A Hobby Gone Wild
Marie's Bees began the way the best stories do: completely by accident. Marisa Papetti, a Bellingham local with a background in food service and marketing, agreed to house a friend's beehive when that friend moved into the city and couldn't keep bees at her new home. For the next year, Marisa watched over the hive, and every time her friend came out to check on it, Marisa was right there beside her. The bees got under her skin in the best possible way.
Then a winter storm took the hive, and Marisa went a year without bees. She missed them more than she expected. When a man whose father had been a beekeeper called hoping to sell off his late father's equipment, Marisa showed up with $100 thinking she might walk away with a suit or two. She drove home with $8,500 worth of equipment for just that $100. That was the turning point. Marie's Bees was born in February 2017.
The Woman Behind the Hives
Marisa Papetti grew up working in food. Her first job was catering at the Viking Union with Marriott, and she later spent 15 years in marketing before returning to food through education and production. Today, she runs around 800 hives across Whatcom County, teaches beekeeping classes and cheesemaking workshops throughout the community, and leads hive tours that have drawn visitors from all over the world, including a one-of-a-kind rooftop beekeeping experience atop the historic Sycamore Square building in Bellingham's Fairhaven district.
Marisa's approach to beekeeping is as much about connection as it is about honey. She reads the tone of her hives, using the sound the bees make to guide how she moves around them. She's fond of saying that bees mirror the keeper's emotional state, and that understanding has made her not just a better beekeeper but, by her own account, a calmer, more grounded person. "These guys have taught me so much," she says.
Named for a Woman Worth Remembering
The company is named after Marie Papetti, the grandmother of Marisa's husband. Marie was a force in her community, beloved by everyone who knew her, and best remembered for her daycare on Alabama Hill in Bellingham where no one ever left without a hug and a plate full of delicious Italian food. That spirit of warmth, generosity, and genuine care is woven into everything Marie's Bees does.
Empowering Women, One Hive at a Time
As the business grew, Marisa began noticing something important: a lot of women were interested in beekeeping, and beekeeping had real potential to support families. She started teaching classes and connecting with female beekeepers across the Pacific Northwest. Today, Marie's Bees works with a network of women beekeepers throughout the region, selling their honey alongside Marisa's own. All of the honey comes from Whatcom County hives, and every jar reflects the shared mission of sustainable, community-rooted beekeeping.
Marie's Bees also has dedicated teaching apiaries, hives used specifically to educate community members about pollinators and how to support them. Education has always been at the heart of what Marisa does, and that commitment to building a more bee-aware community is just as central to the brand as the honey itself.
