Butterfly Herbs has occupied the same corner of Higgins Avenue in downtown Missoula since 1972, which makes it one of the oldest continuously operating natural food and herb shops in the Northern Rockies. Paula Gilman has been part of that story for most of it.
Gilman came to the shop in the early 1980s, drawn initially by the same things that draw most people in off the street — the smell, mostly. Butterfly Herbs has a particular aroma: dried chamomile and lavender and something slightly earthy underneath, a scent that’s become so associated with the building that longtime customers say they can close their eyes and know exactly where they are. Gilman started as staff, learned the inventory, learned the suppliers, and eventually took on ownership. The transition was quiet, unhurried — very much in keeping with the pace of the place itself.
The shop carries bulk herbs, teas, tinctures, essential oils, and a modest but carefully chosen selection of natural body care products. Nothing about the merchandising is slick. Wooden bins line the walls, hand-labeled in the same style they’ve always been. The tea selection alone runs to well over a hundred varieties, sourced from small importers Gilman has worked with for years. She’s not chasing trends. When adaptogens became a marketable word a few years back, she didn’t reorganize the whole shop around them — ashwagandha and holy basil had been in those bins for decades already.
Regulars come in with a kind of purposefulness that’s hard to fake. A woman in her sixties picks up her monthly supply of valerian root, exchanges a few words with whoever’s behind the counter, and leaves. A university student spends fifteen minutes studying the bulk tea labels, eventually asking for help. The staff, most of whom have been there for years, are patient and knowledgeable in a way that only comes from genuine interest in the products they’re selling.
Gilman herself tends to be in the shop most weekday mornings, usually found near the back, checking inventory or talking with a supplier on the phone. She’s not the type to hold court or make the shop’s history into a performance. Ask her about the early days and she’ll give you a straight answer — the neighborhood was different, the customer base was different, the conversation around herbal medicine was different — and then she’ll probably ask what brought you in.
Prices are reasonable for what you’re getting. Bulk herbs run anywhere from a couple of dollars to around ten or twelve for the more specialized botanicals. A good-sized bag of loose-leaf tea costs less than most coffee shop drinks. The prepared tinctures are pricier, but that’s the nature of the product.
The shop is open Monday through Saturday. Saturday afternoons get busy. Weekday mornings are quieter, which is when the staff have the most time to actually talk through what you’re looking for, whether that’s a sleep blend or something for digestion or just a tea that tastes good. Parking is metered on Higgins, but the shop is easy walking distance from most of downtown.
What keeps Butterfly Herbs relevant after more than fifty years isn’t nostalgia or novelty — it’s consistency. Gilman has simply kept doing the thing the shop was built to do, with the same attention it required on the first day.
