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In this episode, we discuss:

• The inspiration behind Blooming Botanicals Hemp + how to stand out in a crowded industry
• Exploring the differences between full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, and isolate hemp products
• The emotional and scientific way CBD works with the endocannabinoid system in  humans and animals
• The energetics of business and product-based marketing

Additional Resources:

PRODUCT: Blooming Botanicals Hemp

Save 10% with code SARAH10. Align with your higher self with herbally infused CBD. Use the power of herbs + full spectrum CBD to allow your body to return to the self healing powerhouse we know it is.

COURSE: Launch Your Wellness Biz

A 30-day course for lightworkers who desire to turn their pain into their purpose and create profit. I’ve heard so many people say they don’t know where start when it comes to building an online wellness business, this solves that problem and helps you go from overwhelmed to bringing in regular paychecks.

BOOK: 21 Days of Healing

21 Days of Healing was created out of my own desire to go beyond food and heal on a deeper emotional and spiritual level. I curated the most loved content based on hundreds of live students experience in the course, and created this self guided workbook to help you navigate chronic illness, release emotional inflammation, and find the medicine woman within.

Episode Transcript:

Welcome to The Uncensored Empath, a place for us to discuss highly sensitives’ energy, illness, healing, and transformation. My name is Sarah Small and I’m a life and success coach for empaths who want to create a thriving body, business, and life. Think of this podcast as your no-BS guide to navigating life, health, and entrepreneurship. You’ll get straight-to-the-point, totally holistic tips from me in real-time as I navigate this healing and growth journey right beside you. This is a Soulfire production.

Welcome back to another episode. I have with me, one of my favorite humans on this planet today. Her name is also Sarah. Sarah Birney and I have known each other since high school back in Okemos, Michigan and we also lived together for one year of college in Kalamazoo. And she is just someone who I have loved having in my life and I’m so excited that she’s here with us today so that I can share her with all of you. Sarah Birney is the founder of Blooming Botanicals Hemp, my most favoritest, favorite CBD and hemp product line. I talk about this in the interview today, but honestly, I’ve shared this with so many people. I’ve shared their products with so many people and every single time people are like, Holy shit, this is the best CBD I’ve ever had. And I just nod my head and say, Yes, yes, yes, it is. It’s different than any of the other brands that I’ve ever tried and it happens to be founded by one of my really good friends. So again, I’m super excited to share Sarah with you.

She has a background in integrative nutrition, yoga, and massage, and she combines all of this to infuse into their line of holistic products that support healing the mind, healing the body, healing the spirit. And we’re going to be talking not only about CBD and the energetics of business and ways that she and her husband, Brian, who’s also a friend from high school, have been able to launch a successful product line, but also the emotional benefits and the science behind CBD and full-spectrum hemp as well. So we get into many different things today. I’m sure you’re going to love her as much as I do. And just so you know, if you feel inspired after listening to our conversation today, you can save 10% on any of the Blooming Botanicals product line by using code Sarah1010. So it’s Sarah10 at their website, which will be linked in the show notes and I highly, highly recommend you go give them a try.

Sarah: All right, Sarah, welcome to the show.

Sarah B:  Thank you so much for having me back. I’m excited to be here.

Sarah: You guys, Sarah is one of my really good friends and she’s also been on the show before and I’m just really honored to have her back. And I feel like every time she’s come on we’ve had different conversations and we’ve been able to talk about the birth of her business and the growth of her business and we’re here to talk a little bit about that today. She’s the founder of Blooming Botanicals Hemp and I’m just really excited to be able to dive deeper into your brand of hemp and CBD, Sarah, because I’ve shared your products with a lot of people, either told them about it, put them into gift bags. You guys had a deal at one point where you could gift and donate CBD and every single person who I’ve shared your product with has literally said, This is the best CBD I’ve ever tasted. And so, I’m just so curious, what do you guys do differently, and what makes it so freaking amazing?

