Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lucy Hope and Ryan Givens. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Lucy and Ryan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One deeply underappreciated facet of entrepreneurship is the kind of crazy stuff we have to deal with as business owners. Sometimes it’s crazy positive sometimes it’s crazy negative, but crazy experiences unite entrepreneurs regardless of industry. Can you share a crazy story with our readers?

It was January 2022, and we were one year into Wholism. We were excited about where the company was going, thinking Wholism was about to explode. We’d been to a few different events, and even though all that we had was labels and bottles – no product – that was enough to get people pumped. We decided to create a Kickstarter asking for $25,000 based on company goals that we had. We had a new social media team helping us roll everything out. They showed us how to post on social media, create a countdown, and spread a buzz. So on January 1, we premiered our Wholism Instagram page with 0 followers, rolled out our Kickstarter countdown social media campaign, and shared our first podcast. Come January 21, we launched the Kickstarter for a two month fundraiser, despite Kickstarter saying 30 days was historically the best option. Obviously we knew what we were doing, and Kickstarter must not know what they were talking about. How is one month of fundraising better than two months? We recorded the moment we launched – the moment we clicked the mouse – as if it was going to be the most epic thing ever. We started getting out in the community, promoting our company and our mission, essentially building the plane we were already flying. We stayed regular with social media postings and went to events where people could see our faces and taste our product. The needle wasn’t moving on the Kickstarter, so we kept going to more events, releasing podcasts, and creating social media trends. We convinced ourselves that, if the Kickstarter didn’t succeed, there was no way the business would continue, which terrified us because of how much we both believed in it. March came, and in a complete miracle…our Kickstarter failed. We started looking for solutions to continue the business, and our social media manager advised us to regroup and launch another campaign. What a concept! During this time, we focused a lot more on getting in the community. We had a Wholism launch party in Durham, NC, we spoke on an Entrepreneur Panel at NCCU, and during the summer, we initiated a local subscription service. We decided that in our new campaign, we would ask for what we needed immediately for our first phase of our business, and from that basis, we created a campaign for $5000. When we split the company’s direction into phases, it helped us understand more about our business – what was a priority, what was needed now versus later – and through this we created an overarching plan for the flow of our company. We launched a brand new Kickstarter with interactive videos, entertaining interviews, and lots of flair. We promoted our campaign on social media, to friends, family and everywhere we could, including at a Wholism fundraiser party. We had also been asked to be part of an Entrepreneur Boot Camp that culminated in a pitch competition with a $5000 prize. In the middle of the pitch competition, our Kickstarter was closing. With 10 minutes to go on the Kickstarter clock, we “segment intended”, asking ourselves, “What are our favorite things we’ve done so far throughout the Wholism journey?” We spent those final minutes reminiscing fondly on great Wholism moments, so we could go into the next phase of our company remembering who we are and what got us there. We were notified that our campaign was a success! We were filled with gratitude, relief, and excitement for what was next to come.

Lucy and Ryan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Well, I wish I could tell it in terms of me, but really it’s a we. Honestly, we’re two people who have the same destination but often drive two different cars to get there. And what I mean by that is that our goals are often similar, but the way in which we execute is completely different, which requires a lot of communication. Ryan is a very creative, expansive person who thinks on an extremely large scale. Oftentimes though, Ryan’s ideas are great, and can be so large, in fact, that they seem undoable. This is where Lucy comes in. She can see the same things, but Ryan helps put them into words for her, and Lucy, being more detail oriented, often brings the more grounded version out of Ryan. Lucy can break things down into what’s most important, and make sure we execute that. Lucy makes sure that Wholism continues moving at a consistent pace. Ryan learns a lot from that, and feels more confident in his ability to prioritize, thanks to having a partner who he knows has his back, and knowing that he doesn’t have to get it all done at once. Lucy learns from Ryan that there is more than one option, and we don’t have to stay stuck on one thing – there’s multiple ways to get there, and it’s ok if we have to do something else. How we got into our craft is strictly because we ourselves needed it. Ryan and Lucy, as fate would have it, both got extremely sick within a few days of each other on January 1st 2020 with a stomach illness. Due to these illnesses, both of us had to drastically change our diets. It was in that moment that we realized just how hard it was to actually change, especially when doing it by yourself. While being limited dietarily, we chose to look at how specific foods impact us and can help us. We started crafting drinks, each with a specific