Local store offering homemade natural remedies opens second location

RIGBY – When Toby and Stephanie Hayes opened an apothecary and herb shop in 2021, they never thought it would last long. But after four years of operation, there’s now a second location, and they’re hoping to add a third one in the near future.

Modern Hippie opened its second location at 118 West Main Street in Rigby last month. It sells a variety of natural, homemade healing remedies — everything from teas, tinctures and salves to elderberry syrup, an immune support supplement, the company’s most popular product.

“We make — at last count — about 475 different products,” Toby tells EastIdahoNews.com.

Toby says that when they opened their initial location at 3867 East 12 North off County Line Road in Rigby, he thought it would only last six months. Today, they have a large clientele and have shipped products to customers worldwide, as well as to 45 different states.

Stephanie is the brains of the operation. She grew up in what Toby describes as a “medically-minded family,” and her mom wanted her to be a surgeon.

However, Stephanie opted for the natural healing route.

Although she’s not a licensed herbalist, she’s spent decades researching the healing properties of plants. Helping patients treat ailments with natural remedies is her passion.

“She grew up in Arizona and southeastern Utah and learned from medicine men on the Navajo reservation,” Toby explains.

Stephanie’s awareness of alternative treatment options stems back to her childhood. She had childhood asthma, along with strep throat and tonsillitis, and was constantly taking medication.

“I got tired of taking all the meds and pills,” she says.

That’s when Stephanie discovered an alternative solution from the native tribes.

Stephanie tried some of their remedies, which proved to be effective. To her, it was like magic, and she was hooked.

The shop is the culmination of everything she has learned.

“People look at this as magic, and it technically is because it’s science,” Stephanie says. “It’s a little bit easier to understand herbs if you have a little bit of a science background.”

The Hayes moved to the area from South Carolina in 2019. They’d started a similar venture there at farmers markets and moved to eastern Idaho because Toby took a job with what is now Frontier Credit Union.

He’s since quit his job to run the business full-time with his wife.

Stephanie was convinced the “religious extremists” would run her out of town when she opened Modern Hippie. Micah, their 18-year-old son who runs the Main Street location, says those alleged extremists are some of their best clients.

After four years of operation, Toby says it’s rewarding to run a business with his family and provide customers with alternative solutions to their ailments.

“We have people come in who have been struggling with modern medicine. For a lot of people, this is their last resort … and to see the things that we do change their lives is the most rewarding thing,” says Toby.

The Hayes are actively looking for a place to open a third location in Idaho Falls.

The Main Street location is open from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The store off County Line Road is open the same days from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.