The inspiration behind Blooming Botanicals Hemp + how to stand out in a crowded industry

Sarah B: Yes, definitely. Well, we did a six-month beta test in order to get that to taste really good. Basically, to have CBD really work within the body, you have to take it every day and it doesn’t taste good. Just bottom line, I have tried countless CBD brands and it’s not something that I ever want to take again, let alone, every morning after you brush your teeth or whenever it is. So we worked with labs and what we do is we don’t extract ourselves. That’s big, big-time science, big-time money. But what we do is basically we have partnered and we’ve gone to Colorado quite a few times and we tour every facility, we test every product. So we have tested raw material from 20 to 30 different labs to find the best one. And we put it in our own formulation and then test it personally, like I’m taking this to see what it tastes like but also sending it to a third-party lab to get it tested for quality. So it’s our number one thing; quality. And it does have a little bit of a hemp taste but we were able to get that panel of minor cannabinoids and CBD to look like what we want with keeping the taste in mind. So it took a lot of work. I don’t know that there’s one specific thing we did besides just trial and error really.

Sarah: Yes. Well, to me, it’s like this commitment to excellence and not settling with something that’s like, Oh, okay. This is fine. And instead, you guys continue to do the research, continue to test the product, to really arrive at a product that is so high-quality and really does taste good. I especially love the lavender and the turmeric because they have a little bit of that, but it’s like a light flavor. It’s not overpowering lavender or overpowering turmeric. And I think that blend of essential oils in at least those two of your products make it so smooth and so easy and you want to take it every day. Like you said, it works when you take it every day and you have that consistency. So there are also so many CBD brands, hemp product brands. It’s something that’s really exploded over the last X number of years. And I think a lot of listeners can also resonate and relate to this, not necessarily because they own CBD brands, but instead, the coaching industry or the nutrition or the health industry, there are so many people doing this. And so, how have you guys been able to, as a business, also be able to set yourself apart or stand out within a really crowded industry?

Sarah B: Definitely. And that probably has so many answers to it. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with how many are out there. A lot of people are in it because it’s big money quickly or so they think. It’s not, it’s a job. But we’ve never had that mentality. We want to be in it for the long run so I don’t get too wrapped up in seeing what other people do. And what we did to set ourselves apart; we are health coaches. We moved to Costa Rica to study herbs. Well, one of the biggest things is there are white-labeling products. So there are a few really large labs, we’ve toured them all. Some of them have gone bankrupt because they just too big, too fast, which is not a great business model. They white-label products so everyone that’s ordering from them, it’s quality, so I won’t say that it’s bad CBD on the market by any means, but you put your label on the same thing that most other people are also putting their own label on. So that’s your CBD; you can get natural flavor, mint, cherry, orange. And when you see those kinds of things you know, oh, this isn’t custom made but that’s a good question to ask. It’s just good to get the information and ask the questions of whatever brand you’re thinking you resonate with.

So we only add things to our CBD that are healthy, that have other aspects of helping someone find true wellness and we make all the products ourselves. So like I said, we don’t extract the raw material, but we do all the formulations. So, our turmeric; turmeric’s been shown to be a natural antidepressant. So where CBD has been shown that as well, putting the two together is just next level for people experiencing anxiety, which is the number one mental illness or ailment in this country, so it’s most people. And then lavender; stress relief. We’re going through a pandemic, show me someone that’s not stressed. So we don’t add stuff just to add stuff; no fillers, preservatives, flavorings, and that’s good for some people. So there’s a lot of brands that do that but we just figure the people who really want true wellness will resonate with our brand. And we’ve also kind of always compared it to the brewing industry because you have your Budweisers, your Coors, those really big ones that are mass-produced. And every town has a million breweries. They’re doing things how they’re doing things. You resonate with their vibe, their taste, whatever it is. It’s not the same from one to the other and I think CBD is the same. There’s a craft market there.

Sarah: Yes. That’s such a good analogy that makes so much sense. And I’m curious, I’ve known you and Brian for a long time now, but I’d love for you to share with our listeners just what initially inspired you guys to go in this direction. And I don’t know everything that’s gone into developing this company, but my assumption is it was a large undertaking. And like you said, you visited all these different places and did a lot of research to get it up and running so what drove you, what inspired you to do that?

