(a sneak peek of Denver HQ)
My dearest sriracha freaks,
Earlier this year I decided to move myself (and Jojo's) to Denver, Colorado. Serendipitously, Denver is the birthplace of Jojo's Sriracha. It's the place where I finally decided to give a fuck about my body... It's where I took refined sugar out of my diet for a month and completely transformed my life... it's the place I started scrutinizing every ingredient that went on or into my body. Denver is where I decided that I could eat better, live better and make a better sriracha...
Denver is also the place where I started my sacred yoga practice and did my yoga teacher training in 2010 at Vital Yoga just before I moved to New York. That's where I learned about ayurveda and threw away all my conventional beauty products and started making my own so I could finally clear up the crappy skin I had since I was a teenager. It's also where I met the great love of my life and then moved 2,000 miles away.
When I moved to New York, I had no idea I would start a business making sriracha. But I do know that I had opened my heart to the universe and asked her to show me the way to my greatest happiness. And as per the typical workings of the universe - I got exactly what I asked for...
I got to meet the sweetest farmers, food producers and entrepreneurs. I got to take an idea and bring it to market. I got invited to swanky food events and even got filmed for The Cooking Channel! I got to put jojo's sriracha in the highest quality specialty food stores I know of and collaborate on the coolest projects. I got a business that I was in love with and the drive to make it successful...
...I also got to face myself and all the things that were hindering me from fulfilling my greatest potential. I got a really great therapist who helped me deal with the death of my mom at 15 and show me all the ways that I screwed up my intimate relationships because of that trauma. I got to look at my wife's face when I told her I was unfaithful and that I was leaving. I got to move back in with my family for a year while I let the dust settle. I got to cry hard and learn how to hold myself. And I got to wake up one morning and decide that I could do what was truly in my heart. I had nothing left to lose.
I've always felt like I have three homes: California (where I grew up), New York (where I went to undergrad and later moved back and started my business) and Colorado (where I went to grad school and decided to give a fuck). I'm a firm believer that home is where the heart is. And I had left my heart in Denver. So I decided to lay all my cards on the table and jump. It felt like the quote I've never forgotten: leap and the net will appear. I jumped, and trusted that things would fall into place.
I've wanted a kitchen space to call my own since I started making sriracha and in Denver that dream is finally coming into fruition. We found the sweetest little space that will soon be love hard, inc. Denver headquarters. I know that this is just the beginning of so much awesome and I am so excited to share it with all of you.
On the personal side of things, I reconnected with the love of my life and we now share a beautiful home together. I wake up every morning next to someone who loves, supports and believes in me. And everyday I'm grateful I jumped.
I know that I wouldn't be where I am now without all the love and support I've received. Not just from friends and family, but from complete strangers. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Â
With deepest love and gratitude,
Jojo
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