October 15, 2021 • 16 mins
If you thought Oxygen Plus’s 18th birthday interview with our Founder, Christine Warren, was a hit, you’re gonna love this episode’s bonus segment. A former psychotherapist, Christine talks about her experience as a female entrepreneur in the recreational oxygen industry, and why she thinks people are struggling in this quasi-post-COVID world we’re all living in. And, to the delight of our rebellious side, we get our very first swear word on our podcast (so that’s your warning for explicit content!) in this special bonus segment of Episode 5 of ‘We’re Not Blowing Hot Air.’
We hope you enjoy our full, and this bonus, interview with Oxygen Plus Founder, Christine Warren. Be sure to subscribe to 'We're Not Blowing Hot Air,' so you never miss an episode.
Catch Oxygen Plus at @oxygenplus on TikTok and Instagram
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Lauren (00:00):
If you thought Oxygen Plus's 18th birthday interview
with our founder, ChristineWarren, was a hit, you're going
to love this episode's bonussegment.
A former psychotherapist,Christine talks about her
experience as a femaleentrepreneur in the recreational
oxygen industry and why shethinks people are struggling in
this quasi post-COVID worldwe're all living in.
(00:21):
And to the delight of ourrebellious side, we get our very
first swear word on our podcast(so that's your warning for
explicit content) in thisspecial bonus segment of episode
five of'We're Not Blowing HotAir.'
Christine Warren (00:41):
I had talked about some challenges earlier,
and what comes to my mind is theeconomic downfall in'08,'09.
Oxygen Plus moved through itquite well.
And then it plummeted.
I think it was a number ofreasons.
(01:02):
And financially we werestruggling a lot.
And of course, businesses owemoney.
And I remember going to a boardmeeting and saying, I'm closing
the business or no, I didn'tsay, I'm not sure exactly what,
(01:24):
but anyway, I was making it veryclear it was changing and we
would not be proceeding as wehad.
So that was dramatic.
You can imagine the response ofpeople around that board meeting
had- around that board meetingtable.
(Lauren (01:46):
So it was 2008.
The economy was) I think it was2009.
It was after we moved throughthat, but then we couldn't
sustain ourselves.
Lauren (01:57):
Was it related to decisions you made as a company
or was it related to the impactin the market?
Christine Warren (02:02):
I think part of it was the market.
Part of that was we had been,the team had been working on it
for a while and weren't seeingthe successes we had hoped.
Some people had made lifestylechanges, like moving, which made
it harder for the continuity ofthe business to be successful.
(02:24):
And so I decided we're stoppingand we can't afford the
financial output.
So I was then the only person inthe company besides a half-time
(02:49):
tech person and my son,unfortunately for him, but
fortunately for me, he had beenlaid off and came on to help.
So there we were.
And, and then I had a warehousegal, who was a hard worker.
So we had had this placerent-free and all of a sudden, I
(03:18):
didn't have that anymore becausethe fellow who owned that
building suffered terriblyfinancially and one of his
cohorts wanted to buy thebusiness, but it was a bad deal.
So I decided time to get out ofthat building.
So I moved our company toRogers, Minnesota, which is
(03:39):
probably 40 to 50 miles awayfrom the initial headquarters.
Set up shop.
And that lasted, remember,there's just a few of us now,
and that lasted about threeweeks.
I go,"O-M-G."(Lauren (03:54):
What happened?) The communication,
getting the packages out on atimely manner, there were a
number of things.
What we thought would work didnot.
So here I am again, within fiveweeks, looking for another
space.
Found a trooper that knew newreal estate around, Hopkins,
(04:18):
Minnesota, Edina, Minnesota, andwe looked and looked and looked
and we found a spot and made ahome.
Lauren (04:26):
Like an actual like state trooper?
Christine Warren (04:27):
No, he was a trooper as a person.
I mean, like he was a trooperthat, I mean, he, said,"I think
I can help you." And he put alot of hours in and very
grateful to him because we're,we're going, oh my goodness.
So then I'm really looking atthe company and saying, well,
maybe I should claim bankruptcy.
Lauren (04:49):
And at this time, just to give it a little more color
to it (04:50):
You had sales coming in.
