In this edition of Sophie Chats With … I’ve interviewed my dear friend and source-of-much-inspiration, Max Goldberg. Max is truly an amazing person, with an even more incredible story. He’s inspired me to live a healthier, more thoughtful life since the minute we’ve met, and I’m so excited to share our conversation with you today!
SU: What inspired you to create The Juice Directory?
MG: Like most businesses, this was born out of necessity. It was something that I wished existed but didn’t. So, I built it myself, figuring that others would want this information as well.
When I would travel to Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim each year, I wanted to find out where I could get pressed organic juice near the show. Yet, when I would look on Google, the elesults were all over the place. Some were organic but weren’t pressed. Some were pressed but not organic. I couldn’t tell what was what from the search results. I needed a curated list of exactly what I was looking for.
SU: How did you take the first steps toward getting your idea off the ground?
MG: I started doing research online to figure out how many pressed organic juice brands and locations there were. In my initial research, I remember there being approximately 40 different brands in the U.S. Now, that number is many, many hundred on a worldwide basis.
SU: At what point did you know that your idea was going to succeed?
MG: I guess I knew it would work based on so much positive feedback that I received, particularly from juice drinkers. Also, the user engagement on the site is incredible. I am kind of shocked.
SU: What makes your site/blog/app different from others out there?
MG: There are several things that make it different. First off, it is a curated site from someone who has domain expertise in organic. Every single brand that is on my directory has been personally approved by me. I have checked out each brand to make sure they are both pressed and organic, and they sell a minimum of a green juice. I don’t visit each company’s kitchen, but I do my homework and use my network of contacts.
Second, since it is web-based, a person doesn’t have to download an app to get the information. They can just open up their phone, and it will populate the closest places nearby where to get pressed organic juice.
Third, there are specific search filters that you can use such as glass bottles, filtered water (do they use filtered water to wash the produce before juicing), and certified organic.
Lastly, we are a worldwide directory with more than 25 countries represented. Plus, we don’t just display listings from major cities. Wherever there is pressed organic juice – even if it is in a small town – we will list it.
SU: What motivates you to jump out of bed every morning?
MG: Between my organic food blog – LivingMaxwell.com, my juice directory – PressedJuiceDirectory.com, my consulting/advisory business where I work with organic food companies around the world, and the many other projects I have going on now, including my new “live” TV show – The Living Maxwell Show on Periscope – there is so much to get done each day. So, that doesn’t make it hard to get out of bed.
I am very grateful that I get to work in the organic industry. My colleagues — now friends — are people who care about organic as much as I do and share similar values.
Being involved in organic isn’t just a job, this is how I live my life and it is my true passion.
SU: What is your morning routine?
MG: I get up and have several drinks on an empty stomach: a few ounces of Zana Juice, my amino acid drink, my Vitamin B drink, coral calcium and aloe vera, and shiljait in water. After I have all of these, I do my meditation and then do something called The Release Technique, a technique which helps to remove negativity from the subconscious mind.
SU: If you could take 2 food items to a desert island (that you’re going to be stuck on for a year) what would they be?
MG: Green juice and coconut milk — both organic, of course. I could easily live on these two.
SU: Imagine that money is no object (that you’ve just won billions in the lottery), which charity/cause would you donate to?
MG: GMO-labeling causes. I am a big GMO-labeling activist and believe that the fact that we do not have GMO-labeling in the U.S. – while 64 countries around the world do – is one of the real injustices in our country.
SU: What do you hope to be doing 5 years from now?
MG: Interviewing the most interesting people in the world and being a partner in a venture capital fund that invests in organic food businesses.
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Be sure to visit LivingMaxwell.com to follow Max Goldberg! And if you haven’t already, register for my One-A-Week Challenge – I’m giving you lots of great information (like this interview with Max) to help you live a healthy, gorgeous life!
