Wellness Founders Podcast

[2] From Near Death Experience to NomadAbs | Oheri Otobo of Nomad Abs

• Jordan Carroll • Season 1 • Episode 2

Share episode

In this episode of the Wellness Founders Podcast, Jordan Carroll interviews Oheri Otobo, the founder of Nomad Abs, a social fitness community in Playa del Carmen. 

Oheri shares his transformative journey that began with a near-death experience, leading him to move to Mexico and build a thriving fitness community. 

Guest Bio

After a near-death experience, Oheri relocated to Mexico in search of a deeper appreciation for life. His journey has since spanned the worlds of travel, technology, and personal transformation — from growing a YouTube travel channel to diving deep into blockchain and cloud computing.

Following the loss of his father, Oheri found new purpose through programming and earned certifications in JavaScript, Python, data structures, and AWS Cloud. He's also an actor, poet, and founder of NomadAbs Mexico. His story is one of resilience, gratitude, and reinvention — combining a passion for technology with a mission to live with purpose and impact.

Connect with Oheri:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oheri.otobo 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oheri-otobo

Nomad Abs Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nomadabsmx 

Nomad Abs YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nomadabs 

Connect with Jordan:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jspensir

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanscarroll

Follow Wellness Founders:

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wellnessfounders 

Website: https://www.wellnessfounders.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wellnessfounders

SPEAKER_00:

All right, welcome everybody to the Wellness Founders podcast, where we explore the business of wellness and the people creating the future of well-being. Super excited to have my my guy, O'Hari, here to uh talk about a lot of stuff. Um, but as I was going through your background, O'Hari, because you know, we've known each other uh probably for a few years, but like very surface level, because I'd been going to your your workouts and I'd see you there, and we'd say hi in the streets, you know, it was cordial. Um, but in this process, I've been able to do a little bit more digging in your background, and and it's it's fascinated me. And I I could uh what came to mind was maybe a modern-day Renaissance man of sorts. Uh because I was uh I was finding I was finding uh IMDV profiles with acting credits, I was finding poetry online, I was finding a YouTube travel channel, uh crypto digital asset management services. And of course, the thing I know you the best for, which is Nomad Abs in Playa del Carmen, which is a uh a fitness community, a social fitness community that's really grown and taken shape and something that I really value as someone who lived uh for four years in Playa. I still consider it home. And as I mentioned to you before we jumped on, I I uh I spent some time with Rob on the last podcast and got his angle of how he built PDC Fitness Group. And now I want to get the other half. I want to get the nomad halves half because both of you guys, I think both of you guys have done just tremendous work in Playa Del Carmen to make it a destination for people to come for health and wellness. So uh I want to give you that nice that nice intro before we we jump in and and and just and I appreciate you being on. Um is more the uh the question at this point. I want to start I want to start at like this near death experience because it seems like your your Mexico journey uh started a number of years ago. I think it's between four and six years ago. Um yeah, it's about six years now, actually.

SPEAKER_02:

June June of 2019.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I'd love to talk about like your transition into coming to Mexico and and also how that played a part in building, you know, a a social fitness community there.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, um I'll I'll say long story short, I was not necessarily intending to build a socialist community. That's something that really happened in the past two years. And it and it it kind of just happened organically, and it has been a fun and interesting experience ever since. So very grateful to be a part of of this whole you know movement, as you put it, because it, you know, there's something I've I've trained people in the past, but you know, it's it's I I always say it's like it's funny that when you ask people for money and uh they don't show up for the workouts, how unsatisfying that is. But you can lead workouts where there's like, you know, a couple of like people, a lot more people, you know, and then no one is you're not you're not charging anybody anything, but you have more satisfaction because these people are actually showing up because they want the best for themselves, you know. So that to me is one of the one of the biggest benefits in just doing this whole thing and and how and it's something that blindsided me. I did not expect that, you know. It it it kind of just took shape. But before I get even into that, I'll I will touch on the near-death experience a little bit. Um, because I was actually in LA at the time when that all happened. And when that happened, uh, it was one of those things where I was working at at Apple at the time, I was on my way to work, and I had woken up late, and I was like, oh, I gotta, you know, I was like, I gotta I gotta book it. And I was riding my bike to to work. It was probably about like I it was always for me, it was like about the the exercise or whatever, it was about six miles to and fro. Anyway, so I'm on my way to work and I'm trying to beat a traffic light going down this hill, and there's a like 16-wheeler on the on this four-year intersection, and I can't see around it. And uh the light turns red on ours, green on theirs, but the the the what you call it, the the truck driver can see me. So he doesn't really move. And I'm just like, at that point I've already committed, you know. So I'm booking it, and as soon as I cross, there is a another car that was not at the stoplight, had speed, was was literally just barreling down. And I thought that was it. I thought that this was gonna be it for me. I I literally didn't think I was I was fast enough, and I kind of just like you know, gave Jesus the wheel kind of thing, and just like closed my eyes and kind of like, you know, was expecting impact. And um literally just rolled through it, thank heavens, and just heard a huge horn and screeching of tires, and I opened my eyes, looked around, and I was like, yo, what just happened? Like I literally I I was expecting impact, you know. In other words, that's how close it if it was, or at least it felt. And I was shaken, pulled over to the side, and the thought came to me, and I was like, yo, you know, it's we're all gonna die someday. Do how do we wanna die? Do we want to die on our time, or do we want to die because we're working for somebody else or on our time, you know, kind of thing. And my friend had no idea what was going on, and he reached out to me. He lived out here already. We'd visited, and he was like, he had no idea. Just literally around this, I think it was the same day or like a few days later or something like that, and he was like, hey man, uh, why don't you move out to Mexico? And I was like, to do what? You know, that was kind of like my my thinking. And I remember going to work. I came back on my way back from work. Uh I remember passing by that intersection. I was thinking, you know, maybe this is some type of something. I don't know. Let me let me think about that. And uh long story short, you know, because you know, there's there's definitely more details to it. But long story short, I considered it. I looked online. I don't know, you know Hopper, the the app for like finding, yeah. So I looked on Hopper and I was like, oh, let me find some some tickets. And the tickets were like, they were saying 300 from LA to Cancun. I was like, 300. I was like, that's like practically a round trip from New York. So I was like, whatever. And I was like, all right, and I remember saying out loud one night before going to bed, I was like, if this tickets drop to 150, because it said on on Hopper, it said, you know, but prices can drop to 150. And you know, and I was like, all right, I was like, I'm willing to go 150, but I was like, you know, because my mind was not really planning on going to Mexico, but I was like, if this tickets drop to 150, I was like, I'll take that as a sign and I'm gonna go to Mexico. I kid you not, the next day I'm at work, I'm helping some customer out. I get a notification. I didn't really, I just like kind of like briefly checked it out and I was like, all right, whatever, let me finish helping this person out. I remember going to the bathroom right after I helped the person and I saw the notification and it said prices to Mexico Cancun are$150, and I was like, no way. No freaking way. I was like, all right, this is kind of weird. And then I went, I was driving home, and that's when I passed by the area where I almost where I almost got hit by the car, and I was like, you know what, we're always looking for signs in life. And you know, when they come, I don't really think that we really pay much attention to them. I feel like we just like we're like, nah, I can't be, and then we we kind of just like brush it aside. But something about it, and I was like, you know what? I think um I think this is a move. I was like, I'm gonna I'm gonna go ahead at the very least, I'll just go for one year. Six years later.

