I started JUICE PRESS in 2008 on a shabby laptop in my apartment. JUICE PRESS was my exit strategy from the family business of art antiques. Prior to that, I had a skydiving retail store with a male business partner, and I was producing films, but those ventures couldn’t provide me with the income needed to live in New York. I sold that enterprise in 2003 to Cameron and Donna Bayrasli. I also sold my copyrights to the books we wrote on skydiving and all the training films we produced to the great Rob Laidlaw, founder of Skydive University.
I made my mark in skydiving, and fortunately, it wasn't as an impact crater on the ground at the drop zone. When I returned to business life, I went back to working for my father in his antique business. Over the next few years, I rebuilt my finances to a healthy state but eventually got bored waiting for customers to walk into the store. I became obsessed with the lifestyle of juicing and vegan foods, having learned to cut tremendous amounts of weight in short periods while training for Thai boxing. I wanted to create access to the type of food we started with at JUICE PRESS, which I continue to do at goodsugar.
By the time JUICE PRESS was about to materialize as an actual store, I was just turning 40 years old. My daughter Luna was about two years old. I spent a lot of time on E. 1st St. in the East Village of New York City. One day, while in a children’s park with her, I noticed a tiny store available for rent. There was nothing for rent in the neighborhood, and this store was really cool because it always had sunlight and was across the street from the children’s park, which had good energy. On the other side of the park was a major street, Houston Street. The store felt like the "Nexus of the universe," as Kramer from Seinfeld would say.
I had put together a business plan over about a year and a half, and when I saw this store, I knew I had to have it. It was about 290 square feet in an old building. I negotiated with the landlord before I even had a thorough plan for what I was going to build in such a tiny space. I was really nervous. I wanted my father to join me, but he didn’t want to be in the food and beverage business. So, I went to E. 4th St. to talk to an acquaintance named Jacob Vainer. Vainer had a small bar and health food store called Healthfully. I told him about the store on E. 1st St. and asked if he wanted to join. He said yes.
As we were building the store, another friend of mine, Alain Palinsky, popped in. We had been missing each other (in a non-sexual way), and he got involved in the business. By 2010, JUICE PRESS opened its doors, and whatever was going to happen next, happened.
Above: Our first Juice Press store, Circa 2010, located at 70 east 1st street in New York.
I acknowledge the role Jacob Vainer and Alain Palinsky had as my cofounders of JUICE PRESS. I'll admit, back in those days, we were all anxious idiots, constantly in conflict with each other. Long-held resentments centered around the amount of effort I put in, being the primary financier of the projects, having my name spread out across all our creditors, being the guarantor of the first two leases, and feeling unappreciated for my talents in marketing, branding, graphic design, store layouts, and operations. Back then, I felt I was doing all the heavy lifting, and the credit I needed was being threatened. Looking back, it was all just childish nonsense.
Jake Vainer was a very important support person for me in the beginning when I was scared to make the plunge into the food business. Alain Palinsky, although his energy was absolutely over-the-top nuts, was a vital part of the business because he was a go-getter. He created ideas so big that just getting things done always meant we were doing something significant. He also had a lot of talent for attracting interesting people into the field of awareness. All these years later, Alain and I still talk and laugh like kindred spirits. We both made money from JUICE PRESS, and we both improved our skill sets.
I should also acknowledge some of the early partners to whom I gave equity, such as Mark Baker, who was a restaurateur and nightlife person. Mark was always a pleasure to work with.
I certainly have to pay a great deal of homage to my father, David, who convinced me to sell him a franchise at JUICE PRESS after it had been established and was successful. His store was the third one, located on E. 62nd St. and Third Avenue. That store hit the ground running with incredible revenue during his years as the owner. My dad eventually cashed out and sold the store back to JUICE PRESS.
I have to acknowledge Kenny Dichter as the first investor in JUICE PRESS, along with his friend and partner, Mark Teixeira. Dichter and Tex brought a level of credibility to our business, paving the way to raising money in our Series A.
I owe a great deal of acknowledgment to Michael Karsch, who came in on the Series A and also bought out Alain Palinsky’s position early on. It was Karsch and I who built the business beyond store five through store 85. Eventually, Karsch took over control of the company from me, a right that he paid me well for. From 2016 until my exit in 2019, I took the founder position role and was really just executing Karsch's orders. The current JUICE PRESS, now renamed Just Plants, is a creation of the Karsch family. I have had nothing to do with what it is and what it serves since 2018-2019.
I’d also like to pay special gratitude to Ken Langone, who sat on the board of directors and invested money in JUICE PRESS, Simone Levinson, Michael Murphy, and all the others who invested in JUICE PRESS over the years.