City of Norwich Mayor Shawn Sastri, stands with A Little Herbal Shoppe Store Owners Priscilla Blydeneurgh and Patience DeMun after discussing the challenges of the pandemic. (Photo by Zachary Meseck)

NORWICH – A Little Herbal Shoppe had its struggles as the pandemic continued, but was able to stay open thanks to its loyal customers and the support of its community.

A Little Herbal Shoppe is a mother-daughter run by Priscilla Blydeneurgh and Patience DeMun located at 24 South Broad Street in the City of Norwich.

According to A Little Herbal Shoppe co-owner Blydeneurgh, there were several major challenges that her business and many others like it faced during the pandemic including gathering accurate information, reaching customers, and keeping everyone safe.

She met with City of Norwich Mayor Shawn Sastri to discuss her business’ challenges, and how the area could be better prepared for an emergency like that in the future.

“I remember when that day came and we had to close due to Governor Cuomo’s order, we didn’t want to close our doors because we weren’t sure what was going to happen next,” said Blydeneurgh. “We love what we do, but it was scary not knowing what the future held.”

“We had to make the decision, do we scale back or do we expand, what are we going to do?”