Sarah B: Okay. So we, living in Michigan, have been caregivers in the medical marijuana industry since 2008. So I got to know how to grow a marijuana plant, the different aspects of it, strains, things like that. Naturally me studying these things, I got my hands on a CBD plant and grew it, and you would not believe how hard it was to get anyone to care about it. Nobody wanted it. You couldn’t pay people to take it. And I’m like, Okay. So we already were studying it back in probably 2010. So over 10 years ago, introduced to CBD, and just kind of falling in love with it, but being stopped immediately. So we have this background in Cannabis already, Cannabis is amazing for so many different things, but then just became health coaches, moved to Costa Rica, studied herbs, did all of these things and always kind of we’re missing that. Plant health is amazing. I just love plant medicines, I love food. I mean, we’ve known each other for so long. We’ve always been doing things for our bodies that might seem extreme, but for me, it’s just natural. It grows from the ground; we should consume it.

Turmeric’s been part of so many people’s diets for so long, it’s amazing. So we always wanted to get back to Cannabis in some way, but there’s also this piece of Cannabis that’s like same as beer, right? You’re just maybe numbing something or it has amazing medicinal properties, absolutely, but it can be used a different way. So when CBD started to pick up, I was like, Wow, I could go back to this. Now people want it, where 10 years ago, no one will touch it. And I’m like, Oh, this is really opening up where I can really say Cannabis is amazing, teach about Cannabis, but also bring in the more health aspect and really highlight that. It’s not ever used for the psychoactive feeling. There isn’t one. So that piece of it’s totally gone and we’re only talking health, we’re only talking medicine. And for me, that just felt really, really good.

Sarah: Mm-hmm. Can you talk about, because this is something that really confused me when I first started utilizing CBD in my own health and healing journey, what full-spectrum hemp means versus what other things are on the market?

Exploring the differences between full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, and isolate hemp products

Sarah B: So full-spectrum is the whole plant. So these are all extractions but you can have orange juice, that’s just orange juice that has been extracted from an orange, or you can extract vitamin C to have a pill. And these are different things but they might come from the same source. So when you have the whole plant and you don’t change anything about it, but you extract it, you have a full-spectrum oil. You can take the THC out and that’s mostly for legal purposes and also there’s a trace amount. There’s not enough THC to ever feel but you could have a drug test or there could be reasons. I know a lot of people in sobriety don’t want any THC so there’s a lot of reasons people would do that. When they extract the THC from it, it’s called a broad spectrum and you get the whole plant material minus that one cannabinoid. And then a lot of things you find on the market are going to be an isolate, which are just the CBD molecule isolated and there’s not anything else. I’m a firm believer in full-spectrum because nature is really smart. The plant has all of these different pieces in it for a reason and they work together. So when possible, I suggest for health benefits, a full-spectrum, but there are reasons to have other things.

Sarah: I love your analogy of the orange juice as well. I think that visually makes it so clear on what some of the differences are. And I think that again, in my journey of starting to use CBD, I never looked at that part of the label. It was just kind of like, okay, whatever. But then I started to hear more about it and then started to investigate more and realized that there are real differences between the isolate versus a full-spectrum versus the broad-spectrum that you talked about and the way that might work therapeutically on your body as well. So I’m really curious, you’ve talked about some of the emotional benefits of anxiety and the way that CBD works on our endocannabinoid system. Can you explain a little bit more of the science behind why these products are so potent and powerful?

The emotional and scientific way CBD works with the endocannabinoid system in  humans and animals

Sarah B: Yes. I started learning about this and it makes me giddy to see how this actually works because it works for so many people. And I also said, Okay, well, how does it work on so many things? People say, Well, what can CBD help? And honestly, if you go down the list, it’s hard to believe because it helps so many different things. And basically, to wrap it up pretty simply, we have an endocannabinoid system. Every animal in the world besides insects, they don’t have one, but every animal has one. So every animal can also utilize these things. Our endocannabinoid system is connected to every single system of our body; so your reproductive system, your circulatory system, every single one we have. And I think that is why it covers so many different things because basically when we’re firing up the endocannabinoid system, we’re increasing communication between each system. So whatever system might be quote-unquote shutdown or stifled in some way gets fired up and then it gets to communicate with the body. Basically, you’re just trying to find homeostasis.

So what happens is when you have something negative happen in your body, whether it’s a physical accident you go through, or you have a lot of stress for some reason, or have some sort of trauma in your body, your body releases two enzymes that go in and plug up the receptor sites of your endocannabinoid system. And it can be someone honked at you, watching a scary movie. Anything that invokes some sort of fear or anxiety will release these two enzymes and they go in and they actually plug up the endocannabinoid system; so they shut it down. So that is keeping your systems from communicating with each other. So CBD, what it does, which is so fascinating, is it’s kind of a two-phase system of how it works, which is another reason why it’s not the exact same duration for each person when they feel something or have some sort of relief from it, is CBD goes in and actually eats those two enzymes until you can pass them through your body.

