The Mantra Box® is just over one year old and each time I swear it gets more fun to put together with each passing season. Our whole team loves discovering new businesses in the health and wellness industries, testing their products out and seeing if they make the cut. My favorite part, however, is receiving the photos of the founders and people behind these amazing small businesses. I love being able to see who you're actually supporting when you purchase their products.
If you're new around here, the YBC Mantra Box is a quarterly discovery box that contains between 7 - 11 products, mostly from small businesses in the health and wellness spheres. You're able to choose from vegetarian, Paleo-friendly and I eat everything. To keep it small business friendly, we only have 150 boxes available for pre-order, so run (don't walk!) and place your pre-order now! Our Spring box will be mailed out in June, and I know you're going to love it! And if you weren't able to get your hands on this past box, we have ONE that we are giving away. Enter all the way below at the bottom.
Refreshinq Co.
The RefreshinQ Co. Founder, Ritzman Pharmacy
Personal Mantra: #NeverQuit - Never quit is an attitude and a movement that inspires people to keep striving to make the right choices and keep trying to better themselves.
We encourage people to join the Q Community by taking the Never Quit Pledge and share it on social media to inspire others to never quit. It’s your first step in making what you imagine you can do a reality.
Why the company was started: Meet The Refreshinq Co.—A Nationwide Health and Wellness Movement Driven by People Who Never Quit. Refreshinq is about much more than just its product and service offerings—it’s about inspiring people of all walks of life to be their best selves. Whether it’s athletes in their prime building strength or a busy mom trying to endure another workday, our packs and patches give bodies what they need, when they need it.
What does the company do to give back? We are currently working on building a philanthropic give back program.
Product included in box: Stress Support Pak
Retail value: $9.99
Discount Code: YBC20 for 20% off through April 30, 2017
Kasandrinos International Founders
Kasandrinos International Founder, Tony Kasandrinos
Personal Mantra: Smile, laugh, share and help every day.
Why the company was started: Tony started Kasandrinos Intentional simply by sharing the family olive oil with friends at a local crossfit gym he was training at. After a few months, demand grew and eventually he started selling it direct to consumer online. The was 5 years ago........
What does the company do to give back? Assistance to health oriented small businesses and bloggers on how to go from an idea into a reality.
Product included in box: 60ml bottle of Kasandrinos Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Retail value: $6.99
Discount Code: YBCmantrabox for 15% off through April 30, 2017
Shenzhen LeWangYiGou Tech Ltd. Founder, Zheng Xing
Product included in box: Yoga strap
Retail value: $11.99
Discount Code: WG8AMSIY for 15% off through December 31, 2017
Vital Proteins Founder, Kurt Seindensticker
Vital Proteins Founder, Kurt Seidensticker
Personal Mantra: We exist to nourish people who seek to live a full, vibrant life.
Why the company was started: So many people's diets are lacking in collagen, and over the years our diets that once had sufficient collagen have drastically slipped. It's a vital product that our body needs to maintain health and energy levels, and Vital Proteins products help to get that back.
What does the company do to give back? Vital Proteins makes an effort to volunteer in our local community as often as we can. Most recently, our team spent the evening at a local soup kitchen preparing and serving meals.
Product included in box: Collagen Peptides
Retail value: $43
Discount Code: VP-16Wellness17 for 20% off your first order
Four Sigmatic Founder, Tero
Four Sigmatic Founder, Tero Isokauppila
Personal Mantra: Eat Intelligence.
Why the company was started: Four Sigmatic was founded with the goal of cutting through all of the hype and helping people eat more of the world’s most scientifically studied superfoods, like mushrooms. We wanted to make these incredibly powerful foods taste better and be easier to use, so that they can be simply incorporated to upgrade your existing habits. In other words, no more fads, no more pills, and no more capsules. Our first mission in accomplishing this was to popularize drinking (yes, drinking) mushrooms.
What does the company do to give back? Whenever you buy any of our mushroom boxes, we will put a portion of the proceeds toward providing free mushroom kits for cancer patients. These Contribution Kits, as we like to call them, include more than $1,500 worth of mushrooms for patients. The current version of the Contribution Kit includes dual-extracted chaga, reishi, shiitake, maitake, and turkey tail mushrooms.
Product included in box: Mushroom Coffee with Lion's Mane
Retail value: $14.99
Discount Code: YBCmantrabox for 10% off
Numi Organic Tea Founders, Ahmed Rahim, Reem Rahim Hassani
Personal Mantra: Everything happens for a reason.
Why the company was started: Numi is a labor of love by a brother and sister. She is the artist and he is the alchemist behind all of Numi’s blends. Named after a Middle Eastern dried lime tea they drank as children, Numi Organic Tea was founded in 1999 in Oakland, California, after observing that competing brands differed little from one another in quality and innovation. Learn more here.
