Isaac & Seneca Mayes, owners of the new Queen Bee Gardens store in Afton, stepped into the SVI Radio studio on Tuesday, May 19 to promote their store.

(0:00) Approaching 835 this morning live on SVI radio Swift 98 and the spur heading into today’s guest interview segment this morning and Isaac and Seneca (0:10) Mays joining me live in studio right now the owners of the new Queen Bee Garden store located in (0:17) Downtown Afton Isaac Seneca. Good morning. How are you guys doing today? (0:22) Just thrilled to be here, right? Good.

Yeah. Yeah happy to be here (0:26) No, I appreciate you stepping in studio really really do congratulations on the new store Isaac (0:30) Let’s let’s start with you and and take us back to how this whole idea and concept got started (0:36) To take you down the path the opening up the Queen Bee Garden (0:39) well, so Queen Bee Gardens has been established in Lovell, Wyoming since (0:45) 1976 and I was born there and so was Seneca and we grew up with this candy (0:49) And so we’ve been when we moved here eight years ago (0:52) We’ve been trying to convince them to bring a store down here and over spring break (0:56) We were given the opportunity to to buy in and have our own store spring break as in like like a month ago (1:02) four weeks (1:04) And so we we have been asking for eight years for him to bring it and Seneca was gonna manage it (1:09) But we have this opportunity now. It’s ours.

It’s our store. We own it. It’s us (1:13) It’s operating with us, but that’s what how it did and it’s been a wild ride in the last month now (1:19) It’s it’s a cool concept because you’re using their products (1:22) But as you mentioned it’s all locally owned at least the store here in Afton is by you guys (1:27) and so let’s talk more about Queen Bee Gardens and and the honey they get and (1:32) Just just give me some more background on that.

Okay level (1:36) interesting story (1:38) Bessie Zeller in (1:40) 1976 is who started this and it’s been seller Zeller’s have been in Lovell (1:44) Forever and they started growing there or doing their own bees and harvesting their honey (1:50) And she says well, we can turn this into an old Scottish recipe (1:53) So our first candy the peak the pecan praline was invented in 1976 (1:59) It’s still our number one seller and they started making it but it’s always been a family operated (2:05) Store and operation. It’s now going more retail and we just know it’s good candy (2:10) It’s good honey, but all the candies in our store are sweetened with honey. There is no sugar in any of our stuff (2:16) It’s all sweetened with our own honey from Wyoming bees (2:19) And it is good it’s honey like you’ve never tasted before it’s creamy it’s smooth and that’s what makes our candy so good (2:28) We can take that and make our candies and our caramels are 65% honey (2:33) And they are smooth and they are addictive and they’re good.

And so that’s really what brought us here (2:39) We’ve grown up with it and it’s just we knew the valley would hopefully support us because it is good and it’s a niche (2:45) There’s no food dyes. There’s no gluten. It’s all natural ingredients.

It’s just all good. Love it (2:52) No Seneca. I was in the store yesterday and and you were showing me around (2:56) just (2:57) Product upon product upon product.

I mean you really have to go in the store and see it (3:00) So let’s start with the candies that Isaac was talking about. So Seneca tell us what different kinds of candies you guys have (3:05) Oh goodness, there’s so many there’s (3:08) Alright what we call our caramels. We have the pecan praline or I think it’s called the pecan pearl now (3:15) And then like we have a cinnamon and a mint caramel and a few other flavors of caramel (3:21) I think there’s 25 different flavors all together those and then we have (3:27) Truffles we have almond bark (3:30) It there’s all kind of list goes on and on.

There’s too many the name and and it’s there’s chocolate (3:36) I mean, it’s not just like a honey thing (3:37) I mean, it’s it’s chocolate (3:39) So like you mentioned the truffles and everything and and that’s just the tip of the iceberg with the candy (3:43) Tell us about the whipped honey and and how that all works (3:48) Well, the whipped honey is just what it says. It’s whipped. They put it in a mixer and they whip it tell it’s just a smooth (3:57) piece of (3:58) Edible goodness that you can just put on a spoon.

Yeah, I taste-tested it yesterday a couple of flavors and it’s it’s it really is (4:06) Really good. So maybe tell us some of the flavors that you have with the whipped honey. Well, we have caramel (4:11) We have just plain regular pure honey.

We have Huckleberry. There’s a red raspberry and (4:19) Peanut butter peanut butter. There’s quite a few of them (4:22) The list really does go on and on and Isaac you and I had talked about this before (4:27) You just have to go in the store because it’s it’s so hard to explain and describe (4:32) You just have to go in and see it all.

Yeah, a lot of people have asked like well, what do you sell? (4:36) What do you do? What do you sell and I’m like, you’re really gonna have to come in and see the store (4:40) They’re like well show me a picture. I said it won’t do it justice. You’re gonna have to and I’m not I’m not being facetious (4:46) It’s really you’re gonna have to come in because we sell a whole bunch of candles that comes from our beeswax (4:51) We we take keep all of our beeswax and we make our own candles out of it (4:56) Those candles actually help purify the air.

