Today we’d like to introduce you to Hiba Agha.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My path to this point has definitely not been a straight line. I have lived in Dubai, Cairo, Washington DC, Ottawa, Montreal and then here in San Diego North County for the last five years. I have a gypsy soul and long for new experiences that expand my horizons when possible. I studied Middle Eastern Studies and International Relations for my undergraduate and graduate degrees and worked most of my life in non-profit or international organizations, such as Unesco, UNHCR, United Way Ottawa among many others. I always wanted to give a voice to the voiceless and advocate for those that could not advocate for themselves. I saw my future in conflict resolution and human rights. However, life had very different plans and one health crisis after another had me rethinking everything. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease at 20 years old and multiple surgeries years apart threw everything I thought I knew out of the window and made me rethink everything. I questioned everything including what my real purpose in life was each time I landed back in the hospital. I knew one thing for certain and that was that an office job was not fulfilling and something was missing in that very structured environment. I was constrained by rules and systems and rigid ways of thinking and I felt trapped. My desire for new experiences meant that I had dabbled in a little bit of everything from research to marketing to administrative work and yet I was reluctant to specialize in any one thing, again feeling like it was so limiting.
Fast forward to 2017, which was a transformative year. I had an office job at a law office that was just not where I wanted to be but I also had hobbies outside of that that made up for the lack of creativity in my office job. I was getting deeper into my yoga practice and learning to listen to my intuition. I had also amassed hundreds of plants that somehow represented freedom, beauty, spirit and that lived by their own rules, governed only by the natural elements. I also met an herbalist who changed how I looked at the natural world around me and awoke in me a feeling that I had never felt before. I felt like the plants were healing me in ways that nothing else had, and I became obsessed with learning everything there was to know about medicinal plants. In January 2018, I took a yoga teacher training with two beautiful souls and met my business partner, Makenzie. At the very end of the yoga teacher training, I learned that I needed yet another surgery. Those six months really changed the trajectory of my life and I had a desire to really go for this passion I had for plants.
Once I was back on my feet, Makenzie and I set up a company called La Terre Inc. in November of 2018 and opened a little plant shop and apothecary in Carlsbad. Six months into our operations, we decided that we really wanted to work on this new project to enable us to reach people all over the country, and not just on a little corner of Carlsbad. That is when we sat down and came up with the concept of My Herbal Box, an online curated herbal box subscription that included educating people on herbs and herbalism. I wanted to give a voice to the voiceless and this wish came true when I gave a voice to the millions of plants and mushrooms that are all around us. This project also unleashed a creative side of me that had been stifled in office environments and I could combine my experience in admin, research, project management, etc. into this one project and so in the end, not specializing in any one thing really benefited me.
Has it been a smooth road?
It has definitely not been a smooth road and much of the growth has really been inner growth. Because this has been a really personal journey of healing, I had to really question how I had lived my life and what habits were holding me back. Good friends definitely helped me see that I had value and that I could offer it to the world. I had to build the confidence to put myself out there, be ok with being judged and to let my voice be heard. My desire to always play the mediator and keep everyone happy had me biting my tongue oftentimes and my introverted side had me share my gifts with a small group of people only. I often wondered why I had great ideas that never came to fruition and then I realized that I had never really tried to put myself out there. I had to let go of the illusion of perfection, of the fear of not being enough and of the desire to please everyone. My business partner Makenzie embodied so many of the qualities that I knew I needed to make this business a success and I learned a lot from her about just going for something. Imposter Syndrome is also very real and the feeling that you have no place because you don’t know enough really holds a lot of people back, including myself. I think that if you have something to share, share it. You never know who needs to hear what you have to say and who needs the knowledge that you may have. So, start somewhere and it is ok if it evolves. We started as a shop and now we are online and we only knew we wanted this by doing it. I would also say that fear can really hold you back but it is really based on assumptions of what might go wrong. So far, everyone who I have interacted with has been absolutely amazing and so supportive and I would never have known this had I not tried to put myself out there. my assumptions were just that. Assumptions. Don’t hold yourself back based on assumptions. I am beyond grateful and blown away by the support we have received and the truth is, you can’t please everyone and that is not a reflection of you or your intentions at all. So it’s ok if you are not for everyone. If you can make a difference in one person’s life, then that was all worth it.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with My Herbal Box – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I am an herbalist and I am also apprenticing on a farm in Ramona to be able to eventually grow my own herbs and food. My partner Makenzie and I own La Terre Inc. which was a shop in Carlsbad, where I made many of the herbal products that we sold and where we also sold indoor plants. We also did plant design jobs, where we put up living walls, designed spaces filled with plants and gave our clients the gift of life. However, we are now 100% focused on My Herbal Box and that takes up most of my time. My Herbal Box is a subscription service that aims to help you start your own home apothecary, bring you all-natural healing products and educate you on herbs and herbalism. I want to show people that healing can come in many forms and that there is food and medicine that grows all around us. We are the first to curate this type of box, as far as I know and I believe that what sets us apart is the education around herbs. I do not wish to commodify plants and so there is a lot of education around nature, respecting the planet, sustainable living and harvesting responsibly. We are trying to make a field that can be overwhelming more accessible to the average person and we hope that plants will speak to others the way they have spoken to us.
Often it feels as if the media, by and large, is only focused on the obstacles faced by women, but we feel it’s important to also look for the opportunities. In your view, are there opportunities that you see that women are particularly well-positioned for?
I believe that we live in a wonderful time where women are reclaiming their own power. I follow lots of women-run businesses and as a woman-run business, I do think these are exciting times. I think that sometimes you have to create the opportunities that you want and that is why running a business is so liberating. Nobody can tell you where your limit is except yourself and sometimes the best things do come out of having to be creative to overcome certain obstacles. I am lucky to live in a place that fosters the belief that you can work for yourself and where small businesses are valued. All the women I know are incredibly smart and talented but I also believe that working in community is really important. To be honest, having a partner really challenges many beliefs that I was happy to let go of and working on a farm in community makes me feel part of something larger. So sometimes, it is important not to go at life alone but to ask for help from your community. Make sure your voice is being heard, otherwise you just end up being back in the old way of doing things. I think the tides are shifting and that there is a recognition that it is not “business as usual” anymore. We must challenge the status quo and empower ourselves because no one will do it for us. This was a big lesson for me. I realized that intelligence or degrees would not propel you forward but only your tenacity and hard work. Also, ask for things. If you don’t ask you will never receive but if you ask you would be surprised at how the universe opens up for you.
Pricing:
- $39.99 for the Vital Box monthly subscription
- $49.99 for the Seasonal Box
Contact Info:
- Website: www.myherbalbox.com
- Email: hiba@myherbalbox.com
- Instagram: @myherbalbox
- Facebook: @My Herbal Box
Image Credit:
Valentina Murdenek and Britney Seal
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