You had companies, major either,tell me what it was...you don't
have to name the retailer; it'sprobably good if you
didn't...but you had bigretailers in C-store, in spa, in
hotels...you had some majorcustomers.
Christine Warren (05:10):
Right.
We did.
Yes, we had all that.
But we had all the, we also hada lot of debt with our can
company.
And because of the way thebusiness wasn't held and some of
the financial struggles that wehad prior.
So I wouldn't saying, well,maybe it would be best to file
(05:32):
bankruptcy.
So I went and met with abusiness bankruptcy attorney and
he told me it was gonna cost$26,000.
I go,"Oh, I might as well justkeeping the business and make it
work.
Are you kidding me?
I go really?" I mean,(Scott:Ihave to pay money to go
bankrupt.) Yeah.
That kind of bothered me.
And so I negotiated with all ourvendors who were great and
(05:57):
worked it all out.
And at that point really becamethe lead person before I handed
it over to all these people whowere already established in
their careers in this arena.
And I learned a lot fromwatching them, what worked, what
didn't work,
Scott (06:17):
The things build, build back up in that way.
So from, you're almost ready tofile bankruptcy and shut the
doors but then you...
Christine Warren (06:25):
We built up slowly.
Yeah.
Yep.
We very slowly, I mean, we...
Lauren (06:31):
Is that different than how you first launched it in
2003?
Christine Warren (06:34):
Oh yes because we had a lot of, we had a lot
more capital than that initial$750.
So we had capital to make itwork and now we didn't have
capital.
And I just have myself and thetech person and my loyal young
girl in the warehouse and shehad to drive like 35 miles to
work every day.
(06:56):
So, we're all doing everything.
And decided to start again.
Scott (07:04):
At this point, do you still have like a lot of the big
accounts?
Christine Warren (07:09):
We didn't, I mean, we had more niche markets,
however, we had the possibility.
But we really needed the people.
We didn't even have asalesperson.
We had a tech, part-time.
My son, who would do all theaccounting cause he's a finance
dude.
And me, who said,"Okay, how canI start building the team?" And
(07:37):
I got a great engineer to startwith.
Cause I, the whole, it has beenvery important to me how this
product, all of our products,are manufactured.
Lauren (07:51):
Right.
From a quality, from offering, alot of value.
Christine Warren (07:54):
Right.
I didn't...that was the mostimportant thing to me.
So I got a great engineer andjust slowly built up.
Lauren (08:05):
Scott and I were wondering what advice you have
to people during this veryvitriolic, and I have personally
experienced in my last weekendtrip to Chicago and on the
airplane down to Florida today,really this kind of unkindness
in our world.
(08:26):
What's that about?
And how does that relate to whatyou do every day as a leading a
wellness company?
I mean, how does that impactyou?
What should we be doing atOxygen Plus to help do our part
and turn that around?
Christine Warren (08:40):
Well, I think there's a prolonged lack of
answer for, or like, where isthis world going?
So when people live in that.
And that brings them down.
(09:02):
And, they get fearful.
And many people in our world noware afraid because they don't
have the answers- and they'reliving without the answers over
(09:24):
time.
Scott (09:25):
Are there any challenges, or were there any hurdles that
you had to overcome being like afemale entrepreneur and business
owner- and trying to even carveout this brand new category?
I mean, what challenges did youface and, and how'd you overcome
it?
Christine Warren (09:44):
Well, I would say there was more of a
challenge in my own family,because we had a four-generation
family business, the GunthropWarren Printing Company-
downtown Chicago, 123 NorthWacker Drive.
Scott + Lauren (10:00):
Alright.
That's right on the river! Bigtime.
Alright!(laughter).
Christine Warren (10:02):
And I asked my grandfather when I graduated, if
I could come into the business.
And he was quiet about it.
And I was his favorite.
And my father didn't want me to.
He had two sons.
So they, so in that business, itwas set up that the dividends
(10:28):
would go to the women of youwere married to one of the
principals, male.
And the stock went to the men.
So I really didn't get anythingfrom that business.
And I thought I could give a lotand offer a lot.
