Experience

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  Starwest Botanicals, Inc.

  • Sacramento, California, United States

  • Head of Global Sales

    • Feb 2023 - Present
    • Sacramento, California, United States

    Starwest is one of the largest suppliers of organic herbs in the United States, with over 250,000 sq. ft. of modern warehouse and production space and over one million pounds of herbs and spices in stock and available retail, wholesale, or in large quantities to commercial clients. Starwest has a modern tea manufacturing facility with a multiple of different tea machines and firm factors with highly competitive pricing and organic certifications, making us the partner to have. Starwest Botanicals unearths the wonders of nature to inspire every body. Every body, every mind, every soul. Whether you’re a passionate foodie, holistic health devotee, or you’re seeking small steps to enhance your wellness, botanicals have the power to transform your life. We offer an extensive, diverse, and carefully curated selection of premium-quality botanicals, delicious spices, tantalizing teas, and 100% pure essential oils. But we don’t just give you the goods — we give you the knowledge, advice, and resources to empower you on your journey. Because this truly is your journey, and no matter who you are or where you’re starting, we’re here to support you every step of the way. Nature is filled with possibilities for healing, wellness, discovery, and adventure — let’s explore together!

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  Heyokha, Inc.

  • Portland, Oregon Area

  • Managing Partner, President

    • Jun 2010 - Present
    • Portland, Oregon Area

    Heyokha, a uniquely adept and practiced Talent, Culture and Innovation Agency dedicated to the cultivation and propagation of sustainable growth opportunities for businesses, organizations and individuals.Conceived within the spirit of the Heyókha, the holy trickster or sacred clown in the Lakota tradition, our collective of curious thinkers, makers and doers hold up a contrarian’s mirror to delightedly provoke our clients to reexamine their perspectives, presumptions, doubts, strengths and weaknesses to engender extraordinary pathways and unexpected solutions.Grounded within the tenets of belief, gratitude, and humility, our practice exists to inspire clients and collaborators within an ecosystem of divergent knowledge, experience and wisdom to nourish spirited exchange, salient ideas, and fruitful enterprise.

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  The Other Person is You{foundation}

  • Portland, Oregon Area

  • Founder

    • Jun 2010 - Present
    • Portland, Oregon Area

    The Other Person is You {foundation} is a 501(c)(3)nonprofit foundation devoted to creating compassion, consciousness and awareness that we are all one.To create this experience we will develop, create and publish, across all media distribution channels, events, books, music and documentary films all with the purpose to create the experience for the individual to have their hearts and eyes opened, their souls reminded that before them - The Other Person is You.I created an international platform for uniting communities, cultures, and important causes to positively impact change. Developed and implemented several programs including the foundations first project “I’m Down with You” which has achieved notable recognition:• Best Buddies Partnership, shared book electronically with 700,000 of their members• Starbucks partnership.• Received a number of awards including from NDSS, the largest Down syndrome advocacy organization.• Sold and shared 10,000 hard cover books.• over 100,000 e-book downloads to date.• 30,000 views to our “I’m Down with You” documentary video.The Foundation is currently promoting multiple projects that fall within various stages of development. These include, but are not limited to; Faces of Prayer, Lunger Fights Hunger, The Ripple Project, and A Billion Stories.

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  Fahrenheit 212

  • United States
  • Business Consulting and Services
  • 1 - 100 Employee

  • Innovation Fellow

    • Sep 2014 - Mar 2023

    Fahrenheit Fellowship, inviting industry change makers across a diverse range of domains to intersect with the creative and commercial intelligence of Fahrenheit 212′s innovation consulting practice.Each cycle, fellows will be drawn from the worlds of design, academia, social innovation, science, entrepreneurship and the arts. Fellows are equally likely to be just starting their careers as they are to be well established in their fields. What they will hold in common is a passion for driving change for the better within their industry of focus, tackling accepted paradigms head on to deliver value in a novel and compelling way.Designed as a flexible program, each Fellow is encouraged to define their own experience – working with the Fahrenheit team to determine how their unique expertise, skills, experience, tools and objectives can benefit from and contribute to the company. Benefits to the Fellow will include working space, Fahrenheit’s platform for publishing work, and access to Fahrenheit brains and network. In return, fellows will be expected to contribute to the advancement of the practice of innovation, participating as a key external asset for relevant client engagements, and contributing their perspective in the form of publishing content and holding industry specific roundtables.

