Meet Katie Hess, the Founder of Lotus Wei

From a young age, Katie knew she was meant for something bigger. She was an only child, stuck in her small town feeling lonely and frustrated. She knew she had to break out of her small town, find her people, and make an impact on the world. To comfort herself, she spent her time in nature, feeling peaceful in the soothing environment. Before starting her business, Katie went to college to study sociology, Latin American studies, and Gender studies. Here she learned how to advance her writing skills, meet deadlines, and think critically. Katie believes this education was quite different than what is the college system today, which relies less on critical thinking and, was glad she learned hard skills in college to help develop her business. Looking back, however, she wishes she could have used her time to develop more holistic practices and knowledge about Chinese Medicine. She wishes she had gone and learned from a practitioner and jump-started her career. She believes that having hands-on learning experience would have allowed her to master her skills earlier. Katie believes that the real life experiences we have are the best way to learn. However, her college education in Latin American studies allowed her to explore and travel Spain and embark on a journey where she learned about spirituality and decided to go to Mexico.

During her journey in learning more about energy medicine, Katie found a teacher in Mexico who introduced her to flower essences. He taught her about flowers and their benefits for humans. Each flower has a specific benefit that can help people in different ways. This is because each flower has a life force, specifically where pollination occurs. This life force when made into an essence can help spread energy to anyone that uses it. In Mexico, this knowledge on spirituality and the healing properties of flowers were extremely common. Even the taxi drivers knew of a flower’s importance, however, when she came back to the US, Katie realized that the love for spirituality was not universal. The US at this time had an intense anti-spiritual culture and she believed it was stopping individuals from connecting with their true selves. Even Yoga and meditation, things that are common now, were not practiced when she first arrived.

Katie’s experience in Mexico enabled her to see what healing essences people needed and started consulting with clients using her teacher’s flower essences. After seeing how essences advanced personal growth and the inner truth of her clients, Katie started to make her own essences, oils, and mists, jump-starting her career. After sharing the benefits of flowers with her initial clients, Katie knew she had to find a way to scale her business. Even though she was meeting with thousands, Katie wanted everyone to experience her essences, which gave her the idea to start a business.

Katie faced lots of difficulties when establishing her business. When starting, Katie didn’t know how to negotiate or speak in public effectively, which forced her to learn all of it on her own. In the initial days of her business, when Katie was learning how to market herself, she felt very constrained by the societal norms of running a business. During this time, she faced a lot of inner obstacles. Since the public wasn’t socially ready for spirituality, Katie dealt with a lot of negative responses and backlash. People weren’t used to the methods of healing Katie was suggesting. Katie realized that the generic marketing techniques that she was doing, wasn’t working for her and started to develop her own marketing and expansion techniques that worked for her company, making Lotus Wei authentically hers. Katie had to stay true to herself and trust that she was making the right decisions when making these transitions. She realized it wasn’t important to sell or market to those who had no desire, instead, she wanted to focus on positively impacting those already interested in expanding their knowledge of spirituality. This led her to writing books on the power of flower essences and hosting events to share her products, which included mandalas, essences, and meditation. Although some events weren’t a hit, Katie stayed true to herself and started working through her insecurities and doubts. Katie knew that her business could only be successful if she was putting in the work. Every step of the way, Katie asked herself, “Am I doing the work?” and was able to spread spirituality to a wider audience.

As a business owner, Katie has seen how “doing it her way,” has widened her capabilities and audience. With 99% of Lotus Wei’s customers being female, it truly has become a women’s conversation. This support has increased her confidence in her capabilities and has pushed her to constantly evolve her techniques. Although Lotus Wei is currently female-dominated, Katie wants to open to conversation of spirituality with men and allow everyone the option of flower healing. In this process, Katie hopes to expand to a million people, promoting spirituality and natural products.

You can support Lotus Wei and Katie’s work by following their social media, including their Instagram @LotusWei and @IamKatieHess, and by buying goods on their website lotuswei.com We encourage you to not only work on your inner and outer obstacles but also look into different healing methods. Your purchase with Lotus Wei may will not only help you with your spiritual journey but will also increase awareness on natural healing methods and continue the journey towards a sustainble world.

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