And I remember having a therapysession with my father talking
(10:51):
about it.
I still have the tape somewhere.
So that disappointment.
Scott (10:57):
And then because you were the daughter.
You weren't the son.
Christine Warren (11:01):
Well, I'm not sure why.
probably.
It's, it's the old, it's apaternalistic way- old guard,
established wealth- way of doingbusiness.
So as a therapist, I- in my workwith families- I empowered men
(11:21):
and women.
And in my work in businesses, Idid the same.
So for me, I had already figuredit out.
So there might've been someproblems with other people that
I was a woman.
But there certainly wasn't aproblem for me that I was one
(laughter).
Scott (11:40):
Good for you.
Yeah.
Lauren (11:42):
And you know, you knew how to handle those individuals
who had a problem that maybe youare a woman, correct?
Christine Warren (11:48):
I did.
I knew how to join people andhow to empower people and how to
deal with power.
Lauren (11:57):
That's- not a lot of people do.
I know that's something I had tolearn late in life.
Christine Warren (12:03):
Well, I wouldn't say it's late in life
for you.
But we're always learning andgetting better at it, I would
say
Lauren (12:10):
If you- if your grandchildren, male or female
were to ask to be a part of acompany you were in charge of- a
la Oxygen Plus or somethingelse, what would you say to
them?
Christine Warren (12:28):
I would say, great.
I'd love that.
Go work somewhere else for fiveyears and come back.
If you're still interested,Develop competencies elsewhere,
and a sense of self in theworkplace
Lauren (12:42):
And why?
I know it's an obvious questionmaybe, but...
Christine Warren (12:48):
They have to know how they stand in the world
because it's too easy to becomeunder the umbrella.
And I went freethinkers andpeople to speak up and not be
quiet because it's family or notspeak out too much because it's
family.
Lauren (13:04):
Interesting.
So I always thought it had to dowith the fact you wanted the
competencies and the skills tobe there, but you're saying it
was for the own interpersonaldevelopment.
Christine Warren (13:16):
Oh, if they don't have the company's
competencies.
Forget it.
That's just a, yeah.
Lauren (13:22):
But it's not about the competencies.
It's also about having your ownself individuation or your own,
like, okay.
Christine Warren (13:30):
Yup.
Scott (13:31):
I think that's really cool.
I mean, you've, we've, you know,you always hear stories of how
some people start businesses andthey want to hand it off to
their kids and that's kind oftheir dream(Christine: That's
their nightmare).
Yeah.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, I, I think that's reallycool that you're looking at it
as go out, be an individual,figure out who you are, develop
(13:54):
yourself if you're stillinterested and you're qualified
come back and let's talk.
(Christine (14:00):
Right).
Yeah.
That's cool.
I like that.
Lauren (14:03):
You've been able to interrupt the tendency of
generations of family businesseswrecking it.
Don't they usually fail in thethird or fourth generation
(Christine (14:15):
Third, usually) Third.
Okay.
How have you done that?
And what, what is the insight inthere that we can apply to our
everyday lives- as just peoplegoing around.
Christine Warren (14:27):
That's a heavy question.
That's I think that would beanother podcast question.
Scott + Lauren (14:33):
Okay.
Well, we'll have you back.
Episode two, part two.
Christine Warren (14:38):
That's another...it's an
intergenerational dynamic thatplays itself out in the business
dynamic, and that's...there aresome great people to talk about
that.
(Lauren (14:49):
And you're one of them.) I'm one them, I can
recommend some others as well.
Lauren (14:56):
All right.
Great.
Christine Warren (14:59):
So I just want to say, it's been interesting
walking down memory lane on thebirthday...on the 18th birthday
of Oxygen Plus.
I also experienced it asintimate because having your own
business and developing it andthe people, it's personal.
(15:24):
So we joined together personallytoday in this podcast.
So thanks for giving me thatopportunity and joining me.
Scott (15:34):
Of course.
Well, thanks for talking with usand, and giving us the history
and all the insight intoeverything, the category and the
company and all of that.
It's been a lot of fun.
Christine Warren (15:45):
Great.
Scott + Lauren + Christine (15:46):
You rock, Christine.
