A couple of years ago, when we were building our Japanese business, a friend invited me on a weekend trip to Kyoto. While showing me around, I asked my friend about a fox statue I discovered at the entrance of a Shinto shrine. He explained it's Kitsune (キツネ) - the fox of a thousand appearances.
Part of Japanese mythology since the Heian period and also known in other parts of Asia, Kitsune is a symbol of intelligence and long life; therefore, it is said to be "intelligent as a fox." One of the main characteristics of Kitsune is the ability to keep promises made to humans, using magical powers in favor of the human companion.
Last year, as part of our own longevity journey, my wife Katharina and I decided to create a new business around longevity for business owners like us. Brainstorming about a brand name, we came up empty.
One day, while walking our dog, my wife saw a fox close by. It seems the fox didn't have any problem with her, but when it discovered our dog, it ran away. She told me, and that is when I recalled the story about Kitsune because legend has it that Kitsune can't stand the proximity of dogs; it is so afraid that if in human form, it turns into a fox and runs away.
Inspired by this story, we decided to adopt it for our brand. My wife came up with the name Vavida - because it is a unique word combining vida (life in Spanish) and va (a French verb that can be translated to it goes), symbolizing the trial and error, discovery challenge, and life journey every one of us has to master.
And because Japan has the oldest people in the world, they obviously know a thing or two about healthy aging and longevity. (Ikigai)
What if we could combine ancient Japanese wisdom with modern cutting-edge science, precision medicine, and (bio)tech so business owners like us can have a healthier and longer life, I thought?
Working in the area of AI and healthcare for a while, we know we are just at the beginning of understanding aging, and there are a lot of breakthroughs just ahead of us.
To reflect all that, we decided that our Kitsune Fox has to be female and young, maybe 8 years old, and her name is Vavida. And because the legend says that Kitsune has 9 tails and every 100 years of age, Kitsune grows a new tail; she becomes smarter, her magical powers increase, and she is able to transition from human to spiritual form and vice versa - our Vavida Kitsune Fox is too young to have a tail right now. She has to earn it.
Here she is:
Vavida - our
smart little fox.
So have we as a brand. We are at the beginning of our journey, and in the spirit of Kitsune, will develop our product and service offerings to serve and help you. We won't promise a reversal of aging. But - because Vavida Kitsune Foxes can keep promises to humans - we promise we will work hard to contribute to your longevity journey, helping to add 10 to 20 more healthy years to your life.
Sounds good?
Then help us and share your longevity story. We really would like to hear it: your struggles, your successes. We are sure our community would like to learn from you.
Tell us how you've turned health challenges into results.