Back in the day (2014ish), most people started in the CBD/ hemp business because of a health concern with themselves, family or friends. Vital Releaf’s start was no different.
Vital ReLeaf was formed in 2015 by longtime friends and business partners Cindi Ellis and Anita Knittel.
Cindi had family in Idaho and would fly regularly from Florida with layovers in Denver. During one of her layovers in 2014 she purchased a jar of ‘pot cream’ created by Mary Jane Medicinals and delivered it to a relative with crippling arthritis in her fingers and hands. About 15 minutes after applying the salve they could not believe the results! Cindi’s relative could actually move her fingers AND without the devastating pain. They were stunned! There had only been some minor short-lived relief from many types of prescribed medications. This was nothing short of a miracle! They both wondered how a plant that helped her so much be illegal, it just didn’t make sense. Where had this wonderful natural product been hiding all these years?
Cindi immediately called Anita to share the results of this wondrous salve!
The call more than intrigued Anita who started researching immediately and found a plethora of information about cannabis as a medicine. She zeroed in on CBD as her Mom had a seizure disorder and after 40 years the medicine was taking a severe toll on her mind and body. Anita had been searching for a more holistic route. Her research opened her eyes to a whole new world of plant medicine.
They both knew they found something remarkable. They could help family and friends. Creating their own brand, doing it the right way with the very best ingredients.
The Start of Vital ReLeaf
Hard to believe now but finding good quality CBD wasn’t that easy back then. They had friends in Denver so that’s why they started going there to meet with farmers and processors, bring their products back to Florida, test on family and friends (yep they used them as guinea pigs!) and then went back to Colorado and met with more farmers, got more products, etc. They set up an elaborate rating system. This was a long laborious way to do it but they felt it was important to really know their farmers, the ingredients, the processes to create the products and the usefulness of the products.
They learned so much about the industry that year talking to the people that grew hemp and created these wonderful salves, lotions and tinctures. They will be forever grateful to these incredible people for their kindness and the sharing of their vast knowledge of cannabis and how to make plant medicine.
At a small gathering of CBD ‘enthusiasts’ in Fort Lauderdale, Cindi happened to sit next to someone that was in the hemp business. They sat for hours afterwards talking about CBD/hemp, the future of the industry and his farm in Colorado. Without knowing them or what they were looking for he checked off every box on their wish list and many other things they didn’t even know to ask.
Our list:
– USDA certified organic hemp
– FDA Registered Facility
– ISO Certified 9001
– Grown on land that was clear of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides from previous crops
– Outside grow, in sunny Colorado
– 100% vertically integrated farm who had total control from seed to the bottle
– A company that values the health of their consumers over profit
– Plant/product lab testing to verify purity throughout the entire process
– High quality, pure and affordable CBD/Hemp
– Low minimum quantities to start and able to scale up to high volume quantities
– Access to the farm and the facility
Cindi called Anita and asked “Can you drive down and meet him? I think we found our farm!”.
And that was the start to a long and wonderful partnership with this farm.
After all the travels to Denver, a chance meet-up with a stranger in Fort Lauderdale that had everything they were searching for and more!
By not giving up and striving to meet their own demands, they have created a product line and a brand that has helped many people at a great price.
