Who We Are

It's been said, "necessity is the mother of invention."

Necessity arrived and the Dragon's Den became.

Chinese herbs were not as accessible back in the 1980s as they are nowadays. With Malik coming back from another year of study in China in 1987, a space for medicinal herbs to assist his patients in their healing was the need. When a small space next to his clinic became available, carpenters, friends, and the community showed up to hammer out the beginnings of the Dragon's Den Herb Shop.

Our Story

The Dragon's Den officially opened its doors on September 21st, 1988 with blessings from a local Tibetan Lama, Sufi teacher, and Malik's Chinese cultural instructor; three very intuitive people filled with joy and deep clarity. The opening party was held in the Dragon's Den. People from all over the island came; The Dragon's Den Herb Shop was born.

The Dragon's Den got its name from an old shop in Shanghai that catered to the sailors' needs of the back-then popular herbs, grog, and beautiful attendants. A special place indeed for many sailors.

The store started out by carrying Western and Chinese bulk herbs, patent formulas, nutritional supplements, and related gift items. Soon our herbal inventory grew to hundreds of Western and Chinese herbs, supplements, therapeutic health and beauty care products, educational books, healthy superfoods, and more.

Our Team

Today the Dragon's Den serves its community on the Hawaiian island of Maui in the town of Makawao with its alternative and natural medicines.

We still gratefully serve our Maui Island community, as well as our online customers on the mainland, with quality products, friendly service, honest salesmanship, humor, and knowledge.

Over the years there has been a growing enthusiasm for herbs and nutritional supplements.

To us, this is a statement that acts as a reflection that we as a community are taking better care of ourselves and are committed to a greater self-responsibility for our health and well-being.

May we all continue to actualize our dreams and visions for health as we grow gardens, eat organic foods, gather herbs, drink tea and laugh together.

May we all take better care of ourselves, each other, and our island home.

We believe in and enjoy what we do, therefore we generate right livelihood through dignified, respectful, honest, and playful ways for ourselves and others.

We are firm in the belief to serve others with care and to share with you what we do here at the Dragon's Den. We stand strong with our mission and customer statement and these are our co-workers' guiding principles.

Coworker's Guiding Principles

*Be on time

*Be professional in all ways

*Look for ways to make things better

*Do the best you can do

*Be present, aware of what is taking place, joyfully objective, no dramas, and avoid getting lost in a story.

*Whatever happens, always keep your heart open.

*Our customers’ betterment of life is why we are here!

By Malik Cotter