Devan Patel Interview

What inspired you to start Zen Nutrients?

As a clinical and compounding pharmacist, I have a passion for helping patients get better. I’ve worked with many patients who didn’t find success with traditional prescription medications. They’ve either not worked well or caused negative side effects. 

Throughout my career, I’ve found that natural supplements have helped to improve my patient’s quality of life, especially frailer patients. I’d recommend anyone make natural supplements a part of their daily regimen, which is what inspired me to start Zen Nutrients. What started as a passion has now become a thriving supplement and nutraceutical company focused on using high quality and bioavailable ingredients.  

What’s your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

In 2020 we received the Amazon’s Choice Rating for WoundVite®. WoundVite® was formulated using pharma-grade and research-backed ingredients for aiding in wound and surgery recovery.  Amazon recognized us as the best in the category and now we are the #1 Most Comprehensive Surgery, Wound, and Scar reduction support supplement in the United States.

We’re proud to say that we have well over 2,000 positive reviews and more than 150,000 happy customers using WoundVite®.

What inspired the name of the company?

They say pharmacists are one of the most trusted professionals in the world. Well then, if you take the trust and wisdom of a pharmacist and combine that with the knowledge and expertise of a physician, this equals Zen Nutrients. I believe that nutrients can promote healing of the body and mind hence the name, Zen Nutrients. 

At Zen Nutrients our pharma grade supplements are designed to target specific medical conditions to increase compliance and reduce healthcare costs. They are physician and pharmacist formulated with research backed, premium quality ingredients. 

We manufacture our supplements in the USA, in a state-of-the-art FDA registered facility following Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP), using when available organic, bioavailable, and non-GMO ingredients. Our pharma grade supplements are 3rd party tested to ensure quality, safety, and compliance.

How has being an entrepreneur affected your life?

I’ve kind of been an entrepreneur my whole life. My parents owned a business while I was growing up. Therefore, working hard, understanding the value of money, and providing awesome customer service has been engraved in me from an early age. 

Being an entrepreneur in the real world is a lot of sacrifice – financially, mentally, and emotionally. It requires a lot of patience and willingness to take risks.  My personality type is such that I enjoy helping others, which was instilled in me by my wonderful parents and emphasized in my career as a pharmacist. 

If you lead with purpose and good intentions, then great things will follow. I don’t feel like an entrepreneur, I consider myself more of a “philanthro-preneur”. I’m lucky to have a very supportive wife, family, and business partners that see my vision with Zen Nutrients.  

What motivates you?

What motivates me daily is making a positive impact on someone’s health. I can’t help everyone but if I can make a positive difference in at least one person’s life, then I’m happy. Serving my community is what keeps me stoked and energized.

How do you generate new ideas? 

Firstly, by having a clear and focused mind. I believe that you must find your own Zen, physically and mentally. Staying clear-minded helps you think and strategize better. So, I make a conscious effort to take care of both my physical and mental health. 

Secondly, by speaking to my customers and listening to their needs. The more I learn about people’s behavioral patterns and lifestyles, the more ideas I get about how to improve them.

What are your ideals?

Doing things the right way and going the extra mile to help someone. I share these same ideals with my business partners, which is why our relationship has blossomed over the years. 

We don’t want to cut corners. We want to provide quality products and excellent customer service to keep our customers happy and help them get better. 

How do you define success?

Simply put, making a difference in someone’s life. I believe we were put on earth to do something good for our fellow human beings. My calling is offering unique supplements that can improve the quality of life, naturally.   

A good example, which happens often, is when I’ve helped a customer who’s been suffering for years from severe diabetic neuropathy. By simply educating them on the value of using high quality supplements and selecting which ingredients are appropriate for them, we have helped many customers who’ve been suffering from painful neuropathy symptoms for years. 

Do you believe there is some sort of pattern or formula to becoming a successful entrepreneur?

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to becoming successful. Everyone has their own journey and obstacles they will have to face. 

But there are certain traits I’ve noted in many successful entrepreneurs that I believe in as well such as having fiscal discipline, being trustworthy, being honest, and having grit.  

What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur?

Reading the reviews. I especially love to see positive reviews from our customers. Our most popular product, WoundVite®, has over 2,000 reviews. I love reading reviews and seeing the results from customers who have found WoundVite® useful for their needs.

It puts a huge smile on my face knowing that our company made a difference in someone’s life. I pay attention to negative reviews as well so I can reach out to these customers and ask them how we can improve and do better. 

Negative feedback is important because it helps us make better products and build a stronger and better company going forward. 

What do you wish this company to accomplish within the next year?

We would love to have our product line included in the over-the-counter catalog for Medicare Advantage Plans, such as Humana and Cigna. These large health plans typically offer complimentary vitamins and supplements to their patients, but don’t offer condition targeted formulas like the ones Zen Nutrients offers. 

Countless Medicare patients are on fixed incomes and using premium pharma-grade formulas may decrease costs and improve health outcomes. Zen Nutrients products are safe to use with most prescription medications and inexpensive. As a matter of fact, our products are less expensive than most prescription medication copayments. 

What do you wish this company will accomplish within the next five years?

We plan on Zen Nutrients products being available in major retail stores, such as Walmart and Walgreens, as well as in over-the-counter catalogs for Medicare Advantage Plans. We want to continue to be known as pharmacist and physician crafted formulas that help you heal from within. 

For the aspiring entrepreneur reading this, what advice would you give?

I’m a strong advocate of learning how to do the job or task by yourself first, then delegating the work to scale up. There are some dishonest companies that may take advantage of you, especially when you don’t know how something works. Learn the ins and outs of how to run your business to avoid being taken advantage of. 

Lastly, it’s easy to get distracted and frustrated when things don’t go as planned. But you must learn to block out the noise and stay laser-focused on your goals. You’ll never succeed if you give up every time the going gets rough. Find your motivation and stay on the path. Don’t give up and you’ll get there. 

What final words do you have for all your supporters?  

First and foremost, thanks for supporting the brand. It’s awesome to see our customers posting reviews and success stories on YouTube, TikTok and Facebook. We have several new formulations in the pipeline, so visit zennutrients.com and watch us grow!

Reference: https://thelosangelestribune.com/2022/12/11/devan-patel-interview/