Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Wade Harman, Founder and President of Botanical Family, located in Richlands, VA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We provide Kratom tea in powdered form for our customers. These customers drink the tea as a way of relieving certain discomforts, ailments, and other situations in their lives.
Kratom is a tree leaf that is ground into a fine powder and consumed as tea. It is indigenous to Southeastern Asia and grows in wet, humid climates. Kratom has been around for thousands of years, and many people enjoy this plant for various reasons. Some for assisting in withdrawal symptoms, others for aiding their discomforts. On the other hand, we have customers who enjoy Kratom simply because it makes them feel better and get on with their day.
The Kratom community is a very smart, capable group that understands the real science behind why this plant works so well. They are an avid bunch and the only group of people who have backed down the DEA when this government faction decided they wanted to ban this plant in America in 2016. When the group stood up and shouted the real science about Kratom, the DEA backed down and rescinded their ban.
We are in the business of making people feel better in their mind, body, and spirit, and business is good.
Tell us about yourself
Many people start businesses simply because they want to make money in a specific niche. For me, I started The Botanical Family because I wanted to share the same results I had with this tea with others. Here's my story:
19 years ago, I was very destructive. I lived a life of addiction through drugs and other substances, and I understood (at the very end of my addiction cycle) that I needed to quit these harmful habits if I wanted to continue living. I did the usual government-mandated methadone clinics but quickly began to realize I was trading one habit for another. Finally, I decided to quit the clinic and try to stop this on my own. Four days into that procedure, I was really feeling sick. The withdrawals were almost unbearable, and I was thinking of just going back to what I used to do because I HAD to work, I HAD to feel better, and I couldn't see any other resolution to make this happen.
During that time of self-awareness, my sister approached me with some brown-looking tea powder. She explained that it would help me with the withdrawals, and I could get on with my life. At that point, I would have tried anything because I was feeling very rough. Honestly, I didn't think a tree leaf that was ground into a fine powder (which is what Kratom is) would even work, but I was willing to give it a shot. Much to my surprise, it worked! That was 19 years ago, and Kratom saved me.
This is what drives me to work hard every day and get important information about Kratom tea to people who may not know about this plant. I am driven by people who haven't even heard of us yet but NEED our product badly. Millions in America still don't know about Kratom, and my motivation is these people - to help them achieve a balance of health and wellness in their lives they don't even know can exist.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
We are in the business of promoting health and wellness through alternative resources made by Mother Earth. While we are primarily a Kratom tea powder company, we promote all organic and natural resolutions one would enjoy to make their life healthier, happier, and more balanced.
Kratom tea is virtually unknown in the United States, which is still odd to me after drinking Kratom for 19 years. Many people do not know the powerful options it can bring to their life. The reason I started this business was because of my history with Kratom and how it changed my entire outlook on wellness.
My business is to lead people to the truth about this plant and share the knowledge of Kratom, how to buy Kratom online, facts about wellness values, and in general, showing people how it can help them get their life back on track as it did mine. We provide a life-change, an alternate worldview. We provide hope that someone doesn't have to live a life of addiction, pain, depression, and self-worthlessness. That's our business, and business is good.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
For an entrepreneur, life can be full of ups and downs. It's a long, lonely road to build a business, and there are many hurdles entrepreneurs face while building a business they can be proud of. There are several difficult roadblocks on the way to success. One of the biggest, in my opinion, is building a targeted audience that wants what you have.
Taking advantage of various social media outlets like Facebook groups, Twitter circles, and advertising can spread you and your business too thin, and at times it can feel like all you're getting done is posting to these media platforms with no results. However, building a congregation around your business is the most important aspect and takes time. The key here is to stay consistent and not get discouraged over it. Take some time throughout the week and read how other successful businesses have done this and mimic their actions.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Many budding entrepreneurs will start a business based on their own opinions about a product or service and can oftentimes fail. Here are some tips I can give you to continue to grow a successful business:
- Finding Something You Love (and Something Others Love). Mark Twain said, "Find a job you love doing, and you'll never work a day in your life." My passion is sharing Kratom tea with the world, and it's a job I love doing. Don't get me wrong, you can have a passion for something that nobody wants, so this is an important aspect. Write down some things you love or could see yourself doing for the rest of your life, and research the niche audience.
- Be Prepared To Work. Don't let anyone outwork you. In order to be successful, you have to be the one who works harder than anyone. More than likely, there are others who are in the same niche as you. Work hard.
- Use The Tools Available To You. Don't go into this blind. Once the business is up and running, don't run it blindly, either. There are many tools you can use to capitalize on growth, and you should take advantage of them. One of the best tools I have found is Facebook advertising. Facebook has an option where you can mimic audiences. This is important for new businesses because you may not have any followers or fans. If that's the case, find a Facebook page that is in your niche (make sure it has a large following) and clone its audience. The end result will be that your ad will be shown to the people who follow that particular Facebook page, and you will be targeting properly.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://thekratomfamily.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wadeswednesday
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/botanicalfam/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/botanicalfam
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/botanicalfamily/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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