Four years after it bought and moved into a prominent Main Street building in downtown Ellsworth — displacing several businesses that were renting space inside — a health supplement products company has moved out of state and put the property on the market.
Desert Harvest Inc. moved last month back to Colorado Springs, Colorado, where it was founded 30 years ago, and has listed 192 Main St. for $1.2 million.
The 11,000-square-foot building was a hub of activity in the late 2010s, when it was home to a cafe and other specialty retail businesses that drew people and helped revitalize downtown after Main Street had seen several longtime businesses close. In the years immediately before and since the COVID-19 pandemic, empty spaces downtown have been scarce — though now both 192 Main St. and 190 Main St. next door are empty and looking for new owners or tenants.
Last month, moving trucks were seen loading up equipment and supplies outside the downtown Ellsworth building, which decades ago served as a local Masonic Lodge before being converted into professional offices and retail space. According to Desert Harvest’s website, the company’s new physical and mailing addresses are once again in Colorado Springs.
Desert Harvest’s move back to Colorado represents a return to a state it had left for North Carolina in 2014, after large forest fires struck the western city in 2012 and 2013. Desert Harvest was one of several Colorado Springs companies recruited by North Carolina to move following the fires, Heather Florio, the head of Desert Harvest, said in 2020.
Desert Harvest officials did not respond to messages seeking comment about the move.
Desert Harvest got its start after it developed a concentrated aloe vera formula to help relieve chronic bladder pain, Florio has previously said. It now also offers CBD, nutritional supplements, hand sanitizer and topical skincare products, all of which contain the aloe vera concentrate Florio’s parents developed.
When Desert Harvest bought 192 Main St., the building housed Flexit Cafe, Maine-focused home goods shop 207Mainer, and several professional offices on the second floor. The cafe and the Maine good shop have since relocated a few doors farther down Main Street.
The Bangor Daily News rented a basement office at 192 Main St. and had to move out when Desert Harvest bought the property in 2020.