Woman Owned Businesses in Asheville, NC: Shops, Food and Services

Sand Hill Kitchen is a scratch-made breakfast and lunch counter inside the BP station at Sand Hill and Sardis Roads, right where West Asheville runs into Enka-Candler. Chef and owner Jamie Wade opened it in January 2017, and in 2022 a statewide magazine contest named her North Carolina's Fried Chicken Champ. Everyone talks about the buttermilk fried chicken sandwich with house dilly pickles, cheddar and herbed Duke's mayo, but the Reuben, the burgers, the beet sandwich and the breakfast burritos hold their own. The chips are hand cut and fried in house, and the banana pudding takes after her grandmother's. Breakfast runs Wednesday through Saturday and lunch Tuesday through Saturday. It's closed Sunday and Monday.

Instant Karma is a hippie gift shop with two Asheville locations, at 36 North Lexington Avenue downtown and 725 Haywood Road in West Asheville. The downtown shop has been on Lexington for more than 30 years, and the West Asheville shop opened in June 2016 between Biscuit Head and The Hop West, under a front mural by Flournoy Holmes. The shelves are packed with tie-dye, harem pants and boho dresses, Grateful Dead patches, tapestries and songbooks, tarot decks, crystals, incense and moon calendars, plus Astria Farm hemp gummies for adults. Downtown is open daily from 9 AM to 8 PM. West Asheville opens at 9 AM Friday through Sunday and 11 AM Monday through Thursday.

VaVaVooom is a lingerie boutique and intimate toy shop at 57 Broadway Street in downtown Asheville, 100% woman and locally owned and open since 2008. It fills a restored 1920s building with about 3,000 square feet of stock, much more than the website shows. The racks carry lingerie, corsets, stockings and vintage-style pieces, some of it made by small local makers, alongside body-safe toys, many of them made in Europe, plus massage oils, playful accessories and educational books. Mountain Xpress readers have voted it Best of WNC for lingerie and intimate toys every year from 2013 through 2025. It's open daily from 11 AM, until 8 PM Sunday through Thursday and 9 PM on Fridays and Saturdays.

Asheville Raven & Crone is a witch-owned metaphysical shop in North Asheville at 640 Merrimon Avenue, stocked with tarot cards, candles, crystals, books, and altar supplies, many of them locally handmade. It's the top metaphysical store in Asheville for both experienced practitioners and curious newcomers exploring earth religions and spiritual tools, with regular workshops and classes rounding out the offerings.

Old Europe has been Asheville's Hungarian-rooted pastry shop since 1994, when Melinda Vetro, who learned to bake in pastry school growing up in Hungary, opened the first one on Battery Park. It's moved a few times since and now sits at 18 Broadway downtown. The case is packed with mousse cakes, eclairs, macarons and croissants, plus old-country picks like Rigo Jancsi chocolate cake and the Ishler, a pair of walnut shortbread cookies with apricot jam dipped in chocolate. A lot of the cakes are gluten free, and there are vegan options too, like a chocolate cupcake and a seasonal cobbler. Coffee is espresso from Dynamite Roasting in Black Mountain, and the bar pours Aperol spritzes, espresso martinis and Irish coffee. It's open 7:30 AM to 10 PM Sunday through Thursday and until 11 on Friday and Saturday.

Hemp 4 Victory is a neighborhood hemp and CBD shop on Weaverville Highway in Woodfin, just north of downtown Asheville. The glass cases are stacked with tinctures, gummies, chocolates, pre-rolls, vape carts, topicals and bath bombs, plus CBD treats for dogs, from brands like Mellow Fellow, Bhumi and JustCBD. Kratom is on the shelves too. It's a small, easygoing room with a fireplace and a lot of product to look at, and the folks behind the counter will walk you through what's what without making you feel dumb for asking. Open every day, 10 to 8 on weekdays and 11 to 7 on weekends.

The Odd is a West Asheville dive bar and live music venue on Haywood Road, known around town as much for its oddities-museum decor as for its calendar. The all-ages room books drag, burlesque, punk, metal, comedy, magic nights, and game nights across the week, and it stays open late every day. Full bar with house cocktails, local craft beer, and Jell-O shots.

Retro Coffee is a neighborhood coffee shop at 2619 Sweeten Creek Road in South Asheville, owned and run by Carrie Prado. In 2025 the shop got a new look, with a fresh brand and a fully renovated room designed by the Asheville studio OXSAM, but it kept the retro feel that gave it its name. The menu runs on espresso, drip coffee and cold brew, with the Retro House Faves flavors poured as a latte, matcha or chai, plus seasonal lattes that change through the year. Oat, almond and coconut milk are on hand, and the pastry case carries treats from local bakers. It also hosts the occasional craft night and community event. It's open every day from 8 AM to 3 PM.