And you made it through withoutswearing, which is something I
was surprised by as well.
Yeah, good job.
You can totally swear.
Even though we can..
(Christine (15:53):
So what the fucking podcast!) There it is.
Thanks for listening.
We hope you enjoyed ourinterview with Oxygen Plus
Founder, Christine Warren.
And be sure to subscribe to'We're Not Blowing Hot Air,' so
you never miss an episode.
(16:13):
See you next time.
If you thought Oxygen Plus's 18th birthday interview
with our founder, ChristineWarren, was a hit, you're going
to love this episode's bonussegment.
A former psychotherapist,Christine talks about her
experience as a femaleentrepreneur in the recreational
oxygen industry and why shethinks people are struggling in
this quasi post-COVID worldwe're all living in.
(00:21):
And to the delight of ourrebellious side, we get our very
first swear word on our podcast(so that's your warning for
explicit content) in thisspecial bonus segment of episode
five of'We're Not Blowing HotAir.'
Christine Warren (00:41):
I had talked about some challenges earlier,
and what comes to my mind is theeconomic downfall in'08,'09.
Oxygen Plus moved through itquite well.
And then it plummeted.
I think it was a number ofreasons.
(01:02):
And financially we werestruggling a lot.
And of course, businesses owemoney.
And I remember going to a boardmeeting and saying, I'm closing
the business or no, I didn'tsay, I'm not sure exactly what,
(01:24):
but anyway, I was making it veryclear it was changing and we
would not be proceeding as wehad.
So that was dramatic.
You can imagine the response ofpeople around that board meeting
had- around that board meetingtable.
(Lauren (01:46):
So it was 2008.
The economy was) I think it was2009.
It was after we moved throughthat, but then we couldn't
sustain ourselves.
Lauren (01:57):
Was it related to decisions you made as a company
or was it related to the impactin the market?
Christine Warren (02:02):
I think part of it was the market.
Part of that was we had been,the team had been working on it
for a while and weren't seeingthe successes we had hoped.
Some people had made lifestylechanges, like moving, which made
it harder for the continuity ofthe business to be successful.
(02:24):
And so I decided we're stoppingand we can't afford the
financial output.
So I was then the only person inthe company besides a half-time
(02:49):
tech person and my son,unfortunately for him, but
fortunately for me, he had beenlaid off and came on to help.
So there we were.
And, and then I had a warehousegal, who was a hard worker.
So we had had this placerent-free and all of a sudden, I
(03:18):
didn't have that anymore becausethe fellow who owned that
building suffered terriblyfinancially and one of his
cohorts wanted to buy thebusiness, but it was a bad deal.
So I decided time to get out ofthat building.
So I moved our company toRogers, Minnesota, which is
(03:39):
probably 40 to 50 miles awayfrom the initial headquarters.
Set up shop.
And that lasted, remember,there's just a few of us now,
and that lasted about threeweeks.
I go,"O-M-G."(Lauren (03:54):
What happened?) The communication,
getting the packages out on atimely manner, there were a
number of things.
What we thought would work didnot.
So here I am again, within fiveweeks, looking for another
space.
Found a trooper that knew newreal estate around, Hopkins,
(04:18):
Minnesota, Edina, Minnesota, andwe looked and looked and looked
and we found a spot and made ahome.
Lauren (04:26):
Like an actual like state trooper?
Christine Warren (04:27):
No, he was a trooper as a person.
I mean, like he was a trooperthat, I mean, he, said,"I think
I can help you." And he put alot of hours in and very
grateful to him because we're,we're going, oh my goodness.
So then I'm really looking atthe company and saying, well,
maybe I should claim bankruptcy.
Lauren (04:49):
And at this time, just to give it a little more color
to it (04:50):
You had sales coming in.
You had companies, major either,tell me what it was...you don't
have to name the retailer; it'sprobably good if you
didn't...but you had bigretailers in C-store, in spa, in
hotels...you had some majorcustomers.
Christine Warren (05:10):
Right.
We did.
Yes, we had all that.
But we had all the, we also hada lot of debt with our can
company.
And because of the way thebusiness wasn't held and some of
the financial struggles that wehad prior.
