"Why was your business founded ?" I read the question multiple times, wrote different answers, not knowing where to start, how to say it.
In my first business plan, I wrote that I created Nuccy to make adaptogens more accessible, more fun and familiar to people with the innovative combo of these herbs with nut butter. Easy daily use, delicious taste, cute packaging. Now that I am more confident in myself and the business, I will share the more painful part of the story, the human truth. I created Nuccy for me. To make myself spark, to mould me and my life back into existence, into the world of the living after I experienced two painful losses.
At the end of summer 2020, six months into the pandemic and nine months into me taking adaptogens daily in addition to yoga, meditation, and everything else you’ve ever thought of doing to calm stress, I brutally lost two of my grandparents in one week. I was in a state of shock for a month and felt the effects long after.
The first four weeks after the funerals are so blurry because part of me still doesn’t want to remember it at all. Thinking adaptogens could be a good combo with nut butter is the first clear thought I had that month. Like a spark, it activated something in me. This idea connected everything I loved: cooking, creativity, wellness, self-care, food, pleasure, presence. I remember that for the first time in a while, one morning, I woke up with a plan: to go outside and check out health shops to see what was out there. For the first time in a month, I projected myself outside of my pain, of my reality and into the world of actions, where people seemed to have projects, ideas, holidays, diner parties and weekend plans.
A spark, a connection to the world, a connection to myself.
This is what Nuccy gave me at the beginning and is still giving me now. That’s what I want Nuccy to be for you as well. Even if I had not fully understood it at this point. Even if I did not know where it would bring me, the people I would meet because of it, the places I would end up in, it grounded me. It put a fire in me, one that lighted a new path, a possibility. I started writing down all my ideas: is it possible? Would that work? How would I name it? Nuccy
It came to me intuitively, a mix of English with an Italian feeling. It did not mean anything, but it felt cosy, light, familial and yet had a subtle sexiness and chicness. I remember the first time I put the name on a jar's drawing in my business book. I was starting to believe then, that it would happen, that it would be possible. Another spark.
The curiosity of what it could be, of a new beginning. Nuccy gave me that. I was not interested to be actively part of this world. Like a calling, it forced me to think about the future. A spark of unknown.
Experimenting with the food was incredible for my mind at that point. I spent hours mixing and adding spices, salt, cacao, grilling nuts. I do not know how many trials I made, forcing my little brother to try yet another version of chocolate hazelnut. It got me out of my head. It opened my creativity, challenged my resilience and commitment to the project. A spark of wonder.
After hesitating to do this full-time, I created the legal structure on the 30th of December. I wanted it to be founded in 2020, to have one silver lining before the end of this dark year. That decision was the first time I had recognized myself in a while and projected myself long into the future: hopeful, determined, dreaming. At this moment, looking at the risks and imagining the challenges ahead, I chose my dream, connection, me.
I chose Nuccy. A spark of hope.
During this period, I always told people that I wanted to create a food product because it was tangible. It was real. I believe now that I needed to have something concrete to show me I existed. I could touch it, see it, taste it, smell it. These are four out of five things people tell you to look for when you have an anxiety attack, to come back to the moment. Nuccy is me taking this tool and overdoing it. A spark of healing.
When I was thinking about the brand image, its values, its ethos, I became more sensible to images, nature, sunsets, the trees, the colours, the beauty of simple daily scenes. It started a creative process that created yet another connection to the world and others: artists, photographs, friends with incredible insta feeds, fashion icons, street style, galleries, fashion, beauty. The world and my view of it were there: on my Nuccy mood board. It is not just about cooking anymore; this is becoming something more. I am becoming something more. A spark of creativity and playfulness.
The more I think about it, the more I understand: building Nuccy was intertwined with the process of rebuilding myself. It forced me to re-examine what I wanted out of this world and what I wanted to give it, to offer it, how I aimed to show up in it. Creating this business meant a commitment to come back to the world. It became a force for me to believe in the future and in myself. I am part of this world like you are, and I created something in it, from my mind to your kitchen. It is real. Nuccy continues to show me the power of inspiration, connection, work, vision, and presence every day.
Why was Nuccy founded? To make you spark like it helped me spark.
I want it to make you feel in the flow and alive. Nuccy aims for you to be happy to eat something that delicious. A first step toward being more relaxed and present by making adaptogens part of your lifestyle. I want it to inspire you through my takes on food experiences, practices that make me glow as well as the curated tableware, recipes and images.
Let's get Nuccying.