NHS graduate Khaled Soofy passed on the corporate world to create his own business
Khaled Soofy made the decision in high school that he wanted to be an entrepreneur.
“I had a mentor, a family friend, who was a serial entrepreneur. Just seeing that aspect of business was intriguing. It’s really hard for me to pin down one thing to do,” he said. I thought entrepreneurship might allow me to do more things than I would be able to do otherwise.”
After graduating from Noblesville High School in 2007, Soofy attended Indiana Univeristy’s Kelley School of Business to study entrepreneurship, operations management and economics. After graduating in 2011, Soofy decided to take a different approach than his classmates.
“My heart wasn’t there. This wasn’t the path I wanted to go on,” he said about interviewing and the prospects of the corporate world.
During the spring semester of his senior year, Soofy’s biological father, Khalil Soofy, reached out to him for the first time since he was 2.
“He got in touch with me. I thought I might travel around the world and maybe go visit him (after graduation),” he said. “I ended up getting interested in herbal tea and learning about it and decided this could be a business.”
The sacrifice
Soofy said he knows his life is “a lot different” than those of his classmates.
“I have friends from high school and college I have not seen a lot in the last two years,” he said. “Their lives are different. Three-quarters are in the workforce and some are making pretty good money. I’m living life as cheaply as possible. I have a much different lifestyle. They have a guaranteed income coming in, where I don’t.”
Soofy said he works 12 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week to create his business.
“There is a tremendous amount to learn – registering a company, taxes, patents, legal aspects. It was self educated with a lot of trial and error,” he said. “It (school) prepares you a little. I don’t think anything can prepare you for it.”
When Soofy first started his project he created a check list, not knowing it would become as extensive as it did.
“Each item was an entire new project – new skills, new knowledge to check that item off,” he said. “When you are an entrepreneur you don’t refine one skill, you work on many.”
Creating Athena BioNutrix and its naturally brewed, ready-to-drink herbal tea Yújiā was Soofy’s fulltime job. In addition to his parents support, he had investors to support his dream.
“If I would have known how in depth this product would have been in the beginning I probably would have started with something simpler,” he said. “I didn’t ever give up on it, but it was definitely tough.”
Putting in the time
Soofy began learning martial arts at the age of 5. His mother, Nora Kuzel, wanted him to be able to defend himself while living in Chicago. The lesson soon turned into a passion as Soofy continued his training and became a third degree blackbelt.
“It snowballed into a way I lived my life. A big part of martial arts is mental, physical and spiritual health and I always found these important.”
Soofy studied research papers to better understand the science of herbs used in other cultures.
“I took the best herbs for you and put them all together. Some herbs we don’t eat in our diets because they taste bad. I had to find the balance between palatability and the benefits of the herbs,” he said. “Ginkgo biloba tastes awful but it’s really good for you.”
To ensure Yújiā was different than others available, Soofy dug into market research and consumer trends.
“Past health crazes of products for people wanting to be healthier without the understanding have shifted to people educating themselves and being better informed about their health. Health isn’t just a pill or supplement but a lifestyle,” he said. “Health is something you can work on. I want to enjoy the rest of my life better. It improves my life for the long run.”
Kickstarter
After two years of research to perfect the formula, Athena BioNutrix, L.L.C. began its Kickstarter campaign on March 30. Soofy said Kickstarter is an online platform to get in on the bottom floor of projects they believe in.
“It builds a community around that project, builds awareness. The hardest part about starting a business (is that) ? no one knows about you,” he said, adding pledges are not charged until the project is successfully funded.
In just two days of starting the campaign, Soofy has received more than $1,300 in pledges. The funding assists Soofy with packaging costs since professional bottling companies have large minimum order requirements.
Soofy said the accomplishment of starting his own company and creating a product didn’t hit him until the first time he went to talk to a store owner.
“They told me, ‘it’s a cool product. I’d like you to let me know when you’re ready to make it because I’d like to put it in my store.’ It went from being a cool possibility to thinking this is going to be a real product,” he said.
Prior to its Kickstarter launch, Soofy has encountered early success as three independent health food stores in Indianapolis – Good Earth, Georgetown Market and Nature’s Market – have agreed to carry his product. He is now working to increase the awareness of Yújiā to independent health stores in Chicago and Bloomington
“This project helped me sharpen my skills and learn about the whole entrepreneurship process. My thesis paper just happens to be a business,” he said. “It may not be massive, but it’s going to be something.”
Yújiā, Mandarin for yoga, is an herbal tea infused with prebiotic fiber and all natural vitamins and minerals. Like the regular practice of yoga, this “Liquid Yoga” purports to help lead a healthier life by restoring balance, enhancing energy and promoting longevity with no preservatives and a full range of essential nutrients our bodies are often missing, Yújiā rises above a quick boost to the immune system or a short-lived energy shot. For more information, visit facebook.com/YujiaTea or www.YujiaTea.com.
Meet Khaled Soofy
Age: 25
Birthplace: Chicago
Residence: Noblesville
Family: Parents, Nora and Ken Kuzel; siblings, Ashley South, Ben Kuzel and Joey Kuzel.
Education: Noblesville High School Class of 2007 and Indiana University in 2011
Hobbies: Learning, fitness, health and spending time with girlfriend
Quote: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” “I thought it was a cool quote ever since I was young and I’ve always lived by that,” Soofy said.
