Native Botanicals

Native Botanicals was founded by Shilo and Shawna Clifford, who began creating traditional remedies with the goal of sharing the healing benefits of Lakota medicines with their family. Shilo and Shawna are Oglala Lakota from the Badlands of South Dakota and have been growing medicines for about 15 years, using knowledge that was passed down to them from mentors and elders in their community.

During the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, their business grew in response to the need for traditional medicines and products that were easy to share with their community. Since then, Native Botanicals has focused on increasing access to traditional Indigenous medicines and giving their community the ability to have more health and wellness choices.

In addition to their traditional remedies, Native Botanicals also uses a portion of their profits for replanting initiatives, ensuring medicines are replanted for future generations. The replanting efforts also aid with habitat loss and over harvesting, which has been a threat Indigenous medicines in recent years.

NDN Fund worked alongside Shilo and Shawna to provide power building resources that helped build the capacity of the business and prepare for the loan. After some preparation, the $500K SEEDING (Social Enterprise & Economic Development for Indigenous Growth) loan from NDN Fund was ready to be underwritten and funded. Native Botanicals plans to build a small manufacturing facility on the reservation to increase production capacity and be a hub for replanting initiatives and educational efforts. The expansion will allow Native Botanicals to share the healing power of Lakota medicines with more communities.

For more information, visit their website at https://realnativebotanicals.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/realnativebotanicals
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