There’s benefits to so much that honey that the honeybee does and (5:02) It’s so hard to make a list of what we actually carry (5:06) I was in there talking with a couple of my co-workers at school yesterday and they came in and he’s been (5:12) tasting some of the candies over the last couple years because every time we would go to level we’d bring some back and (5:19) Yesterday I introduced him to our honeymoons and he goes by far. That’s the best candy in this store (5:25) So we’ll sample things but I’m telling everybody you you can’t do it all in one day (5:30) And so we have some variety packs. We have gift boxes (5:33) We have all sorts of things, but there is a hundred and eighteen products in our store (5:38) It’s hard to show you what you have.

We have barbecue sauces. We have I (5:42) Mean and it’s all made with our own Wyoming honey. It’s fantastic (5:46) you’re located right at downtown Afton between the Afton Ford Theatre in the town hall and (5:51) You’re doing taste testing all week long, right? So people can stop by and do some taste testing now, of course (5:57) It is honey after all and you do have raw honey (6:00) We do and it comes out like it’s soft-serve ice cream.

It’s it’s fantastic (6:05) Tell us how that works people can bring in their own container or buy a container there, right? (6:09) Yeah, we have we have our own containers (6:11) they’re anything from a two ounce to a five gallon that we sell by the pound and (6:16) Then if you bring in your own container as long as it has a lid and can be sealed we’ll fill it (6:22) It’s called honey on demand and we keep our honey at 90 degrees (6:25) It flows just like you said like ice cream machine. It’s got some cool features when it comes out and watches it (6:32) It’s fun to feel like it’s I I get sit there and just fill it the the two ounce bears feel pretty fast (6:38) But it’s fun to feel and it’s just like I said, it’s different. There’s no aftertaste (6:44) There’s no bite from the honey.

If you come in you’re like that’s different. And but yeah, we sell raw honey (6:50) That’s it’s where it all started the honeybee and then in August and September we’ll have honeycomb it’s a seasonal thing (6:57) You know, it takes a little longer for the bees to get them going (7:00) But we’ll have honeycomb for just a month or two coming during that time. So excellent (7:05) Yeah, excellent in studio Isaac and Seneca Mays owners of the new Queen Bee Garden store in downtown (7:11) Afton Seneca tell us when when you’re open when can people stop by the store? (7:16) Well right now we’re trying to do the hours of 9 to 7 (7:21) Monday through Saturday and (7:24) With the possibility of extending the hours earlier and later (7:27) So, okay, and you just got social media up and running right so people can find you there, correct? (7:32) Yeah, they can yep.

They can find us on Facebook (7:35) It’s at Queen Bee Gardens Afton or you have our website is Queen Bee Gardens calm (7:41) You can look at our products if you come into the store. It’s cheaper than online (7:45) That’s for purposes, you know for shipping purposes, but there’s just a lot but you can get an idea but (7:52) We’ve got our Facebook account or Instagram and it’s all Queen Bee Gardens Afton (7:57) So you can search us up that way. We’d love everybody in the valley to share it (8:00) This valley is really good at supporting (8:02) Local businesses and this really is a family-owned and operated business (8:07) The zellers make the candy and they are our lifetime friends (8:10) I’ve been friends with them since we were just babies and I think that’s what makes it good (8:14) And we are a family-owned operator.

It’s just me my wife and my daughter (8:18) Operate in this store (8:19) so if you want to come in and visit a nice lady and (8:22) She’s there all day long and I’m just there in the nights because I you know work at the school. So yeah (8:27) Well, congratulations on the business. I was telling Seneca this yesterday (8:32) I can’t imagine how many late nights and all the hours that went into getting this store ready (8:37) But it looks it looks incredible.

It’s such a great addition to the community (8:41) So congratulations to you guys and anything we missed that you’d like to mention about Queen Bee Gardens (8:45) Well, we know that so the area that we’re in it’s been vacant for several years (8:49) I think it’s been seven or eight years and it’s people that walk by we notice Saturday (8:53) They’re like, when did you guys open and we’re like four hours ago (8:57) And because we don’t have our sign yet. It’s coming tomorrow or Thursday. So you’ll notice tomorrow or Thursday (9:04) We’re gonna put up a nice sign.

It’s very unique sign. It kind of (9:09) Encapsulates what we’re trying to do, but I just want to remind people our store has (9:14) It’s gluten-free. There is no food dyes in any of our products (9:19) And it is raw honey.

It’s not been filtered. It’s not been pasteurized and that is what is why it’s so good and (9:26) It’s just we are excited about it. We’ll be doing events throughout the town will be but we’re right there in town (9:33) We want to reach the whole valley.

I know we’re located in Afton, but we’ll work with partners (9:37) we’ll work with businesses, hopefully you’ll start seeing our candy and in different stores and (9:42) Seneca is gonna be own operating it mostly. So come on and visit her (9:46) She’s a wealth of knowledge and fun to deal with. Absolutely.

Definitely knows her stuff. I saw that yesterday (9:52) So Isaac and Seneca maize and the new Queen Bee Garden store open in Afton stop by for free taste testing all week long (10:00) You guys thanks so much for stepping in studio today (10:01) yeah, and our grand opening is gonna be this Friday Saturday and Monday and we’re running a special event for veterans or (10:08) Anybody that just honoring those past veterans that have served have a discount (10:13) Right do a 10% discount for all people that are serving and it’s in honor of those that have passed (10:18) We wouldn’t be able to run this store if we didn’t live in America. Well said that’s again the Queen Bee Garden in Afton (10:25) It’s all part of the weekday.

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