SPEAKER_00:

For a what? Yeah, but even even to commit for one year, it seemed like a lot, it must have seemed like a lot at the time.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, it was. It was. I and and you know, I'll tell you one thing is that my the when I was I went to my to my job and I I talked to my managers and everything, they're like, oh no, you know, you're a great worker, we like you. If you want to go and just take the year off and come back, you're more than welcome to, kind of thing. So I felt like I had the confidence of job security. So, you know, it gave me even that much more confidence to be able to make that move, you know. Didn't tell my bomb, I didn't tell I didn't tell anybody, I didn't tell them my family just packed up my stuff and left. I was like, yeah, whatever, I'm just gonna go see what happens. And yeah, the rest, as they say, is history.

SPEAKER_00:

And would you say up to that point, like where were you at with you know your health and your fitness, your wellness? Is that has that always been just part of your ethos in general?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I've I would say I've always been pretty, pretty healthy. I've I've always I've always you know maintained a fairly decent level of of health or or fitness, if you will. I've always tried to be active, you know. Uh I guess.

SPEAKER_00:

If decent is how you look now, then I feel bad for the rest of us. You're you're decent is like the after picture of uh yeah, like w I don't know, like something I can only um imagine. So uh so that's that's great to hear.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, I I mean I guess for me it's like it's one of those things where I'm like, I really feel like you know, our bodies are the only this is our only vessel. It's the only it's the only you know way that we carry ourselves around. So you may as well take full responsibility for it, right? Like it's truly the thing, the main thing that you're most that you're responsible for on this planet is your body. Like nobody else is gonna take care of it for you. Only you are. And if you don't if you don't feel like you have what it takes, then you know, or if you don't do what it takes, then nobody else is gonna do it for you, you know? And and yeah, and I think I've always kind of or not always, but once I adopted that mentality, it was one of those things where I was like, well, yeah, there's no looking back, you know, and like there's no well there's there is no looking, there's no back. It's just it's just going from there. Now, obviously, you still want to like make try to make sure that one, either you're you're you're having fun, it's not it's not just you know, you can't just be strict all the time. You have to you have to have your moments, you know. You have your cheek days or stuff and everything else, but you know you don't really do too many yeah, you just you it's with a grain of salt, you take every other thing, I suppose is the best way to put it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

So so my my intention with this podcast and and how I want it to be perceived and who I want to listen to it is although there's maybe different segments. Some some are the brands, fitness brands, wellness brands, tech apps, hospitality that uh, you know, is mostly focused around wellness, people that are running various different wellness communities. And so for this particular episode, I think it'd be really interesting to hear like from the wellness community standpoint, the fitness community standpoint, you get to Mexico about six years ago. How like give me the stage of chapters of like how did it come about? How did Nomad Abs come about? What was like that an initiation period where it was like, all right, I'm gonna bring this to the world, and how has it developed since then?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I guess again, like I said, six years ago wasn't really anything. In fact, when I first got to Mexico, I was doing more online fitness training, you know, I was like I was an online personal trainer in essence, you know. COVID happened shortly after that, so it was actually kind of like perfect timing. So I had a couple of clients and I was training them, but again, you know, it felt more like it honestly started feeling more like therapy than it was a personal training session, you know. They were telling me their issues, and not to say everyone has their problems and that's fine, you know. But uh it felt like I was listening to more so what their problems were rather than getting them to actually do the workout and the training and everything. So I enjoy training, I enjoy working out. That's that's my own personal thing. And I and I kind of equated it to like, hey, well, maybe if I train people, I may as well just get paid to do what I love, right? Kind of thing, or what I already enjoy doing. Fast forward to end of 2023, maybe actually even earlier than that. I meant, I think you know him, you know Leon.

