Gift biz unwrapped episode 10.
Speaker:Hi, this is John Lee Dumas of entrepreneur on fire,
Speaker:and you're listening to the gift of biz unwrapped.
Speaker:And now it's time to light it up.
Speaker:Welcome to gift biz,
Speaker:unwrapped your source for industry specific insights and advice to develop
Speaker:and grow your business.
Speaker:And now here's your host,
Speaker:Sue Monheit.
Speaker:Hi, I'm Sue and welcome to a gift biz unwrapped pocket.
Speaker:Whether you own a brick and mortar store sell online or
Speaker:are just getting started,
Speaker:you'll discover new insight to gain traction and to grow your
Speaker:business today.
Speaker:I am thrilled to introduce you to Marlena Jaya Tila.
Speaker:KA Marlena is the owner of Lavette spice,
Speaker:a brick and mortar shop where spices and teas are masterfully
Speaker:blended right before your eyes love that spice is unique in
Speaker:that it offers up to date information on relatively unknown health
Speaker:benefits of spices and herbs.
Speaker:Marlena has been seen on ABC news multiple times and featured
Speaker:in the Chicago Tribune and make it better magazine.
Speaker:She is a list of celebrity customers as well.
Speaker:Names you may know are Mike Ditka of Chicago bears fame
Speaker:Marcus Limonus from the prophet and the late great Ernie banks.
Speaker:Congratulations are also in order because Marlena and her husband Roohan
Speaker:just had a new adorable little baby girl,
Speaker:Sahara. She joins her older brother Rasaka to make a perfect
Speaker:family of four.
Speaker:Now Marlena is clearly a super woman because Sahara is only
Speaker:three weeks old.
Speaker:Yet. Marlena is already back at the shop and doing business.
Speaker:So let's jump on over to her now.
Speaker:Hey Marlena,
Speaker:welcome to the show.
Speaker:Oh, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker:Is there anything You'd like me to add to your bio
Speaker:before we get started?
Speaker:Well, I like to add that our spices are 100% pure.
Speaker:We bring our spices in completely whole,
Speaker:and then we grind them down on site so that we
Speaker:can tell you what are in the spice plans.
Speaker:We focus on pure spices.
Speaker:We don't add fillers of any kind,
Speaker:nothing artificial,
Speaker:just 100% pure spices.
Speaker:And that's important to point out to get the conversation Going.
Speaker:We like to revolve our discussion around the life of a
Speaker:motivational candle.
Speaker:The light shines on you while you share your stories and
Speaker:experiences. So shall we light it up?
Speaker:I say,
Speaker:I eat,
Speaker:what color is your candle?
Speaker:My candle is white.
Speaker:And why white white is for purity,
Speaker:purity of people and purity of products.
Speaker:And how about the quote that would be on your candle?
Speaker:Oh, the fabulous coat that would be on my candle comes
Speaker:from holiness,
Speaker:the Dalai Lama,
Speaker:and it simply states in order to protect your feet from
Speaker:thorns, you cannot cover the entire surface of the earth with
Speaker:leather. Now ask me what that means.
Speaker:What does that mean?
Speaker:That simply means that in life you're going to have your
Speaker:ups and downs.
Speaker:Everyone has ups and downs and you simply have to develop
Speaker:a thick skin.
Speaker:And when I say develop a thick skin,
Speaker:you have to have a mindset to where if the whole
Speaker:world is troubled,
Speaker:you should be free from the trouble.
Speaker:If you set your mind correctly,
Speaker:meaning you cannot cover the entire surface of the world with
Speaker:leather, because there's always going to be problems,
Speaker:but how you react to them.
Speaker:Well, that's the key.
Speaker:Are you able to live your life in that way?
Speaker:Of course.
Speaker:Not most of the time.
Speaker:Yes, yes,
Speaker:yes. Yes.
Speaker:The entire world is chaotic.
Speaker:There is a piece of me on the inside that is
Speaker:cool as a cucumber.
Speaker:And I think that's the way it should be,
Speaker:because if I reacted according to the way the world is
Speaker:around me,
Speaker:well, then I would be lonely to him all the time.