So phase one is clear up the gunk, I like to say, of those two enzymes, and then phase two is your receptor sites are open and available to take CBD in and fire up the system so then you have that communication. And another thing is we’re always going through stressful things. Like again, in the middle of a pandemic, it’s stress every single day and that’s why taking CBD daily too can help and be a preventative as well then just, I have a symptom I’m trying to figure out and cover-up.

Sarah: I have never heard anyone explain the phase one of that two-phase process before and that’s so cool and totally new to me because I understood phase two and starting to fill the receptors but never the clearing of the gunk, the clearing of the enzymes in our body. And again, just super fascinating. You’ve mentioned it a couple of times, but I’d love to just hear any more details around why is it most beneficial for us to be doing this than on a daily basis versus just in the moment of anxiety?

Sarah B: Yes, I think that goes back to every single day you’re experiencing stress on your body and that could be breathing in environmental toxins, right? It doesn’t have to be something really, really bad. It can be just we live in a harsh environment; you know? Everywhere you go, even watching the news is hard. So that invokes something in you that releases these enzymes. So they’re constantly being released into the body so we constantly have to clear them out. And there’s no saying how many you have. I had someone that had a really bad accident as a child and they didn’t figure out how to clear that up early on so than the negative effects just piled on and piled on and piled on. I’m sure with an auto-immune issue, it’s like you don’t know what’s going on for so long that it’s piling on and piling on, that’s always happening. We don’t fix things in a day. We’ve spent our whole life piling these issues on that we need to every single day do our work to clear up. So I think that’s the biggest thing is that when it’s always building up, you have to always be giving it the resources that it needs to take care of itself. And that’s what it is, it’s just giving your body the ability to heal itself, it’s not actually putting in anything that’s not naturally there.

Sarah: Yes, that makes so much sense. And I’m seeing this visual or analogy of the Roomba, we have a Roomba downstairs because of having two very hairy dogs, and just having that run on a regular basis so that it’s never accumulating to the point where then we have those discomforts of the stress or the fear or the anxiety. Like you said, it doesn’t have to be that we’re pulling our hair out stressed because of something specific every day, there are environmental stressors that are just unavoidable on our planet now. And that we’re, like you said, breathing in environmental toxins, for example, something that we can’t necessarily avoid at least outside of a controlled environment of our home and this allows then the body to be supported in its natural detoxification process, natural downregulation of the nervous system. All of this is just clicking for me and making so much sense. So you guys have a whole line of products. Are there any specific ones that then are better for specific instances that you’d recommend?

Sarah B: Definitely. My brain’s always turning. I have so many products on the docket for coming out and I think that’s one thing that set us apart too, with going slow. So we have our core line that we’ve had for a while now and just really making sure each product is, I won’t say perfect because that’s not real, but as good as it can be for us before coming out with more. And our best seller, by far the number one product for us, is our turmeric and black pepper. And people know turmeric. Turmeric’s the best anti-inflammatory out there that’s natural that I’ve ever heard of. And we talked to so many people, Yes, yes, I take turmeric or I use the spice, and I’ve always done that as well. So curcumin is the anti-inflammatory in turmeric and when you use the spice it has 3% curcumin. So it’s pretty low, you have to take massive amounts of it. And we use CO2-extracted turmeric so it actually has 95% curcumin.

So pairing that, it’s not just a little bit of turmeric, let’s hope it works, it’s actually a powerful therapeutic dose of turmeric. And then turmeric cannot be absorbed in the body without black pepper so they’re CO2-extracted black pepper, and you also need a fat. So some supplements on the market are just turmeric capsules, no black pepper, no fat. It literally does nothing. Your body cannot take it in unless you happen to have black pepper and something else at the same time. So that’s a really interesting one and the properties are so similar to CBD and what it can help that they work together just really, really well. So those are going to be your mood disorders, anxiety, depression, and pain. So inflammation, diseases caused by inflammation in the body, covers a lot of things that would cause pain. So that’s our bestseller. But then there’s a lot of people who are just stressed and they can’t relax, they can’t sleep. A lot of people come to us for issues with sleep and so we have our lavender formulation for more of that kind of feel.

