We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nathalie & Natacha Garbani. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nathalie & Natacha below.
Nathalie & Natacha, appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
The year was 2020, we had gotten laid off due to the global budget cuts that came with the pandemic and truthfully, we were both slightly relieved to have new found freedom. In the years leading up to 2020, we had been faced with several life altering moments that fed our transformation living a fully wholesome life. We dove deeper into exploring movement, creativity and holistic and sustainable practices for our mind and body. We felt the shift so deep in us and knew that we felt called to sharing this way of living with others. As 2020 passed, we often sat in Nathalie’s backyard by the canal, dreaming up the idea of creating a space that would be a hub for these practices. We wanted to offer a space for the community that felt safe to disconnect from social pressure and reconnect with yourself and others in the present moment. Both of our spaces were birthed from our hearts; The Humble Hut; a fully zero-waste art cafe and tea lounge & The Space Between; a non-heated movement studio rooted in yoga, somatic therapy and holistic wellness. The only logic behind these spaces are that they are authentic and even, very much needed, in this day in age and in our community. We wanted to push the boundaries of what a coffee lounge or yoga studio usually are, adding our years of practices and experience to create spaces that felt like a unique experience, a safe space that felt like coming home to the most authentic version of yourself. After 3 years, as our businesses move out of infancy, we continue to witness our concepts develop. Crystal clear vision as to what we would like both spaces to develop into, our doors are open to any and all people, no matter where they are on their journey. We don’t just want to attract like-minded community, but rather be the bridge between two worlds, allowing for curiosity and growth for anyone longing for well-being, more creativity and living a more wholesome, sustainable lifestyle.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
We, Nathalie & Natacha, are a mother and daughter duo. A yin and yang relationship, consistently evolving to fortify conscious communication in our joint, intentional effort to allowing our businesses to thrive. We’ve come a long way, both personally and in partnership, making ourselves and each other proud of what growth looks like when it’s done so authentically. Because being first time business owners and mother/daughter, not everyday feels sunny and bright, but it’s what we do with those darker days that make each new creative idea, each good day, so treasured. Our dualities form together such a full circle, so to best understand how we fused these business concepts together, we’ll introduce ourselves separately.
My name is Nathalie, but my daughter refers to me as the “og” of this space. My childhood, my education, my career, my role as a mother, grand-mother and educator, have all deeply contributed to the evolving path I am traveling toward mindful health and care choices and overall well-being. My raison-d’etre (reason for being) has become learning and sharing how it is possible, rather simple and worthy, to adopt healthier habits to make our life on earth more beautiful and fulfilling. Recalling all the events I lived through and choices I made in the past 50+ years would take pages while running the risk to lose the fundamental essence of how I got where I am now with and because of my beautiful daughter and grandson. So instead, I will share three main points from what life has taught me so far and why I chose to create this space with my daughter.
1- Being thankful for my parents and grand-parents and at least one of our family doctors, for giving me what I retrospectively understand to be a good start in life. Their wisdoms most likely allowed me to develop a good immune system and hence to live a healthy life so far despite not always following the healthiest path.
2- Encouraging anyone to see that, adverse events and sometimes poor judgment or choice from the past should not trigger defeat but should be a catalyst for positive changes not only in lifestyle but of thoughts and openness to better ways of prevention and treatment. Actually, going through the exercise of recalling events in your life is a very helpful way to understand symptoms and illnesses (narrating your life is one building block of functional medicine).
3- Continuing to learn, question, analyze and mostly share those with others. We have reached a point in society when it is more crucial than ever for the future health (and survival) of the world population to become aware of what we eat, what we are exposed to and most importantly sound alternative ways to fulfill our needs, so we can preserve our right to choose what is best for our health.
As much as I respect science and scientific facts, I feel that they in many ways have stripped us of our individuality and more importantly our connection to our self and nature. Starting about 5 years ago, I looked into, enrolled and studied more individualistic approaches to well-being, such as functional nutrition and nutrigenomics, and more recently an amazing course mixing herbalism and astrology. Finally, I have also reconnected with art with the support of my daughter, my sister, and 2 great friends who introduced me to different technique (sculpting with copper wires and Neurographica).