Speaker:So me,
Speaker:I'm more of a cool,
Speaker:calm and collective most times,
Speaker:but then again,
Speaker:I have an eight year old,
Speaker:a husband and a baby.
Speaker:So you can't be cool all the time,
Speaker:but most of the time you got it and we're going
Speaker:To get into one of those times in a little while.
Speaker:But before we do that,
Speaker:bring us back to the time when you first envisioned your
Speaker:business, how did this whole concept of love that spice get
Speaker:started? Mm,
Speaker:as corny as this may sound my vision,
Speaker:while it first formed out of love.
Speaker:I met my husband.
Speaker:He introduced me to his people and to his foes.
Speaker:My husband is from Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka is a
Speaker:sits in the middle of the Indian ocean,
Speaker:right at the tip of India.
Speaker:So this is Asian cooking at its best.
Speaker:We're talking bold flavors.
Speaker:I mean enough spice that will choke a chicken,
Speaker:but it's just fantastic.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:it's just fantastic.
Speaker:I fell in love with the cuisine.
Speaker:I completely fell in love with the cuisine.
Speaker:And I always joke with people.
Speaker:I fell in love with the spices first and my husband's
Speaker:second. And that's the God honest truth.
Speaker:It was easy to land me once he introduced me to
Speaker:the food,
Speaker:but I enjoyed it.
Speaker:And then the second part of that is I started finding
Speaker:out during reading and research,
Speaker:finding out about the health benefits of spices and I was
Speaker:completely blown away.
Speaker:It is unbelievable to me that a powder that's right and
Speaker:yellow, like turmeric can be such a powerful addition to your
Speaker:cuisine. It is a natural anti-inflammatory it bites all timers.
Speaker:It bites dementia.
Speaker:It stops skin inflammation.
Speaker:And this is perfect.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:do you mean I can get all of that and just
Speaker:a powder?
Speaker:And the good part is I'm not just talking out the
Speaker:side of my neck.
Speaker:Doctor's actually prescribed this pill to people,
Speaker:a turmeric pill because it bites inflammation.
Speaker:So this is information that should be known to everyone.
Speaker:And the bonus is there are no side effects.
Speaker:So what are you waiting for?
Speaker:Spices, bicep pupils spice it up for life.
Speaker:So Did you know about all these health benefits before you
Speaker:started getting into the spices?
Speaker:Or did you have to research it after you found that
Speaker:you really liked the idea of these spices being added To
Speaker:your food?
Speaker:Well, I started doing the research because I being married to
Speaker:someone who's from Sri Lanka.
Speaker:We have a lot of Indian and Sri Lankan prints and
Speaker:they in particular do not practice Western medicine.
Speaker:They practice Aira Veda and that's the healing through spices and
Speaker:herbs. And if you really look into all of the medications
Speaker:that are being prescribed,
Speaker:as they are based on herbs and spices,
Speaker:the only differences we add a lot of other junk to
Speaker:the medicines and these things do things like harm the liver,
Speaker:the kidney,
Speaker:they have so many different side effects.
Speaker:So I thought,
Speaker:wow, wouldn't it be great to really get into the aspect
Speaker:of spices?
Speaker:As far as the healing per se,
Speaker:I have arthritis try ginger,
Speaker:or if you have a bad back,
Speaker:try turmeric mixed with black pepper,
Speaker:and this will quash the inflammation.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:people don't know these things.
Speaker:And I think that it's my duty to let people know
Speaker:that, Hey,
Speaker:this is what you're getting and our spice brands.
Speaker:So EDA.
Speaker:So how did you turn this into a business?
Speaker:Did you start out of your house?
Speaker:Did you start at a storefront?
Speaker:What happened?
Speaker:How did you create it from the beginning?
Speaker:Well, I started doing little health peers and people got interested.
Speaker:So then I started in Skokie in my house.
Speaker:And then I quickly learned that you can't do it out
Speaker:of your house.
