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Jelena Nikolajevic of Boketto Wellness with Ollie
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All-natural beauty and wellness products
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Nikolajevic describes her shop as a modern apothecary.
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Boketto Wellness is located in The Fan at 106 N. Vine St.
Jelena Nikolajevic was a licensed acupuncturist with a practice in New York when she decided that Richmond was a great location to open a health and wellness boutique.
New York was saturated with similar shops, she says, and the Richmond market seemed fairly open. She had visited here a few times with her boyfriend, Peter Guyre, who has relatives in the area.
“I was just really attracted to the prospect of creating a vision down here and just creating a community space,”Nikolajevic says.
In March, she opened Boketto Wellness (bokettowellness.com), in The Fan at 106 N. Vine St. She describes her shop as a “modern apothecary” and carries items including edible herbal supplements, bath and beauty items and gifts for the home.
The shop features local and national products from independent, small batch companies. Nikolajevic says she researches everything that she sells to be sure it is organic and from a legitimate source.
Richmond brands at the store include skincare products from Maven Made and Apothecary Richmond and room sprays and soaps from Pan Natural Goods. There are also silk eye pillows and wraps from Charlottesville-based Willow Knows. Nikolajevic collaborates with Na Nin to create Boketto-branded candles, and there’s also Boketto matcha tea. Items range in cost from $3 to $100.
“We’re really excited about just bringing in a lot of the talented local people who have the same philosophy,” she says.
Boketto is also home to two licensed acupuncturists, a massage therapist, and will eventually also feature an aesthetician. Nikolajevic for now is not working as an acupuncturist.
Boketto is adding an elixir bar, offering organic teas, adaptoagenic herbs and nutritional powders, and a selection of nut and seed milks. Customers may also mix their own drinks and tinctures.
“I want to create a neighborhood apothecary [carrying] good quality products … and I really want this to be a beautiful gathering space,” Nikolajevic says.
