New owners for It's Only Natural Gifts

Though many didn't realize it at the time, last June there was a change to one of Niwot's longest-standing businesses. It's Only Natural Gifts, located next to Niwot Real Estate at the intersection of Niwot Road and 2nd Avenue, was sold.

Karen Edwards began the business with Niwot resident Vicky Dorvee in 2008 and, in the years since, it has focused on presenting healthy and unique gift giving choices, and has grown dramatically. Diane Strong bought Dorvee's interest in 2017, but this year, Strong and Edwards decided they needed a change. "We got the business to a point when we were proud of it and happy with where it was going. I think we're both ready to get out of something seasonal and transition into retirement."

New owner Ted Mueller is from Austin,Texas and holds an MBA from the University of Texas. He's worked in marketing for Dell Computers, in real estate and in a previous eCommerce business. Edwards and Strong agreed to stay on for six months after the business was sold to help Mueller with the transition, but their involvement is ending.

Mueller currently "commutes" to Colorado for his business a couple of times a month, and he's excited to see where he can take it next. "I was looking for an eCommerce business and, though I wasn't specifically looking for something in gifts, there were things that really resonated with me," Mueller said.

He said one of the things that made him most interested in the business was the careful selection of items for the baskets, mentioning one in particular. "They have gift baskets that are gluten free. My son is celiac, so he can't have gluten and so many times we'd get a gift basket and we'd have to regift it." The business has gift baskets Mueller could use personally.

Mueller plans to keep operations nearby, however, due to a need for a larger work area, it won't be in the same space it currently occupies. "I've come to realize that there's a really large following in Colorado so it's not going to move far," he said. "Probably somewhere between Gunbarrel and Longmont if not Niwot itself."

He also values the fact that many suppliers of items in the gift baskets are local to the area. Some are in Niwot and many are from Boulder County or in other places throughout the U.S. He's open to adding Niwot and Longmont suppliers and any from the area are welcome to reach out to him.

While Mueller is making plans for his business future, the transition is bittersweet for Edwards and Strong. "I'm going to miss it terribly," admitted Strong, "It will leave a huge void in my life. I think it's an amazing company. There's so much opportunity for growth. We both said that if we were doing this in our late thirties or forties it would have been the best business ever. But it's pretty labor intensive, a huge commitment of time."

With a little prompting, Strong talked about some of the most memorable gift baskets she's made. "One of the gift baskets that stood out last year was the big hug. It resonated with people. You couldn't give a hug in person, but everyone wanted a big hug. Then they customized it. A grandmother hug. A Covid hug.It was fun to see something we created become such a hit with everyone."

A big surprise for Edwards was, "Never in a million years did I think we'd be gifting a roll of toilet paper," she said."We also sold tons of homemade face masks for the first few months of Covid. They were lovingly made and donated by local seamstresses with profits going to Community Food Share."

The most recent trend in basket contents is equally relevant to what's happening in people's lives, Strong said. "Right now, we're making a lot of baskets with chicken soup, crackers, tea and ginger candies. Things to help people when they're sick."

As expected, the women are starting to consider what they'll do once they're gift basket-free. "I'm going to take a little time and figure it out," Strong said. "But I know we're looking forward to traveling."

At the same time Mueller is looking forward to spending his next years spreading cheer. "I like that it's a business that helps people express their love, their happiness," he said."I want to be involved with something that has more of a positive vibe. This is that business."