SPEAKER_01:

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02:

Anyway, so oh you may know him, but yeah, I meant Leon. Him and I, him and I started like, yeah, okay. So him and I uh started like hanging out. One of the first things he was like, hey man, you know, I really want to get into shape and everything else, and blah, blah, blah, blah. And I was like, all right, that sounds cool. You know, he's a runner, I don't really care to run. But I was like, I was kind of interested in getting into the, you know, into the whole running thing. It was, it was the that whole, the whole run club kind of vibe thing was really starting to pick up. And I was like, all right, you know what? Listen, where's the harm in learning how to run kind of thing, you know? So I'll meet up with him, we'll do our runs in the mornings, and I'm gonna go and start training and doing uh uh the afternoon trainings, which was pretty much what I would be leading, because that's where that was my my whatever strong suit, right? And and so from there, we ended up he he ends up meeting another guy, Horace, and he he told Horace, like, hey, why don't you come around and and work with us? This is probably around like the end of 2023 or something or like mid-2023, something around there. And we all started like, you know, start training, and and it was clear that Horace was was like, you know, he was like, he really wanted to like start making a difference for himself and everything. So I was like, all right, cool. Let's all go, let's just train, let's just see where this goes and everything. It was never an intention to be to build in anything. And then another friend came, like, hey man, because Leon was posting all on his social media. I'm pretty much of a private person, I don't like whatever I'm doing, I'm just doing it just to do it, not because I'm like, oh, hey, look at what I'm doing, right? So I was just doing it, and then you know, other people were like, oh, hey, can we join? Or somebody else was like, hey, can I join? And then and then Karen, this is another friend of ours, she joined, and then for some reason, once she joined, it's like things just started going from there. We went from a group of four of us to probably six and then ten, and then it just the numbers just started like, you know, multiplying from there. And I was like, at one one day we just we just showed up and I was like, yo, where did everybody just come from? You know, it was just the wildest thing. It was like a it was just like a hangout opportunity to like, you know, everyone was just working out, we're hanging out, we're doing these things, and we're all getting, you know, staying ha active and healthy and fit together. And then yeah, it just it just from there just kept on. And then we started talking about the idea. Myself, uh Leon, Karen, and Horace World start talking about the idea of like what could we name this thing, you know? Because the initial name was actually disco pumpas because because it's supposed to be like a German twist. Uh that's what they do in in Germany, is that that's what Leon was talking about. He's like, oh no, we call it disco pumper because you get the pump in before going out. And that's pretty much what we would do, is like we'd all be pretty much we'd be training in the evenings before going out, like on Fridays or whatever the case is. So the idea was, you know, disco pumper. It was like you get that, you get that swolleness before going out, you know what I mean? And that was supposed to be the original name. And you know, I was kind of like, well, that is I don't know if that's so marketable. I was like, that's what I was, and I was like, hey, if we're trying to scale this, that may not necessarily be the most marketable thing. And so we started like throwing around names. I think he may have either thrown it into like Chat GPT or something. I don't remember how how exactly it happened. But then that's when I believe nomad abs came. And you know, yeah, well, they're like, all right, nomad abs, less home, more abs, you know, and that was that was it.

SPEAKER_00:

Nice, man.

SPEAKER_02:

So more or less.

SPEAKER_00:

One one of the patterns I see emerging in these types of communities, and it's happened for us. It happened with PDC Fitness Club, it happens with a couple of the friends I have that are running uh communities like this, is that they're really only sustainable if the person doing it is doing it for self-service uh in their own interests, meaning like you actually want to just work out and then you started inviting people. And that's the same thing our with our run club. It was like four people to start, and then now it's over 200 every week when we have our run on Sundays. And it's like it's so interesting to see because I think there's a lot of folks who go about this type of community building and they immediately think about monetization, they think about like how do I make money out of this? And they do it for a reason that there's like a means to the end rather than I'm doing this, so I'm gonna invite other people to do it with me. So what's been that dynamic for you as you know, because you guys started it for yourselves, and then as you've gone along, it seems like you're kind of in a position now to actually do some monetization, but what's that process been like moving from okay, we got four people to now it's like you know, your workouts are probably what, like 50, 60 people a lot of the times?

SPEAKER_02:

50, 60 people on average, right? Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Um what's that growth that grow that growth process? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

And when you say growth process, you mean in terms of finances and monetization type of thing? Or or what do you mean?

SPEAKER_00:

So so even yeah, like how your mindset has changed about it in how long it's been like two years, right? Basically.

SPEAKER_02:

End of this year is gonna be two years, yep.

SPEAKER_00:

So I've noticed, at least for me, as time has gone along, like our audience has started to ask for things that they want that they're willing to pay for. There's been more opportunities with brands, there's opportunities with merch, there's and then and there's there's kind of this like mindset that has to shift from the founders to be like, okay, now we have a community that, yeah, we're still doing it from the heart, but there's these opportunities on the table that our community is asking for. How has that process been for you as you've grown?

SPEAKER_02:

Interesting. I mean, honestly, right about now, I haven't really been, or we haven't really been like questioning the community so much so as far as like, hey, what are you guys looking for per se? You know, because again, I maybe it's just me, or maybe I'm being naive, I don't know, but I feel like, you know, it's one of those things where I'm like, hey, listen, if if if it's not broke, why fix it? kind of thing. And people are not really asking for the people are happy to be doing the workouts. Now I know I can't necessarily keep doing the workouts, obviously, for until the end of time, kind of thing. So it'd be good to either figure out how to, you know, have this transition. But yeah, as of right now, I and that's kind of what's actually kind of what I reached out to you because it's like I've I've thought of it and I'm not so sure exactly, but other concepts have come to mind that I feel would be beneficial for people who actually want to see progress because the workouts aren't enough, you know? Just going to these workouts and just training and everything else, yeah, you're gonna, you're gonna probably feel sore, you're gonna feel at least you're definitely gonna be burning some calories, you're gonna be staying in shape, you know, probably keep your cardiovascular up and all that stuff. But if you're trying to actually see results, if you're actually trying to change your physique, if you actually want to make that progress, these workouts are not the end all be all. They're not gonna be enough, you know? And so I'm working on something on on the other, on another, in another fashion altogether, but it's not I'm I'm not so sure that it'll be catered to the actual to the actual people in the workout, per se, you know, but there could be elements of what I'm working on that can be monetized when broken down, I guess, into elements of what it's going to be composed of that will make it possibly you know beneficial for anyone who wants to either, you know, whether support or just you know make a difference in their own personal journey of of fitness. So yeah, I mean I would I'd rather not necessarily just start talking about that full out right now, but um because I'm still about the details.

