Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Tazim Damji, owner of Grow Nourishment, located in North Vancouver, BC, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Grow Nourishment is all about the belief that growing edible plants is the easiest and most enjoyable way to eat healthily. I combine my background in permaculture and plant-based nutrition to help my clients feel proud and accomplished as they grow nourishing organic herbs and vegetables. I can get them there with a nutritional assessment and/or a garden planning consultation and planting installation.
Growing our own food, no matter what kind of access we have to stores and farmer's markets, is one of those skills that has so many benefits - tangible and intangible. I find that my anxiety is eased whenever I'm out in the garden or growing herbs indoors. I even find that I feel less stressed when I talk to others about gardening!
My clients most often live in apartments, condominiums, and townhouses with limited space to grow. I help them realize how much they can grow and harvest even with their small spaces. When my clients realize what's possible, they feel excited to try something new, get outside more often and connect with nature, and enjoy all the fresh salads they'll have easy access to. I am able to help clients across Canada via virtual consultations and coaching sessions, not just in the Vancouver area where I live. Seeing how bees, butterflies, and other pollinators are benefiting from the edible plants and pollinator flowers we're growing is just so rewarding!
Tell us about yourself
I've long considered myself a non-conformist who tends to take unexpected paths in life. But, working full-time promoting travel just didn't sit well with me as someone who is environmentally conscious. I knew I would rather spend my time working within my deepest values and doing good in the world. Although I've dabbled in entrepreneurship in the past, Grow Nourishment is a fully fleshed-out business that I can really see myself working in for a long time.
Being out in nature and going on hikes and walks are some things that I've enjoyed throughout my life. When I began my permaculture design certification and learned all about the different aspects of seeding and tending to edible plants, I came to understand how truly connected everything is. I could really see how the skill of gardening using organic permaculture practices could help me feel less anxious, encourage me to spend more time outdoors, and help the environment at the same time.
I've been on a vegan diet and lifestyle for over twenty years and started a program to be certified as a nutritional counselor several years ago. My studies were mostly for myself and my family. I wanted to make sure that I was eating healthily and could help my friends and family, too.
Through my regenerative land management program, I see that I can combine my nutrition background with permaculture to help even more people in many different ways. This motivates me each day! I spend hours every week volunteering at different non-profits in a native plant nursery, an urban farm, and a pollinator garden project to continue my learning and connect more with the local community.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I'm so proud of the way I transformed a client's balcony from a sad and neglected space into a real oasis for her to get away and relax in. She had dozens of empty pots and containers sitting on her balcony from plants that she had picked up but didn't know how to care for properly. I took those same pots and added new soil and compost and organic seeds and starter plants to get things going and growing.
My interior design background helped me to create a more inviting space for my client and her new edible plants, not to mention the bees and butterflies that will happily be visiting her pollinator flowers and herbs.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Self-doubt is huge when you're a business owner. It's so easy to compare yourself with others when you mostly just see their highlights reel online. This is why it's important to connect with other business owners who are also at the same stage in their businesses and who can empathize with what you're going through. These connections make you feel like you're not alone and that you're exactly where you need to be on your journey.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Gather your support team. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to have people who are in your corner when you're on the very vulnerable entrepreneurship journey.
- Only take constructive feedback from others who are "in the arena." Brené Brown said it best: "If you are not in the arena getting your ass kicked on occasion, I am not interested in or open to your feedback. There are a million cheap seats in the world today filled with people who will never be brave with their own lives but will spend every ounce of energy they have hurling advice and judgment at those of us trying to dare greatly."
- Do things that work for you and your business. It's easy to get distracted and sidetracked by shiny objects and shiny entrepreneurs who are having success or doing things that look so much better than what you're doing. I've found that I need to be true to my personality and my energy levels when it comes to marketing and the types of things I do in my business.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.grownourishment.ca/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grownourishment
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grownourishment/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tazimdamji
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tazimdamji/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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