RANDALLSTOWN, Md. — The name of a Baltimore business reveals its mission: "The Purple Flip."
"Purple means royalty," Kaazim Reynolds, owner and founder of the up and coming smoothie and juice bar. "Flip means flip to make better. Flip your mindset, so the things you were doing yesterday can be something different today."
Even though Reynolds believes he can stack their menu up against anybody in Baltimore and beyond, he remembers the shop's small beginnings.
"Creating The Purple Flip, actually was an accident," Reynolds said.
Reynolds remembers trying to stay busy when during the COVID-19 shutdowns in 2020 and looking into superfood Sea Moss out of curiosity. Always being fascinated with health and wellness, he'd heard about the seaweed's health benefits.
However, early on he ran into an issue. "It was the worst thing ever to taste," he said. "So, I said I have to figure out a way to make this taste good so people can eat it and get healthy."
Over the course of six months, he figured out a combination of fruits and vegetables that mixed well with Sea Moss, giving him the flavor he was looking for..
Soon, he was making tons of it and it was time to take this growing project outside of his own kitchen. He needed a place to set up shop.
One of the first places that caught his eye was a small spot in Randallstown.
"I rode up and down Liberty road and I saw this snowball stand," he recalled. Little did he know, that little place would serve as the starting block of The Purple Flip. Reynolds discovered partnerships through Antwon Johnson and Michael Willborn and next thing you know they've turned the Sea Moss business into a fully operating health and wellness shop.
With smoothies like their top seller "Get Money" they added juices, salads, sea moss gels, herbal tonics and more.
Johnson remembers testing the products on himself before becoming a true believer in it.
"92 minerals of your body," Johnson said. You're not knowing in mentally, but your body will let you know."
After incorporating the sea moss-inspired food and drinks into his own diet he dropped a shirt size in 45 days without exercise or changing any of his other eating habits.
"I'm a living testimony," he said.
One of the reasons Reynolds and Johnson are so focused on this mission is because they've seen the need for people to pay attention and "flip their mindsets" when it comes to health and filling gaps where they see a need.
"It's nothing on Liberty Road that's healthy," Reynolds said. Johnson can't help but think about some of the health issues that are more rampant in the black community.
"As a culture, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, all that stuff our race is the number one race with these issues," Johnson said.
They never pass up on the opportunity to share information with their customers and give them a chance to "get flipped."
When you walk into one of their locations, chances are you’ll be served by someone who knows a thing or two about what it means to “get flipped.”
Now, as they work on opening their third location in Downtown Baltimore, their plans for The Purple Flip are only getting bigger.
"[The Purple Flip] can become global, take it to different states, make everybody healthy and make it a brand that everybody knows," Johnson said.
The Purple Flip has two locations. There's one on Liberty Road in Randallstown and another shop on Reisterstown Road in Owings Mills.
The newest location is finishing up construction in Downtown Baltimore. Click HERE for more information on the stores and to check out the menu.
