Danielle Dietz-LiVolsi is the President/Founder of the JagRMa LLC, the parent company of the NuttZo brand. NuttZo is an organic omega nut and seed butter.
Danielle describes herself as a lifelong nut butter addict- she remembers coming home after school and eating Jiffy out of the jar with her sister until she got a stomachache.
Danielle began her career working in advertising in New York City, and then transitioned to San Diego where she moved into radio sales. She was at the top of her game, experiencing great success with her advertising career, when she had what she calls a “positive mid life crisis.”
Danielle knew she wanted to do something different, and she wanted to help create positive change in the world. “I wanted to be in charge of my own destiny and I wanted to give back,” she said. She had always had a passion for nutrition and health, and she knew, in her heart of hearts, that was what she wanted to do.
Around this same time she adopted her first son Greg, who was vitamin-deficient. Danielle began whipping up healthy, tasty meals in her kitchen for Greg, and later on, her second adopted son Matthew. One of the creations she made was NuttZo nut and seed butter.
Danielle began working on NuttZo at night, while still at her advertising job. After six months of doing both, she took the plunge and quit her job in 2008. Although she hadn’t sold NuttZo in stores yet, she decided to go for it and devote herself to getting NuttZo off the ground. Six months later she had NuttZo in stores on the West Coast.
Danielle also founded Project Left Behind, a non-profit that focuses on providing support to orphans around the world by providing items like blankets, clothing, shelter, medicine. Project Left Behind also builds and supports orphanages. Danielle and her husband have visited orphanages in Thailand, Guatemala and Nepal to offer their assistance and time, assess the needs of the orphanage and identify areas Project Left Behind could help with in the future.
Danielle believes that giving back and paying it forward define success, and hopes to continue to expand Project Left Behind to help more and more orphans around the world. You can learn more about Project Left Behind here: www.projectleftbehind.org
NuttZo’s success continues to grow as well. There are now peanut-free and dark chocolate versions available and NuttZo is being sold in stores around the country.
Danielle’s advice for future entrepreneurs? “Just do it! You’ve got to think, what’s the worst possible thing that could happen? And then you’ve got to just do it- be a calculated risk taker.”
Learn more about Danielle and NuttZo here: www.nuttzo.com