purpose. We make pistachio milk, walnut milk, and almond milk. We plan on expanding into different types of nut milks as we continue to grow. With our drinks, we help clients by giving them an understanding as to what they’re ingesting and why it helps them. A lot of people are told “drink this, eat this…” but never given the practical applications for what it’s doing for them. Over half of the United States wants to get healthier, but they have no clue how. People are overloaded with information and don’t know where to turn. We’re trying to make it simpler. We also do a weekly podcast where we share our journey on how we’re staying whole physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. With this podcast, we show others our journey and how we’re dealing with things, which is sometimes not good, and sometimes better. One of the things that truly sets us apart is our transparency, honesty, and how we’re embracing being human, and one of the things we’re most proud of is our ability to trust each other as partners. We have open and vulnerable communication, and our partnership has challenged us each to grow individually as well. One of the main things we want our followers, fans and clients to know is: we aren’t doing this just to sell something and make money. We’re doing this because we need this just as much as you do. We need the beverages, we need the talks, we need the love and we need the grace just as much as you do. We aren’t selling a lifestyle that we ourselves don’t live!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Pivoting is the name of the game when it comes to Wholism. In winter 2023, as we awaited funding, we decided to look at what we really needed to focus on. We believe in moving as if it’s going to happen, even if it hasn’t yet. It’s better to be prepared and not have it, than to have it and not be prepared. So we looked at our priorities. We wanted to focus so much on production, and at first, we thought it best to continue to. We had one of our heart to hearts with each other, and Ryan brought up a point of concern. “Maybe we should focus on marketing and branding, because with our new marketing and branding directors connecting us to new stores and promoting us as a premium product, that could really get us places.” Lucy, with her eyes wide and relief written all over her face, said “Wow, you’re right, that makes so much sense. How do you feel about pausing production right now?” That suggestion really scared Ryan. Wasn’t that the reason we started this company in the first place? However, through focusing on that one singular goal, we were making ourselves smaller than what we were, and we needed to change this. With a little fear and hesitation, Ryan said “That makes all the sense in the world. Let’s do it.” Both of us paused. What if we are wrong, and this doesn’t work out? However, we both felt serenity from the idea of the pivot, and to act as if we didn’t wouldn’t be being true to ourselves. So even though we were scared, we realized it was the right thing to do. We were ready to focus on our relaunch! In order to get to where we wanted to be, we needed to focus on who we are as a company. This required us to be quiet, and less out there, and do the work on the inside first. As we pivoted, we both took a deep breath and looked at our journey these past few years. We thought back to when we were trying to come up with the name for our company. We spent so much time trying to figure out a cool name. Ryan brought up to Lucy how he names his characters when he’s writing his creative stories. He takes the two strongest traits of the character, finds names that mean those traits, and combines the two names together to create something unique. This sparked something in Lucy, and she found a word that combined “whole” and “holistic”: Wholism. As we reminisced on this story, we realized we truly did pick the right name. We seek to be whole ourselves, within our company, and to share this gift with others. The Wholism way of life can pivot through anything, which has given us the courage to continue to do what’s best, even if it’s hard.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Five years ago, separately, we joined a volunteer program. The philosophies of this program are centered around changing attitudes and perspectives. We were taught tools to increase the health, harmony and happiness of their relationships. During this time, we each overcame separate personal life challenges. Ryan’s journey caused him to eliminate sugar from his diet during his church’s consecration. Seeking something new to enjoy, he created his own almond mylk. Lucy’s journey caused her to work with a functional medicine practitioner, temporarily removing foods that triggered her gut – gluten, dairy, sugar, yeast, and alcohol. Ryan knew Lucy was going through a tough time, so he brought Lucy this homemade almond mylk in a show of support. Lucy took one sip, looked at Ryan, and said “This is your business.” Six months later, Ryan approached Lucy and asked her to join him in starting the business, she agreed, and we just celebrated their two year business anniversary! Whether communicating about difficult subjects, overcoming challenges, facing growing pains, or celebrating together, we do each grounded in the themes kindness, clarity and mutual respect.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://livewholism.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livewholism/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@livewholism7572/featured
• Other: The Live Wholism Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-live-wholism-podcast/id1602779281 https://open.spotify.com/show/5nPYEf7Kjjitwst67D99id