Speaker:So then I rented space and I had typically I rented
Speaker:it for this warehouse space,
Speaker:but then I thought,
Speaker:no, that's not good enough because if I'm going to sell
Speaker:spices for the health benefits of them,
Speaker:well, I need to get out there and talk to people.
Speaker:And I'm sorry,
Speaker:I know this is the quote unquote digital age,
Speaker:but you know what,
Speaker:I'd rather talk to people face to face and let them
Speaker:know about the health benefits of spices.
Speaker:The internet just don't do it all the time.
Speaker:Not for the up close and personal that I was looking
Speaker:for. So with the warehouse that I had rented,
Speaker:I decided to turn it into retail space.
Speaker:And with that,
Speaker:it just grew out of that and,
Speaker:and kind of like set a small fire and it just
Speaker:kept burning And it sure is burning.
Speaker:Let's go the other direction now.
Speaker:And as you were building your business,
Speaker:take us to a time,
Speaker:a bad time.
Speaker:Something that was a real challenge that you had to overcome
Speaker:to get to where you are Today.
Speaker:Challenges. I love them because challenges really make who make you,
Speaker:who you are.
Speaker:And without them,
Speaker:well, you know,
Speaker:you can't grow.
Speaker:So I I'm moving to Highland park.
Speaker:As far as the business,
Speaker:I quickly learned that retail was a big surprise to me.
Speaker:My earlier career was in law.
Speaker:So I had no retail experience whatsoever.
Speaker:All I knew is that I loved people.
Speaker:I wanted to talk to people.
Speaker:I wanted to share this with everyone.
Speaker:I thought that everybody should know about this,
Speaker:but what I didn't know is that January and February and
Speaker:part of March and retail is dead.
Speaker:It's a dead period.
Speaker:So I found myself being in the shop with,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:the sales are down and I started reevaluating exactly what it
Speaker:is I was doing,
Speaker:because if I wasn't reaching the people,
Speaker:then I really wasn't living the dream that I had for
Speaker:myself. So I quickly thought,
Speaker:you know what,
Speaker:maybe this isn't going to work for me.
Speaker:Maybe I need to rethink it.
Speaker:And then I sat down and I thought to myself,
Speaker:I say,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:I'm not the only person.
Speaker:This is happening too.
Speaker:You have to learn how to change,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:adapt. That's a better word.
Speaker:So if it is slow in January and February and you
Speaker:feel like you're not reaching,
Speaker:the people will do something to reach to people.
Speaker:So then what I did is I brought in an aerobatic
Speaker:neurologist to teach a cooking class and to teach the health
Speaker:benefits of spices and herbs.
Speaker:And wow,
Speaker:did that open up the flood gates,
Speaker:people were interested.
Speaker:They were,
Speaker:people are starting to become curious about the health benefits of
Speaker:spices and herbs.
Speaker:We are actually as Americans waking up and we're finding out
Speaker:that, Hey,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:the things that we've been putting in our bodies are just
Speaker:not right,
Speaker:turn around a spice blend.
Speaker:And just anyone of them at a grocery store and look
Speaker:at the ingredients in it.
Speaker:You will see so many preservatives and so many artificial ingredients.
Speaker:When I started looking at that and then started listening to
Speaker:what people were telling me about the health benefits and how
Speaker:the spice blends one in particular,
Speaker:the anti-inflammation blend was helping them.
Speaker:Then I knew I knew right then and there that I
Speaker:could not give this up.
Speaker:This was worth fighting for,
Speaker:but I had to adapt.
Speaker:I had to find another way to reach people.
Speaker:And I did that through classes.
Speaker:So you really Took your success into your own hands and
Speaker:found a different way of doing things on those months when
Speaker:the sales just weren't walking in the door.
Speaker:Exactly. I was going to control my own fate.
Speaker:So I had to adapt.
Speaker:And in businesses,
Speaker:Hey, either you adapt or you'll be out of business,
Speaker:you will,
Speaker:and you will it'll happen quickly.
Speaker:So I realized that I had to adapt it because I
Speaker:had a product that was worth fighting for.