So I wouldn't saying, well,maybe it would be best to file
(05:32):
bankruptcy.
So I went and met with abusiness bankruptcy attorney and
he told me it was gonna cost$26,000.
I go,"Oh, I might as well justkeeping the business and make it
work.
Are you kidding me?
I go really?" I mean,(Scott:Ihave to pay money to go
bankrupt.) Yeah.
That kind of bothered me.
And so I negotiated with all ourvendors who were great and
(05:57):
worked it all out.
And at that point really becamethe lead person before I handed
it over to all these people whowere already established in
their careers in this arena.
And I learned a lot fromwatching them, what worked, what
didn't work,
Scott (06:17):
The things build, build back up in that way.
So from, you're almost ready tofile bankruptcy and shut the
doors but then you...
Christine Warren (06:25):
We built up slowly.
Yeah.
Yep.
We very slowly, I mean, we...
Lauren (06:31):
Is that different than how you first launched it in
2003?
Christine Warren (06:34):
Oh yes because we had a lot of, we had a lot
more capital than that initial$750.
So we had capital to make itwork and now we didn't have
capital.
And I just have myself and thetech person and my loyal young
girl in the warehouse and shehad to drive like 35 miles to
work every day.
(06:56):
So, we're all doing everything.
And decided to start again.
Scott (07:04):
At this point, do you still have like a lot of the big
accounts?
Christine Warren (07:09):
We didn't, I mean, we had more niche markets,
however, we had the possibility.
But we really needed the people.
We didn't even have asalesperson.
We had a tech, part-time.
My son, who would do all theaccounting cause he's a finance
dude.
And me, who said,"Okay, how canI start building the team?" And
(07:37):
I got a great engineer to startwith.
Cause I, the whole, it has beenvery important to me how this
product, all of our products,are manufactured.
Lauren (07:51):
Right.
From a quality, from offering, alot of value.
Christine Warren (07:54):
Right.
I didn't...that was the mostimportant thing to me.
So I got a great engineer andjust slowly built up.
Lauren (08:05):
Scott and I were wondering what advice you have
to people during this veryvitriolic, and I have personally
experienced in my last weekendtrip to Chicago and on the
airplane down to Florida today,really this kind of unkindness
in our world.
(08:26):
What's that about?
And how does that relate to whatyou do every day as a leading a
wellness company?
I mean, how does that impactyou?
What should we be doing atOxygen Plus to help do our part
and turn that around?
Christine Warren (08:40):
Well, I think there's a prolonged lack of
answer for, or like, where isthis world going?
So when people live in that.
And that brings them down.
(09:02):
And, they get fearful.
And many people in our world noware afraid because they don't
have the answers- and they'reliving without the answers over
(09:24):
time.
Scott (09:25):
Are there any challenges, or were there any hurdles that
you had to overcome being like afemale entrepreneur and business
owner- and trying to even carveout this brand new category?
I mean, what challenges did youface and, and how'd you overcome
it?
Christine Warren (09:44):
Well, I would say there was more of a
challenge in my own family,because we had a four-generation
family business, the GunthropWarren Printing Company-
downtown Chicago, 123 NorthWacker Drive.
Scott + Lauren (10:00):
Alright.
That's right on the river! Bigtime.
Alright!(laughter).
Christine Warren (10:02):
And I asked my grandfather when I graduated, if
I could come into the business.
And he was quiet about it.
And I was his favorite.
And my father didn't want me to.
He had two sons.
So they, so in that business, itwas set up that the dividends
(10:28):
would go to the women of youwere married to one of the
principals, male.
And the stock went to the men.
So I really didn't get anythingfrom that business.
And I thought I could give a lotand offer a lot.
And I remember having a therapysession with my father talking
(10:51):
about it.
I still have the tape somewhere.
So that disappointment.
Scott (10:57):
And then because you were the daughter.
You weren't the son.
Christine Warren (11:01):
Well, I'm not sure why.
probably.
It's, it's the old, it's apaternalistic way- old guard,
established wealth- way of doingbusiness.
So as a therapist, I- in my workwith families- I empowered men
(11:21):
and women.
