It’s January 18, 2019.

In a lab in Washington State, the virus soon to be known worldwide as COVID-19 has just been reported for the first time in the United States. As the news travels through the chain of command, the Emergency Operations Center begins a list of protocols designed for this scenario. It’s not a system known for speedy reactions, but only three months later, in March, the WHO declares the surging infection rate a pandemic. Over 114 nations have seen an excess of sick and scared patients, with at least 118,000 cases reported. Then, the hammer fell. Schools closed, businesses were subject to new regulations, and the world as we knew it was gone.

The change had a disproportionate impact on local small businesses and their owners, where the new regulations required that all businesses must limit their capacity and adhere to government guidelines around social distancing.

Maari Falsetto is a local business owner and founded Inner Alchemy, a healing and wellness center, here in West Seattle. When she had to impose the federal regulations, she was only allowed 2 people inside the store at a time, making it almost impossible to maintain constant revenue. However, through the constant struggles, Maari was able to maintain a positive attitude and not give up.

Maari grew up in the Capitol Hill area and has stayed close to home in her professional and personal lives; she went to college at University of Washington but also briefly did an exchange program to France. She has always been around spiritual energy in a casual sense, but she decided to embrace it and made what she loved to do her job.

Maari has had many locations, but one of the things that has never changed is the vibe you get when you walk in. A very warm and welcoming presence is always swirling in the air, and the display of the store is very aesthetically pleasing. She originally opened shop in June of 2017 in High Point, where she constantly had events and spiritual practices up until the outset of the pandemic in 2019 when she had to close shop, but even that didn’t stop her. When she was forced to close the High Point location, Maari converted the front room of her house into a spiritual zone where she could have sessions and continue her work.

None of this could have been easy. I asked her about how much of a challenge it was and what some of her inspiration was and she replied with, “Yes, it was quite a challenge coping with COVID and trying to continue my passion, but whenever I needed motivation I would just think of my kids…I would want to provide them with what they need and make sure they feel like they have a safe space.”

After all the COVID restrictions were lifted, Maari reopened her shop in Admiral across from the school. In her new shop, she has worked hard to create a warm, safe environment to help the people of West Seattle to learn more about the wonders and curiosities of the spiritual world.

To those recovering from the pandemic or beginning to plan their new businesses, she advises that they “Spend a fair amount of being with yourself to really listen to what you think is the best way to move forward with your business…I’ve seen a bunch of businesses fall to the temptation of wanting a big business and have more money going out than going in, although it depends on the individual’s business. If you have a vision and you want to make it a reality, just work hard and be smart.”

When I asked her if there was anything she would’ve done differently if she could go back, she replied, “Yes, I didn’t expect the crystal game to explode like it did, and if I knew I probably would have renewed my lease and converted more of my space into retail.”

You should visit Maari at her place of work at 3043 California Ave SW, Seattle WA 98116, or go to her website to learn more about the science of crystals at https://www.inneralchemytt.com/