About

From the first moment you step through the door, KC Conjure feels like magic.

The storefront is filled with candles, curios and herbs. Statues and brightly-colored altars to the Lwa line the walls, inviting visitors to look and learn. 

Mambo Julie Valdivia

The most rare and magickal element in the store, though, may be the store’s proprietor. Kansas City-native Mambo Julie Valdivia has owned and operated KC Conjure & Botanica since 2013, when it was Good Luck KC Conjure in Old Westport. Her connection and service to the Lwa started before that, with her initiation into the La Source Ancienne Hounfo of New Orleans in 2010. Julie was initiated as a Mambo Asogwe, the highest level of the sosyete in 2016. She started her own Vodou house in Kansas City, Sosyete Anba Fèy Ayizan, 2020.

“My practice has improved my life by accentuating my attention to seeing the Divine Architect in all things, in the seen and unseen world; honoring God, our ancestors and Lwa and providing service to community without the weight of dogma,” Mambo Julie said.

Despite her breadth of knowledge, Mambo Julie is a bawdy, welcoming presence in the store. She is equally willing to share a joke with one of the store’s many regulars or help an interested newcomer learn the traditions of Vodou. 

KC Conjure & Botanica provides a dizzying array of products and services, ranging from setting of lights and readings to occasional public Vodou ceremonies.

Julie also serves as a sort of spiritual compounding alchemist, giving guidance and providing supplies for practitioners who are performing their own workings.

Spiritual Cleansing by Mr. Garcia, Curandero