** My name is Natacha Morgane Garbani. I am the daughter of Nathalie, who raised me by herself; in strength, resilience and compassion for others and the earth. I am the grand-daughter of my dearest grandparents Huguette and Jean-Pierre, who loved me so dearly and taught me that my wide eyed wonder was something so unique and cherishable. I am a mother to Luca, my sweet, sensitive and kind 7 year old son. I am a nurturer and safe space for my friends, clients and community. I am a teacher and therapist who cares and gives with my whole being. Who I am for others and how others have been for me, shape the person I am today. As a young girl, my dream was to stay home, garden, care for my family and get lost in books and the woods. When High School came along, I still did not know what my calling was, though I always enjoyed learning, the arts and most of all, helping others move through how they feel. It was through a series of personal struggles in High School and undergrad that my calling became clear; I wanted to understand human behavior and help people creates shifts in their lives. After having survived a series of abusive situations, I not only wanted to understand what caused me to believe that I had deserved it but also, what causes someone who inflict pain onto others or themselves. From then (22) and on, my studies have been dedicated to human behavior and researching the best tools to help others create a shift in their lives. I studied the traditional route of psychotherapy and found that there were gaps in this model for so many clients and even friends, who had tried it for themselves. When I began to bring in yoga, breath work and mindfulness techniques and movements, I felt that I was on the right road to having a whole, mind / body approach to therapy. The biggest “Aha!” moment in my career came at 27, when I found Somatic Psychology, the study of the emotional body and how it pertained to deeply to the root cause of people’s behavior, pain, mindsets, etc. I have been able to help clients with past trauma and clients in the midst or in need, of a shift, with such great success since I’ve incorporated all of the above. I began to dream of having my own space to be able to curate classes, workshops and see clients for one on one sessions. Practicing what I preach and being authentic about my journey has always been so incredibly important to me. Being raw and real about my life has led me to get to the root of my pain, and so, I hope to inspire others to show up with openness, realness and curiosity so that they may find within them, the root of what is bothering them. Though I could go on forever, speaking of the beauty and power of this work, some other things about me is how much I love; my cats, reading, long walks in silence, playing with my son, using the gua sha method on myself to name just a few….Oh! and Sunday afternoon’s, when the house is clean and a candle is on and something sweet is baking.
***Beyond just a cafe or movement studio, we wanted our spaces to feel like an experience, and with that intention in mind, we created these pillars on which our businesses were founded which is what makes us unique and also innovators in our community. Sustainability, creativity and (w)holistic wellness.
Through sustainability, we aspire and wanted to inspire people to take small steps through community efforts to create healthier self and world.
We come from the stance that, there is no planet “b”, the understanding that we must all take a conscious effort to preserving what we have for ourselves and the precious future generation. It begins with the sustainable aspect of our café, through creating a space that is completely zero-waste.
One of our main intentions was to help minimize our carbon footprint by opting out of to-go containers, as even if better quality ones, take a toll on the environment. For cold beverages, we sell glass jars for $3 and we always welcome our on-the-go customers to bring their own to-go cups or tupperware for food. Our carefully curated food menu is all organic and some items, sourced from Europe while all of our teas, coffee and herbs are ethically sourced and organic to ensure the highest quality. Another major inspiration for making the café fully zero-waste, was inspired by our French culture. The Joie de Vivre (joy of living) is still so present in Europe. Demonstrated by how people will actually sit and enjoy a coffee, tea or little treat without feeling like they have to rush out with their coffee cup and pastry wrapped in a baggie. There are very few coffee shops that offer take-out and even fewer people that even want that. We’ve experience, quite a few times, customers wanting to take their coffee “to-go” to which we explain our pillar of sustainability. We then ask, “do you have 5 minutes to enjoy your coffee?”. Their faces turn inquisitive, and most will answer “I guess I do, actually.” We almost always get a “Thank you for reminding me to take my time to pause.”. Both of our spaces serve as a deep, heart-felt invitation to take moments of the day and find joy in being fully present and the art of doing nothing.
The beauty of sustainability is that in can be applied so diversely. It isn’t limited to the products you use and food you eat, but also, how you shop for clothes, household items, carefully not falling into over consumption or waste and being mindful what corporations you choose to support. We took the time to curate this space with material & furniture consciously; using some that we had, some that were given and some that were found and refurbished. It definitely makes for an eclectic, funky atmosphere that many people have said “really makes you feel at home”; because so many eras and design types are incorporated in this space, many customers have found some kind of affinity to our space. In a way, Being here helps emind you of what feels safe and joyful, like home, because it was curated from a place of mindfulness.
In order to feel good, what you consume and how you spend your time is so pivotal. The creativity and holistic wellness aspects truly comes out in this whole body experience as we offer workshops such as; somatic neuroart, sustainable crafting, herbal crafting, expressive writing & cultural spotlight workshops. Bringing people together to feed curiosity, growth and person evolution.
