ST. LOUIS — The wine tasting experience is not exclusive to the vineyards in Augusta, Missouri. A St. Louis area entrepreneur is bringing fine wines to north county for her customers to sample.
“We give you an experience right here,” Chantelle Nickson-Clark told 5 On Your Side.
She owns A&C Happy Hour Wine & Spirits in Florissant.
“When you come into A&C we introduce you to some amazing things,” she said.
She opened her business a year ago. It was a leap of faith for her to do it in the middle of a pandemic.
“I am one to believe that if I jump there is a bed of clouds waiting on me,” she said.
She had to rely on those clouds in the past.
“I heard the word cancer,” she said.
Nickson-Clark got the devastating news at the age of 32. She was a new mom at the time and had lost her job.
“It was an emotional roller coaster,” she said.
She got some advice from her grandmother that helped her get through it.
“You dig in and you fight this with all you have. And here I am 11 years later,” she said with a laugh.
Now, she has her own business where she is serving more than alcohol.
“As a breast cancer survivor, I believe in meeting people where they are,” she explained.
She is also meeting people in her new space to educate them and bring awareness.
“The store actually gives me another platform to just share my experience with breast cancer and to advocate and help women,” she said.
Faith has helped her reach a good place in her life.
“One day at a time and I am living it to the fullest. Do you hear me?” she laughed.
She’s enjoying herself.
“It’s been an amazing journey,” she said.
The journey isn’t over yet.
“You gotta stay tuned,” she said.
Nickson-Clark also founded the Pink Angels Foundation that helps women who are being treated for breast cancer. You can learn about the non-profit organization by visiting their website.