SPEAKER_00:

I got some perspective if you want it. Because I think it's it's an interesting thing. I would love, absolutely. Yes. So I I love that you said, you know, if it's not broke, don't fix it, because I think that that's um there there's something within the core offer that like people come and they're engaged and they love it, right? And like that's what you built was like a free community where they know what to expect, they get what they're getting what they want. And there's this balance between if it's not broke, don't fix it, and innovating the model and innovating the offerings around it and innovating like what is happening. And similar to you, we're in a space where it's like we're foreseeing, okay, this is a side project for all of us. We have three partners in our in our businesses as well, and all of us have regular businesses that we run during the day. This is something we're doing outside of that. And it becomes difficult to justify the amount of effort at times because the the sustainability long term and even our own finances are going into it, but we have to be able to keep it sustainable. So I think one thing that's come up for us is like we use the run club as the jumping off point and kind of the the top of the funnel, so to speak, or the the community intro where it's like every week we have a free run. It's always going to be free. You know what to expect. It's gonna be awesome. And we'll have innovations, meaning we'll do like themed runs or we'll do, we'll bring sponsors to the actual um runs in the morning that give out coffee at the beginning. We'll try out different vendors for the restaurant that we go to after, we'll get discounts from those vendors, certain things like that. And then we're like, all right, what can we bring in that doesn't disrupt the core offer but adds value? And it's like merch, which you guys have obviously done as well, and having, you know, people be able to wear something that that uh makes them feel even more a part of the community. And then beyond that, it's been like, all right, what other events? Like what other wellness events can we do? And that's where the sweat and chill was born. We now have you know, this 11 a.m. coffee party concept. The next week, I don't know when this podcast will come out. This this will already have happened by then, but next week we're doing a paddle party. So we're gonna have two to three hundred people on paddle courts for a sunset dance party while there's a paddle tournament happening. So there's kind of like different ways that we're looking to mix and match like with the community, other ways. Because what we found was like people wanted more social time. It's like obviously the run club. We go and we run, then we have a brunch after, and a lot of people like that. But like, oh, well, I want to see people outside of this. And it's how did you find out that that's what people want?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, listening to the audience and and just understanding, like talking to them a lot about what they want to see. And then also, um, I'd say even beyond that, sometimes people don't even know what they want. So it's having enough foresight and and and understanding of innovation in the wellness industry and where it's going to predict what people will want. So we're in Latin American markets, which I think is actually a huge advantage in this way. So when we brought the sweat and chill here, that was a concept that already existed in the US for some time, like in general. We have our own twist on it, we have our own version of it. The paddle party has been going on in in Europe, in the US. And so if you almost like look at the US as a year or two ahead of what's happening in some of these Latin American markets, you can kind of predict what's going to start happening here. And you could be the first one to do it in Playa Carmen, for instance. So that's something that we we got ahead of. And because our audience had all the trust, and you know, we'd been doing, you know, you could similar to you. It's like you do workouts for two years for free. People want to pay you at some point. Like they feel so indebted. I mean, even me, remember, I walked up to you, I was like, dude, I just want to I just want to give you some money because you you saved me a gym membership that month. Like I would have had to get a gym membership. So so for me, it's like I I and I understand what it takes to put put that together, where a lot of people they'll come, they'll do the workouts, but they don't think as much about like how much effort it actually takes to do it. Um those are yeah, those are some of the ways that we're thinking about it. And then I think long term, really the way that I've thought about this is that we're actually not a wellness community, we're a content company. Because every every way that we've grown organically and every way that we can offer value to potential sponsors is through content and and our communities. So it's it's not even so much that we're like anyone that comes to our Instagram page, the reason that they end up going is because they see the Instagram and they see what it's like to be there and they see themselves in the storytelling through the content. And that's why they show up. And and it's so shareable, right? People are sharing on it's a viral loop. It's like we have professional pictures taken every Sunday when we do our runs. People get excited to join the email list because they want to get the pictures every week. They want to see themselves in the pictures. So you create some of the viral loops there, and then also that becomes the value to the sponsors when they start coming. It's like you actually sell a content package to the sponsors, you don't sell them exposure because it would cost a a con you know, a company, a brand, um, especially in the US, like for a content package, especially if it was UGC content and like specialized promotional content, it would cost them a bunch of money to have something like that done. So we just say, hey, bring your stuff to our event, we'll shoot the content for you, we'll edit it, we'll package it, and you get exposure to our audience. And but but like the main offer is actually the content. It's it's not even just the event.

SPEAKER_02:

That's interesting. Okay. So then so you guys end up just pretty much just offering that as your as part of the so you're so you're are you charging the uh the companies that are that are coming and and exp okay.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, but but the way that we're framing it is like these companies are not only so a company will bring samples to an event and they'll have an offer for the audience, but what they're paying for is the content that they get. So it's the the framing of the value, that the framing of the value is like you're gonna get content of real people using your product at a really cool event that already has a massive following anyway. And we're gonna include your link in our newsletter, and we're gonna include your link in our social media, and you're gonna get a shout-out on the Luma page. You know, you just kind of can stack. I think once once we once we really took seriously that we're actually a content company and we're not a wellness community, um, the reframing has been really helpful to see what the value is because the content is really at the heart of everything. It's like it's the reason people show up, it's the reason even subconsciously sometimes they show up because they want to be in the pictures, but they they don't know that that's a mechanism happening in the background of their mind. But like it's it's truly like there's a hit of dopamine when you go into the the photo album and you're like, dude, was I in any pictures this this week? Yeah, of course. Of course.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, we've all been there.

