COSHOCTON − As a child, Kaitlyn Soles would pick dandelions with her grandfather, Mike Hindel of Conesville, and they’d fry them in a pan to make dandelion sandwiches.
She became interested in what else nature had to offer and learned lavender could help with anxiety and rosemary was good for your hair when put in an oil, as examples.
“I kept going down this path of ‘this is out here, so why aren’t we using that,'” Soles recalled.
That led her to learn about the occult, which had her starting the American Occultist website about a year ago. She recently opened a storefront at 422 Main St.
“A lot of people say this stuff is satanic, evil or wrong. I don’t think it is,” Soles stated. “It’s a practice to me…A lot of this stuff is mostly for healing and usually used to make you feel better.”
Not what people expect
The shop sells a variety of selected ritual tools and occult supplies intended for regular practice, study and personal work. This includes crystals, jewelry, candles, incense, oils, home decor, books, boxes, chests and much more. She wants to add more herbs and pottery items, like offering bowls and plates, in the future.
“I’ve had a few people say, ‘We don’t need a store like this.’ It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but we’ve had a pretty good amount of people saying, ‘I’m so glad there’s a store like this in town,'” Soles admitted.
Bailey Hemrick of Coshocton jokes about how she has an affinity for shiny rocks, that’s been her entry point, but she sees the new store as a way she can learn about other occult subjects. Previously, she’s ordered such items online.
“Having somebody who is knowledgeable here in town you can come in and ask questions to is nice,” Hemrick shared, as Soles has 12 years experience as an occult practitioner.
Offering the hard to find
Soles works the store with help from family and friends. Inventory for the online store was outgrowing her home, which led to the retail outlet. She began selling products because some items she wanted were hard to find, like star anise used in simmer pots.
“It went from ‘I can’t find stuff I need,’ to ‘let’s open a story and offer stuff people will need … so they won’t have to worry about where to find it,'” Soles said.
“I want people to feel welcome when they come in. This store is for everybody,” she shared.
The store is located at 422 Main St. is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday. For more information, call 740-295-9432, email support@americanoccultist.store or visit the store on its Facebook page or website. Customers can purchase items on the website and pick them up at the store.
Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with more than 18 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on X at @llhayhurst.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Challenging assumptions. New store highlights healing side of occult
Reporting by Leonard L. Hayhurst, Coshocton Tribune / Coshocton Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
