Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dion Saunders. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Dion, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with education – we’d love to hear your thoughts about how we can better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career

I would start by putting a heavier emphasis on learning trades and skills that can benefit society. I would then include household management as a study because so many people graduate and don’t know a thing about taxes, purchasing a home, or building credit. I think honing in on things like that will set students further ahead than teaching them about people they won’t even remember. I also think that information technology should be taught every year at every grade level. Being able to navigate a computer is like second-nature these days, and not having that skill will make life a lot less efficient.

Dion, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

When I graduated from college I started my career as a personal trainer. I kept that up for a year, got some good clients and had a bunch of fun, but there was something missing. I wanted a “product” to go with my service. So I thought… let’s make juice! Its healthy, it tastes good, and it’s marketable. So I started selling them to my clients as supplements, and the business just grew from there and now … we have JÜGO FRESCO. I have been making cold-pressed juice, teas, sea moss gel, and detox shots for about three years now primarily serving the DMV. I ended up making a website and becoming a real brand and the rest is now history.

We specialize in weekly subscriptions and juice cleanse detox packages. JÜGO has been featured in clinics, convenience stores, health food stores, and small grocery markets across Baltimore and Washington, D.C. We have done farmers markets this summer in the Baltimore Metro Area, and we plan to open a storefront in the next forthcoming year.

I’m very grateful for the love my brand gets from the community, and I look at my business as my contribution to society. Making juice is a labor of love! It’s messy, time-consuming, and takes accurate measurements to ensure a quality product. I take pride in the fact that I make such great juice! I want all my customers to know that I thoroughly enjoy educating people the importance of health and nutrition as it pertains to everyday living and that my brand is the way that we can connect and grow together in the most comfortable way! I love to be a resource in any capacity.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to realize that I can’t please everybody. As an entrepreneur, sometimes I find myself questioning whether or not I made the best decision. Or maybe if I can’t help a customer, I start to get frustrated if a solution is not met. Or maybe someone flat out rejects my juice. But ultimately, I have concluded that “everything isn’t for everyone”; and what that helped me do is focus on my “niche”.

In a perfect world, I would want everyone to try my juice because I know they will love it! But I have just come to learn that you just simply cannot please everybody!

Can you open up about a time when you had a really close call with the business?

My business literally almost collapsed during the COVID pandemic. I hadn’t made any sales in months, I couldn’t book any pop ups or markets because everything was shutdown, and people simply just were not interacting at the time. I went from having a team of three part-timers to just me. Total 360.

I’ve always been a hustler so my motto is:”Let’s keep this show on the road”. And I did exactly that.

In order for my business to survive, I traveled to Atlanta where the COVID restrictions were less strict and transplanted JÜGO there for a few months. It was a great business move and it allowed me to expand my reach as well as survive the storm. When things went semi-back to normal, I returned to Maryland with a whole new game plan and a broader perspective, but for a good two months I was lost in the sauce. Had no clue what to do, but I knew I couldn’t give up. I knew I never wanted to go back to work for nobody no matter how hard it get, so I got on the road and did what I had to do and God held my hand the whole way through.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jugo-coldpressed.co
• Instagram: tequierojugo
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/tequierojugo

Image Credits
I took all photos on my own camera