We had the good fortune of connecting with Aliyah Waggner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aliyah, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
The Chill Factor was birthed from my personal and life-changing experience with CBD. Amidst the pandemic, I searched for natural ways to cope with the stress, anxiety, and insomnia that arose while working. I wanted something that I could include in my daily routine with ease. I knew a little about CBD but never took time to fully research and understand it’s benefits and uses. I tried a few different brands and it made me realize that all CBD is not created equal. I finally found a brand that was beneficial to me so I decided one day that I wanted to share the goodness of CBD to people of the working class like me who longed for a natural way to find relief for anxiety and daily stressors. I started my research on how to start up a CBD business. With it still being sort of a taboo when it comes to legalizing and how some people just see it as cannabis and turn away without fully researching made it a little difficult to get it started. I am still working and advocating for the benefits of CBD through my business and my medical background.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I passed my board certification test 2 days ago so I am super excited to be able say that I am a Family Nurse Practitioner! I have been a registered nurse for almost 5 years now. I have experience in medical-surgical, labor and delivery, urgent care, and employee health. My nursing journey is what brought me to my CBD journey. I love that I am able to use my medical knowledge and experience to be able to explain the benefits of CBD to people, I believe that’s what sets me apart from other CBD business owners.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I am a newbie in Dallas but I am definitely taking my best to get some brunch from Kitchen + Kocktails. We would head to downtown and Deep Ellum and explore. We would get electric bikes ride along the trail. Take her to Southern Classic daiquiri shop and get some home (Louisiana) vibes!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My family and my friend circle has definitely been very supportive of my business journey. They have promoted and purchased products from me and given me honest feedback. My business partner, Xaundra has definitely been the backbone while I was in grad school! She has been holding it down especially with the social media aspect. I would also like to shoutout Raven, who has definitely been helpful with business tips and including me in all things small business related!

Website: www.chillfactorshop.com

Instagram: chillfactorshop

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutAtlanta is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.