SPEAKER_00:

So we play to that a bit, but then but then we also over-deliver, similar to you. It's like people come to that run. It's like we have a structured 3K, 5K run with pacers, with welcome volunteers, with sponsors that sometimes hand out samples, with a brunch afterwards. Uh there's facilitation throughout it, there's community throughout it, and you end up seeing the same people each week that you really enjoy seeing. So if the experience isn't there, it doesn't really matter, right? But we can also leverage, you know, human psychology and kind of the way content works nowadays to uh to work in our favor in every single facet.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah. You know, you definitely get, you know, because it's actually very interesting. I've over the like well, past couple of months and even more recently, there've been there have been people who've approached me and been like, hey, you know, like yeah, I would like to um I would like to like sh offer this to your group of people and everything else. And and I'm like, hey, listen, that sounds great and everything else, but I'm like in my head, I'm like, well, I don't I'm I'm not entirely sure how exactly I can make this beneficial for myself and the community where it's not just like, hey, there and and even the people who are coming, you know. Uh so that's not just like, hey, you know, here's this product, buy it, and that's it. Because, you know, that's and and you kind of just like put some stuff into perspective, which I think is pretty, pretty nice, is that uh showing people actually like whether it's like eating your product or just engaging in your environment or whatever the case may be, can generate that level of buzz and and awareness so that people are actually like, oh, wait, so something else, there is something here. What is that, you know, curiosity? Yeah, that may be something I I need to pick your brain on a little bit further on.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, man. Um I got another layer to that too, which is I think when when choosing the brands to work with, and I think here's here's where the shift is happening in buying behavior, and what I think uh companies in this space need to think about is like people buy now and and are starting to buy more and more through community belonging and like the feeling of being somewhere. So not only if I'm in a community and I'm being activated at a live event, there's more likelihood that I'll engage with a brand. But if that if I feel like there's a really nice alignment with this brand and the community I'm a part of, there's a sense of loyalty that just transfers. But the issue is a lot of these brands, the way that they think about it is very transactional and short term. So they may come to you and be like, hey, we just want to sell to your community. And it's like, well, that's not really how it works. It's like we the way that we've looked at it is we really want people that are already within our communities that have companies and brands that want like understand our vision, understand what we do, have been to our experiences and come to us and say, hey, we want to sponsor this because we've been and we love it. Like that's so much more effective. And I think I think a lot of these, these really big uh, you know, wellness companies, fitness companies, whatever industry you want to put them in that want exposure to this type of audience, I think what they're gonna start doing is they're gonna start either buying these types of communities themselves, they're gonna start hiring people to create and run companies like this that are in the image of their brand, uh, or they're gonna collaborate and partner with ecosystems that already exist, like a Nomad Abbs PDC Fitness Club. And I think Latin America will be a little bit behind on that. Um, but it we're already seeing some of that in the US, where like run some run clubs are being purchased, like acquired by by like big Big companies because they see that if we just purchase this run club and we fit everybody in our apparel, like boom, just like that, there's, you know, hundreds, if not thousands, of ambassadors that we've just purchased, whereas cost of acquisition for a customer would have been more anyway. So it's an interesting place to be in that we're in right now.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, no, I I it it's it's literally you're tapping into a into a network of people that you didn't necessarily have to start to build from the ground up. It's already there, the work has been done for you, and they're more dedicated to actually, you know, supporting that because like you said, they feel indebted, right, to to the fact that you're offering so much, assuming that that's how the the the assuming that the big brands are acquiring one that has already been established, you know, sort of thing. Um building it from the ground up, of course, is gonna take some time, but it seems like, yeah, that and that's you know, some people have come to me and asked me, like, hey, what can I do? I'm like, hey, look, uh if you're offering something that's somewhat like either free or whatever, that you know, people can come and actually test it because that's the only way you're gonna get their their trust is them coming to you and seeing that like there's a lot of restaurants already, for example, right? Like, so so for for a restaurant to come and be like, hey, listen, can you bring your people over and then maybe they could just like buy stuff? And it's like, well, you know, what do you have to offer them? At least let them try something, you know, whether it's a smoothie, whether it's like a dessert or like a quick platter that you're just gonna offer them and give them, and then from there, maybe they can be like, oh, well, actually, you know, this this does have some good stuff. Thank you for giving me these things. And now I feel like, oh, well, you know, you guys gave me something. I would like to give you something in return. And uh I I've at least that's what I've tried to advise on in some cases, and and a lot of cases they've they've been like, yeah, let's do it and let's let's um let's figure out how we're gonna do that. And it's happened. But yeah, if a company just comes or or restaurant or whoever just comes and is just like, hey, just you know, I just want you to sell my stuff, I think automatically even people start feeling like they're just they're getting they're getting hustled, right?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, it's just a transaction. It's just a transaction.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, exactly. You know? Um but yeah, no.

SPEAKER_00:

For you, I want to go a little bit more into your journey with with you know what have been the challenges because you you talked about you know speaking with these types of restaurants and stuff as an example of like you gotta provide value first, you gotta, you know, give an experience that builds trust, and you've been doing that for years now. Like what what have you seen as has been your you know what have you been your biggest challenges in this journey of the past two years of building this?

SPEAKER_02:

Um I think one of the biggest challenges has been has been at times showing up. I mean just because it's like you know, I didn't it it's it's something that kind of like fell on my lap and I didn't necessarily expect, you know, so she's kind of like showing up consistently and I and I can be pretty much of a of a of a private person. Like I enjoy my my anonymity, I enjoy being on my own or whatever the case is and just doing my own thing.