And then we have an original because some people just want the base and that’s great for whatever reason. Some people are sensitive to essential oils and the turmeric extraction and other things. When you get those really potent oils it can be hard and by that, it’s like .01% of people that came to us but we have the original. And then we have a topical for just acute pain and discomfort. For me, it’s amazing for headaches and menstrual cramps. I mean, you know me, I’ve had headaches my whole life so it’s really helped to clear that up. So we do have different things for different reasons definitely.

Sarah: Yes. I’ve been using the healing salve during pregnancy just topically on pain. Oh my God, this third trimester and the back pain is just a little out of control and so I’m doing all the things; that’s one of them. And then living in Colorado, I’ve also been using it as a cuticle cream and it is freaking life-saving because it gets so dry out here and I hate having little hangnails and dry fingers and cuticles. And so I’ve just been rubbing it. It’s literally down in the kitchen. Every time I wash my hands, I put a little bit on my fingernails and it helps me stay moisturized, and then there’s that added benefit as well. And then I’m super curious because I think it’s the same product, but you mentioned previously that animals also have this endocannabinoid system within their body and being as well and I use CBD with my dogs as well. And so, it’s not like it’s a completely different product if I’m not mistaken, but how can it benefit our dogs as well? Because, well, you know how much I love my dogs and I know how much you love your dog and so they’re top priority as well.

Sarah B: Definitely. And it’s so funny people take better care of their dogs than they do themselves all the time. So we have a large percentage of people that start with our pet CBD. And then the cool thing about dogs is there’s no placebo, there’s no like, Hey, you’re going to get better. They just do. So humans see that happen and they’re like, Wow, this actually does work. So I think it’s pretty cool in that way too, where it can actually be a catalyst for them to understand CBD. But we started the company, which you kind of asked before, there’s just so many reasons we started it so it’s hard to choose what to talk about. But our dog, Arlo, tore his ACL. He tore both and he was like a hundred pounds, a big boy so they said he’s probably not going to walk. And I’m like, he got surgery and he’s a hundred pounds and I’m carrying him around with a yoga strap; not feasible for me to do that for very long. And it was six months after the surgery, he’s not healing, it was pretty crazy. And like I said, there wasn’t really CBD around at the time and we finally sought some out. It wasn’t our own but we got it for him and within two weeks he was using his leg.

We took him to the vet, they could not believe it. Really, people weren’t talking about CBD at the time, it hadn’t exploded so they got really curious about it, you know? And we said let’s do this. Well, we had the farm bill so we waited till the farm bill went through and then launched three weeks later. So that’s what we were really. We believed in it for so long, knew about it, had gotten Arlo on it previously, but it works the same way. We have a rescue; she has such bad anxiety. She would not let Brian, my husband, Brian, near her when we first met her. They’re best friends now. And she’s also not very nervous for too many people, it’s just a separation anxiety. Nausea in cars and things like that will be really big with animals. So they have this system it’s connected to every one of their systems so it can kind of cover all the same bases. And ours, we don’t put herbal supplements in ours, which is what we do for all of our products. The turmeric is fine for dogs but black pepper in large doses can be contraindicated. Lavender definitely is contraindicated so their blend has salmon oil in it. So great for their skin, I mean, great for their joints along the same lines of just an added benefit, it works really well with CBD.

Sarah: Oh, that’s so perfect. I didn’t even realize that. I have been giving it to Bella for a while. She’s the 13-year-old Puggle and she’s still strong and kicking, healthy and everything, but she has some arthritis. And so, we could especially notice on her front shoulders that she’ll kind of favor one side or the other side, and she’ll tremble a little here and there just because her joints are getting a little older. And that’s something that if I fall out of the habit, I know it. I’m like, Oh my gosh, she needs her CBD. We got to get back on it. So I love being able to spoil them a little bit with that too, and just help them feel good because no one wants to see their animals in pain either. So I want to switch gears a little bit and talk a little bit more about the business side of this business that you’ve been able to build. We talked a little bit about standing out in a crowded market but I’d love for you to share a little bit more about the business systems and the marketing and all the roles that you play as you’ve built this company.

