Durana Elmi says in the country where she was born, birds now have more rights than women.
The cofounder of Cymbiotika, the San Diego–based wellness brand behind the rip-and-sip supplement packets that have turned up in gym bags and handbags across the country, left Afghanistan as an infant and was raised in a traditional Afghan household in Southern California.
While she didn’t live under those conditions for long, she still watches them from afar through videos and the philanthropic work she still does for women and children back home.
“Being an American is such a privilege when you understand how people are living in third-world countries,” she told Fortune. It’s a perspective, she says, that sits beneath every decision she makes, whether personal or business-related.
And that inspiration has propelled her company. Elmi said Cymbiotika has sold more than 200 million packets, grown sales 400% over the past three years, and stayed profitable every year since 2019. The brand bootstrapped its way to $150 million in annual revenue before raising a $25 million seed round late last year. That was its first round of outside capital, backed by a celebrity-studded roster of more than 50 investors including The Weeknd, Post Malone, the Jonas Brothers, and Shark Tank‘s Daymond John. The company has also landed on Inc.’s fastest-growing companies ranking multiple times.
Elmi and her husband, Shahab Elmi, founded Cymbiotika in 2019, after four previous companies and four exits together. The couple, married 27 years, didn’t start a wellness company to make money, though, she said. They’d both lost family members, including her father and his grandfather, who came from a generation she describes as reactive about health.
They wanted to build something their two daughters could point to as a legacy and something that was more proactive about health. Now, Elmi serves as the company’s chief creative officer and chief experiential officer.
Cymbiotika’s journey to success
The Elmis launched their business at a time when many were shuttering during the pandemic. But instead of pulling back, Elmi says, the founders reinvested their own capital, applied it to operating as an essential business, and secured favorable lease terms and available talent while competitors retreated.
Their first product was a liposomal omega supplement, a delivery method Elmi said encapsulates nutrients for higher absorption, in contrast to pills the body largely flushes out. Consumers just rip open the gel supplement packs and sip them to get the nutrients.
But the pitch for Cymbiotika wasn’t a single product: It was a lifestyle.
“Products come and go,” Elmi said. “But what sticks is when you can sell someone on a lifestyle.” The company’s rip-and-sip packets, she said, turned supplementation into a daily ritual instead of an annoying chore.
The company has sold enough packets to fill SoFi Stadium three times over, and the business has been EBITDA-positive every year since launch. Average order value, she added, tops $100, and the subscription-based model keeps customers, on average, for more than six months.
The brand also expanded beyond just online orders, launching in Target, Ulta, Sprouts, and Whole Foods. More national retailers are coming before year’s end, Elmi said.
‘The admission to success is failure’
Even with a great track record so far, Elmi didn’t mince words on how difficult it can be to build a brand of this size.
“Since 2019 we failed more than we’ve succeeded,” she said. “That’s a part of the story that no one wants to hear, because we live in a world where everything is an Instagram highlight reel.”
She also recognizes there’s still a long road ahead in building and securing her company’s success.
“Nothing great comes quick,” she said. “Be prepared to fail, because it’s part of the journey.”
That philosophy also applies to how she leads a workforce of about 140 people. She shows up to the office daily, she said—not because she has to, but because she wants to—and a “real leader” turns that “I have to” feeling into “I want to.” She’s also open about the tension of building a company with her spouse: strong personalities, occasional silent car rides, a hard rule against bringing the office home to their daughters, now 13 and 11.
At the end of the day, she still prioritizes impact over revenue.
“It’s how many women through the journey I can inspire,” she said.