Speaker:And so I put the boxing gloves on and I started
Speaker:fighting. So did you find that a lot of those customers
Speaker:that came then for those classes continue buying spices now in
Speaker:our regular customers,
Speaker:They are regular customers.
Speaker:And just last week,
Speaker:I think I touched on a blend that I created.
Speaker:It's called the anti-inflammation blend.
Speaker:And what that is,
Speaker:is a blend of 23 natural vices and herbs that are
Speaker:known to have anti-inflammatories and things of that nature right in
Speaker:them. So I created that because I had a back injury
Speaker:and I was prescribed hydrocodone and I was taking it about
Speaker:four times a day and I stayed high,
Speaker:but it did not stop the pain of the back.
Speaker:And with that,
Speaker:it gave you all these other side effects like constipation,
Speaker:sleeplessness, dry mouth headaches,
Speaker:your liver counts will go up when you take a hydrocodone
Speaker:at that much.
Speaker:So I said to myself,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:cheese with all of the knowledge that I have in health
Speaker:and spices,
Speaker:why don't I just create something to cure myself?
Speaker:So there was again taking my fate and my own hands.
Speaker:And that's when the anti-inflammation blend was born.
Speaker:But that's how much is that?
Speaker:That started a little bit of smoke.
Speaker:Then it turned into a big fire.
Speaker:And then I got contacted by Amazon.
Speaker:And Amazon was interested in this blend,
Speaker:the anti-inflammation blend because there is not an anti-inflammation blend on
Speaker:the market today.
Speaker:You still won't find it,
Speaker:which is why we're working to get it patented.
Speaker:Now we then created the anti-inflammation tea brand and that has
Speaker:taken off.
Speaker:I am so proud of those two,
Speaker:because those are created by me through my research,
Speaker:and then to have people to come into the store,
Speaker:almost in tears telling me how these products help them.
Speaker:Man, I tell you,
Speaker:I go to bed happy every night,
Speaker:because what I'm doing is making a difference.
Speaker:I'm not just making food tastes good.
Speaker:I'm making the body feel good.
Speaker:And you know what?
Speaker:That's all that matters to me is that I am doing
Speaker:something to help everyone else.
Speaker:That is something to be proud of,
Speaker:for sure.
Speaker:Yes. So how did Amazon find you?
Speaker:I want to ask health fair.
Speaker:It was a raw health fair and there was a representative
Speaker:there and she asked me for 80,000
Speaker:units and I said,
Speaker:well, you know,
Speaker:ma'am, there's no way I can get you 80,000
Speaker:units. We're a small company is me and my husband and
Speaker:an occasional helper.
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:I can get you 2000.
Speaker:She said,
Speaker:well, the problem with that is you'll have a back order
Speaker:because it's going to be so popular.
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:well, you know,
Speaker:we're a small store.
Speaker:And I intend to stay small.
Speaker:I intend not to be this great big store because I
Speaker:refuse to compromise on quality.
Speaker:And it seems to me,
Speaker:the bigger you get,
Speaker:the more people tend to compromise because they get used to
Speaker:making money and they want to make money.
Speaker:And that's all that matters to them.
Speaker:Well, that's not all that matters to me.
Speaker:I'll get there.
Speaker:I don't have to get there overnight and I don't have
Speaker:to get there doing it the wrong way.
Speaker:I will stay true to myself.
Speaker:And it brings me back to that white candle,
Speaker:the purity you'll never change me.
Speaker:What you see is what you get.
Speaker:Always. It will never change Being in business for yourself.
Speaker:You can really make your business anything you want.
Speaker:So many people are saying,
Speaker:oh, I'm going to get bigger.
Speaker:What's the next step?
Speaker:How can I get bigger?
Speaker:How can I make more money?
Speaker:And it sure sounds like the values to you are to
Speaker:the integrity of the product.
Speaker:Having time to be with the family and your making love
Speaker:that spice be a lifestyle business it fits in with your
Speaker:life. Absolutely.
Speaker:Let's talk a little bit about customer service.