SPEAKER_00:

So showing up on days, the worst place for that, dude.

SPEAKER_02:

You know, but here's the thing, and it gets even and it becomes even worse when you start running like a community where it's like you know, everyone kind of like starts knowing each other, right? And and and I was like, that was one of the hardest things. However, it's always been so funny because on certain days when I'm like, oh man, I like I'm not really feeling it, for some reason or another, I don't know what it is, I don't know if there's this there's like you know, someone is is is has tapped into my energy or what it is, but somehow people always seem to come to me on certain days and just be like, thank you so much. Like, it's not even about receiving you know donations at that point. It's just you can see it in their eyes, you can feel it in their voice. They are so grateful for just being able to have this kind of community, to have this opportunity to just get out and you know, be and be active and you know, continue on their fitness journey. And I I don't know how else to put it, but there's nothing more rewarding or gratifying than that. And like they it's one of those moments where it's like you don't you've done more for me than I have for you by you just telling me that because I was in that point where I'm just like, I feel like I'm like, what am I even doing this for, you know, kind of thing. And I don't know why, again, but it just seems like on those kind of days, those are the days when people really come and just like and and express themselves to me. Or maybe it's just me paying more attention to it. But it feels more genuine than not when when I really hear people coming up to me after the workouts and like, yo, dude, man, thank you so much. That was so great. Like, you know, I I really enjoyed it. Like, yeah, I love your energy, da da da da da da da da and and all that. And I'm just there like, hey, you know, thank you. I'm I'm I'm just being me, right? And yeah, that's beautiful, you know. It's in and I think to me that's one of the that's more and that's is one of the reasons why I feel so protective over not just you know just throwing the the community to the wolves just to just make money, like like because in in essence, lives are being changed here, you know, and and could for people who didn't who didn't know where to to turn to or how to to make that first step, you know, and and I think more than anything, now this is why also why I'm starting to think about this is like I know that if if I know that fitness is not the only mannerism that is necessary for anyone to get to that dream body if that's what that people are going for, then you know, maybe it's also my duty to snar to now start including or talking or you know, kind of like putting out the feelers there for what the other factors may be that you know they can also start trying to incorporate into their to their daily lives, you know, kind of thing.

SPEAKER_00:

So yeah, yeah, I I I think there's a piece there that's also just not mutually exclusive, you know. It's it's the fact that you can monetize in a way that feels good and also protects the community and keeps it sustainable. And I think that's the the version that we've taken on as a mindset of like, um, we could monetize not at the sake of the community, but uh also to brands that are super aligned with what we're doing. Because I I would I would almost 10 times out of 10 rather take money from a big brand that wants exposure to our community rather than a community member uh for for whatever thing. Although there are things like like obviously like merch or these events that we do that we keep relatively uh you know affordable just because we know we're living in a Latin America market, we want our our split of people that come here to be heavily favored towards locals and accessible to locals as well as foreigners. So I think there's a a place there where you can find that balance and then just having that intuition that you you're you're that same thing, that same feeling of like the overprotectiveness is the same thing that will help you make the right decisions because you have the best intentions and you have your heart in it, and and it's it's the right sign to have that that's there. And then the next step is like, okay, well, if if I feel 100% true about my intentions, then who are the partners that you know could help me figure this out? And and maybe it's a certain brand in the area that you really like already, it's someone who already is within your community that has uh a place where they're offering up, like you said, you know, much more value to the community than than taking from them. And then yeah, for us that's been uh a game of learning too. But uh is I think as long as you have the best intentions, like once you've built years of trust like that and you explain why you're doing the things that you're doing, people people get it. They understand.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, that's a very good point. And you're in menaging, right? Yeah. And how how how long have you been doing the you because I know you've been doing it for some time now? How did I mean not to switch the interview over to you, but I mean I'm also curious because Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

I think these convos are super super welcome to go both ways in that in that um So for me, I got to Medellin. I've been between Playa del Carmen and Medellin for six years. Uh I spent most of the past six years in Plaid El Carmen, but then I moved full time to Medellin about a year and a half ago, so beginning of 2024. And when I got here, uh a couple months in, I joined this run club, and I really and I really loved it. And like I was starting to go every week. And at some point, I was noticing that the founder of it was still doing everything himself. And I started volunteering. I was like, hey man, let me hand out the bracelets, let me bring the music, let me do this, and let me do this. I just started taking things off his plate logistically, operationally, that he would have to think about, that he no longer had to think about. And then it became okay, let me take over the task management platform and let's add some structure to this, let's operationalize, let's bring in a volunteer team, let's start to sell merch, let's start to do all these other things. And he was able, over the course of six, eight months of me just showing up every weekend, us having conversations every week about the vision of it, it started to turn into like, all right, let's develop an operating agreement around this and have you come in as a managing partner and an owner of the business. And then we ended up having a third person come in who's she's a local, and she's really uh been super helpful in being able to open doors for us that were a bit harder for us to open just based on the fact that we're foreigners. So all of it came about really organically through me kind of volunteering in those initial days that I was going. And then from there, we built out this event series, both the sweat and chill events, which is like a morning, you know, sauna dance party with exercise and ice baths and uh all sorts of stuff. And it we just had our last one last week and it was 80 people and the tickets sold out in four minutes. So no way. Yeah, so like the amount of demand that we've built, again, it's mostly through the content. Because if you go look through look at our content and look at our uh our Instagrams, like everything we've built has been through on on the Medagene Run Club side, it's more kind of trendy meme kind of like kind of like the videos you were just posting with that that girl, right? Um, you have a couple recent videos where you've posted with that.

