matcha and cacao, wellness lattes, and healthy snacks. Shelves will be lined with bulk herbs, tinctures, wellness kits, crystals, and candles - tools for everyday healing, ritual, and spiritual care.
Beyond the storefront, we’ll offer a robust lineup of community classes: herbalism, seasonal rituals, sound healing, yoga, breathwork, and children’s nature-based art and science camps. This multifaceted model creates not just a business, but a lifestyle brand with recurring revenue through memberships, events, and education.
About Kayla
It all begins with a dream.
Kayla Westerlund is the founder and heart behind The People’s Apothecary. Kayla brings over a decade of experience in herbalism, native plant gardening, environmental justice, and community service.
A lifelong student of herbalism and medicinal gardening, Kayla has spent years blending her scientific knowledge with deep plant intuition — designing healing, edible, and pollinator landscapes that nourish both people and the planet. Her passion for plant medicine is woven into every corner of the apothecary.
As a single mother raising her daughter in St. Paul, Kayla is deeply rooted in the belief that healing should be accessible, joyful, and community-centered. She created The People’s Apothecary as a space where wellness, ritual, education, and connection come together — a reflection of her lived values and lifelong mission to care for land and people alike.
Her work is grounded in the belief that when we reconnect with nature, we reclaim our power — and when we gather around tea, ritual, and plants, we begin to heal together.
Land and Cultural Acknowledgement
We want to acknowledge that plant healing traditions come from Indigenous communities across the world. We also recognize that The People’s Apothecary is located on the ancestral and contemporary homelands of the Dakota people. We honor the Dakota as the original stewards of this land and acknowledge their enduring relationship with the plants, waters, and ecosystems we are privileged to learn from and live alongside. The People’s Apothecary was founded by a single mother, a white woman born and raised here on this land, which has shaped her spirit, nourished her body, and called her into purpose. This land is not just where she lives - it is her home and her teacher. The plants have whispered wisdom to her since childhood, and through The People’s Apothecary, she offers that wisdom in service to her community. She practices the art of plant medicine with reverence, humility, and a deep commitment to honoring her ancestors and Mother Earth.