What does the company do to give back? Numi is a founding Certified B Corporation, a designation for purpose-driven companies that create benefit for shareholders, employees, the community and the environment. We are a leading purchaser of Fair Trade Certified™ tea, but wanted to do more to assure our supply chain partners are thriving. In partnership with the Numi Foundation, we conceived and launched Together for H2OPE, an initiative centered on assuring the people throughout our supply chain are thriving with access to clean, safe drinking water. Learn more about Together for H2OPE Madagascar, the 2016 project benefiting the farmers who supply turmeric for the teas you will be sampling, here.
Product included in box: Numi Organic Turmeric Chai Golden Latte & Numi Organic Turmeric Tea
Retail value: $14.99 (Turmeric Chai Golden Latte 24-serving box) & $7.99 (Turmeric Tea 12 ct box)
Unbound Founder Polly
Unbound Founder, Polly Rodriguez
Personal Mantra: Pussy Power!
Why the company was started: In 2007 I went through menopause at the age of 21 from radiation treatment for cancer. I went to shop for sexual wellness products for the first time and the experience was absolutely horrible. There wasn't a one-stop shop where I could read about the products, ensure they were body safe, and feel empowered after purchasing them. That's why we created Unbound -- to empower women in their sexuality and make them feel *good* about the shopping experience as opposed to embarrassed.
What does the company do to give back? We donate 6.9% (yes, 6.9 lol) of all profits to charitable organizations that support sexual health, including: The Trevor Project, Planned Parenthood, It Gets Better, and The Women's Funding Network.
Product included in box: We're including Unbound gift cards which are good for anything on the site! There's no catch, we just hope they'll use them as a great excuse to indulge in a little self love. We have everything from organic bath and body products to body safe vibes, lubricants and gorgeous lingerie.
Retail value: $25
Dandelion Creative Co Founder Fatema
Dandelion Creative Co. Founder, Shruti & Fatema
Personal Mantra: Be Creative!!
Why the company was started: When we were redecorating we realised that there weren't any fun and eclectic prints available. So we started Dandelion.Creative.Co that caters to a variety of personalised and creative illustrations.
Product included in box: Printed illustration
Retail value: $12
Discount Code: YBCmantrabox for 20% off through April 1, 2017
Rootz Nutrition Founder Harrison
Rootz Nutrition Founder, Harrison Levy
Personal Mantra: Love the process.
Why the company was started: The inspiration for Rootz came from my own desire to have protein and energy supplements that weren't loaded with chemicals and artificial flavors, and my frustration with the low quality products available on the market. I wanted something that was made from real food ingredients that I could actually pronounce, but would still give me results.... So I went out and made my own products that I could feel good about putting in my body.
What does the company do to give back? We donate protein to underprivileged/disaster stricken areas.
Product included in box: Protein-Superfood
Retail value: $54.99
Discount Code: yogabycandace for 10% off entire site through May 1, 2017
The Grandpa Soap Founders
The Grandpa Soap Founders Katherine Oliver Jarnigo and Molly Oliver Vollmer
Personal Mantra: Work Hard, Have Fun, Get Outside & Play!
Why the company was started: Our company was started with the first batch of soap dating back to 1878 in the American heart land. The natural recipes have been practiced, perfected, passed down and even rescued. We are a piece of history that is still in motion. Today, Katherine and I are multi-tasking moms proud to carry on our family business of natural products.
What does the company do to give back? Green Initiatives are a part of our daily practice within our operation and with the products we produce! Outside the company walls, Katherine and I take great pride in supporting local community Green Spaces. We believe the local parks systems cultivate happy and healthy lives!
Product included in box: Rose Clay Soap
Retail value: $4.99
Clever Yoga Founder Ellie
Clever Yoga Founder, Ellie Teng
Personal Mantra: Be Happy! Be Healthy!
Why the company was started: As a very active yogi, I know yoga practice can benefit everyone who is open minded and willing to improve their lives. It can be a challenge to pick up the right yoga props and accessories with quality and affordability. We combine meticulous market research with strict quality control and testing to create high quality products at affordable prices. I want to provide all level yogis the best products and services. The products should be environmental friendly on the way too.
What does the company do to give back? Very actively involved with Annie Okerlin's Exalted Warrior Foundation by donating our new product launch proceeds to the foundation monthly. The Exalted Warrior Foundation facilitates an adaptive yoga instruction program that is designed for wounded warriors in the active military, veteran hospital facilities, and veterans within communities around the country. We recently also involved with Garrison Elementary School Fundraiser project and are happy to help. We will continuously help our community in our capability.
Product included in box: 3 Pack Yoga Sport Socks
Retail Value: $39.99 (on sale now for $12.99)
Discount Code: 'YBC15OFF' for 15% off
Raw Spice Bar Founders, Rebecca Myers
Why the company was started: To help people learn about and cook with spices and spice blends from around the world- in place of fats, salts and sugars.
What does the company do to give back? We try to work with smallholder farmers from around the world to source our spices whenever we can.
Product included in box: German Gingerbread Spice
Retail value: $7
Giveaway
We're giving away one Winter '17 Mantra Box®. All you have to do to enter to win is leave a comment on this post telling us what you'd love to see in future boxes. Please note: If you have an email address you use for giveaways, feel free to use that one because by entering to win, your info will be passed on to the sponsors. We'll pick a winner next Friday, good luck!