Career Options For Herbalists

Clinical Herbalism

• Start a private practice, work in an integrated clinic, or an affordable community health clinic.
• Integrate clinical herbalism into an existing practice as an Ayurveda professional, acupuncturist, chiropractor, nurse practitioner, physician, midwife, massage therapist, physical therapist, or other health care practitioner.

Develop Herbal Products

• Make herbal tinctures, tea blends, syrups, honeys, elixirs, oils, vinegars, and bitters
• Mixed drinks, natural sodas, and herbal confections (such as herbal chocolates or ghee)
• Herbal preparations for animals
• Natural body care products: herbal soaps, lotions, salves, body butters, bath salts, body scrubs, infused oils, etc.
• Botanical-based products (clothing, bags, notebooks, calendars, notecards, etc.)

Herbal Products Retail, Marketing, and Sales

• Proprietor of a brick-and-mortar herbal store, or online herbal store, or botanical themed store, selling herbal products, books, tools, supplies, and merchandise for botanists, herbalists, and wildflower enthusiasts
• Retail position in the health and beauty care (HBC) department of the health food store or an herbal store
• Growing or selling bulk fresh or dried herbs on a farm or nursery.
• Sales representative for an herbal products business
• Marketing for herbal businesses and conferences (social media, search engine optimization, writing copy, graphics, press releases, etc.)
• Employment in an herbal products business: sales, product development, photography, graphics, website development, manufacturing, good manufacturing practices (GMP) compliance, buyer, quality control, customer support, farm management, marketing, labeling, etc.

Teaching + Herbal Education

• Proprietor, administrator, or instructor at an herbal school, community college or university (ethnobotany, botany, medical herbalism, etc.)
• Offering community classes at free schools, community centers, co-ops, etc.
• Educating nurses, physicians, and other health & wellness professionals about herbs.
• Hosting or marketing an herbal gathering or conference
• Teaching basic herb skills, herbal first aid, at botanical gardens, arboretums, community gardens, camps for children
• Plant-related adventure travel, primitive skills gatherings, plant walks
• Online herbal education

Herbal Writing + Blogging

• Writing herbal-related books: therapeutics, medicine making, tea blends, medicinal herb gardening, etc.
• Writing articles for blogs, newsletters, newsprint, magazines, etc.
• Start an herbal blog (monetized through advertisers and sponsored posts)
• Hosting an herbal radio or TV show

Herbal Research

• University or government-funded research on medicinal herbs, constituent testing, clinical trials, population studies, etc.
• Ethnobotanical research on traditional uses of herbs
• GMP testing in a product-based business
• Quality control in a product-based business