Speaker:What special things do you do to make your customers feel
Speaker:unique and valued?
Speaker:Oh, I know each and every one of my customers,
Speaker:the regulars,
Speaker:all we'll sit down,
Speaker:we'll have tea time.
Speaker:I'll, we'll sit down and have treats together.
Speaker:They'll call me at night to ask to me,
Speaker:I'm a,
Speaker:how to make a particular recipe.
Speaker:They'll come in and they'll say,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:Marlene, I have a tummy ache.
Speaker:I have this,
Speaker:I have that.
Speaker:Do you have something for this?
Speaker:Sure. They trust me.
Speaker:They know me cause they know,
Speaker:I care about them.
Speaker:I really care about their wellbeing.
Speaker:And with customers,
Speaker:they come in,
Speaker:we hug each other,
Speaker:we kiss each other.
Speaker:We talk,
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:it's like a big family.
Speaker:And when you walk into this store,
Speaker:sure. You may come for the product,
Speaker:but you'll come back for the people.
Speaker:And that's for sure,
Speaker:because we're like a big family here.
Speaker:All of us.
Speaker:And my son works here too.
Speaker:He's eight years old.
Speaker:He's here on Saturdays and it's just like a big,
Speaker:old love Fest in here.
Speaker:We're real.
Speaker:We're real people.
Speaker:We're about as real as you can get.
Speaker:I want To go back for a minute because I think
Speaker:this is something that a lot of people struggle with and
Speaker:you're able to do it so easily.
Speaker:We talked in the beginning about being on some news segments
Speaker:and having an article written in the Tribune and also in
Speaker:make it better magazine.
Speaker:Did you go promote that as you know,
Speaker:I can talk with you.
Speaker:I can provide you an article or I can do a
Speaker:show or how did some of those come about?
Speaker:It is so funny.
Speaker:I have never,
Speaker:ever reached out to anyone.
Speaker:I was in the store one day and someone from channel
Speaker:seven came in and he says,
Speaker:we've been hearing a lot of buzz about this store.
Speaker:I'd like to have you on a TV.
Speaker:And so I'm like,
Speaker:oh wow.
Speaker:So he says,
Speaker:well, you know,
Speaker:if I were to offer you a spot on TV,
Speaker:what kind of show would you do?
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:well, first of all,
Speaker:I will talk about the health benefits of the spices,
Speaker:drink plenty of red wine and cook a meal that will
Speaker:knock your socks off.
Speaker:And so he's like,
Speaker:well, can I take your picture?
Speaker:And of course me being a woman,
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:well, wait a minute.
Speaker:I have to get the lipstick first.
Speaker:So he took,
Speaker:so he took my picture and about two weeks later,
Speaker:he gave me a call and he said,
Speaker:listen, can you come down to the studios?
Speaker:We want you to do his show.
Speaker:And I said,
Speaker:well, sure,
Speaker:no problem.
Speaker:So I,
Speaker:I first I was nervous about it.
Speaker:I got on TB and they were like,
Speaker:you're on in five seconds.
Speaker:And I looked over to my husband.
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:I can't do this.
Speaker:And all of a sudden she says,
Speaker:you're on.
Speaker:And my alter ego must have jumped because she said,
Speaker:hello, there,
Speaker:this is Marlina from love,
Speaker:that spice.
Speaker:And all of a sudden I became this different person.
Speaker:I'm like,
Speaker:oh my God,
Speaker:you must really love what you do because it really shows
Speaker:it was fabulous.
Speaker:That video got so many hits so much so that they
Speaker:asked me to come back several times.
Speaker:It has been fantastic,
Speaker:but I have never reached out to anyone.
Speaker:So it goes to show you that if you love what
Speaker:you do,
Speaker:it shows and people will notice,
Speaker:Well, your energy is contagious.
Speaker:That's for sure Why.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:And you don't need a PO for that.
Speaker:There you go.
Speaker:So natural trait do you have,
Speaker:and you might've already just touched on it now,
Speaker:but is there another trait that you would say has helped
Speaker:you to succeed?