The energetics of business and product-based marketing

Sarah B: Definitely. I think our number one thing that we have chosen to do with this business is to be collaborative. And especially with being in this industry, the CBD industry is very similar to the Cannabis industry in general. And it’s a lot of people saying I’m the biggest, I’m the best and I’m going to do the most, which kind of makes me cringe. I don’t want to be the biggest, I want to have the best products for the people that are in my ideal market. But we love working with other people, getting on podcasts, doing giveaways, working with other CBD companies even. I just truly feel there’s enough for everyone, especially with CBD. Everyone’s hurting, everyone’s having a hard time. There are enough people and not everyone is going to be my ideal market. I’m not the perfect person for everyone else or the perfect brand. So collaborations have been huge with sales, with giveaways, with so many different things. So that would be an overarching thing that I think we’ve done to set ourselves apart.

Sarah: Mm-hmm. It’s interesting because I’m so used to marketing service and you market a product. And I know for me, the thing that, despite you, like of course, you’re my friend, but I tried your product and had the actual experience of trying it and was like, Oh my God. Smoothest is the way I usually describe it to people. Like the smoothest CBD I’ve ever experienced, no bias, even though we are friends. And because it’s such an experience and it’s a physical product, how has that also provided challenges, or how have you been able to then convert people into loyal customers?

Sarah B: Definitely. And it’s interesting because you know this about me, I come from a service-based industry. I was a coach as well. So this was… Brian and I had a superfood company so I dabbled in that product-based business but never really learned all that much about it. And it’s interesting, your prices are basically set for you. I mean you can wiggle, you can go up, you can go down a little bit, but the industry is fairly set. There’s not, I don’t know, a ton that you have control over in that way and that’s why we said it is about the experience when it comes to our packaging. And we’re always upgrading. I love to look at my first packaging and laugh. But making it an experience and just getting it in the hands of people, I wouldn’t say we do a ton for retaining customers. It happens a little bit naturally and I think CBD, you don’t buy once. So I answer emails within hours, I offer people questions, I will hop on the phone with someone that is starting to outgrow my capabilities. So I’ll hire someone of course to do that, but we don’t hire other people. It’s Brian and I.

And we do these sales tours to get into new stores and no one can believe we’re the owners of the company because people hire other people to go out. And we’re all about relationships; businesses, relationships. So we’re creating the wholesale relationships, the relationships with our customers, you know? We’ve had some help with social media and answering people in that way, but often it comes back to me, well, what does this client need? So really slowing down and giving our time. And I always laugh with Brian and say, We’re going to be on stage someday teaching about this stuff or on a podcast or whatever and people are going to say, Well, how do you do it? And it’s always like, Slow and steady and you have to do it and you can’t outsource everything. You know, kind of the answers that you hate to hear, especially starting out. I truly feel like you have to do it.

Sarah: Mm-hmm. When you’re both so knowledgeable, this isn’t just something that, you mentioned previously, where there’s at least a perception of fast money and so let me just start this business to start the business and make a shit ton of money. Instead, you are deeply embodied in the work and you’re passionate about the work, you’ve studied it, you’re knowledgeable, you use the product. And I remember around the time you had a promotion where you were donating a lot of the tinctures, that you were able to help me and even just some clients who I have who were interested in the product as well, really customize the way that they were going to be using the CBD or which tincture to get, and even what milligram bottle to get. So it’s a really customized experience so that they actually feel it too. Like they actually get the result. They’re going to notice the difference, whether it’s in pain inflammation or more in mental health and anxiety and or depression.

And so, I think that’s what I’ve noticed about you guys too, is that there’s this just dedication to the craft and to really allowing your customers to have an upgraded experience so that they do come back. And like you said, part of it is also once they try it, it speaks for themselves and you could, I guess, just go through one bottle of CBD and be like, Okay, I’m done. But more than likely people are going to continue using this in their life as well. So what other hats have you noticed that you’ve had to wear or systems have you been able to put into place to be able to support you as you have grown and scaled the business? And it sounds like part of that is upcoming and that maybe there will be an opportunity to outsource at least part of this, but what have you done so far?

