Company: Reserveage Organics, Gainesville, FL
Company Description: Reserveage Organics was founded by CEO Naomi Whittel with the goal of providing the purest Resveratrol to consumers. Reserveage supplements are the only in the industry made with organic ingredients. Reserveage grew more than 300% in the first six months, has been featured over 50 times in the media since August 2009 and has won several industry awards for outstanding products.
Nomination Category: Individual Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Female Executive of the Year – Consumer Products –11 to 2,500 Employees

Nomination Title: Naomi Whittel, CEO

Describe for the judges the activities and accomplishments of the nominated executive since the beginning of July last year (up to 500 words):

Naomi Whittel is CEO and Founder of Reserveage™ Organics, a natural supplements company that started with four Resveratrol products and achieved profitability after just three months of operation. Launched March 2009 in Gainesville, Florida, the company has since created three sister companies— ResVitale™, Re-Body™ and Fembody™, a sub-brand called CocoaWell®, and 145 science-based products.

Re-Body features three clinically researched supplements that can help reduce belly fat and curb appetite—SafSlim™, Hunger Chews™ and Hunger Caps™. Both Re-Body weight loss nutrition products and Fembody advanced nutritional formulas for women have been featured on popular daytime TV shows and QVC and are endorsed by internationally recognized television personalities: Montel Williams for Re-Body and Paula Abdul for Fembody.

In its launch year alone, Reserveage earned a 36 percent market share. Sales grew more than 870 percent over the first 20 months, and the staff has grown from four to 80. The company has won 20 industry awards for product excellence.

Whittel started the company with a mission to build a sustainability-focused model. She founded it with a commitment to eco-farming practices and sourcing organic, Fair Trade-certified ingredients whenever possible. Reserveage products are bottled in recycled amber glass and packaged in recycled cartons with vegetable-based inks.

The company recently entered into a landmark business agreement with the indigenous Kuna of Panama, whose sacred practice of drinking cocoa daily—with documented health benefits—inspired its CocoaWell line featuring whole-food organic cocoa. This marked the first time the Kuna ruling chiefs allowed a company to use images of the Kuna to promote a product, spread awareness of the Kuna as a healthy culture, and work together for their mutual benefit.

Reserveage strives to be a democratic role model in the industry as well as the global community. The company earned a place on the 6th Annual WorldBlu List of Most Democratic Workplaces™ 2012.

The Reserveage philosophy is that every employee positively impacts the company and contributes a unique voice and strengths to the company’s mission and vision. Whittel has sought to create an enriching workplace that provides stimulating dialogue, learning and opportunities for growth.

One of her initiatives is a comprehensive, multifaceted employee wellness initiative to build a workplace that:

•encourages healthy eating habits;
•promotes an active lifestyle;
•is tobacco free;
•supports the emotional and mental well-being of our staff;
•offers a worksite wellness program that is a key motivator in recruiting and retaining a highly qualified workforce.

In the company’s local community of Gainesville, Fla., Reserveage is involved in numerous charitable and community initiatives. Employees are encouraged to volunteer one- to two-hour shifts during work hours with the Bread of the Mighty Food Bank and with the Food for Kids Backpack Program sponsored by a local elementary school.

As one of a few female CEOs in the natural products industry, Whittel is dedicated to helping women grow through management and leadership positions. She created DAWN—Developing and Advancing Women in Naturals—to double female leadership in the natural products industry over the next three years.

Provide a brief biography of the nominated executive (up to 100 words):

CEO and founder Naomi Whittel, winner of a 2012 Enterprising Women in Business award, is one of a few female executives in the natural products industry. The vision she brings to the industry was inspired by her heritage. She and her family members ate only organic whole foods, consulted homeopathic practitioners, went without immunizations, and were rarely sick. Her healthy upbringing strongly reinforced her belief in the benefits of natural and organic nutrition and supplementation. Her fascination with the healthiest cultures in the world has inspired products that deliver life-changing benefits.