It Only Takes 1 Match to Light 1,000|Dr. Jenelle Kim of JBK Wellness Labs (DH 024) - a podcast by Shawn Walchef

Merging ancient traditions with forward-thinking trends, JBK Wellness Labs is ahead of the curve when it comes to self-care but in no rush just the same.

Led by the tradition of the Tao, founder Dr. Jenelle Kim and her partner in business and life, Craig Nandoo, are utilizing Eastern healing powers and philosophy at their West Coast Headquarters for a self-funded self-care business that’s serving companies and individuals around the world.

Digital Hospitality visited JBK’s Miramar HQ to hear how family traditions have built a family business that’s growing at a pace as sustainable and time-tested as their products. Relying on tradition, leaning into the going natural movement and always ahead of the curve, Jenelle Kim and Nandoo collaborate with clients to make herbal supplements that don’t just burn with buzzwords but actually work due to finely tuned formulas. Kim’s long family lineage in Eastern medicine comes with an understanding of how to best formulate supplements in order to best help those in need.

“I come from a long lineage of doctors, herbalists and practitioners. I like to always ground myself in remembering before I do anything is that they dedicated and sacrificed their entire lives to understanding the human condition when it comes to mind, body, and that balance. And I’m talking centuries!” emphasizes Dr. Jenelle Kim.“Throughout these centuries they put their mind and heart in understanding the human condition to create certain herbal formulas of medicine to make sure that we’re able to live as human beings in the healthiest, most beautiful way possible. That’s my lineage."The first woman to carry that lineage, Dr. Kim’s ancient family formulas – known as Bi Bong – see the key combinations of herbal ingredients found in her family for centuries now helping others worldwide as part of a multi-million-dollar business.

Creating custom care products for brands carried in high-end retailers like Nordstrom, Whole Foods and Bergdorf Goodman as well as luxury hotels such as the Ritz Carlton, the Mandarin Oriental and the Four Seasons, JBK Wellness Labs serves as the contract manufacturing collaborator for the best brands in herbal self-care. This ranges from beauty to dietary supplements birthed from ancient tradition in JBK’s research and development center by a staff of 25.Well-versed in Eastern Medicine, well-educated in the West, Jenelle Kim is using her dual hemisphere knowledge to create a global brand at the most booming of times. With industry experience dating back to 2006, she has proven early on CBD products by using it for skin care since 2012 and forward-thinking in regard to men’s grooming with the launch of Tao of Man brand.
“In East Asian, men’s grooming is huge!” explains Jenelle Kim. “I’m still watching as it starts to blow up here and I do see that happening.”And blow up men’s grooming will, but while JBK is early on the trend in the West they’re ahead but not rushed. Just like the name Tao of Man suggests, Jenelle and Craig are as strong, rooted and flexible as bamboo.

“The Tao is the way,” says Craig Nandoo. “We talk about destiny and where the Tao has taken us in our route to where we are now. The concept of the Tao is very essential to a lot of our life. Sometimes it’s good to push, sometimes it’s good to pull and sometimes it’s just good to go for the ride.”Contrary to most peers in the Western worlds of entrepreneurship and beauty supplements, Jenelle and Craig are measured in their growth, focused on formulation over flash and always purposeful in their product.

Just how do these Eastern ideals play into their business philosophy? Here’s a breakdown.Fundamentals Matter – When it comes to the wellness world there are lots of smoke and mirrors. Not at JBK. Fundamentally strong with a deep lineage, it’s all about formulas and less about buzzwords. Herbs matter but they matter most when they’re paired with scientific synergy and season.

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