Sarah B: That’s funny. I wear every hat, every single hat. And I just wrote a post about this because someone came to us and said, Well, everyone and their mother is selling CBD. Selling CBD is so easy. And I was like, Okay, sure. That’s fine. I mean, that’s what people think. And a lot of people are selling CBD and that’s great. But to start a CBD company, every hat that you have to wear and what I found is the ones I tried to outsource too early, I wasn’t able to communicate what they needed to do because I hadn’t done it myself. And so, you’re really not at the point of scaling unless you’ve done it yourself, at least in our company. I’m sure it’s different for everyone. But once I do it, I know exactly what I need help with. So it’s like I have to push myself to the edge to then say X, Y, and Z needs to be outsourced. And we have outsourced a lot. I have had my right-hand woman through this whole thing. She built my website a couple of years ago and then I just brought her in and said don’t ever leave me. So she helps me with a lot of things, even just being there for when something goes wrong and for picking up slack when I need it or being a fantastic designer. And she can answer my customers with care so that’s really huge.

So I have outsourced that and social media help and of course, accounting. Pinterest; I got a fabulous Pinterest referral from you. And I don’t really use Pinterest and I didn’t have the bandwidth to learn it so… I love to learn new things but that was one where I was like, Hey, you’re the professional, you know more. I will never be able to know what you know about it. So I think you can outsource. I’m always trying to outsource people that know more than me versus people that know less. And I can’t communicate in their terms unless I understand some of it, you know? So teaching myself that. The funny thing is we’ve never outsourced our formulation and I hold that one pretty near and dear to my heart. But when we have a formulation week, I am in the lab for an entire week, which is hard. I’m recently learning that’s a recipe and we get it tested so someone could definitely step in. Then I’ve had some helpers so we’re training a few people now to be able to do that. And they’re people that care so they’ll still be putting that little love vitamin into the products.

Sarah: Yes. Well, I love that. So in this whole journey, what would you say, as we start to wrap up, just what has been the thing that you’re most proud of or that you feel like when you look back on can be like, Wow, I accomplished that?

Sarah B: I would say working with Brian. So Brian’s my husband. We’ve been together… Oh, see, I’m really bad at dates. I’m the one that isn’t good at this; 12 or 13 years.

Sarah: It’s been a long time. That sounds right.

Sarah B: We have been together since high school; even had our first date in high school. So it’s been a long time and honestly, it’s not like we make it work. We talk to other people, we do things the way we do things and we love that, and we’re not trying to do things like other people. And we spend every waking minute together. And when we’re not around each other for 20 minutes, it’s like, Oh my gosh, I miss you. We really do have the same values and goals and desires to move forward. And the thing about that is when you work together, you stress together, you have pitfalls together, you learn how to pivot when COVID hits and stuff like that so it’s been a really big learning experience. And there’s not a time that I feel like we’ve put a strain on ourselves or anything like that so we really are in integrity with what we want. And actually COVID, and you’ve mentioned it a few times and I kind of even forget we did that, but COVID hit, we didn’t know what to do, which I didn’t feel special because no one knew what to do. Everyone’s in the same boat but we said, You know what? Our mission is to help people. Bottom line, that’s it. I will always stick to that.

Do I want to make money? Sure. Do I want to make that much? Actually, no. And that’s something I don’t talk about that much but I have a goal and I don’t want to make more than that and it’s an interesting thing. But we decided to do buy one, gift one. And like you said, it wasn’t we’ll gift our 500 milligram. If you bought a 2000 milligram, we gifted a 2000 milligram. And we really together said, Yes, let’s do this. Let’s take care of people. And so, I think we’ve created a really special thing. Us together, with ethics and morals, are the bottom line. And even when we’ve been very tempted to stray from that, we don’t and we never will. And I feel like when I meet people, not that many people have that in a business partner or a life partner or whatever it is. So I really feel like we’re sticking to our guns.

Sarah: Yes. I am, I don’t even know what the word is. I am inspired by you guys and just in awe of what you’ve been able to create. And having known both of you for so long, just watching your journey evolve into now Blooming Botanicals, how hemp is just like this… To me, it’s like, of course. Of course, this is what they’re meant to be doing and of course, they were always meant to be together because just going back to high school, you guys were friends but not anything more and I just feel like it’s all worked out so beautifully. And there’s also just this resilience that is obviously present in both of you to have been able to create this and to be where you are today and work so well together as husband and wife, but also as business partners, which I think is way more challenging for some other people. So I just applaud you, I adore you, I’m in awe of what you created, I love you. I love you both. And Sarah, I just thank you so much for being on today. Is there anywhere you’d love to send listeners or a way that they can learn more about your company or you?

