Aloha,
As the founder of the OHi Wholesome Bars, I wanted to share our story with you.
Our OHi journey started a few years back, on Maui, in my kitchen. As a college athlete and Chiropractor, I learned the importance that good, balanced nutrition has on our health and wellbeing. When I began my second career in the travel industry, eating healthy on the road was super challenging for me as it is for so many of us. I gained weight, and well, simply found myself unbalanced and unhealthy.
After a few years of this, I found myself one particular day, exhausted and frustrated, sitting in some airport thinking that things in my life HAD to change, I HAD to change. Long story short, I decided to move my family to Maui, HI and it was here where my life took a whole new path. Being in Hawaii allowed me to slow down, reflect and start to find balance again. I became a yoga instructor and found my passion for making fresh nourishing food. My kitchen became filled with food dehydrators, Kombucha scobies and blenders!
This was only the start of my journey. Feeling the incredible difference in my own personal health, I was inspired to learn more, so I enrolled and studied at Living Light Culinary School up in Fort Bragg, CA.
During that time, I met two incredibly inspiring women entrepreneurs who were hand making delicious, healthy food and delivering to stores like Whole Foods. I knew immediately that this is what I wanted to do back home for my community on Maui. I took this business model and began selling the original Almond Crunch bRAW bar at my local Farmers Markets. Coconut Macadamia, we are from Hawaii after all, and Super Green were not far behind!
My inspiration for the bar was simply to jam pack as much clean nourishment as I could AND make it taste great! And to do this, I felt the bars were best kept in the fridge. I used many of the same ingredients I was putting in my own morning smoothie and was thinking to myself – how could I take all this goodness on the road with me? Our bars became an instant favorite at the markets and this allowed me the confidence to approach grocery stores. Retailers were thrilled, saying YES, and our company was born!
When the opportunity to expand to the mainland with Whole Food Market in Southern California came, it was important that our company continue to have roots to Hawaii, where I found the inspiration and amazing community support. So OHi was the perfect name for our brand!
The meaning of OHi is to rise, to elevate in the Polynesian language and in Hawaiian it means to gather together.
The meaning of OHi is significant to our mission: To make fresh, wholesome, plant-based foods for our community, that provide the balanced energy to be your best in body, mind and spirit. So, we can all rise, all shine, and all thrive!
So, we can all have more Whole Days!
It is a true honor for us at OHi to be able to produce nourishing whole food for our community. Your support has helped us deliver on our mission, by allowing us to continue to spread a little aloha one bar at a time.
Join our Ohana and connect with us on Instagram and Facebook @ohifoodco.
For more information about us and our delicious bars, please check out www.ohifoodco.com
Thank you for your continued support and allowing OHi to be a part of your everyday.
Mahalo from all of us here at OHi!
Dawn