SPEAKER_02:

We're building that out now, yeah. Yeah, we're we're starting to actually start to create content as well. So which is kind of funny that you when you started talking about how you're like, yo, we start looking at things from the compass but content perspective, it is funny because that that is literally just the kind of conversation that myself and Madison had recently been having. And she's now she now she actually stepped up because again, it's one of those things where I was like, you know, I can only do so much, right? Uh like I was because I was doing three days. I was doing Monday, Wednesday, and Friday uh at 6 30. And it started feeling like it was taking a little bit of a of a of a task on my on my body, and just you know, it was a lot of energy, right? So I reached out to the community, I was like, hey, you know, who would like to either step up or something of that nature? And she was one of those who actually did, and I was like very grateful. So anyway, more recently we were we were just talking and she was like, hey, you know, why don't we just start creating some some content? I was like, I was like, I would love to. I was like, I actually enjoy the whole creative aspect, you know, and I just don't feel like I I don't want to do it alone either, you know. So yeah, so it was awesome to have her come to me and actually say that because I was automatically, I was like, yes, yes, let's do this. So, you know, yeah, whenever she's she has the time, I'm like, yo, let's let's let's let's brainstorm, let's come up with some ideas, let's start creating content and you know, just share, share people, share with people our personality and just pretty much what the energy of Nomad Abs is and can be, so that they can get that sense. And you know, from from there on out we'll see where things go. But more than anything, let's just have fun with it, you know. And um, that's that's where we are right now. So yeah, that's hopefully down the line.

SPEAKER_00:

I think that's the playbook, man. And and and if you like I think that's really what works right now in these social fitness groups, too, is if you look at our Instagram, the the Medagene Run Club, like the main focus of that content is like lighthearted, trendy kind of uh iPhone camera, but like silly, you know, kind of uh, you know, less tender, more running, you know, kind of stuff like that, where there's these little clips that give you a glimpse into like what the community is actually like to be there. And the undertone is that it's not that serious. Like we're here to be social, we're here to be fun, while also getting the work out, being around aligned people, things like that. And then if you look at our sweat and chill content, it's a little bit more upscale, a little bit more like professional, a little bit more like it's got an edge to it where it's like luxury kind of high-end wellness. And and I think that brand identity is so important. This is why we've been so lucky to have a founder who's so content focused, because he he really developed that that uh brand identity super early with the content, and that's why it grew. And we we're at eight almost 18,000 organic in a year with the run club. And on Instagram, that's very it's very hard to do on Instagram. And especially I think uh yeah, yeah, this like with the way that Instagram works now, it's it's it's much it's much harder. But if you can kind of tap into what that brand identity is, which it sounds like it's a very similar voice, you you know, you can even just look at what's trending and and kind of recreate certain styles of videos in your own in your own way. And uh, I thought the last one you did was was was pretty good uh because it had the music over the top, and it was like uh, you know, I heard the the head coach is jacked, uh it's you saying it, and then she's like, Oh, aren't you the head coach? You're like, Oh, thank you, me, you know. So I like that that kind of like tongue-in-cheek content with short reels and also showing the experience has been like our greatest growth lever. And and it's also what brands want to be involved in because they know that that kind of stuff is where their potential customers lie.

SPEAKER_02:

So yeah, well, thank you for reaffirming that we are on the right path because to me that's the fun part, you know, and and I enjoy the workouts and everything, but you know, I think I think more than anything, it's like after a while, you know, I think even even having the people just show up can can feel I think it can feel a little dry, you know. So now that these have shown up, you know, the community you can feel there's like another layer now to the community. People are like coming at us, they're like, oh hey, uh-huh, that was just such a great video, and this, that, and the third, and now we have a bunch of other ideas. We're actually gonna be filming a couple of hopefully this coming week and and whatnot. So, you know, like trying to bring a couple of like old trends back and all this other stuff. So, you know, it's um yeah, it's gonna to me, this is this is the kind of stuff that's exciting because you know, it's like you you have an opportunity here to really to really build and grow something. So uh sky can be the limit and um and beyond even. So yeah, I'm really excited about that. So actually thank you really for sharing that.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, man. I think it reaffirms too for you that um if it's not broke, don't fix it. Meaning the main experience that you create, which is the workout actually being super valuable to people, is still the core, right? And and it's not losing value from that to add a content layer where the brand identity is starting to develop and you're starting to get people excited about coming because they connect with with whatever they saw online and maybe they've never been before, but they see that and they're like, Oh, that's kind of funny. Like, I wonder like what it's actually like to be there. They start getting that FOMO and then they're like, Oh, it's free to go. There's no there's literally no barrier to entry. It's just like, oh, I see them all the time at that at that uh that track. I might as well join. So um I'm I'm I'm still curious for you. So you mentioned kind of stepping back a bit operationally, meaning like you had to find people in the community, be like, hey, can who can take some of these workouts, who can help with the content? You know, you're starting to get people to be more involved. Where do you see your future in in building this and like where do you want it to go?

SPEAKER_02:

Uh very good question. Ideally, the the future I see would be for it to be something like and this is what I've started trying to to develop, and and it's um uh it still has a while or a way to go, and it was to kind of like develop like workout videos using on YouTube because again, the whole concept is nomad, right? So a lot of the reasons the reason why it even came about to be called nomad is or nomad abs is because a lot of the people that were coming to the workouts didn't really live here or they came here at certain point during the year and then they'll leave and then they'll come back, leave and come back. So, you know, and some of them would be asking, like, hey, you know, still interacting with a group when they're the when they're miles away, and they're like, you know, like, hey, I I want to do this workout still. Like, is there a way I can continue to sustain that? And, you know, uh aside of creating them a workout plan, you know, the only other thing I could think of was, well, why not record some of these videos and put them on YouTube? You can watch them, you can follow along, you already know us, the community. However, you know, a there's still the first of all, there's a million and five different workout videos on YouTube. So, you know, that's already one thing people are gonna have to filter through. And that's not to say that it should be discouraging, but the at the end of the day, it's like, how would that really work, you know, in terms of of people, or excuse me, or for for people to really just choose the us over any of those other brands. And I think the only thing that would have made that so is if they have been to the workouts, right? So how manageable is that over time, who knows? Can I can I give you a suggestion?

