Meet Marisa Hope | Founder & CEO of Tulla Life

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

Hi Marisa, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Tulla started from my personal story with my health. I personally struggled for years with debilitating chronic health conditions, my hair was falling out, I could barely eat anything without feeling sick. I tried everything, I mean everything in an effort to heal; from traditional treatments and medications to non-traditional treatments such as acupuncture, Chinese medicine, herbs, supplements, dozens of different diets and the list goes on. The biggest thing that helped me to heal all my symptoms was eating a plant-based diet. This is when I started to dive into the world of wellness and learn as much as I could about how our body, mind and spirit can be affected not only by the foods that we eat, but our environment, our habits and the things we take in like media and technology. After riding all my symptoms, I got certified as a personal trainer, yoga teacher, and holistic health coach as I wanted to help other people do the same. Thats where Tulla was born, Tulla is scientifically designed to help you feel like your most vibrant, healthful, and full of life self through the power of food as medicine. So, you can light up the world around you and take the world by storm.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Tulla is a plant-forward ready-to-eat meal program scientifically designed for health-driven results. Most meal prep or meal delivery companies have bland meals, strict diets, and offer the same 20 meals repeatedly. At Tulla, we focus on cultivating long-term lifestyle change through food that tastes as good as it looks. Because if you like the food you’re eating, you’re more likely to keep coming back to it, in turn creating true long-term change. I know I don’t want to eat salads, tofu, or green juices every day to be healthy. That is why at Tulla our nutrition team and I created a menu that is fun, vibrant, delicious, and nutritious. Tulla’s new signature nutrition program is launching in the Summer of 2025.

Tulla started as “Plantss” which was the seed of an idea (pun intended). I really had no idea at the time how to bring it into action but had a lot of ideas about what I wanted it to be, and I simply started, taking one step at a time. Through guidance from fellow entrepreneurs, long hours researching, and simply trying things, the idea began to take shape. Any successful entrepreneur will tell you it’s hard work; it takes drive, determination, and resilience. But they do it because they love what they do, they love the people, and they love getting to help others, and that makes the hard work worth it.

Every business venture has its own set of challenges, but that’s what makes it interesting. You find ways to strategically move through them. Can’t find compostable box inserts for shipping boxes to keep food cold; you find them during a business talk as an entrepreneur is talking about the box inserts her company uses (true story that happened). It’s important to surround yourself with people who are on a similar path in business (that is if you’re thinking of starting a business or have one) because often fellow entrepreneurs want to support each other and can help you move through challenges and give advice.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Every time someone visits me and has never been to LA I take them to four places; Malibu, Downtown LA, Santa Monica, and Hollywood. Malibu has great hiking trails like Los Liones that have beautiful views of the city, start day one there. Grab breakfast or brunch at Malibu Farms overlooking the water, go shopping at Malibu Village Mall, and have dinner at SoHo House (get the branzino, I promise). Day 2: Start the day grabbing a coffee at Alfreds in Sawtelle (my order is the world-famous vanilla latte, oat milk, and sugar-free syrup) and get a pastry next door at Artelice Pâtisserie (my favorite is the pain au chocolat, I believe in living life and enjoying the foods we love). Play like a kid at the Santa Monica Pier, put your toes in the sand at the beach next door, and after a long day of playing get dinner at Hillstone (make a reservation, and get the burger and fries, so good). Day 3: Get breakfast at the Butcher Daughter in Venice (7 minutes in heaven smoothie and the surfers burrito with tofu scramble and vegan cheese are the best), take a walk to Venice beach and do some people watching, then head downtown to explore Grand Central Market where they have the best tacos for lunch at La Tostaderia (get the fish tacos). Go to Perch rooftop downtown to get a mocktail and enjoy the music and scenery of downtown until dinner where you can sit in the dining room. Day 4: Start your morning at Gjusta (get the overnight oats, you’ll crave them later), go to Hollywood and see the Hollywood sign (a must for a first-timer), then see the Walk of Fame. Finish the day at Only the Wild Ones in Venice, get a mocktail and tapas, and watch them DJ a vinyl track. Day 5: Take a rest day! Rest at the beach or by the pool, Santa Monica Beach is great for this.  
 

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?
So many people have been supporters and encouragers in my life and for that I am grateful. One person that stands out to me is my grandma. She has been one of my biggest supporters and a guiding light my whole life. She always let me be creative and never put barriers on my creativity when I was young. I created a fashion company in her basement, taking old clothes and re sewing them into new ones, she taught me how to sew. I created a restaurant in her kitchen, she taught me to cook. I created homemade skincare, she let me take ingredients from her kitchen. I was always creating something. I think today, I still have that creativity and because it never had any bounds, I feel like I can let my creativity take the lead.

Website: https://www.tulla.life

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tullalife/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marisacerett/