The Sacred Space Miami Makes Space For Itself Online With The Launch Of Wellness Shop Flow’s E-Commerce Site

The Sacred Space Miami, the holistic health oasis created by Karla Dascal, is expanding digitally beyond Miami by adding e-commerce to its wellness and lifestyle shop Flow.

The new online store will showcase around 75 brands, including Vintner’s Daughter, Sun Potion, Jiva-Apoha, Wildflower, Calyx, Green Gorilla, Anima Mundi, Sun Potion, Herbivore, Moon Juice, Gryph & IvyRose, Chakrubs and Agent Nateur.

“We are launching e-commerce to go nationwide and worldwide with our philosophy of healing,” says Dascal. “Flow is a really curated composition of tinctures, potions, superfoods, adaptogens and CBD. We have brands that I consider the best of the best that meet our standards, and they conduct themselves in the way we do.”

The physical antecedent to Flow’s e-commerce platform opened October last year in a roughly 600-square-foot space at the 44,000-square The Sacred Space Miami complex. At the complex, it joins the restaurant Plant Miami, educational venue Plant Culinary and upcoming studio space Container. While Dascal declined to disclose the revenues generated by Flow in its first year, she notes its sales and customers have steadily increased month-over-month.

CBD, crystal and adaptogen products have been hits at Flow. “I’m mushroom-obsessed. They’re very, very powerful for immunity and a big category for us,” says Dascal. “I’m also cannabis-obsessed. Cannabis is definitely not a trend.”

“I wanted to have the Fred Segal of wellness, where you didn’t have to go to one side of the city and the other to get what you needed. I wanted to have all the information you needed in one place.”

Dascal and the staff at The Sacred Space Miami try products before they enter Flow and make sure the companies behind the products align with their values. The experience with the products underpins the prominent educational component of Flow. Dascal says, “You are going to see a lot of these brands pop up at the big retailers and what’s missing is the education.”

On top of the customer education, Dascal differentiates Flow’s approach to merchandise by staying away from brands she believes aren’t in business for the right reasons. She queries brands being considered for Flow on their willingness to sell their businesses to conglomerates and change formulation to maximize profit.

“They won’t sell their souls – and that’s a big statement. They would rather stay small and build their brands organically. That means they’re on the same page as I am,” says Dascal. “They also have a sensitivity to ancient principles and healing systems such as traditional Chinese medicine and ayurveda. I’m very into keeping things simple and plant-based.”

Dascal’s path to a wellness-oriented existence has been highly personal. An event producer by trade, she was coping with obesity, diabetes, depression and soaring blood pressure when she decided to embrace a vegan diet. Her health problems abated, but she confronted a business standstill as the Great Recession dug in. With events on hold, she seized the opportunity to travel to Asia, South America and across the U.S. to study and discover various ideas of spirituality, eateries and mindfulness practices.

“I have a very good feeling that these are the brands of the future. In the next 30 years, they will be the L’Oréal’s of the world.”

Dascal sought to bring back what she’d learned during her travels to Miami, her hometown. She poured $10 million into refashioning a Wynwood Arts District property she’s held for 15 years into The Sacred Space Miami to proliferate those learnings. In 2016, it opened to the public with its upscale vegan and raw food restaurant.

“I wanted to have the Fred Segal of wellness, where you didn’t have to go to one side of the city and the other to get what you needed. I wanted to have all the information you needed in one place,” she says. “I don’t have a restaurant because I want to be a restauranteur. I have a restaurant because we are teaching Miami about plant-based living, and Flow is a part of that.”

Last year, Dascal purchased Paradise Farms, a biodynamic farm in Homestead, a city within Miami-Dade County, to provide ingredients for The Sacred Space Miami and likely for a private-label line. She doesn’t dismiss the possibility of more locations for The Sacred Space Miami, but e-commerce is the order of the day to spread the products it carries.

Dascal is adamant the brands at Flow have serious transformational power for people and staying power in the beauty industry. “If you take your supplements, herbs and potions, it connects the mind, body and spirit. Beauty is an inside job,” she says. “I have a very good feeling that these are the brands of the future. In the next 30 years, they will be the L’Oréal’s of the world.”