Photo by Erin Nelson.
The storefront of The Happy Olive in the Lane Parke shopping center in Mountain Brook.
A new store that specializes in olive oil and balsamic vinegar will open in Mountain Brook this month.
According to owner Vickie Bailey, The Happy Olive at 261 Rele St. in Lane Parke welcomed its first customers Oct. 8. It will be The Happy Olive’s third store after closing its Orange Beach location in mid-September. Other locations are in Fairhope and Mobile.
“The reason we chose Mountain Brook ... is because having been there and having lived there for 10 years, I love the area,” Bailey said. “I love the village feel about it, the small-town feel even though you’re in a larger area.”
Bailey, who operates The Happy Olive with her husband Richard, started her 27-year education career at Mountain Brook Elementary School in the 1980s. She lived in the city for 10 years before moving south, she said.
The Baileys became interested in olive oil after their daughter married an Italian whose family owns an olive orchard. While visiting Italy, they took part in the olive harvest and learned about the oil’s many benefits.
Olive oil contains healthy fats and antioxidants, and research has indicated it can reduce the risk for heart disease, stroke and other health issues.
“They’re great for your joints, they’re great for your heart, they’re great for your circulation,” Vickie Bailey said of olives.
The Baileys opened The Happy Olive’s first location in Fairhope in October 2012. From the start, they’ve espoused three principles: Be Happy. Eat healthy. Live well.
“We do more than just sell olive oil in the store,” Vickie Bailey said. “Our mission — I’ve been a principal and an educator — is to educate people on good, healthy eating habits. That’s really why we kind of got into it.”
Bailey said she determined the name of the store with her husband’s input. When she was in education, she drew smiley faces on her students’ work.
“My husband thought we should incorporate the word happy because we want the store to have a happy kind of feeling for the people that come to it,” Vickie Bailey said.
The Happy Olive carries fresh olive oil from all over the world. Bailey said olives have seasons, just like fruit, so the store stocks oil from different places depending on the time of year. Olives from countries in the Northern Hemisphere, such as Italy, Spain and Greece, are harvested in the fall and winter, while olives from countries in the Southern Hemisphere, like Chile, Tunisia and Australia, are harvested in the spring and summer.
“They’re just literally off the tree, freshpressed, and then we get them,” Bailey said.
The Happy Olive bottles its products daily, and they come in many varieties. Inventory includes almond, black truffle and chipotle olive oils along with coconut, dark chocolate and grapefruit balsamic — just to name a few. The store also sells gourmet Dijon mustard created by Richard, a mustard sommelier, in addition to other condiments and seasonings.
Vickie Bailey said The Happy Olive will likely be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday. She said she is thrilled to be expanding to Mountain Brook, though it isn’t without risk.
“This is a leap of faith for us,” she said.
For more information, go to happy olive4.com or call 205-703-9003.
