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This year has been one of many changes and obstacles for people around our community, but one couple is making some changes that are making life better for the customers they call family.

Jennifer and Neil Jerkins opened Elite Nutrition in Brewton in October 2019. In October 2020, the couple will be opening a new location of their business in Evegreen.

“We have had a lot of people from Evergreen coming into our Brewton store,” Neil Jerkins said. “Many of them have asked us to open in Evergreen. The mayor called many times asking us to consider opening a location there, and we made the decision to make our products available there.”

The new location will have a new name for the products the Jerkins family offers. Emerald City Nutrition will be opening at 312 West Front Street in Evergreen in mid October, Neil Jerkins said.

“We are working on building out the location right now,” Neil said. “We hope to be open by the first or second week of October. Almost a year from our opening in the Brewton location.”

Jennifer said the Brewton store has a wonderful customer base, but they don’t consider those who come in as customers, really.

“The people who come in are more like family to us,” Jennifer said. “We know them by name, we know about their family and kids, we know about how things are going for them at work. We love this business and it’s very rewarding.”

Neil said the fact that they serve healthy meal alternatives is one of the advantages to the business.

“It’s amazing what vitamins and nutrients can do for your body,” Neil said. “Our products are all natural. That is the main reason that people love this.”

The shakes and tea bombs sold at Elite Nutrition are made from Herbalife products and offer customers a chance to get healthy, feel better and lose weight, Neil said.

“The shakes only have 200 calories,” Neil said. “When you would normally consume as much as 1,000 calories in a meal, you can certainly lose weight by replacing that meal with a shake because you are consuming fewer calories.”

Jennifer said the tea bombs are special since they provide more than just a good-tasting refreshment.

“The give a good boost of energy,” Jennifer said. “They also provide a great way to increase hydration. The different flavors we have make it an enjoyable way to add energy to your day.”

Neil said those interested in taking care of their shake and tea bomb needs themselves have an opportunity to make them at home.

“This is an easy-to-use product,” Neil said. “Anyone can do this at home. We can get people set up with what they need to make everything at home.”

The tea and shake flavors change often at Elite Nutrition giving customers options for their refreshment and health every day.

“We like to experiment with different flavors,” Neil said. “We make flavors that are different for those who come in every day. The flavors are all good and we have found that even kids love them.”

Neil said they are always interested in finding new distributors for their products.

“We don’t just hire employees,” Neil said. “We add distributors for the products we serve.”

Elite Nutrition is located in the Douglas Square Shopping Center on Douglas Avenue. They are open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday with pop-up hours on occasional weekends. You can find more information on the business Facebook page or drop by their location for more details.