How Sydney Helms Built a Growing, Glowing Local Empire Rooted in Community

By Monica Jones

There’s a verse in the Bible about a mustard seed. Tiny. Unassuming. Easy to overlook – and yet, when planted with care, it grows into something far larger than anyone expects.

For Sydney Helms, the mustard seed wasn’t just a name for her shop. It was a philosophy.

Long before she owned multiple businesses, before her spaces became known for their warmth, beauty, and intentional design, Sydney started exactly where the metaphor suggests: small, curious, and willing to figure it out as she went. She didn’t enter the coffee world with a master plan or industry pedigree. She entered it the way she’s entered everything else in her life—by saying yes to opportunity and trusting her instincts.

“I didn’t know anything about the industry at all,” she admits. The original Mustard Seed began almost accidentally, inside her salon space in Phenix City, sparked by a conversation with a friend who loved to bake. When that chapter came to a close, Sydney made a decision that would become a pattern throughout her career: she leaned in instead of backing away.

That leap of faith became The Mustard Seed coffee shop, a place which quickly felt less like a business and more like a gathering space. Thoughtfully curated, welcoming, and grounded in local collaboration, it reflected what would become a signature of every Sydney Helms venture—beautiful spaces built for real people..

In downtown Columbus, Sydney’s on First emerged as something more than a salon. Part blowout bar, part lounge, part community hub, it blurred the line between beauty and hospitality. Beer and wine, intimate events, a sense that you were welcome to stay awhile. Sydney laughs when people marvel at how much she’s doing. “It is not me,” she insists. “We have great teams. And Chris—100 percent—has helped me through all of this.”

Her husband and business partner, Chris Helms, brought something essential to the table: balance. Where Sydney designs and curates, Chris cooks and creates. Together, they share a love of food, local business, and the kind of spaces that make people feel at ease. Their partnership allowed the vision to expand without losing its soul.

That balance is perhaps most evident in The Seed at the Rapids, the coffee shop that is now preparing to move into a new, riverfront location in the Synovus Headquarters on Front Avenue. The opportunity didn’t come lightly. It came because others in the community believed in what Sydney had already built.

“Working with W.C. Bradley has been a dream,” she says. “They love the community. They work with you to build. It was easy to see what they’re doing and want to be part of it.”

The new space promises more room, more music, and more moments. A baby grand piano is already waiting. Nights will be filled with sound, mornings filled with light, and the space is sure to be a continuation of what The Seed has always offered: a place to land.

But Sydney’s growth has never been about taking up more space just for herself.

Her presence inside The 706 Social, a new Broadway collective opened by Carla Bounds, is a perfect example. Rather than opening yet another standalone storefront, Sydney chose collaboration. Inside her booth, you’ll find thoughtfully branded wares from The Seed and her salons—candles, small touches, quiet invitations into her world. 

That mindset extends even further. At The 706 Social, Sydney created a small Columbus guide highlighting local businesses she loves—places worth supporting, exploring, returning to. It’s not about competition. It’s about connection.

And that may be the most remarkable part of Sydney Helms’ story. In an era obsessed with fast growth and louder branding, she has built something slower, steadier, and far more lasting. From selling handmade keychains in high school to opening her first salon in 2014, to now stewarding multiple thriving businesses, she has been, by her own words, “figuring it out.”

When asked what she would say to young women considering entrepreneurship, her answer is honest and unsweetened.

“It isn’t for the weak,” she says. “There are good seasons and bad seasons. You have to have the grit to keep going.”

Still, she believes deeply in creating space for others to try—to test their wings before taking bigger leaps. Vendor collectives, shared spaces, collaborative models. These are not just trends to her. They are lifelines for a community that grows best together.

From a mustard seed to a small empire which continues to bloom, Sydney Helms’ story is proof that beauty and business don’t have to be opposites. That growth doesn’t have to come at the expense of integrity. And that when you plant something with care—really care—it can grow into something extraordinary.

And judging by what she’s built so far, this is still just the beginning.