Top relaxation for 17 years - An interview with the founders of ShaktiMat

• The beginnings of ShaktiMat
  
• ShaktiMat Product Launch at the Health Fair in Stockholm
  
• The emergence of the Gratitude Factory in Varanasi
  
• Acupressure world record with 3000 people
  
• Shakti - the female elemental force
  

March 31, 2023 is our 17th birthday! A birthday is not only an occasion to celebrate, but also a day to pause and enjoy. So it's a good time to take a look back at the past and the origins of ShaktiMat. Because this year, our brand is celebrating its 17th birthday.

So how does this mother and son team from Sweden come up with the idea of a more balanced humanity through the power of acupressure? It sounds like there could be a good story behind it. That's why we spoke directly with Nadine (in Sweden) and Om (in India) to learn more about the ShaktiMat story. 

Hey Nadine, we understand you've always been an entrepreneur, even before your time with ShaktiMat?

Nadine: Yes, I've always tried lots of things. We had a bee farm for 20 years. In addition to honey production, I made and sold various creams from the beeswax for people and animals. I ran this company alongside Shakti for a long time. It's not a big deal to start with something you really believe in. What counts is the right feeling and that you are on fire for the cause. 

Om, can you tell us more about the beginnings of ShaktiMat?

Om: I was at the circus school in Moscow. That was exhausting for my body and I got problems with my back. That's how I got in touch with massage therapy, went to the Swedish Massage School in Stockholm and became a therapist myself.

At the age of 21, after traveling extensively throughout India, I went to the Himalayas to study as a monk. There I discovered my passion for Ayurvedic healing and was fascinated by the traditional bed of nails. Even then I knew that this work with the acupressure mats was something I really wanted to do.

I wanted to get involved in the rediscovery of this healing method and thus developed the ShaktiMat. For this I used an ancient Indian knowledge called Jyotish-Shastra, the Vedic astrology. Through my research I learned everything about the exact dimensions of the mat, how many needles should be on a mat and on how many discs the needles should be distributed.

I spent many years in the Himalayas practicing mysticism, yoga and meditation, and I still live here today. These experiences helped me to realize that nothing is complete until all our fellow human beings can experience life as profound happiness. To serve this realization, I devoted myself to creating the modern bed of nails using ancient Indian knowledge and Vedic science written down 5-7000 years ago. The result of this work was the ShaktiMat. 

Already at the age of 21, after his training as a massage therapist, Om went to the Himalayas to live as a monk.

If you want to read more about how to treat back pain naturally with acupressure, we also have an article for you.

How did you get started with everything?

Nadine: In 2007 Om had found our first partner in India and I gave him the financial start-up to produce the first mats. We produced 500 mats in this first phase.

Here in Sweden we live in the countryside where all our mail and packages arrived in a small village store. I remember when suddenly a huge number of these big Indian packages arrived, all sewn in white fabric. It was like something out of a movie and all the neighbor:ins knew something unusual was going on when these 40 huge packages arrived. I had to take them home in my car, two at a time. 

Product launch at the health fair in Stockholm

As far as I know, 2007 was the first time that the ShaktiMat was presented at a fair. How did people react?

Nadine: Yes, we introduced the ShaktiMat to the public for the first time on March 31, 2007 at the "Harmony Expo" - a health fair in Stockholm.
I was already selling my creams everywhere, so I just combined both at one booth at the health fair.

Of course, you have to talk a lot to promote a product. We also had a small area at the booth where people could test the ShaktiMat. This led to people lying on the mats at our booth again and again and many others became curious. I myself was on fire for the product and told everyone how fantastic it was. At that first expo we got a lot of people curious, sold a lot of mats and also found some of our first retailers:inside.

During the summer we got help from Om's brother Petter - he went to many markets and yoga events to promote the ShaktiMat. I also went to different fairs. In those first months, I took the ShaktiMat to big health fairs in Sweden, Norway and Finland. It was really a family effort.

By the end of that first summer, we had sold our entire first shipment and already had to make more mats. It can be a real challenge to produce in India and transport everything from there. It was very hard work and went very fast, but everything went smoothly. We were in a flow! 

Already at the age of 21, after his training as a massage therapist, Om went to the Himalayas to live as a monk.

The emergence of the Gratitude Factory in Varanasi

Can you tell us how Gratitude Factory came to be in India?

Om: After that first year, we decided that we had to open our own production. So my brother Petter joined me in India. Our goal was to find a place to build a factory in Varanasi. Why Varanasi? Well, Varanasi is the holiest city in India and the history of this place goes back thousands and thousands of years.