  • Head of Talent

    • Sep 2014 - Oct 2016

    Talent at Fahrenheit 212 is a competitive advantage; we believe we are set apart in how we profile, train, and grow innovative thinkers, and this in turn feeds both our work product and reputation in the marketplace. As Head of Talent, I “own” and advance our firms thinking, practice and processes in this space. As Head of Talent I work to uncover, discover, find and recruit new hires and overseeing the careers of both analytically and more creatively inclined employees.Both in the recruitment and retention of our global team, we build programs to ensure that the concept of work life balance is eradicated and just life balance is maintained. We build programs to recognize, elevate, serve and tend to each individual and the collective in ways that seek to bring joy and satiation to their careers.As Head of Talent, Jagatjoti was responsible for picking, cultivating and nourishing the rms select and growing talent pool. Whilst serving on the firm’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and developing beyond core HR administration oversight, Jagatjoti honed Fahrenheit 212’s competitive advantage through the advancement of the brand’s practice of thinking, process and leadership within an open forum of experience, philosophy, belief and personal growth.Having developed an insightful and connective approach to talent profiling, training and development of innovative thinkers, Jagatjoti fed both the company’s work product and reputation in the marketplace.In identifying and gathering top talent over a wide range of industries, Jagatjoti’s cross-pollinating strategy drew from fields of innovation and creative services to management consulting, banking and business schools; as well as budding entrepreneurs and well rooted industry leaders.Jagatjoti’s firm-wide position spanned the agency’s New York and London offices, and included planning for corporate expansion and diversification.

  • Innovation Director

    • Dec 2014 - Sep 2016

    As an Innovation Director in Idea Development, Jagatjoti is responsible for influencing strategy, identifying compelling consumer insights and delivering transformational ideas that catalyze top-line growth.Leveraging his extensive portfolio of corporate, entrepreneurial and leadership experience within the organic and sustainable food category, Jagatjoti is was tasked with building upon Fahrenheit’s value proposition–making “magic and money”–within the areas of packaged goods, nancial services, insurance and technology, for clients such as Coke/FUZE, Dunkin Donuts, Cox Cable, VitaSoy USA, Young Living Essential Oils, Amalgamated Bank, Fidelity Investments, Tillamook Cheese and Seventh Generation.As Innovation Director, Jagatjoti led a diverse and motivated team to develop and implement consumer focused programs and business cases founded in thoughtful, persuasive and manageable solutions to deliver both internal and external pro tability that include, but was not limited to:• Vision development and implementation of strategic growth platforms that move theory and prototyping to product and pro table practice • Employment of in-depth consumer insight to support both qualitative and quantitative research initiatives• Leveraging exceptional storytelling and communication design to bring informed concepts to life• Balancing studied research and counterintuitive approaches to create a tool chest for the creative process and the machinery for building businesses • Creating and leading internal workshops and corporate outings to optimize employee engage- ment, mindful productivity and project ownership

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  Silver Lion Farms

  • Nevada

  • Chief Marketing Officer

    • Jan 2019 - Jul 2022
    • Nevada

    We are standardized, organic hemp experts, seasoned farmers, natural food industry leaders, and large-scale supply chain engineers. We align with partners to the serve the CPG industry who share our “Helping Millions” mission and our commitment to quality business and sustainable agriculture practices.

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  Humanity Holdings, inc.

  • Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer

    • Feb 2018 - Mar 2021

    Humanity is building a network of interconnected companies in the cannabis industry that are pioneering and modeling what cannabis businesses will evolve into over the next few years. We’re here to set the new bar forwhat consumers can expect from cannabis.

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  Yogi Tea

  • Chief Marketing Officer

    • Feb 2018 - May 2018

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  Earth Mama® Organics

  • Portland, Oregon Area

  • Papa

    • Oct 2016 - Dec 2017
    • Portland, Oregon Area

    Earth Mama believes in the natural process of birth, and the healing power of nature. Our mission is to provide safe, herbal alternatives for pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women, and babies of all ages, and to help educate people about traditional plant medicine and safe personal care. We manufacture natural and organic products that work, combining generations of women's wisdom and traditional plant medicine with the safety and assurances of contemporary evidence based research. If it doesn't measure up to Mama's standards, it doesn't leave the building.

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  ALTAR co.

  • Portland, Oregon

  • Founder | CEO

    • Jan 2011 - Apr 2014
    • Portland, Oregon

    The world’s first premium Herbal & Botanical Mood Mixer™ blending the world’s finest varietal fruits, heirloom vegetables, single estate teas, fragrant flowers, and exotic spices creating 
a truly remarkable and delicious beverage.Curated to be enjoyed alone without alcohol as a signature ‘Herbal Martini’ or paired with fine spirits in the form of 
a celebrity mixologist-inspired cocktail.A one of a kind alcohol free beverage created by a team of extraordinary mixologists, tea experts and herbalists who pursue the most unique and unexpected ingredients.Imagined, created and developed a new category- altering alcohol-free “herbal martini” brand from the ground up. From international sourcing and recipe formulation to branding and packaging design, Jagatjoti built a comprehensive produc- tion, marketing, distribution and growth plan that raised $2MM through Charmer Sunbelt/ Maglioco Family, Wirtz and private wealth individuals. ALTAR launched with five SKUs in 2013 with first year revenues of $900,000 and a 42% COGS margin.Credited with establishing an entirely new marketplace category, ALTAR’s other notable accomplishments include:• Built best in class national distributor and broker network with key spirit partners including Young’s, Wirtz, Charmer Sunbelt, Martignetti and Glazers.• Food and Wine, Bon Appetit, Fancy Foods and 100’s rated it best artisanal mixer.• Embodied many current health and food trends such as: organic, gluten free, halal, low-calorie and non-GMO.• Built a solid Management Team and Board of Directors.• As brand ambassador he became the face and voice for a rst year PR program that garnered over 50MM media impressions.• Partnerships with brands like Lululemon, Anthropolgie, Mercedes Benz, and New York Fashion Week among others.

