Our Story
As I finished my bachelor’s degree in Accounting at Mississippi State University, I was hired on with Arthur Anderson, one of the then Big 8 accounting firms in the world and moved to Memphis, TN in December 1992. Three years of public accounting, followed by 12 years of additional accounting and finance experience with a number of large companies in Memphis provided me a great deal of knowledge that would help me in later years, as I was privileged to see not just the financial side of things, but also the operational side.
Although much was learned, corporate America took a toll on me. The last company I worked for was Kraft Food Ingredients, a division of then Kraft Foods. I spent 8 years there, the last two as the Sales Finance Manager. Believe it not, I actually loved my job the first two years.
One day while at the gym, I noticed a flyer that was advertising for anyone desiring to become a personal trainer. Given that I really enjoyed working out and helping others get fit, I decided to look into it. After speaking with the trainer that placed the add, I proceeded to embark upon a new journey…becoming a certified personal trainer. After my certification, I began training a few days a week outside of my full-time job with Kraft. The more I did it, the more I enjoyed it and the more my clients saw results, the more fulfilled I felt. My desire to train on a more full- time basis grew stronger and stronger….so much so that I began telling other coworkers that If I had enough liquid assets set aside for six months already, I’d take a stab at it fulltime. Well, in July 2008, during the midst of the recession, I was informed that my position was one of many that was being eliminated as part of a restructuring plan within the company. Thankfully, they offered me a nine month severance package and I ran with it. Not having to worry about income for the next nine months, I began my journey of trying to build my personal training business. The first couple of years after my severance package ended were a bit of a struggle as I had not yet built my business to the point where I could live comfortably. I had a wife and four kids at the time and it was my responsibility to provide for my family. Determined, I worked tirelessly and strategized to grow my business. Hard work would pay off and my business began to grow.
As my business grew, I noticed that some clients were really struggling with their diets. They would workout hard and go home and totally lose their minds in the pantry and fridge. Providing meal plans didn’t work either for some, as they complained about not having time to cook or prepare meals. This lead to the start of the next phase of my journey. In 2017, encouraged by one of my clients, I began preparing healthy soups to take some of the burden off of clients. They really appreciated it and loved the variety and taste of the homemade soups I prepared. For me, it was a total joy feeling that I was touching souls and having even more of a tangible impact on my clients. Building Better Bodies from the Inside Out became my slogan.
In 2020, Covid-19 struct and altered the lives of everyone. My training business came to halt for several months and I felt absolutely helpless. I prayed about it and decided to not stress over something that was out of my control. When the doors were opened for training to resume again, business would come back roaring. It was indeed a blessing – prayers answered. Soon after, I began thinking about other healthy ways I could assist my clients and the community as a whole.
One day, I was helping a friend with a juicing recipe she had run across and after tasting the goodness within, I was completely hooked. Thoughts of how I could use this as a stepping stone and create other juices that could further enhance the lives of others by providing more healthy alternatives consumed me. This was the birth of my juicing business. Today, I provide healthy and nutritious wellness shots, smoothies and juices, which contain no added sweetners, fillers, dairy or preservatives – just whole-food goodness.
Although much was learned, corporate America took a toll on me. The last company I worked for was Kraft Food Ingredients, a division of then Kraft Foods. I spent 8 years there, the last two as the Sales Finance Manager. Believe it not, I actually loved my job the first two years.
One day while at the gym, I noticed a flyer that was advertising for anyone desiring to become a personal trainer. Given that I really enjoyed working out and helping others get fit, I decided to look into it. After speaking with the trainer that placed the add, I proceeded to embark upon a new journey…becoming a certified personal trainer. After my certification, I began training a few days a week outside of my full-time job with Kraft. The more I did it, the more I enjoyed it and the more my clients saw results, the more fulfilled I felt. My desire to train on a more full- time basis grew stronger and stronger….so much so that I began telling other coworkers that If I had enough liquid assets set aside for six months already, I’d take a stab at it fulltime. Well, in July 2008, during the midst of the recession, I was informed that my position was one of many that was being eliminated as part of a restructuring plan within the company. Thankfully, they offered me a nine month severance package and I ran with it. Not having to worry about income for the next nine months, I began my journey of trying to build my personal training business. The first couple of years after my severance package ended were a bit of a struggle as I had not yet built my business to the point where I could live comfortably. I had a wife and four kids at the time and it was my responsibility to provide for my family. Determined, I worked tirelessly and strategized to grow my business. Hard work would pay off and my business began to grow.
As my business grew, I noticed that some clients were really struggling with their diets. They would workout hard and go home and totally lose their minds in the pantry and fridge. Providing meal plans didn’t work either for some, as they complained about not having time to cook or prepare meals. This lead to the start of the next phase of my journey. In 2017, encouraged by one of my clients, I began preparing healthy soups to take some of the burden off of clients. They really appreciated it and loved the variety and taste of the homemade soups I prepared. For me, it was a total joy feeling that I was touching souls and having even more of a tangible impact on my clients. Building Better Bodies from the Inside Out became my slogan.
In 2020, Covid-19 struct and altered the lives of everyone. My training business came to halt for several months and I felt absolutely helpless. I prayed about it and decided to not stress over something that was out of my control. When the doors were opened for training to resume again, business would come back roaring. It was indeed a blessing – prayers answered. Soon after, I began thinking about other healthy ways I could assist my clients and the community as a whole.
One day, I was helping a friend with a juicing recipe she had run across and after tasting the goodness within, I was completely hooked. Thoughts of how I could use this as a stepping stone and create other juices that could further enhance the lives of others by providing more healthy alternatives consumed me. This was the birth of my juicing business. Today, I provide healthy and nutritious wellness shots, smoothies and juices, which contain no added sweetners, fillers, dairy or preservatives – just whole-food goodness.