The Herbal Oracle in DeKalb under new ownership as Thyme ‘N Again Apothecary

DeKALB – The alternative and holistic health service establishment, Thyme ‘N Again Apothecary, recently took ownership of the downtown DeKalb spot that was once home to The Herbal Oracle at 161 E. Lincoln Highway.

The change in ownership was made official in late December 2024, when Jennifer Thorne and Joni Joyner signed the contracts and took possession of the shop from the previous owner, Dezarae Haley.

Thorne said she and Joni were past customers of The Herbal Oracle.

She said they’re both intrigued by finding ways to tweak the customer experience at the shop.

“Our focus is more on apothecary and carrying more herbs and teas, especially herbs that can be tricky for people to find,” Thorne said.

Between Joyner and Thorne, the shop’s owners combine for about 20 years experience in making teas and natural body products.

Thorne said business has been going well since the shop changed hands.

“People are really seeming to enjoy the changes we’ve made so far,” Thorne said. “We’ve gotten really positive response to even simple things like the decorations and the layout of the store.”

Thorne said she’s found ways to improve upon things.

“The shop is not geared towards women,” Thorne said. “The shop gets a lot of different genders – male, female and others. The scents that the previous owners was making for her products was generally more feminine. We’ve seen that there’s a lot of feminine scents. ... We wanted to make sure we had something else to offer.”

One such thing she’s excited about is launching the new men’s line at the shop, Thorne said.

“We’re just trying to focus on getting scents that men will enjoy,” she said. “We’re doing things like beard oils, beard wash and other things that are a little bit more geared towards more like masculine scents, which anybody might enjoy, but just trying to make sure that we have things that aren’t all flowers and feminine.”

Another new offering at the shop is the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Bar where customers can make a product to take home.

Thorne said people can come into the store and make a bath salt.

“We have several different options of salts as well as herbs to add in for different benefits, and then they can take it home for themselves or gift wrap it have it ready to gift an item that they’ve made in our store as well as our new sample kits,” Thorne said.

Thyme ‘N Again Apothecary currently carries a self-care box that has six herbs, which are geared toward self-care and self-love.

For February, the store has a passion box, which consists of six aphrodisiac herbs. Thorne said the shop will be adding different boxes throughout the year as well.

The shop also plans to offer an advent calendar during the holiday season.

The store’s hours of operation are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The establishment is closed Sunday through Wednesday.