Speaker:Honesty, people will come in and with the spices,
Speaker:they'll ask me,
Speaker:oh, can I buy a pound of this?
Speaker:And I'll tell them,
Speaker:I say,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:you can buy a pound of it,
Speaker:but you'll never be able to use a pound of it
Speaker:before the spices would go bad.
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:so you probably want to get just a little bit of
Speaker:it. I said,
Speaker:no, that doesn't make me a great salesperson,
Speaker:but it makes me honest.
Speaker:I said,
Speaker:so if you want the minerals and vitamins and the taste,
Speaker:you only want to buy about three ounces at a time,
Speaker:use that up and then come back.
Speaker:And so people appreciate the honesty because sure.
Speaker:I could have made the 50 bucks per pound off of
Speaker:it. But at what cost,
Speaker:then the people don't get the freshness and the minerals and
Speaker:vitamins that they want.
Speaker:So to me,
Speaker:honesty pays because when I tell people that they're like,
Speaker:oh great,
Speaker:I appreciate you doing that.
Speaker:So, yeah.
Speaker:Honesty and the ability to talk to people,
Speaker:not talk at them,
Speaker:but to really,
Speaker:really talk to people.
Speaker:I think those two traits are phenomenal.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:I don't think you can have a successful business without it.
Speaker:Well, unless you're doing it on the internet and let's face
Speaker:it, I'm not an internet girl.
Speaker:You bring up some Really good points,
Speaker:knowledge of your product,
Speaker:credibility that you build with your customers and trust they can
Speaker:trust your relationship.
Speaker:And that what you're telling them is true.
Speaker:Very powerful.
Speaker:Oh yeah.
Speaker:And they can also come over to dinner.
Speaker:I've had a couple of people come over for dinner.
Speaker:Oh yeah.
Speaker:The wine is flowing and the food is phenomenal.
Speaker:Well, you mentioned one of my favorite words,
Speaker:wine Wine makes everything better.
Speaker:Right? Totally tool.
Speaker:Do You use regularly to keep productive or to create balance
Speaker:in your life?
Speaker:Well, the first thing I use is God that keeps the
Speaker:balance in my life.
Speaker:And the second thing I use is the internet.
Speaker:I'm big with MailChimp,
Speaker:sending out news letters.
Speaker:I do about two to three times a month because I
Speaker:feel like some stores,
Speaker:they send out too many emails and they become irrelevant.
Speaker:So I try to remain relevant by sending out emails only
Speaker:when they're necessary,
Speaker:like two to three times a month telling you about a
Speaker:new product or a new health benefit associated with one of
Speaker:the products.
Speaker:So yeah,
Speaker:MailChimp and the internet.
Speaker:And also I talk to people like the chamber of commerce.
Speaker:I think they are extremely relevant and people like you who
Speaker:give people like me a chance to get out in the
Speaker:world and talk to people.
Speaker:Okay. Wonderful.
Speaker:And with the newsletters,
Speaker:do you see a jump in business immediately after you put
Speaker:out one of those letters?
Speaker:I do.
Speaker:I see a small blip on the radar when I'm on
Speaker:TV. Of course I get out a huge blip,
Speaker:but yeah.
Speaker:With the newsletters.
Speaker:Yeah, it works.
Speaker:I find it works when you include a recipe or I
Speaker:include a health benefit along with a coupon for that particular
Speaker:spice plan.
Speaker:Yeah. I definitely see a big bump and I'll be sending
Speaker:out another one today.
Speaker:So I should be seeing a bump tomorrow too.
Speaker:There you go.
Speaker:If I may say so we have a class coming up
Speaker:on June 20th and that is what the phenomenal Carol Deonka
Speaker:and in the store,
Speaker:we'll be doing a cooking demonstration along with teaching people,
Speaker:how to fight inflammation with spices and foods.
Speaker:So this one will be phenomenal.
Speaker:And of course,
Speaker:again, the wine will be flowing.
Speaker:The food will be flowing and the laughter will be nonstop.