Editor's note: Every year, thousands of devout Hindus make a pilgrimage to the holy city to perform ritual ablutions and other religious rites. For many Hindus, the highest goal in life is to die in Varanasi and be buried in the holy Ganges. The ashes are then scattered in the holy river,  

We arrived by train from Delhi and soon met with a tailor named Ram, from whom we had previously bought clothes. Ram told us that he had just bought a large piece of land with a ruin outside Varanasi. After inspecting everything, we agreed that we would build the Shakti factory here. 

There is no longer any sign of the old ruin from back then. The Gratitude Factory is now a place full of life. 

Nadine: Om had always been interested in architecture and before building the Gratitude Factory he studied the traditional principles of "Vastu Shastra", the origin of Feng Shui. He used these concepts to design the factory.

Editor's note: This involves integrating architecture with nature and ancient beliefs by applying geometric patterns (yantra), symmetries, and specific alignments.

Om's brother Petter organized the construction to build the factory within a year. As soon as it was ready, they bought sewing machines and other equipment. In addition, they began to employ staff consisting entirely of women, all of whom came from the neighborhood. Ram still runs the factory for us today. He is truly an Indian pearl, always trusting and sharing his kindness with every person who visits the Gratitude factory. 

Two of our colleagues are leaving Gratitude Factory for their well-deserved retirement. We are grateful for their work every day. 

Why did you decide to create Gratitude Factory as a place just for women?

Om: The whole enterprise was created through my vision of Shakti. This entity represents the divine femininity and the nurturing love that we all need. So it happened naturally that we made the factory just for women and that we worship the Goddess there in her many forms. We wanted everything to be in the service of the divine feminine energy that naturally spreads throughout the world.

Both when we built the factory and when we started the company, we always worked with Vedic astrology to determine the right time - called Muhurta. We found the best time of the year when the energy of the planets was right and performed a ceremony. We lit incense, chanted mantras and invited the spirit of Shakti. We invited Shakti to come into the factory, into the products and into the company. 

If you'd like to learn more about Gratitude Factory and our fellow women, read on here.

You can find out more about our other social and charitable projects here.

Three of our colleagues in Varanasi are visibly having fun during the break and clearly show how much Women Power is in each ShaktiMat. 

What all did you learn on your trip?

Nadine: When we started with ShaktiMat, we also realized that it is an incredibly good feeling to lie on the spikes, to become calm and that it works very well against stress. We thought that if we could spread this around the world, it could also mean a more relaxed humanity overall. People always make much better decisions in their lives when they are without stress and anxiety. We don't just want to sell, but first and foremost we want to spread the knowledge about the positive effects of acupressure mats.

In 2009 we had a great success all over Sweden. At that point, we were well on our way to selling over 1 million mats. At this point, we noticed that copies of our product were popping up everywhere.

But we decided to take a different perspective. We took the view that the more acupressure there was in the world, the better it would be. So as long as the many copies out there are well done, they could help us spread this ancient knowledge and thus help us in our mission. For this reason, we have decided not to oppose what helps our idea. But of course it is a pity when people have unpleasant experiences because of poorly produced products.  

Acupressure world record with 3000 people

Can you remember how the idea of placing a record in the Guinness Book of Records came about?

Nadine: Of course. I met a woman from Poland, she was a yoga teacher and together we had this idea. It was in August 2009 and we were very lucky with the weather. It was a risk, but in the end 3000 people came to the park in Stockholm, we gave everyone a free mat and it was great fun. There were Indian dancers and we chanted mantras together. The mantra was as follows:

"Om Shanti Om,
Om Shanti Om,
Om Shanti Om Shanti Om Shanti Om."

This means bringing peace and harmony to all living beings and connecting them with each other in a new, peaceful and harmonious way.

More than 3000 people lie on acupressure mats in a park in Stockholm, chant mantras and perform a world record in complete relaxation.

Meanwhile, about 500 people fell asleep, so the entry in the record book of "people on nail mats chanting mantras" is only 2,500, but that's just proof of the calming effect of the mats.

Where do you think ShaktiMat is now, at 17 years old?

Om: For me, Shakti is her own being. We created her 17 years ago and now she has her own life and her own path. She is now like a blossoming girl stepping into womanhood, excited to explore the world more and more. She is in a state of expansion, stepping into her power and on her mission to bring healing and love into the world.

According to Om, Shakti is currently in the midst of her youth and ready to explore the world. Here we have commissioned an artist to paint a portrait for Shakti.

Shakti - the female elemental force

The word 'Shakti' comes from Sanskrit and represents the primordial feminine force of compassion, creativity and a nurturing quality. Our hope is that everyone who comes into contact with a ShaktiMat will feel connected to this energy. For this energy is not only represented by our founder, but also lovingly handcrafted into each and every acupressure mat by our colleagues.

What a day in the life of one of our colleagues looks like and what the situation is like for women's rights in India, you can read here.

To give you a better overview of the journey of ShaktiMat, we have put together a few milestones on the following graphic. We are already curious which stations will be added in the future.