A downtown Loveland resident has opened up a new shop in the storefront that once held Dickens Alley, operating as an apothecary for those looking to deal with various health issues as well as an “integrated wellness clinic” offering services from local practitioners. The Stinging Nettle — named after the nettle plant — officially opened in the storefront Saturday, coming just a few months after Dickens Alley owner Don Pierson closed his doors . “I want to be a resource,” said owner Ali Bockelmann.
“I want The Stinging Nettle to be a resource to the community where we can get education and we can get help on supporting people wherever they are in their wellness journey.” Bockelmann is not new to serving clients with holistic wellness. The certified clinical herbalist started Rooted With Ali in 2018 with “a vision to bring natural skincare and wellness alternatives to families struggling to find solutions,” according to the company’s website.
She said she started this business after working to help the ones she loves. She said her children dealt with a lot of allergies and chronic eczema as they grew up. She said despite her use of traditional medicine, nothing was helping, so she tried to find a solution on her own.
“I started formulating skincare products in our household with ...
minimum ingredients for maximum results to give my kids some relief,” she said. After years of running the business online and selling her products at various stores in the region — eventually adding a private practice to the mix — she eyed having an official storefront, which she found after Dickens Alley closed its doors. The space has now switched from antique store to apothecary, with a wall of various herbs and ingredients along a side wall as you enter.
She said for her portion of the business, she provides skincare and wellness products that are made in-house. Clients can also meet with Bockelmann to discuss problems they may be having and her recommendations for potential holistic treatments. She explained that the name of the store also came from her journey into learning about various plants and their medicinal properties.
She said that initially nettle was a plant she avoided since it is known to “sting” people when touched. She said, though, that once she learned more about it and understood why it did that, she was able to better appreciate the plant and even harvest it safely. She said this worked itself into the name as a metaphor for confronting and walking through things that may be difficult on one’s wellness journey.
But it is not just her in the store, as she has welcomed in other practitioners who provide a variety of services, including massage therapists, a psychologist, a midwife and a holistic esthetician. “I wanted to bring everything together, and what I found working with clients is I am not the only person they are working with,” she said. “It takes a team, so I wanted to create a space where we could bring a variety of services and different types of practitioners to the downtown community and work as a collective to support everybody as a whole.
” Those practitioners take up the second half of the building’s space, with walled off areas in the back, a waiting area up front and even a small section of desks where classes can be held. Bockelmann said having a space that provides multiple health and wellness professionals, creating the integrated wellness aspect, allows for people to address mind and body in one place. “It’s impossible for one professional to know everything,” she said.
“Like we say in the mom world, it takes a village. I feel it’s the same way in the health and wellness community. People need to feel supported and to support their mind and body.
” Bockelmann said things have been great since opening the doors officially over the weekend, with customers already coming in and enjoying the space. This was the case Tuesday morning, as several people stopped by to get a massage or learn about the store. Johnstown resident Elizabeth Norton came in with some of her family visiting from out of town.
She said that she was interested in natural health and wanted to learn more about what the store offered. “It’s beautiful,” she said. “And it smells so good.
” Lina Thompson, who owns her own small apothecary business Heart + Lore, said was excited to see the store open in downtown, adding she not only loves what Bockelmann is offering but also getting to support another small business. “Loveland has a want and a need for what she’s providing,” she said, later adding,”Her vibe is my vibe.” As she looks forward to having a business in Loveland, Bockelmann said she hopes The Stinging Nettle will be a place of resource and community.
“I want to offer education, I want to bring people together, and I want to help people find their own place on their wellness journey in however I can support that,” she said. The Stinging Nettle, 238 E. Fourth St.
, is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.
m. Tuesday through Saturday and 11 a.m.
to 4 p.m. Sundays.
More information on Bockelmann can be found at rootedwithali.com ..