Speaker:So a really good idea for all of our listeners then
Speaker:who have brick and mortar shops is bringing in other people
Speaker:who can draw an audience and create an event in store.
Speaker:Clearly you'll probably bring in people that you haven't been exposed
Speaker:to before who have never seen your shop.
Speaker:So excellent idea.
Speaker:Good luck with that event.
Speaker:It sounds fabulous.
Speaker:What book have you read lately that you think our listeners
Speaker:could find value in?
Speaker:Oh my God.
Speaker:So this book,
Speaker:I remember I was just opened up my business and I
Speaker:was going through a down time and I saw this book
Speaker:and it said how to become super rich.
Speaker:And I said,
Speaker:oh my God,
Speaker:I got to get that book.
Speaker:Let me go get it.
Speaker:And so I went and I bought this book and I
Speaker:opened it up and I started reading and I said,
Speaker:what the heck is this?
Speaker:They're not talking about money.
Speaker:I'm not interested in this.
Speaker:So I started reading and kept reading.
Speaker:And it was about being a better,
Speaker:you being rich through your relationships with people,
Speaker:controlling your mind,
Speaker:controlling your thoughts and actions,
Speaker:helping others before you'll help yourself and ultimately by doing so,
Speaker:you will become super rich.
Speaker:That is my absolute favorite book ever,
Speaker:ever, ever.
Speaker:And it's by a guy,
Speaker:unbelievably Russell Simmons,
Speaker:but here's a guy that used to promote rock,
Speaker:rap, artists,
Speaker:rap music of which I load.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:I really do.
Speaker:I really do.
Speaker:But this guy used to promote rap artists who is now
Speaker:a Buddhist and he is now a Yogi.
Speaker:And so I found that learning from someone who has been
Speaker:down there and who is now up there easily approachable,
Speaker:and I can learn better from them because they've been there.
Speaker:So that book just opened up my eyes to helping others
Speaker:before I helped myself.
Speaker:And when I can do that with love radiating from my
Speaker:heart and a smile on my face,
Speaker:then I will be rich.
Speaker:And that's what rich means.
Speaker:Not so much about the money,
Speaker:but about the feeling of helping someone else.
Speaker:And that's clearly The message that you've been giving throughout this
Speaker:whole interview.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:the vibe is just right there.
Speaker:So it's no surprise that this book is one of your
Speaker:favorites, For sure.
Speaker:Yes. Oh yes.
Speaker:Oh yes.
Speaker:Give to Biz listeners,
Speaker:just as you're listening to this podcast today,
Speaker:you can also listen to audio books with ease,
Speaker:get a free audio book such as the one that Marlena
Speaker:is recommending.
Speaker:All you need to do is go to gift biz,
Speaker:book.com and make a selection.
Speaker:That's gift biz book.com.
Speaker:Okay. Marlena,
Speaker:we're entering into my favorite section of the interview.
Speaker:It's called the dare to dream section.
Speaker:Oh yes.
Speaker:I would like to present you with a virtual gift.
Speaker:It's a magic box containing unlimited possibilities for your future.
Speaker:This is your dream or goal of almost unreachable height that
Speaker:you would wish to obtain.
Speaker:Please accept this gift and open it in our presence.
Speaker:What is inside?
Speaker:Wow, what is inside?
Speaker:And this always gets me choked up.
Speaker:It would be about,
Speaker:about $70 million and it would be a lottery ticket,
Speaker:a winning ticket.
Speaker:And what I would do with that money,
Speaker:I would take that money and buy back foreclosures.
Speaker:And I would give it back to the people who lost
Speaker:their homes.
Speaker:I would take such joy in this,
Speaker:the elderly who were scammed into refinancing or the young immigrant
Speaker:who came here with the hopes of buying a house and
Speaker:were duped into a mortgage loan only to find that they
Speaker:are losing their homes.
Speaker:10 years later,
Speaker:I would take that money and buy back as many foreclosures
Speaker:as I could and give them back to the people that
Speaker:is the biggest dream that I have always had.
Speaker:And I've always believed that one day it'll happen.
