Vitality isn’t anti-age. It’s pro-life.

For the latest chapter of MAGPAPER Business Muse, we meet Kristýna Štengl — an entrepreneur whose approach to wellness is as much about how we live as it is about what we consume.

As co-owner of HEALIE®, she is building a business around trust, thoughtful choices and a belief that quality should never depend on hype. At first glance, HEALIE® belongs to the polished world of premium wellness. Look a little closer, however, and the story becomes less about supplements themselves and more about the way we think about our bodies, our health and how we want to live — now and in the years to come. About quality that doesn’t need to shout. About care that isn’t driven by a fear of ageing. And about having the confidence to choose a slower, more considered path when faster ones are readily available.

For Kristy, these ideas extend far beyond product development. She talks about consistency rather than perfection, trust rather than instant attention, and the importance of knowing when to say no. In business, that can mean resisting the pressure to follow every trend or launch something simply for the sake of being new. In life, it can mean allowing five quiet minutes to remain exactly that — five quiet minutes.

It is perhaps why she is drawn to worlds where what appears effortless on the surface is anything but. In professional ballet, lightness and beauty are built on years of discipline, precision and extraordinary physical work. For emergency responders, being able to rely on the body is not part of a wellness routine, but part of the job. Different realities, yet both reflect something Kristy returns to throughout our conversation: what we don’t immediately see often matters most.

“Attention can be bought relatively quickly. Trust cannot.”

Our conversation moves naturally between business and the personal. We talk about building something with longevity in mind, why “natural” doesn’t automatically mean better, the discipline of saying no and the pressure surrounding modern wellness. But also about motherhood, growing older, simple daily rituals and those few minutes outside her son’s school when, instead of reaching for her phone, she chooses to simply sit with herself.

Because perhaps the most interesting thing about Kristy’s approach — to business and to life — is that it isn’t about doing more. It is about becoming more intentional about what deserves our time, our trust and our energy.

1 What personally led you to create HEALIE®? Was there a particular moment when you realised you couldn’t find what you genuinely wanted to use long-term?

It began with a much deeper interest in the role nutrition can play in our health, vitality and overall quality of life. As a family, we started exploring the subject in real depth and gradually realised just how wide the gap can be between what is commonly available and what we ourselves would expect from a truly high-quality product. That was when we decided to join forces. Each of us brought a different perspective and set of experiences, and together we began developing products according to our own standards — focusing on high-quality ingredients, meaningful dosages and formulations that aren’t simply built around whatever happens to sound good at the time. That is how HEALIE® gradually came to life: from the belief that taking care of your health matters long before you truly need to.

2 When you founded HEALIE®, what did you know you wanted to do differently? And what did you know you never wanted the brand to become?

From the beginning, we knew we didn’t want to take the easiest route to creating a product — or the fastest route to reaching a customer. We didn’t want to build the brand around huge discounts, chase the quickest possible sale or have its value depend on who happened to be promoting it. We wanted HEALIE® to have value of its own. Above all, we didn’t want to compromise on the things that aren’t immediately visible, because ultimately, it is the origin of an ingredient, its quantity, form and processing that determine what a product really is.

3 You say, “Vitality isn’t anti-age. It’s pro-life.” What does that philosophy mean to you personally?

It is probably the most accurate expression of how I think about taking care of myself. I have never connected with the idea that we should be fighting age. Ageing isn’t a flaw that needs to be fixed. What interests me far more is how we want to feel in our bodies — and everything we still want to experience in them. I want to have energy, move well, feel comfortable in my own skin and have the desire to live fully. In my thirties, my fifties and my seventies. That is what “pro-life” means to me. Not against age, but for life.

4 “Premium” has become one of the most overused words in wellness. What does a product actually have to meet before it can carry the HEALIE® name?

Today, practically anyone can put the word “premium” on a package. So for us, what matters isn’t what we say about a product, but what is actually inside it. We look at the origin and purity of ingredients, their form, processing, dosage, certifications and the way individual substances work together. Then there are decisions a customer may never even notice. We could use a cheaper ingredient or reduce the amount of an active substance and, from the front of the packaging, the product might look almost identical. For me, that is where real quality begins: in making the right decisions even when the customer may never see them.

5 HEALIE® is built around bringing nature and science together. Why, in your view, is “natural” alone not enough?

Because “natural” doesn’t automatically mean high-quality or effective. You can have two ingredients that appear almost identical, yet have completely different origins, purity levels, processing methods or bioavailability. Dosage matters just as much. A wonderful ingredient in a symbolic amount may look impressive on a label, but that can be where its relevance ends. Nature gives us extraordinary possibilities. Science helps us understand how to use them in the best possible way. That intersection is exactly where I see HEALIE®.

6 If you had to choose one product that best represents the HEALIE® philosophy, which would it be?

Definitely our bioactive marine collagen. It shows exactly how we think about product development. We didn’t want to create just another collagen. At its core are 5,000 mg of bioactive marine collagen peptides, types I, II and III, including clinically tested Naticol®. We also added hydrolysed keratin, hyaluronic acid, vitamin C and other active ingredients — each with a clear purpose. That is probably the most characteristically HEALIE® approach: nothing is added simply because it looks good on a label. It has to make sense as a whole.

