We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Talia Fuhrman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Talia, appreciate you joining us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I’d say the groundwork for my passion for Eye of Aery, a gourmet healthy desserts edibles company, truly began before I was born. This is because my father, Joel Fuhrman MD, was in residency to finish his medical school program when I entered the world. My father’s specialty as a doctor has always been disease prevention and reversal via a a keen understanding of nutritional science. I grew up watching sick people become well via adhering to his plant-based, nutrient-rich diet lifestyle which he calls the Nutritarian Diet.

Therefore, I grew up eating this whole foods, plant-based diet and ended up becoming so passionate about living this lifestyle that decided to get my degree in nutritional sciences from Cornell University. While I didn’t find that program to be the most up to date on nutritional science research, my passionate for using food as medicine never wavered. I decided to write a nutritional science book for young women soon after I graduated called Love Your Body. I also developed a love affair with healthy cooking/baking and making healthy food taste amazing. My second book is a healthy desserts cookbook called Desserts To Live For that is all fruit-sweetened, vegan, oil-free and processed flour-free. I’ve very much enjoyed getting create in the kitchen!

On the flip side, another substantial source of passion for beginning Eye of Aery has been that chronic pain has unfortunately defined all of my adult life. Sharp nerve pain greeted me for the first time when I was just 16-years-old. I’d been training to be a pro tennis player back then and sharp nerve pain was the last thing my young mind expected to face. I wasn’t aware then that I had scoliosis or that my hip bones were misaligned too. The pressures of training to be a pro athlete on a body not necessarily made for high-level athletics culminated in this pain at an age far too young to be dealing with such things.

No age is really right to be greeted with pain. Over the years, I’d had everything from surgeries to acupuncture to physical therapy. I’ve traveled around the world to feel better. Now in my 30s, I’m getting ever closer to figuring out the cause, but unfortunately, I can’t say I don’t live with debilitating pain. Edibles have been a life-saver for me when it comes to getting healthy rest at night. It’s been difficult for me to sleep well with this pain, but that changed when I started using cannabis to help me sleep. Yet, the problem was that I was having trouble finding healthier edibles products. Everything I found was junk food! As a health-conscious person, it didn’t sit right with me that I couldn’t find healthier edible products on the market.

All of these life experiences and skills were perfect for developing my own superfood edibles products and I could not be more passionate about it! In 2024, Eye of Aery was born.

Talia, 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?

I know exactly what it feels like to live in severe, chronic pain from 20 years of living with nonstop nerve pain and surgical complications from attempting to alleviate that pain. Having cannabis in the form of edibles in my toolbox to help me get much needed sleep despite the pain has been the biggest blessing. Yet, I’ve always wanted to take edibles that didn’t contain any sugar, dairy, artificial ingredients or anything else harmful to my body. Creating my own delicious product was an obvious solution.

Numerous studies have come to the same results: there’s promising evidence that cannabis functions as a substitute for prescription drugs, particularly opioids. Cannabis access is associated with reduced rates of opioid use and abuse, opioid-related hospitalizations, opioid-related traffic fatalities, opioid-related drug treatment admissions, and opioid-related overdose deaths.

Our edibles products are also perfect for those not in physical pain, but desire a gourmet, healthy version. All of our products contain superfood ingredients and we love providing fascinating nutrition facts to our consumers regarding the health benefits of each of our ingredients.

We also love that our products are in eco-packaging and are good for the planet. Eye of Aery will be donating 2% of profits to environmental causes. We love that we can help others access a healthy edibles treat with fun, fanciful branding too!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I’ve had to pivot multiple times in my life. My earliest pivot was when I couldn’t pursue a career in professional tennis. I was homeschooled in high school to give me more time to pursue this dream. My life revolved around tennis for over a decade. Yet, my body was unable to allow me to continue. I took a gap year between high school and college in attempts to heal and took acting classes in NYC that year. I started college thinking I would study acting, producing and directing (I do love a great story!), but ended up pivoting again to obtain a bachelors of science in nutrition because it spoke more to my heart. Although, I still do love a moving movie and am working on a science fiction novel as a hobby.

I also thought I would get a master’s degree in public health, but I was in too much pain to go back to school. I ended up writing my first nutrition book because that was easier on my body than going back to school full time. I started a food blog around this time too, which resulted in lots of practice in the kitchen and a desire to create a healthy desserts cookbook.

At one point about a decade ago, I attempted to begin a nontoxic, cruelty-free makeup company, but my investor backed out. I feel as though Eye of Aery is perfect for me and how I’d like to contribute to society moving forward. I’m thankful for how everything is turning out and I love the twists and turns of the journey of life.

How did you build your audience on social media?

This is not easy these days, but I always recommend creating authentic, unique content that can be useful to others. You don’t have to be a perfectionist in this regard, but rather, try to have fun with it. The advice for social media can vary depending on the brand and services/products offered, but the above will apply to pretty much any business. Interacting with other, similar social media accounts can often be helpful in building your audience too.

I built my own audience on social media, in part, because I started using it as soon as Instagram came on the scene in 2012. I can’t say I’ve always been perfect in how I’ve used it and the platform does evolve on its own, but providing useful content that viewers can apply in everyday life and be motived by is always a good idea. People love success stories and depending on the brand, your own life and experiences expressed in a positive way or that can be inspirational.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.eyeofaery.com
• Instagram: @taliafuhrman
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/taliafuhrman
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taliafuhrman/
• Other: https://www.taliafuhrman.com

Image Credits

Talia Janelle Fuhrman