Sudbury herbalist enters Dragon’s Den

[herbsandhelpers]

Sudbury herbalist enters Dragon’s Den

Holding nothing except a small white box containing herb tinctures, extracts and natural remedies, Becky Thomas entered the Dragon's Den.

Armed with more than 10 years of experience as an herbalist in Sudbury, Thomas pitched her business idea to produce natural first aid kits.

The Thomas Compact First Aid Kit consists of antiviral and antiseptic tinctures, oils and dried herbs for a variety of conditions.

Clove oil, for example, is used as an external pain reliever. You can rub it on skin to numb an area before pulling a splinter out. Or, use it if you have a toothache.

Thomas will appear Sept. 14 on the season premiere of the Dragon's Den.

While she is tight-lipped about how she fared on the hugely successful reality series, Thomas's voice beams with excitement over the phone as she recalls her time in the den.

A confident businesswoman and experienced natural health practitioner, Thomas conceded she was shaking as she presented her box of elixirs to the show's producers

"It was amazing, and surreal," Thomas said, adding she learned a lot during the audition and subsequent show taping.

It was a spontaneous decision to go to Toronto in May to audition for the series.

An educator and practitioner of plant medicine, Thomas wasn't actively looking for financial backing for her invention.

Thomas works closely with aboriginal youth to prepare the tinctures and oils. They work on the project together beginning with plant identification and creating the remedies.

Kits are assembled individually and its contents depend on the client's needs.

Thomas said the day before the scheduled audition, a family member suggested she head to Toronto to try out for the show she was quite familiar with already. She didn't have any first kits ready, so she pulled an all-nighter to prepare the remedies.

Once in front of the producers, she impressed them so much they called her back to present in front of the Dragons. Thomas said her target market is just about everyone.

Past clients are young and old, and generally people looking for a natural alternative.

"I do believe the interest in herbs is becoming quite popular and the interest of natural treatment and natural therapies is absolutely on a positive rise, only because of the unhealthy path people feel they're on."

She also runs the Thomas School of Herbal Medicine and is the president of the Northern Planter's Association, a group that transplants endangered medicinal plants into safer environments for future generations.

Source: The Sudbury Star