How I got my job as… the founder of this UAE-based wellness community
This week, Emirates Woman sat down with Rhea Jacobs, Founder of Rhé , a UAE-based wellness platform.
Her vision is to inspire and empower our community to make selfcare a genderless and ageless household practice while bringing a simplified, realistic and accessible approach towards wellness for all.
Welcome to the Emirates Woman weekly series ‘How I got my job as…’ where we speak to some incredible wellness, fashion and beauty entrepreneurs and businesswomen both based in the UAE and globally to find out about their career paths that led them to where they are now; what their daily routines look like; the advice they’d give to those starting out; and the hurdles they’ve had to overcome.
My intention with Rhé is to build a safe, realistic and accessible space for the people of today highlighting the importance of investing in your mental health and inner peace” says Jacobs.
With the first launch being the Rhé Of Light Journal, it’s a daily guided introspective journal designed for the busy individual of today. This comprehensive journal tackles key concerns like inner child healing, daily gratitude, goal mapping, body positivity, manifestation, relationship with money, career development and more.
To delve into her journey more, Emirates Woman sat down with this wellness entrepreneur to see how it all began.
What was your favourites subject at school?
I loved Art, My major at school was Business, Environmental management and Art. I enjoyed Art so much and was always the kid who had paint on her hands and uniform. Creativity of any kind inspired me even then.
What was your first job?
In University I majored in BA Fashion Honors my first job was then, where I got an internship with an upcoming designer. My role was illustrations and design development.
What brought you to Dubai?
We grew up seeing the city change from what it was to the impeccable feat it’s reached at today, the idea that any thing is possible is a mindset you slowly adapt by observation with time. My parents moved her when I was a baby, Dubai is my home and I owe a lot of what I am today to this country and the mindset you develop while you’re raised here.
What inspired you to enter the wellness space and launch Rhé?
It was during the pandemic, a challenging time that forced so many of us to introspect and evaluate. Apart from the dalgona coffee, banana bread bandwagon that everyone including myself got on… I was also introduced to yoga and journaling. This acted like a catalyst and made me realize how prior to this i never really prioritised my mental health and was so out of touch with my inner self.
I was also reading the book called Ikigai around that time and the concept revolved around how ones purpose is quite often something that they personally love and are passionate about, something they can do well, and is something that could bring value to peoples life. The benefits that I reaped entering this space was something that I definitely knew I wanted to share with the world. I always knew I wanted to take the entrepreneurial route and would often discuss this with my mother saying I wanted something that would be a true ray of light for people. We both had an aha moment and knew this was something.
Talk us through the concept?
Our concept and vision at Rhé is to inspire and empower our community to make self-care a genderless and ageless household practice while creating a simplified and accessible approach towards wellness for all.
What are the key elements of your role?
Being a founder of a nascent business, which we launched in February 2024, I find myself assuming multiple roles, ranging from design execution, quality control, to marketing strategies and sales, and even managing basic logistics. I am fortunate to have an exceptional team that greatly contributes to our progress and success. i find it essential as a founder to create a healthy working environments that has the right balance. However, for a business as young as ours, still in the process of establishing its foundation and reinforcing our core values, it is imperative as the founder to remain actively engaged and present.
Talk us through your daily routine.
My day begins around 6am, first thing I do is meditate and journal. It helps me set my intention for the day. This is usually for around 10 – 15 minutes. I then go downstairs hydrate, get my puppy Gucci fed walked make myself a cup of herbal tea, workout for an hour and shower. This is the one constant I have and prioritize no matter how different each day is since I not only have my role at Rhé, I also am a digital creator and model.
So my day usually begins with our home office at Rhé with my team and then shuffles between Editorial sets when I’m shooting, meetings, events or creating content for my personal social media. My day usually winds down around 8pm, its at this time when I switch off completely from social media and my phone, and begin my wind-down routine with a shower, I use this time to read a little, then journal to reevaluate the day with some herbal tea and finally of to bed round 9:30pm to 10pm.
What advice do you have for anyone looking to follow in the same footsteps?
I would say do everything with intention, it really does come through and makes a difference. Also don’t get demotivated by setbacks, every setback is a redirection.
Tell us more about the products?
Our inaugural product is our Rhé Of Light Journal, when I personally began journaling the first thing I thought about was, but what do people write in journals? Our Rhé Of Light Journal tackles this very issue, it’s a A simplified daily guided journal for anyone and everyone, whether you are someone who avidly journals or are new to the concept our journal is for you. We take you through a journey of deep introspection addressing topics like inner child healing, goal setting, developing gratitude, body positivity, relationship with money, career building and more. Every day we have an option for a guided prompt or a section to brain dump (vent what you’re feeling) and every 7 days we have our self help worksheets that helps to break monotony and yet still keep you in track.
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Nothing is impossible, any setback is only a redirection .
And what is the worst?
You can’t have dreams so big coming from where you do and looking like that.
What’s the biggest challenge you have had to overcome?
My biggest challenge had definitely been making myself believe I can, I had these goals but didn’t really know if I could achieve them. Fighting self doubt, procrastinating due to fear and not being brave enough to take the step is definitely the challenge that took the most out to me to unlearn. Of course there are daily challenges owning and running a business, but when it aligns so deeply with who you are and what you believe in you know there will always be a way to come out of it.
What’s your future for the brand?
At Rhé, our core mission is to promote mental well-being and personal growth, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to creating thoughtfully designed products that support these goals.Looking ahead, our strategy involves a multifaceted approach. We aim to broaden our product offerings to include a diverse range of tools and resources that cater to the holistic wellness needs of our community both in tangible and digital form
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