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  Meriwether Group

  • Managing Partner, Organic+Sustainability

    • Jul 2007 - Jun 2010

    The Meriwether Group is a corporate investment, brand extension and business acceleration firm. Headed by seasoned senior executives with a combined 30 years of experience with iconic brands, we have the ability to identify opportunities and produce immediate results.Through The Meriwether Group's four subsidiary companies – Meriwether Capital Partners, Meriwether Accelerators, Meriwether Financial and Meriwether Foundation – we have the unique capability to fund capital investment for business concepts, accelerate performance with brand extension and marketing strategy, and activate investments for long term gain. Meriwether Foundation follows our philosophy of being able to give back to the circle of abundance and reflects our support of entrepreneurship done in a sustainable, environmentally enhancing manner.We know there is unrealized potential in many companies both large and small. Our goal is to make possibility a reality.

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  Tara Home

  • Partner

    • May 2004 - Apr 2008

    We travel the world meeting with local craftsman, textile merchants, antique hunters, and local villagers to find pieces which we would consider for our own homes. We draw inspiration from the cultures and deep rooted spiritual lives of the East to design our own pieces from ranging from bedding and curtains made of local textiles of silk and Indian Sari material to beautiful cushions and unique seating.We use old reclaimed materials like wood carving from two century old homes which we have purchased, old flooring, windows and doors from Rajasthani decommissioned temples to create the finest beds, cabinets and altar pieces.This is our sacred journey. Our journey and mission to uplift our community by helping to create sacredness in each home. And we invite you to join us on this journey

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  Leverage Point Brands

  • Greater Los Angeles Area

  • Managing Partner & Creative Director

    • Jan 2002 - May 2004
    • Greater Los Angeles Area

    Started from scratch to earn $1.5M in its second year by directing the daily activities of a three person staff. Leverage Point Brands served a consumer packaged goods clients including, but not limited to Oregon Chai, Zhena’s Gypsy Tea, Kagome and Blitzen Ventures in the natural foods industry. During his tenure Jagatjoti managed and implemented specialty branding, strategic planning, and raw material trading and sourcing while developing valuable distribution networks. Additionally served as a paid advisor for Private Equity firms investments into CPG, focused on natural and organic food and beverage.Leverage Point Brands highlight work includes, but is not limited to:Kombucha Wonder Drink | PresidentPortland, ORRecruited by this energy product for a nine month company resurrection project. Jagatjoti was responsible for developing and establishing distribution channels and brand positioning strategies on tight budget constraints. Conducted in-depth cost analysis and budget evaluations.Zhena’s Gypsy TeaOjai, CAWorked directly with founder on numerous aspects of the business including sales and distribution strategy, CEO coaching, fundraising techniques, marketing language and strategy.Hint Mint | PresidentLos Angeles, CAInitially introduced by private equity firm to better understand potential for investment or acquisition. Jagatjoti was hired by this specialty mint tin distributor for a six month project which involved expanding and creating distribution channels and brand positioning. Responsible for building the private label business client sector for the firm to include Trader Joe’s and Cost Plus World Market. Performed effective cost and budget analysis.

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  KIIT--Golden Temple Natural Products

  • Board of Managers

    • Feb 1994 - Jun 2002

    I worked on the board of managers for the KIIT companies, an international umbrella company with 8 companies which included Akal Security, Golden Temple and Yogi Tea and Sun and Son. While at KIIT I:--Launched Yogi Botanicals, at the time the largest organic spice trading company in partnership with ForestTrade. This resulted in working with some of the premier natural foods brands including Masterfoods/Mars/Seeds of Change, Oregon Chai, Celestial Seasonings, Frontier Natural Products, General Mills amongst a few. --Rebranded Yogi Tea through a comprehensive marketing strategy which included creating the tea of the month club, repackaging, repositioning, reorganizing and bringing together the sales and marketing departments to work as a very effective team. The result was Yogi Tea becoming category leader. --Went through extensive training on building a truly sustainable business, building teams, building a conscious company and managing people to promote and serve their spirits.