Mark Smith
Koshas is the first online portal providing curated information and resources in the alternative medicine and holistic healing field.
Our goal is to provider users and practitioners with the best resources and services in the world of alternative and holistic medicine, allowing accessibility to everyone.
Tell us about yourself?
My background is in engineering and business management. In the last 15 years, I’ve been involved with fast-growing businesses in the technology sector. And in the last 4-5 years, I went through a difficult personal situation, which made me look for ways to feel better. This involved exploring several alternative/holistic practices.
This was immensely helpful in making me stronger but the journey was not easy. It is difficult to find a credible and comprehensive view of all the different options available, which makes navigating the space daunting. So, I wanted to share my knowledge (and the knowledge of others) to some the journeys of others easier.
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
Do something that makes you feel you’re making a difference. Work becomes more powerful when you have meaningful goals. And work manifests when you combine your hard skills with your soft skills, your intuition, your intention and your persistence.
What problem does your business solve?
First, there is limited consumer knowledge on alternative medicine treatments. The need to expose new ways of healing has never been more pressing. Second, for those exposed to these treatments, there is a lack of sentiment of trust, which requires more thought leadership in the field.
Lastly, the quality of information is very poor, hence providing curated, relevant and clear information is paramount for a better experience.,
What is the inspiration behind your business?
My own personal experience, which was not the easiest one. I want to provide a better experience for people seeking alternative healing ways, which wasn’t available to me when I started my own journey.
What is your magic sauce?
The business was born out of a desire to help, instead of out a desire to profit. That makes the tone of the business fundamentally different as it puts service front and center.
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
We want to make information and resources about the space the easiest, friendliest, most accurate experience. From learning about the latest natural therapy, to finding out how you can get started with it, and what are the main aspects you need to take into account.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
In the beginning, it is not so much about decided what to do, but deciding what *not* to do. Limited resources and time force you to pick very carefully from day 1.
That was the main challenge but also showed that as the company matures and grows, you can actually start thinking bigger (and investing accordingly).
How do people get involved/buy into your vision?
If you are passionate about the alternative/holistic/natural healing space, check us out. We provide many formats of resources and we hope to connect with you if there are additional ways our content can be useful. If you are a practitioner, connect with us as we have many ways of collaborating.
