Dr. Janze Taylor sits at the reception desk of Embodi Hydration & Wellness.
Sunday, April 14, 2024
By Nayeli Jaramillo-Plata
Dr. Janze Taylor founded Embodi Hydration & Wellness, an alternative health and wellness spa in Durham two years ago. Taylor also is a nurse practitioner who works full time with Duke Health. Embodi Hydration & Wellness offers intravenous hydration and vitamins as well as weight loss services.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
The Durham Voice: Where did you get the idea to start your business? How does your background fit into the company idea?
Dr. Janze Taylor: The idea of the business came from being a nurse practitioner. I progressed in my nursing career because I wanted to do more for our community. Being a nurse practitioner and working with patients, I realized that there’s something else that needs to be done basic health-wise to help people get better.
Most of my nursing career has kind of pushed me to want to do better. Like, what else can I do in the health arena that is more alternative? And that was a real passion of mine. Even going through my own GI issues, I became kind of obsessed a little bit with my GI health and so wanting to look at some alternative methods and then being in my nursing career and being a nurse practitioner just seeing the need for education and more basic health.
What inspired you to start this business?
During one of my clinical rotations, I worked in a cardiac rotation. I had a patient with uncontrolled hypertension and they were gonna have to give them another medication. And I thought “Time out. Let’s take a step back a little bit and figure out, what is the true problem?”
If you have someone on a couple of medications, and there’s still something going on, what are the other factors involved? Is it education that’s missing? Is that some opportunity to go to a class on diet and nutrition? What else can we do besides giving other medications? Now granted, if that is needed, then that’s what we obviously have to do. But can we revisit something and take a little bit of a step back.
It was a little bit personal for me because it was an African-American patient, and I thought this could be my dad, this could be my husband one day, this could be my granddad or one of my loved ones. Being an African-American, there are disparities, and there are things that kind of get pushed along, and it’s not to anyone’s fault, per se, but it’s what we are doing as a whole to help people get better?
How did you fund the business? What financial options were available for you to start the business?
It really was self-started. My husband and I used our own funds to start my business. And that’s why I started small. I started with just the IV hydration piece, and I plan my business out at least six months in advance. I kind of knew exactly what companies I would use for my supplies, and how much money I would need to start to get my products and all that, and my mom and dad, they bought some of my supplies.
How soon after you first opened your doors did your business make a profit?
I would say the first year I made a small profit. But generally, and last year, I started doing weight loss. I saw a big jump in that towards the end of last year. Year two was a little bit slower in the beginning. And I think when you look at the economy and the inflation of everything, things have gotten a little bit slow. But we go through those seasons in business.
What do you do to stand out against your competitors?
I am a people person. When you come in, I’m always cheerful, smiling. I talk to my clients, I have a conversation, I get to know who they are. I’m honest with my clients. I’m not here just to take money, I’m here to help you get better. Starting from day one, I build that relationship with my clients, getting to know who they are and making sure they are getting what they need and the service they need from me and that when they walk out, they feel better than what they did when they left.
How have you grown the business? What type of marketing do you do?
I’ve done pop up shops to get my business out there, and I have brochures. I’m currently in a small suite, so in this suite, there’s a couple of other businesses and I’ll leave brochures and flyers on my door so people can pick them up and see the services that are offered.
I’m on social media, on Instagram and Facebook. I share a lot of content in those places. And then generally, if I’m out, I’m always talking about it. When people say, “Oh, I have this or I’m feeling this,” and I say “Hey, you should come see me.” And that’s the biggest part. And then Google is fantastic [because her company appears in results with certain searches].
Is there anything you would like to implement if money were no object?
If money wasn’t an issue, I would hope to have my own space, a larger space where I can do all the things that I want to do. That includes these services that I offer but on a larger scale.
My vision is to have a holistic alternative approach to healing, things that will help you get better and feel better. This includes not only the IV vitamin therapy and weight loss, but I want to expand my weight loss program to where I can really have a holistic approach so that once you leave my program, you’re able to keep that weight off. That includes nutrition, therapy if need be.
What is your best-selling service? What service(s) do you sell are underrated?
One of my IV services. It’s kind of a toss up. My weight loss has taken off. I offer weekly injectables – and that has been a big thing right now – to help people lose weight. So that’s been my most successful recently. My other service would be my injections like B-12 injections. I have one to help people that are already doing the exercise and eating correctly, like a fat burner injection.
The most underrated I would say would be the IV hydration. A lot of people are scared of needles. They’re scared of having an IV placed, but it has so many benefits to it. It’s all essential vitamins and nutrients. And what it does, it helps to flush out those toxins.
What are some of your goals for the business in the next five years? In the next 10 years?
In the next five years, my goal is to be a full health and wellness med spa, where I’m having all the services that I wish to have. In 10 years, my goal is to be continuing with the services that I offer with the Health and Wellness Spa, but also doing some additional services in the future, having an area to provide some community education on different topics, maybe inviting other professionals to host classes, generally having a much larger area or place to offer services, training, nutrition programs, things that will be beneficial for the community.