Sarah B: Definitely. And thank you for having me. I love that you just know so much about me and you have seen me through every stage. We didn’t tell your listeners but we lived together in college.

Sarah: Yes.

Sarah B: College is a really funny time in all of our lives. So I just—

Sarah: Definitely.

Sarah B: I love having that background. And they’ve taken similar paths, you know, and it’s just cool they’re so different but so similar. So I love being on this path with you and of course, for your listeners, we’re on Instagram and your girl has started doing Reels and I’m loving it. So they can find me on Reels for sure.

Sarah: Sweet.

Sarah B: Sure. bloomingbotanicalshemp.com, we put out regular blogs, a lot of information about CBD and also lifestyle, how to incorporate CBD into your life in fun ways, recipes, all of that. A beautiful Pinterest page. And yes, that’s—

Sarah: I just thought of one more question, Sarah because you do have such amazing content around how to use the CBD other than just literally putting it underneath your tongue. And you posted something recently where you added it to I think a salad dressing and I was like, Wait a second. Why have I never thought of this? And so, totally random question that just popped into my head now, but what would you say is the most creative or funky way you’ve ever utilized CBD?

Sarah B: I’m a walking CBD molecule basically because this is one product I’m like I use it in every way. I use CBD five or six ways every day for sure.

Sarah: Yes. I’ve seen you put it in chocolate-covered strawberries.

Sarah B: Mm-hmm. We did a mocktail recently, which is really good, in hummus recipes or beet hummus. These are all on the blog; a lot of food. I was having some issues, pain during sex basically, and I used it as a lube and it’s honestly amazing. It is like next-level for that. That would probably be the weirdest way that we’ve used it.

Sarah: I was going to say lube wins.

Sarah B: Lube definitely wins. It’s like you can eat it or you can use it as lube. But it’s also just natural and that one, I used the original.

Sarah: Yes. Yes.

Sarah B: But it helped me. And that’s healing from the inside, which you know, we’re so much a proponent for. So that’s the weirdest one. Mostly food and I take it every day under my tongue during yoga, like lavender right before yoga. Even if it’s a hard class or a yin class, either way, it just tunes me in, in a really interesting way. So I use it all day. But when I’m making a recipe, my mind goes, can CBD be added to this? So like a salad dressing, of course. Almond milk; well, why not put some CBD in there, you know? So it really can be utilized in fun ways where yes, you can put it under your tongue, but why not have a lot more fun in your life?

Sarah: Yes. I think you guys are so good at that as well, is just being creative. And a lot of that comes back from your nutrition background, I’m sure, and just already having that skillset and being able to add CBD to it. So you guys go check out Sarah at Blooming Botanicals Hemp on Instagram and go check out her Reels. I’m going to go check out the Reels. I’m just getting into Reels myself as well. I resisted, I resisted for a while.

Sarah B: And there’s only a handful. But I was like…seriously I was like, Do I have to point at random words on the screen? And then I was like, No, there’s so much more. There’s nothing wrong with that but I was just a little nervous about it and then I was like, I can make recipes on Reels. This is great.

Sarah: This is perfect. Ah, I love you, and thank you so much for being on the show today.

Sarah B: Yes, thank you. Love you too.

I want to tell you about a brand new podcast from my friend, Laura. It is called Activate. And Activate is your one-stop-shop for all things, mind, body, and soul elevation. Each week, Laura and her guests will bring you tools to align your mind and your heart and take empowered action. You’ll learn how to strip back the layers, silence the noise, and listen to your heart’s truest calling. And most importantly, you’ll give yourself full permission to say yes to your higher self. So if you’re ready to dig deep and get out of your own way, Laura’s got you.

As always thank you so much for tuning into another episode. If you are feeling inspired to go try out some Blooming Botanicals Hemp, simply go to bloomingbotanicalshemp.com and use the code Sarah10 to save 10% off of your order. And if you’ve been loving the show and all these amazing guests I’ve had on lately, then I would so appreciate if you could rate, review, and subscribe. And I will see you on the next episode.

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