7 In a culture built around instant visibility, why was it more important for you to build genuine experience and trust first?

Because attention can be bought relatively quickly. Trust cannot. From the beginning, it mattered more to us that someone genuinely used our products over time than that they posed with one once. That is why we value partnerships that grow from real experience. I don’t want to build a brand whose perceived quality depends on who happens to be holding it. A product has to stand on its own. The trust of the people who use it consistently can confirm its value — but it cannot create that value.

8 Professional ballet has become one of the defining worlds around HEALIE®. What is it about that contrast between apparent effortlessness and extraordinary discipline that resonates with you?

Perhaps it is exactly that contrast. On stage, you see lightness and elegance. Behind it are years of extraordinary work, discipline, precision and physical strength. The hardest things eventually look effortless. I see HEALIE® in a similar way. You see a beautiful, simple product, but behind it are months of development, carefully selected ingredients and countless details the customer may never know about. Perhaps that is why professional ballet and HEALIE® feel so naturally connected. In both worlds, there is far more beneath the surface than you see at first glance.

“On stage, you see lightness and elegance. Behind it are years of extraordinary work, discipline, precision and physical strength.”

9 Professional dancers and emergency responders may seem like two completely different worlds. What do they have in common from the HEALIE® perspective?

At first glance, they could hardly seem more different. But they share one fundamental thing: they need to be able to rely on their bodies. For a professional dancer or an emergency responder, a functioning body isn’t a wellness trend. It is a tool of their profession. That is why their trust means so much to us. It comes from people who place extraordinary demands on their bodies and know exactly what they need from them.

10 Has wellness paradoxically become yet another area in which we feel expected to be perfect?

I think, to some extent, yes. We’re supposed to sleep perfectly, exercise, eat correctly, meditate, take our supplements, walk ten thousand steps — and ideally remain completely relaxed while doing all of it. That in itself can become quite stressful. I’m much more interested in consistency than perfection. Self-care has to be something you can actually live with. It shouldn’t create another feeling that you are falling behind or failing to do enough. That is how I see HEALIE® too: as a small daily ritual that naturally becomes part of your life, not another obligation to tick off your list at the end of the day.

11 When you step away from your role at HEALIE®, what does taking care of yourself look like in real life?

The older I get, the less interested I am in complicated routines. I try to eat well, move regularly, spend time outside and protect my sleep. I use our products consistently too — they were created around exactly what I wanted to take long-term myself. But time with my family is just as important. I think we sometimes make self-care far too sophisticated, when it can be as simple as a walk, a good meal or knowing when to stop for a moment. Sometimes I’m waiting outside school for my son and I know I have five minutes before the next rush begins. I don’t reach for my phone. I don’t scroll. I just stop, notice my breathing and spend those few minutes with myself. Perhaps that has become one of the simplest forms of self-care for me: consciously choosing my own company from time to time.

12 How important is design to you — and the way a brand makes someone feel?

Very. And I don’t see that as superficial at all. When you use something every day, the way it makes you feel matters. I never wanted to create products people instinctively hide away in a cupboard. I love things that are functional and beautiful, and I don’t think one has to come at the expense of the other. That is why HEALIE® feels clean, calm and timeless. We don’t want to reinvent ourselves every season. We want someone to recognise HEALIE® years from now.

13 How do you know when a new product has truly earned its place in the HEALIE® portfolio?

We have to know why it needs to exist. We don’t want to make a new product simply because a particular ingredient is suddenly popular or because we need something new for a campaign. If we can’t create something we genuinely stand behind, we would rather not create it at all. I think the ability to say no is incredibly important for a brand. Every new product says something about who you are. I would rather HEALIE® had fewer products that we truly believe in than an enormous portfolio in which the original reason the brand exists becomes lost.

14 What would you like someone to feel when they first discover HEALIE® — and what would you hope they understand after living with the brand for several months?

At first, I want them to feel that we cared — about the product, the details, the way it looks and the way we communicate it. But a first impression isn’t enough. After several months, I would like them to stop seeing HEALIE® simply as a beautiful brand and begin seeing it as something they naturally trust and want to return to. Because beautiful packaging may capture your attention once. A good product has to convince you again.

15 When you look ahead, where would you like to take HEALIE® — and what would you like the brand to stand for in the long term?

More than anything, I want HEALIE® to grow without losing the reason it was created in the first place. Of course, we want to expand, develop new products and keep moving forward. But size alone isn’t how I measure success. I want people to associate HEALIE® with trust, consistent quality, beauty with purpose, and the meeting of nature and science. And perhaps something else too: a sense of calm around taking care of yourself. No fear around ageing. No pursuit of perfection. No endless stream of miraculous new solutions. If, ten years from now, HEALIE® is a brand people return to because they know what to expect from it, that would mean a great deal to me. Vitality isn’t anti-age. It’s pro-life.