As a women-owned business here in St. Augustine, Florida, it’s important to Leila Bedoian, owner of The Local – St. Augustine, to support fellow female entrepreneurs. In celebration of Women’s History Month, Leila chose a few of her favorite businesses in town that are changing the local landscape.

Declaration & Co.

First up is Declaration & Co., which was founded in 2020 by Lara Kocerka, and offers up hand-poured candles, specialty-roasted coffees, stickers, paper goods, clothes and accessories. This longstanding boutique is located at 63 San Marco Avenue in the Uptown area of St. Augustine, Florida and also hosts fun “how to” craft classes and themed shopping experiences such as “Gilmore Girls” and a holiday kick-off party called “Dashing Through the Store.” From baby gifts to birthday gifts for your bestie, there’s a bit of something for everyone at Declaration & Co.

Future Friends

One trip to St. Augustine, Florida and you’re bound to see the amazing creative work of Danielle Brodersen, owner of Future Friends, a branding house and design studio located here in the Ancient City. Danielle, as well as her husband Luke and team of designers, have created logos and branding for dozens of well-known businesses in St. Augustine, including The Hyppo Gourmet Ice Pops, St. Augustine Seafood Company, Mayday Handcrafted Ice Creams, Taberna del Caballo and Linen and Waves Boutique. And if you stay at The Local – St. Augustine, you’ll get to see Danielle’s work in-person. She painted the super cool mural on the side of the motel.

Old City Public Relations

As the only business in town that solely focuses on public relations services, Old City Public Relations has worked with dozens of clients from hotels and restaurants to area attractions and local nonprofits. Journalist-turned-publicist, Kara Pound, started Old City PR nearly six years ago when she saw that a lot of locals were doing cool and unique things, but didn’t know how to promote themselves. Today, Kara and her team specializes in press release campaigns, media events, social media influencer outreach, social media and other marketing services. 

Pink Stork

Created after experiencing her own personal challenges during pregnancy, Amy Suzanne is a St. Augustine, Florida-native and the Founder and CEO of Pink Stork, a wellness brand for women. From fertility tea to menopause hormone support pills to morning sickness sweets, Amy Suzanne offers up customized support for fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, nursing and general wellness in the form of vitamins, gummies, teas, drink mixes, topicals and sweets. All of Pink Stork’s products are USDA Organic Certified, vegan and female-formulated. You can find them online at Pink Stork or at big box retailers like Target and Amazon.

Welch Team

A widely-respected real estate team serving Northeast Florida, the Welch Team Keller Williams Realty is lucky to have Christina Welch at the helm. A Realtor since 2006, Christina founded the Welch Team in 2012 and boasts accreditations such as being a Military Relocation Professional, Seller Representative Specialist and Real Estate Negotiation Expert. The team of real estate experts that she has built not only brings top notch customer service to their clients, they are also an award-winning group of Realtors with a passion for giving back to the community. The Welch Team has been acknowledged for their work by Zillow, Jacksonville Magazine, Northeast Florida Builder’s Association and Jacksonville Business Journal. They have also contributed their time, talent and treasure to local nonprofits such as K9’s United, Best Buddies Jacksonville, Ronald McDonald House and St. Johns River Keeper.

Buena Onda Café

Serving up scratch-made vegetarian and vegan breakfast and lunch items as well as espresso drinks, specialty coffee drinks, plant powered lattes and beer and wine, Buena Onda Café in the West King area of downtown St. Augustine, Florida is the brainchild of owner Amy Tarmey. This quaint eatery with good vibes serves breakfast all day from 8am to 3pm and lunch from 11am to 3pm. Give the vegan frittata a try or opt for the tostada con huevos. You can’t go wrong no matter what you try.

Stay Awhile 

After you’ve spent the day supporting these badass women-owned businesses in St. Augustine, Florida, rest your head at The Local – St. Augustine. Located on Anastasia Island, just minutes from downtown, you can hop on one of our beach cruisers and explore the town at your own pace or rent a fun electric vehicle from one of the many vendors in our area. Our newly-renovated rooms, digital check-in and comfortable beds are ready and waiting for you.

Reserve a room today!