Founded in 2018, London’s The Drug Store set out to revolutionise the natural remedy shopping experience. We caught up with co-founder Johan Obel to reflect on the journey so far and the state of wellness in 2020.
What does wellness mean to you?
At Thedrug.store we have a very specific way of looking at wellness. For us, wellness is the dynamic journey towards wellbeing. Throughout life there are various obstacles that may threaten our wellbeing, whether that’s increased stress levels, an unbalanced microbiome or something different.
Wellness is the active choice we make in order to overcome those obstacles and get back into that state of wellbeing.
Who, or what, inspired you to found The Drug Store?
Thedrug.store was born out of the desire to establish a natural remedy retailer founded in expert curation and customer service. We didn’t think that there were any retailers that could offer the necessary customer support without becoming a traditional pharmacy. We see ourselves as the place for people to go when they need that extra support to overcome the occasional wellness obstacles.
“We see ourselves as the place for people to go when they need that extra support to overcome the occasional wellness obstacles.”
What are the highlights of your weekly wellness regime?
For me personally, exercise is incredibly important for my overall wellbeing. As we continuously say at Thedrug.store, you have to look at wellness holistically and for me exercise plays a key role. Besides that, I am currently on a 12-week Symprove program, which helps keep my microbiome and body in balance.
Set the tone for a restful night’s sleep with our Urban x The Drug Store Night Time Bundle >
Have you found it difficult to stay healthy during lockdown?
In terms of physical health I haven’t necessarily found it harder during lockdown, but like many others it was harder to maintain mental wellbeing. We are social animals and without our daily dose of social interactions it significantly affects our health.
What’s your number one piece of advice to help someone stay healthy?
In my mind staying healthy all begins with mental wellbeing. If you are not feeling great mentally, your overall wellness can easily start to spiral downwards. My number one piece of advice is to figure out how to optimise your mental wellbeing through good sleep, lower stress and a happy gut. This will create a strong and solid base for overall wellness.
What common myths about health do you wish you could dispel forever?
I think the most common mistake people make is not to look at health obstacles holistically. We have seen people get tremendous benefit from the products we sell, but of course they are not wonder cures. As with all supplements, remedies and even medicine, their efficacy largely depend on how you generally live your life. If you have a very unhealthy diet and lifestyle, you will most likely not see the same benefits from supplements.