SPEAKER_00:

I got an idea. Please, please, please, yes, yes, yes, yes. Okay, so at the beginning of this, it's using what you've already got. So you've what you already have is an active, engaged community. What you already have is 40 to 60 people in front of you every week. So my thought would be as you're doing the workout, every few exercises, you're actually um, you mean you choose a day that you're gonna do this, but it's like we're gonna have this one be a content day, and I'm gonna have someone who's volunteering to walk around with me with the camera. I'm gonna go in and go up to someone who's doing the exercise while they're doing it, get their consent first and whatever, and like explain the exercise, what it's working out, how to do it right, and the fact that they can do it anywhere in the world on a ground like this. Boom, here's why it's this, here's why it's this. It's like, and that that could even be part of the the shorts that you make is like some of them could be more like mixed in, more not serious, but it's just like this is more educational. But then you have like the reels that are kind of funny. But it it you want to do it without adding in any additional admin or burden on scheduling. It's like you've got already all these people doing the workout. So it's like you pick the workouts based on what you would want to show people how to do. And then while people are doing it, just during one of the exercises, you go over with the camera, you're like, come on, come on, let's look at how uh how Karen's doing this. So, right here, Karen's got this, got she's got her abs on. This is gonna take care of this, this, or this. You just do this for you know uh 30 seconds, 45 seconds, five sets, and you're on. Or or you do uh a snippet of one of those exercises throughout the entire workout, and then you stitch them all together. And like this was the Nomad Abs workout for today. Then you've got the video with the instruction all stitched together with different people from the community, so they start sharing it. Cause that's really what makes uh the things different is the distribution. Like if you have distribution, um, that's the main thing, right? So let's say that I get let's say that I strategically choose a couple of the people that are doing the workout, and I know that they're influencers, or I know they're people that are content creators and they have a following. And then I'm gonna, I'm gonna specifically choose them to highlight in this short workout segment to show how they're doing the workout, uh, why they're doing it correctly, what it's working out, and then I'm gonna stitch that together and I'm gonna post it in the stories, tag them, and then it goes to the YouTube or whatever it is. I mean, there's a lot of different ways you could work on the distribution, but I think for now it's like the lightest weight that you can just get something out there is the main thing to focus on. And then that gets you some some reps, like figuring out what the brand identity is and like what actually works.

SPEAKER_02:

I like that. I and I think that's pretty manageable also, you know? Yeah so yeah. Yeah, cheers.

SPEAKER_00:

Can't wait to see it.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, right. Yeah, me too. That's uh that that's actually one of those things where now I'm gonna have to go and look at my at the followers and just, you know, kind of like start nitpicking at who are the people that tend to show up that have a decent following and and go from there, right? And now obviously try to um not try to um what you call abuse that obviously too often, but um and not make them feel like they're just being being whatever. But that's a very good point, actually. Yeah, very good point.

SPEAKER_00:

You could be you could be as curated as you want. Like you could do the first few where you're just people that are your regulars, they you know that they're gonna do the exercise right, you know they're gonna look good on the camera, you know they're gonna be open to doing it. You ask them beforehand. Uh and and that's really one one big strategy for us is that you know, in some of our events, we have uh, especially the the paid events, is we have a certain budget allocated for content, regardless. And so what we do is we put some of that towards free admissions to content creators and then basically do an exchange with them to do content for us of the experience and they're sharing with their audience. And then we get we get the content too. So there's a lot of different ways to go about this once it's also monetized. But um I think that's a good yeah, a lot of good places start. Uh we're at the we're at the end of the hour here, brother. Uh I want to just get one more I want to get one more thing from you if you can. And that is uh the last question, which which maybe will be the last question for this um this podcast series, like every episode. But what's what's O'Hari's legacy in the wellness space? Like what's the movement that you want to be known for creating?

SPEAKER_02:

The movement. Uh oh man, I I mean, I at this point, I honestly I it's I feel like the movement has already been created on as far as my legacy goes with Nomad with Nomad Abs and you know being being uh someone who has offered these these classes to really inspire others to continue their fitness journey. And and and I say that because or I use that the Nomad Abs as a prime example, and because I've I've created, I I had another brand in the past, but this in particular stands out the most because of the amount of people that it has really touched. But um, but for example, there's uh you know one guy in particular, Horace, who I feel like is is the uh the best example of this, is that to me I feel like he's the poster boy because he was the one, he's the one who, whenever he goes anywhere, wherever he goes, he continues his workouts, he stays on it, you know. And uh there was even in the uh in the chats at one point I started teasing him and I called it, I started telling everyone, hey, listen, tap into your inner horus, you know, because you we all have that in us. We all have that drive in us. We just need to stop making excuses for ourselves and start going at it and making it happen. So if there's some type of legacy, I just want everyone to just really tap into themselves and really not and stop looking at the excuses that they have, all the obstacles, and just be like, hey, look, let me make it, let me make it happen. It's possible, and and just go from there, you know. Awesome, Matt.

SPEAKER_00:

Love it. And uh yeah, I what I love most about what you've been building is this idea that um no matter where you're at, you can continue your wellness and fitness journey. And it then there doesn't need to be an excuse. It can be easy, it can be accessible, and I think it's so important that people remove all those excuses and barriers to health and fitness and longevity and and just staying in in good shape. Exactly. No matter what's happened. So appreciate having you on, man. Thank you so much. Excited to come back to Playa. Thanks for having me. Yeah, excited to be back in Playa at some point in the next maybe six, eight months to see what you guys have got going on. So thanks so much.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, well, appreciate you for having, man. Thank you so much. All right, brother.