Speaker:And I play the lottery simply for that reason,
Speaker:because I know that I,
Speaker:I can do so much good for so many people because
Speaker:people are hurting out there.
Speaker:They need to know that someone cares.
Speaker:And I do.
Speaker:I do so to the elderly,
Speaker:to the hardworking people who have lost their homes through foreclosure,
Speaker:I would definitely buy back those halls and give them back
Speaker:to the people.
Speaker:And that is the best gift that I can ever give.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:So you have now Put that wish and that gift out
Speaker:into the universe.
Speaker:So we are all going to be watching on TV and
Speaker:making sure that that happens.
Speaker:You're going to get that gift and you're going to be
Speaker:able to make that statement someday.
Speaker:How about that?
Speaker:Oh my God.
Speaker:That would just be,
Speaker:that's my purpose.
Speaker:Other than raising my two kids.
Speaker:That is my purpose.
Speaker:I love that gift.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:Well, we're nearing the end now of the interview.
Speaker:If someone wants to see your online shop or be able
Speaker:to sample some of your spices or interact with you in
Speaker:any way,
Speaker:what would be the best way for listeners to get in
Speaker:touch with You?
Speaker:Well, if they want to see my phenomenal and fabulous face,
Speaker:they can visit me at the store and that's 1893,
Speaker:share them road and Highland park right next to Norton's.
Speaker:Or if you just can make it to see my fabulous
Speaker:phase, then you can always go online to www that love
Speaker:that spice.com
Speaker:and you can place an order.
Speaker:And with each order you would get a free spice blend
Speaker:and or a recipe one or the other.
Speaker:But I always throw in something free from me to you.
Speaker:And I have a surprise for all of you gift biz
Speaker:listeners, Marlena is offering a gift.
Speaker:Why don't you share it with everybody?
Speaker:I would love to,
Speaker:if you want to ensure that your home cooking will never
Speaker:be the same and you want eyebrow raising PLAYBAR to your
Speaker:food, I'd like to offer 25% off a discount code.
Speaker:And the discount code would be gift spice 25.
Speaker:If you just put that in the discount section,
Speaker:when you place your order@wwwdotlovethatspice.com
Speaker:you'll receive 25% off your entire purchase from now until July
Speaker:31st. So That's July 31st,
Speaker:2015. So jump on that right away.
Speaker:If you still have time while you're listening to this podcast,
Speaker:thank you.
Speaker:That is such a generous offer Marlena.
Speaker:And as always,
Speaker:if you didn't catch those links,
Speaker:if you didn't catch the book or a lot of these
Speaker:valuable pieces of information that Marlena has shared with us today,
Speaker:you can go over to her show notes page and all
Speaker:the information will be there waiting for you.
Speaker:Find the show notesPage@giftbizonrapt.com.
Speaker:Thank you so much Marlena for the tremendously valuable gifts that
Speaker:you've shared with us and may your Candidate.
Speaker:Thank you so much.
Speaker:So have a wonderful day.
Speaker:I will.
Speaker:You too.
Speaker:Yeah. Learn how to work smarter while developing and growing your
Speaker:business. Download our guide called 25 free tools to enhance your
Speaker:business and life.
Speaker:It's our gift to you and available at gift biz,
Speaker:unwrap.com/tools. Thanks for listening and be sure to join us for
Speaker:the next episode.
Speaker:Would you like to be on the show or do you
Speaker:know someone who can provide valuable insight from their experiences?
Speaker:If so,
Speaker:we'd love to hear from you.
Speaker:All you need to do is submit a form for consideration.
Speaker:You can access the form@giftbizonwrappeddotcomforwardslashguestgetsgiftbizonwrapped.com
Speaker:forward slash G U E S T today's show is sponsored
Speaker:by the ribbon print company,
Speaker:looking for a new income source for your gift business.
Speaker:Customization is more popular now than ever grander products of your
Speaker:logo or into happy birthday.
Speaker:Jessica, doesn't add to write a check out.
Speaker:It's all done right in your shop or cross studio in
Speaker:seconds. Check out the written print company.com