***Our sister space, is a movement studio rooted in yoga, somatics, myo fascia release & mindfulness. We called it, The Space Between as at it signifies those present moments between other moments. You will often hear cued in class “Exist in that space between the breath, in that space between the thoughts, in the space between your sensation and emotions.” Practicing this in the studio pairs beautifully the café’s mentality to relish in the “doing nothing.” In The Space Between, the intention is really to allow things to simply be, to exists. exactly as they are. The invitation here is to him balance your body, calm your nervous system and find peace with each sensation, emotion that you feel and each cycle of life where you are. Each class, different in nature but with this same goal of regulation, reflection and full acceptance, brings an array of different movement practices. The names of each class are based on the essence they introduce, for instance; Held is our restorative class, Pause is our yin class, Space is our slow flow. About 80% of the classes are slow in pace, weaving intuitive movement and breathwork to bring you deeper into your practice. The faster, more strength based class; vitality & balance were created to allow for inner heat and vibrancy to build in a non-heated setting; helping create resilience and adaptability all while being mindful not to over stress our bodies. Because everyone is always moving through their person cycles, not one person will enter a yoga studio with the same baseline; each time Natacha teaches, she teaches to the bodies in the room, often curating entire classes to the students who are in class. Creating this space to be non-heated came from wanting to tailor to the softer, cooler side of nervous system regulation. Natacha taught and practiced hot power yoga for years, seeing how the practice could be so beneficial for some and for others, extremely difficult and off-putting. It’s truly all about preference, and we wanted to have a space that was catered to the those who enjoy a non-heated environment. Because heat can be of such great value, our private FAR Infrared Sauna provides the intense heat & Infrared light that our bodies can sometimes need. Minimal and neutral decor, dim lighting and smells of palo santo, sandalwood & rose gives each body a baseline to start from; wether you want to take a class that’ll turn up some inner heat or let yourself melt while being immersed in sound bowl frequency; is up to you. This space is meant for you to feel safe, calm and present.
When movement classes are not in session, Natacha offers private therapeutic sessions fusing Somatic Psychology, Neuroscience, Somatic myo fascia bodywork, Internal Parts work, EMDR & other whole body approaches to the healing journey; for pre teens, teens & adults.
***We are most proud of dreaming these spaces into reality and despite some struggle being first time business owners of.unique businesses in a pre-recession economy, keeping our doors and heart open to connection and growth. It has absolutely been a journey through rolling hills; learning to re-create business plans as we evolve, creating and managing websites, marketing, networking, etc. We are in awe of how open our heart are to making this work and continue to be so excited about spreading the word so that both spaces are filled with community, just as they were created for.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
From Nathalie:
I have always found inspiration by doodling. My doodles often stem from spirals spinning from the center outward. A nautilus shell is a perfect logarithmic spiral. It grows larger with each lap embodying a flawless progression. It represents the ideal human growth of expanding consciousness in synchrony with the advance of knowledge and ability. Like the nautilus shell I view my life and career as a constant pivoting, through the goods and the bads, always bringing the changes I did not know I needed. If I had to share one story, it would have to be the first major shift in my career that brought me to where I am today. In 2004, I had the opportunity to teach at a university the skills I had learned and practiced in clinical settings for years. I did not hesitate, although it meant uprooting my daughter away from her friends, moving 1500 miles from a house and a region I loved, and taking a pay cut. This experience made me realized that I had a lot more to offer to my students at the time, and at another level to our customers today, than the basic skills they needed. For 8 years I invested my time and immerse fully in an environment that allowed me to thrive in learning, discovering, creating beyond my comfort zone.
Although the 8 years that followed that experience were less than rewarding careerwise, I still kept following my ever-expanding spiral of skills and knowledge that led me to open this business with my daughter.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
The way I see resilience, through the lens of Somatics, is that harnessing it will create more space within the body to let in change. Resilience is not just about springing back to a previous state after difficulties or stress, but rather the journey and process of responding to the adjustment and adaptation, it’s a process of social psychological and physical transformation. Cultivating resilience has been a journey in and of itself, and though, if I were to share a specific story where resilience took the lead, it would be, the story of my present life.
I have been through very hard cycles in my life, and though I overcame them all and gained strength from them, I would say that the summations of the difficulties plus my work in somatic psychotherapy has given me the true essence of resilience that I am living now. Being a small brick and mortar business and being a single mother means that every day I must be able to adapt to changes at any given second. In previous moments of struggles, that ability to move through one hardship to another felt completely paralyzing, whereas present day, I find myself using tools that ground me, bring me into my body, into acceptance, into peace. Developing an internal system of resilience is so foundational to collective resilience and transformation. Gandhi said, “to be the change you want to see in the world” and for the kind of change to happen, we must integrate it within our own bodies. Feeling into the discomforts that arise, as oposed to ignoring the (anixety, sadness, anger), has been so crucial in this resilience. The more we ignore our pains, the louder they scream, so cultivating resilience means creating a relationship with your body.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.napleshumblehut.com
- Instagram: @thehumblehut
- Facebook: The Humble Hut Naples