Adaptogenic Duo: Tranquil Adaptogenic Capsules And Balance Hemp CBD Tincture. Photo courtesy of shopshanti.com
Adaptogenic Duo: Tranquil Adaptogenic Capsules And Balance Hemp CBD Tincture. Photo courtesy of shopshanti.com
Shanti Wellness will release a new line of Ayurveda-inspired CBD products this August. Ayurveda is a traditional medicine system which focuses on mind-body-soul alignment. With names like Tranquil and Soothe, Shanti Wellness products aim to help customers maintain a healthy balance in their lives.
Mohnia Patel, a California marketing coordinator, was under a lot of stress. Few jobs generate more stress than legal work. Working as the marketing coordinator for a law firm might be one of them. She was looking for relief. She considered pharmaceuticals but wanted an alternative. Her family had owned a health food store, and she wanted a natural solution. “That was always a part of my life,” she said, “What herb can you take? What pro-biotic could help you? What holistically can we use to make ourselves feel better?”
She decided to do her research. There were plenty of natural alternatives, but one stood out most: Cannabidiol, or CBD. CBD comes from hemp just like THC, but isn’t psychoactive–it doesn’t get you high. It does, however, cause the calming sensation associated with smoking pot. “It seemed really in-tune with what I was looking for, and I used it myself every day.”
She enjoyed the calming effects of CBD, but the taste of the popular gummy delivery system was terrible. She set out to find alternatives, a quest which eventually led to the decision to start her own company. “It’s just crazy how much (CBD) really helped me. I was passionate about the effects I had, and so I really wanted to provide that to others.”
She spent more than a year researching. CBD wasn’t as well-researched or as mainstream as it is today, especially outside of the area of California where she lived, but she studied everything she could find. She read the research and talked to experts.
Patel eventually landed on a product line–Shanti Wellness–inspired by Ayurveda, a cultural medical system from her Indian heritage. “East meets West is really what I am as an individual,” she said, “and that’s really what our product line offers, is cutting-edge science and technology in the West, with ancient rituals from the East.” Shanti Wellness products use traditional herbs such as ashwagandha–a traditional remedy which is part of the nightshade family–as well as minerals like magnesium. They come in softgels, tinctures, capsules, and balms.
Now nearly a year old, Shanti Wellness is releasing a new line of products. While the specifics of the products have yet to be released, Patel is excited about the prospect. “We have some exciting things coming,” she says, “I can’t release too much information right now, but it’s really gonna be deeply rooted in my Indian heritage, and that’s the next frontier for Shanti for sure.”
Shanti Wellness also plans to expand. Patel and her husband have focused on California, where lawmakers and consumers better understand the misleading connection between CBD and THC. Now that she’s more established, Patel is looking east–including to New York City–but also towards national distribution. “Right now we’re really in an expansion phase. We’re hiring, we’re growing, and we’re looking into office spaces. It’s really an exciting time because it’s so interesting to go from a direct consumer online e-commerce business to really having a much bigger retail arm.” New York is tough, she says, because of legislation surrounding CBD, but Patel says they are talking to a few stores in NYC.
A lifelong New Yorker, Cristina Alesci is an award-winning television and digital correspondent. Even before joining the CNN team in 2014, she had interviewed countless business leaders and tastemakers as a correspondent for Bloomberg. Facebook’s IPO, Dell’s takeover battle, and Gwyneth Paltrow’s “common woman” interview are among the stories that have helped make Cristina one of the go-to New York journalists for breaking stories.
As hosted by Cristina, The American Dream: New York will be premiering on CNN’s digital platforms on Monday, Feb. 13. The American Dream is a multi-part documentary series exploring how living in New York during the first half of the 20th century inspired some of New York’s most successful residents. Interviewees include J. Crew CEO Mickey Drexler, Xerox CEO Ursula Burns, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, hip-hop legend Russell Simmons, and Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. The series will also be showing on CNN International shortly after its Feb. 13 premiere.
Downtown spoke with Cristina about The American Dream, daily living as a journalist, and what keeps her based in New York all these years later. She can be followed on both Twitter and Instagram.
Cristina Alesci: Now more than ever, I believe the American Dream is hope. At its core, the American Dream is having the freedom to achieve success as you define it, regardless of where you’re born and who your parents are. While government programs and policies can nurture an environment of possibility, the individual needs ambition, resilience and a decent amount of luck. It’s a struggle and it’s not easy. The American Dream is an ideal we should all aspire to achieve and preserve for future generations.
CA: My family and New York, two of my favorite things. My parents and grandparents inspired it in large part. Like many others in this country, they emigrated to the U.S., in their case from Italy. To me, they embody the spirit of the American Dream, unrelenting hard work and hope. My mother arrived when she was 12 years old and had to learn a new language, a different culture and how to take care of herself in some very tough neighborhoods. The same with my father, who eventually started a successful small business. I’m in awe of what they’ve been able to achieve. Also, New York was a breeding ground for their dreams and so many others who found success in this country. I wanted to understand it, document it and share it so it can inspire others.
CA: I have many, actually, but as a woman covering corporate America eight years was struck by Xerox CEO Ursula Burns‘ observation that despite all the advances women have made in business over the last few decades, men still seem to have the advantage. She made a point about how women sometimes may overlook picking a kind of partner who will help them share the burdens of their personal and family lives.
CA: My younger sister Laura, I was eight. My parents had just bought a video camera and my first thought was, “I want to do an interview for the news.” I actually watched the video over Christmas for the first time in years, and it was a lot different than I remembered. It was more like an interrogation.
You’ve interviewed a lot of big names, but are there people that you’re still hoping to talk with?