Flori Pate Designs is a graphic design and illustration studio in Asheville, run by designer and illustrator Flori Pate. The studio started in Portland, Oregon, moved to Central Oregon, then to Greenville and Charlotte before settling in Asheville. The work covers logo design, full branding, illustration, website design, advertising campaigns, interactive design and print production, plus marketing strategy and the project and vendor management that gets a job out the door. Clients range from local businesses to nonprofits, and Flori works with people in Asheville and remotely. Meetings are by appointment, weekdays.

SweetPea's Photo Camper is a mobile photo booth built into a camper, based in Fletcher and serving events around Asheville and Western North Carolina. It rolls up to weddings, birthdays, corporate events and brewery parties with a full attendant, then handles delivery, setup and removal. Every package includes unlimited photo strips, a big box of props and costumes, and a custom designed event footer on each strip. Rentals run $125 an hour with a two-hour minimum, in 2, 3 or 4 hour packages, and travel fees may apply farther out.

Asheville Charcuterie Co. is a charcuterie and catering company at 25 Page Avenue, Suite 102, in downtown Asheville, making cheese and charcuterie boards, boxes, graze cups and full grazing tables to order. It opened in February 2021 as a more casual catering option for Asheville and the towns around it. Grazing tables cover weddings, baby showers and work parties, and boxes work as gifts. Orders are made fresh and can be picked up on Page Avenue or delivered within about 15 miles of West Asheville. The team also runs hands-on charcuterie workshops at spots around town, where you build your own board.

Altamont Vintage, Collectibles and Antiques is an antique mall at 224 Mulvaney Street in Asheville's Biltmore Antiques District, a short drive from Biltmore Village and Tunnel Road. It's run by a mother and daughter team, and every person on staff is also a dealer on the floor. More than 75 dealers fill over 9,000 square feet with true antiques, vintage and retro pieces, furniture, jewelry, previously owned and upcycled clothing, costumes and original local art. Each booth has its own style, so it pays to walk every aisle. It's open daily from 11 AM to 5 PM, and Sunday from noon to 5.

Asheville Bee Charmer is a honey shop with two free tasting bars in downtown Asheville, at 32 Broadway Street and 38 Battery Park Avenue. Owners Jillian and Kim are beekeepers who opened in 2014, and they stock 40 to 50 honey varietals from North Carolina and around the world. Sourwood honey from Southern Appalachian forests is the best seller, and the shelves also carry tupelo, orange blossom, fireweed and infused honeys like Smokin' Hot. Beyond the jars, there's honey soap, lotion, salves and balms, candles, books, bee jewelry and gift sets. A tasting takes 10 to 15 minutes, and a staffer at the bar walks you through it.

Hazel Twenty is a clothing boutique at 16 Patton Avenue in downtown Asheville, opened by owner Lexi DiYeso, who started the business in 2014 as a mint green mobile boutique rolling out to breweries and festivals. The storefront opened in December 2018 in a historic building on Patton Avenue. The main floor carries women's clothing, premium denim, jewelry, bags and accessories from brands like Free People, Le Jean, Aviator Nation and RE/DONE. Kids' clothing for babies through tweens is upstairs, and Lex Twenty Menswear is on the bottom level facing Lexington Avenue. There's a second Hazel Twenty in Charleston on Wentworth Street. The Asheville shop is open daily, until 9 PM on Fridays and Saturdays.

ButterPunk is a biscuit bakery and coffee shop at 372 Depot Street in Asheville's River Arts District, run by owner and chef Beth Kellerhals and co-owner Dana Amromin. Beth spent close to 20 years baking biscuits, pies and scones from Chicago to Los Angeles, much of it as a roaming bakery, before landing here for good. Dana trained at Le Cordon Bleu and ran pastry kitchens in Seattle and Alaska. The case is all butter: biscuit sandwiches with fluffy souffle eggs and candied bacon, biscuits and gravy, scones, pies and potato chip chocolate chip cookies, plus espresso and coffee. It's open 8 AM to 2 PM every day but Tuesday.

Good Hot Fish is a counter-service fish fry at 10 Buxton Avenue in downtown Asheville, inspired by the Southern fish camps of old. The chef-driven menu spotlights Carolina fishermen with seasonal, classic recipes, and it's listed in the Michelin Guide for Asheville.

Baked Pie Company is a dessert pie shop at 4 Long Shoals Road in Arden, making 15 to 25 homemade pies every day. You can get a whole pie, a slice, or the Pie Flight, three smaller slices with a scoop of ice cream.

Lex Twenty Menswear is a men's clothing shop at 16 Patton Avenue in downtown Asheville, in the same building as its sister store Hazel Twenty. The team behind Hazel Twenty opened it in spring 2021. The racks carry heritage and everyday brands like Filson, Barbour, Pendleton, Billy Reid, Red Wing, Faherty, Marine Layer, The Normal Brand, Mavi and Gola, with jeans, flannels, outerwear, boots and gifts. Lex Twenty keeps long downtown hours: Sunday through Thursday 10 to 7, Friday and Saturday 10 to 9.