Sylvia Chimhina has been an entrepreneur as long as she can remember. Growing up in Zimbabwe, one of her earliest childhood memories was selling hard-boiled eggs to students at the boarding school her father taught. Realizing she may be on to something, she started a small garden in her yard where she grew nutrient-rich vegetables and sold those, too.
“I would sit outside the gates and have everything set up just like a lemonade stand,” laughs Sylvia. “I’ve always had this entrepreneurial gene.”
Decades later, Sylvia is now the co-founder of two successful nutrition brands, Enclare Nutrition and Ruwaa Nutrition.
Prior to leaving Zimbabwe, she developed an interest in health and marketing while working for a pharmaceutical firm. When she first moved to the United States, she built a career in healthcare, working in technology, operations, and strategy for health insurance companies.
“The trajectory of my corporate life has been focused on health, so it makes sense my entrepreneurial life gravitated toward that as well.”
A health struggle prompts the idea for a brand
Though she had an interest in creating wellness products, it was her own health crisis that was the catalyst for her to get serious about creating a health-focused business. She became incapacitated due to a serious illness and could barely leave her bed for months. Because she couldn’t be physically active and maintain her exercise routine, she rapidly gained weight, becoming clinically obese. This caused her health to deteriorate further.
“I loved being an active person, and I couldn’t do that. I had become the ideal audience for what I would soon start,” says Sylvia.
As she tried to piece her health back together, she researched various vitamins and supplements that could help get her back to a healthy weight range. Her research led her to discover some insights that helped her look holistically at both her health and lifestyle. Through her career in healthcare, Sylvia learned that obesity-related conditions are a leading cause of death in the U.S. Becoming part of the solution inspired her. Sylvia began to experiment with gut health remedies, sleep aids, and fat-burning supplements. Her first customer was herself.
“I started using some of these nutrients and got excited about them. As I experimented, I began to shake off the weight I had gained and got my vitality back,” says Sylvia.
She wanted to share what she had learned with others who were struggling to take control of their health and weight. But in order to do that, she needed to engage the right team of experts to formulate high-quality, highly effective, and third-party tested supplements.
Sylvia found the late Dr. Varalakshmi Suresh, who had training in clinical nutrition and a passion for helping her patients lead healthier lives. Dr. Suresh had also gone through medical struggles like Sylvia, and they both shared the same vision of making wellness more attainable. In partnership with Dr. Suresh, she was able to launch Enclare Nutrition.
“Vara was instrumental in making sure that the products we were introducing to the marketplace had the proper validation and scientific data behind them,” says Sylvia.
“Dr. Suresh understood that Enclare was broader than just weight loss. It’s about taking accountability for your overall health. We all want to be healthier, but we don’t always have the means to get there. Enclare products give you that added advantage.”
The brand’s online store carries dozens of supplements that promise to aid in everything from immunity to heart health to weight management. Her bestsellers are often probiotics and detoxes, with many of her customers being women and moms.
Enclare is formulated for adults, but as the brand grew Sylvia soon recognized a need for children’s formulas. Her son was born with severe allergies that restricted his diet.
“I was worried he wouldn’t get access to the nutrients his growing body needed due to all the things he can’t eat.”
So Sylvia and Dr. Suresh teamed up again to create Ruwaa Nutrition, gummy vitamins designed for kids.
“My son is four now, and he takes all of the Ruwaa gummies. “
Simplifying fulfillment and building trust through Buy with Prime
She’s slowly nurtured both Enclare and Ruwaa into six-figure brands. She originally started her business on Amazon.com, with her ecommerce site being more of an afterthought. As Sylvia sought new ways to bring her products to more people, and grow her business, she found Buy with Prime.
Understanding the value of fast, free convenience to online shoppers, she added Buy with Prime to her ecommerce sites for Enclare Nutrition and Ruwaa Nutrition, focusing on her highest performing products such as the 15-Day Detox, the Watershed, and the Thermogenic Sculpt.
“Since my business started on Amazon.com, it made sense invest in a new way to attract Prime members who might also shop on my ecommerce sites.”
Not only did she add Buy with Prime to her product pages, she also created a Buy with Prime collection page and added Reviews from Amazon on both sites.
“I believe in doing things right the first time. I worked with the sales team to implement all of the best practices so that it would be easy for Prime members to find products offering Buy with Prime on my sites.”
Now, more than 75% of orders on enclarenutrition.com are made using Buy with Prime. She’s also received positive feedback from customers about the fast, free delivery of Buy with Prime orders.
“I want our customers to not only trust the products but also trust that the products will arrive quickly. For example, someone who’s dealing with constipation or swollen feet doesn’t want to wait six days for our detox capsules to arrive. They want the product yesterday. Buy with Prime ensures it will get there fast.”
Sylvia has plans to continue expanding the product lines for both her brands and turning them into global enterprises. She still thinks back to her days of growing and selling vegetables as a child in Zimbabwe.
“There is time that needs to pass between when you plant the seed and when you can harvest. Godly principles and clarity of vision will help you stay on track and focus on the main thing. That’s the advice I often give younger entrepreneurs today.”
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