And in my work in businesses, Idid the same.
So for me, I had already figuredit out.
So there might've been someproblems with other people that
I was a woman.
But there certainly wasn't aproblem for me that I was one
(laughter).
Scott (11:40):
Good for you.
Yeah.
Lauren (11:42):
And you know, you knew how to handle those individuals
who had a problem that maybe youare a woman, correct?
Christine Warren (11:48):
I did.
I knew how to join people andhow to empower people and how to
deal with power.
Lauren (11:57):
That's- not a lot of people do.
I know that's something I had tolearn late in life.
Christine Warren (12:03):
Well, I wouldn't say it's late in life
for you.
But we're always learning andgetting better at it, I would
say
Lauren (12:10):
If you- if your grandchildren, male or female
were to ask to be a part of acompany you were in charge of- a
la Oxygen Plus or somethingelse, what would you say to
them?
Christine Warren (12:28):
I would say, great.
I'd love that.
Go work somewhere else for fiveyears and come back.
If you're still interested,Develop competencies elsewhere,
and a sense of self in theworkplace
Lauren (12:42):
And why?
I know it's an obvious questionmaybe, but...
Christine Warren (12:48):
They have to know how they stand in the world
because it's too easy to becomeunder the umbrella.
And I went freethinkers andpeople to speak up and not be
quiet because it's family or notspeak out too much because it's
family.
Lauren (13:04):
Interesting.
So I always thought it had to dowith the fact you wanted the
competencies and the skills tobe there, but you're saying it
was for the own interpersonaldevelopment.
Christine Warren (13:16):
Oh, if they don't have the company's
competencies.
Forget it.
That's just a, yeah.
Lauren (13:22):
But it's not about the competencies.
It's also about having your ownself individuation or your own,
like, okay.
Christine Warren (13:30):
Yup.
Scott (13:31):
I think that's really cool.
I mean, you've, we've, you know,you always hear stories of how
some people start businesses andthey want to hand it off to
their kids and that's kind oftheir dream(Christine: That's
their nightmare).
Yeah.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, I, I think that's reallycool that you're looking at it
as go out, be an individual,figure out who you are, develop
(13:54):
yourself if you're stillinterested and you're qualified
come back and let's talk.
(Christine (14:00):
Right).
Yeah.
That's cool.
I like that.
Lauren (14:03):
You've been able to interrupt the tendency of
generations of family businesseswrecking it.
Don't they usually fail in thethird or fourth generation
(Christine (14:15):
Third, usually) Third.
Okay.
How have you done that?
And what, what is the insight inthere that we can apply to our
everyday lives- as just peoplegoing around.
Christine Warren (14:27):
That's a heavy question.
That's I think that would beanother podcast question.
Scott + Lauren (14:33):
Okay.
Well, we'll have you back.
Episode two, part two.
Christine Warren (14:38):
That's another...it's an
intergenerational dynamic thatplays itself out in the business
dynamic, and that's...there aresome great people to talk about
that.
(Lauren (14:49):
And you're one of them.) I'm one them, I can
recommend some others as well.
Lauren (14:56):
All right.
Great.
Christine Warren (14:59):
So I just want to say, it's been interesting
walking down memory lane on thebirthday...on the 18th birthday
of Oxygen Plus.
I also experienced it asintimate because having your own
business and developing it andthe people, it's personal.
(15:24):
So we joined together personallytoday in this podcast.
So thanks for giving me thatopportunity and joining me.
Scott (15:34):
Of course.
Well, thanks for talking with usand, and giving us the history
and all the insight intoeverything, the category and the
company and all of that.
It's been a lot of fun.
Christine Warren (15:45):
Great.
Scott + Lauren + Christine (15:46):
You rock, Christine.
And you made it through withoutswearing, which is something I
was surprised by as well.
Yeah, good job.
You can totally swear.
Even though we can..
(Christine (15:53):
So what the fucking podcast!) There it is.
Thanks for listening.
We hope you enjoyed ourinterview with Oxygen Plus
Founder, Christine Warren.
And be sure to subscribe to'We're Not Blowing Hot Air,' so
you never miss an episode.
(16:13):
See you next time.
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