CA: The bold-faced names often don’t lead to the most riveting stories. Jimmy Breslin likes to say that the more compelling stories are found in the losing team’s locker room. One of the biggest stories of Breslin’s career, which is still taught in journalism school, was a column he wrote following President Kennedy’s assassination, where he interviewed the gravediggers who would be burying the President. I firmly believe the best way to report on something is by looking in the less obvious places.
Rumor has it that you wanted to pursue a career with the FBI before getting into journalism. What was it that drew you to the FBI?
CA: The rumor mill was right! I was always drawn to the idea of public service. At the time, it seemed like the best way for me to make a difference in the world. Also, Agent Alesci seemed to have a nice ring to it…but I had no poker face, so I wouldn’t have been very good at undercover work.
Have you been able to interview anyone from the FBI?
CA: I do get a lot of late-night calls but breaking a story is rarely that easy. It’s always the product of shoe leather. That, and not taking “no” for an answer—even if you’ve heard it a dozen times. But it can be a lot of fun.
I had a two-year rivalry with another reporter at a major financial newspaper. We were always trying to one up each other on breaking financial news. One time, after a week-long vacation, I scooped him on three stories my first day back. He e-mailed that night and begged me to go back to the beach.
What is a typical day like for you as a reporter? How much of the day is actually spent reporting or writing?
CA: A typical day is five hours of sleep, one hour of eating, one hour in the gym and the rest spent reporting and writing. How much is reporting versus writing changes from one day to the next, but I do both every day.
CA: I’m focused on the nexus of money and politics, and its impact throughout the country. I believe it’s more important than ever to ensure the public understands that relationship.
You’re a CUNY graduate. What is it that keeps you based in New York?
CA: That seems like a trick question! I was born in Brooklyn, raised in Queens and now that I live downtown, I can’t imagine myself living in too many other places.
When not busy with your career, how do you like to spend your free time?
CA: With my family. I have four younger siblings; three sisters and a brother. My husband and I love cooking big meals and having everyone over for dinner — I’m Italian, after all.
Do you have a favorite restaurant in New York?
CA: It’s hard to have one favorite restaurant in New York. I have my top ten, but it’s always changing. Right now I really like Café Altro Paradiso, Via Carota and Le Coucou. I don’t have time for brunch, but for a simple breakfast on a Sunday, I love hitting the Greek bakery Pi in Soho.
Do you have tickets to any upcoming concerts or events?
Geraldo Rivera has been in the spotlight for well over 40 years as one of television’s top reporters. The New York native was arguably the first broadcast journalist to interject personality into his interviews and coverage, as he has always been known to be on the scene and in the faces of those he has questions for. In turn, Geraldo’s success crossed over into writing best-selling books and hosting several long-running talk shows on both radio and television.
Downtown caught up with Geraldo for some Q&A about his life both on and off-screen. More info about his various appearances — much of which for Fox News — and charitable endeavors can be found at www.geraldo.com.
Geraldo and wife Erica / Photo: Craig Barritt/Getty Images
What do you wish more people knew about Geraldo Rivera?
GR: That I am the same tough guy compassionate journalist I was when I started a half century ago — actually 1970 — but that I have evolved and grown with every generation. And how folks relate to me depends on when they tuned in. I’m relevant to the Baby Boomers with Eyewitness News, Generation Xers with the Geraldo talk show, Rivera Live and the syndicated specials, and the Millennials with shows like Dancing With The Stars and The Apprentice: Celebrity Edition.
Do you have an accomplishment you’re most proud of?
GR: That would be during my time as a reporter for WABC-TV in New York, where I exposed the deplorable conditions at the Willowbrook State School for the mentally-retarded, the population now called the developmentally-disabled. Our journalistic and financial crusade, which is on-going is to provide these people a more dignified life.
You were involved with reality television way before people realized that reality TV was a normal concept. What inspired you to break the fourth wall so early on in your career?
GR: I would say my biggest technical or style contribution, aside from being the first rock and roll newsman, has been to make reporting more up close and personal. This used to be a profession where journalists were mere spectators, aloof from the scene of an incident — whereas I become part of the story. I cried with people who cried, I laughed with people who were laughing, and I managed to relate in a way that hadn’t been done previously, and that also made it easier for people at home to relate.
Is there anything you haven’t yet accomplished but still hope to?
GR: To get an interview with President Obama before he leaves office. I have tried to get one for the past eight years, but he is ducking me because I work for Fox News, which he hates. As a lawyer admitted to practice at the Supreme Court, I would also like to argue a case in that important venue.
What’s coming up for you career-wise? Any upcoming events you can talk about?
GR: I am writing a war memoir, so right now my priority is to finish that first draft and see it published. It will be my eighth book. Unfortunately, it has become enmeshed in the recent Fox News upheavals.
When not you’re busy with your career, how do you like to spend your free time?
GR: With my five children and three grandchildren, and my wife Erica, of course. We love to head out on the ocean in our boat or to take a trip to our silly little island off the south coast of Puerto Rico.
Having been all over the world for work many times over, what is it that keeps you local to Manhattan?
GR: Being born in Manhattan, this is where I feel most at home. Both my professional and personal life is rooted here. I have spent so much of my time here that I feel like “Mr. New York.”
Finally, Geraldo, any last words for the kids?
GR: Be cool, stay in school, don’t get married too young, work hard as if you love your job, and love and respect your partner.
Out of the Binders or BinderCon, a literary conference for women and gender nonconforming persons will be coming to NYC on November 7 and 8 at Cooper Union and the NYU Journalism Institute.
Out of the Binders was launched summer 2014 and was named as a nod to the infamous Mitt Romney quote in which he referenced “binders full of women.”
The group hosts professional conferences to provide networking opportunities for women in the writing world spanning from journalism to TV and film.
