“We promote love. We’re all about people,” says Mike Davis, owner of Juicing LIFE Bar and Café. “Even with our name — ‘Juicing LIFE’ — we try to make [health] an essential thing.”
Located in the heart of City Center, this juice bar has become a unique staple in the community, developing a dedicated customer base. Juicing LIFE brings holistic health home through its cold-pressed juice blends, smoothies and other healthy options, all made in-house.
In 2017, Davis began to conceptualize becoming a small business owner after working in cybersecurity with the U.S. Department of Defense for years. “I had the thought of [going into] business, but I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do.” He knows first hand how essential it is to eat healthy, and it turned out that the perfect idea was right in front of him.
“My dad influenced me,” Davis says. “I lost him to cancer in 2018. I didn’t want to buy or franchise a previous business, so I thought, ‘What could I do?’ My dad’s passing turned me into a health guru. So I thought, ‘Hey, I could do a juice bar!’ I just ran with it.”
Davis started researching everything he could get his hands on, developing unique healthy recipes and visiting other juice bars in Hampton Roads. Finally, the doors to Juicing LIFE Bar in City Center officially opened in November 2018.
“[Juicing LIFE] is the only juice bar in the city of Newport News,” says Davis. “We’re just different because we offer everything [most] juice bars cannot. Most juice bars just do juice, not smoothies — we also do acai bowls and alkaline water. People hadn’t even heard of acai bowls; they used to be a West Coast thing.”
In December 2020, the company expanded to occupy two suites in City Center, adding a 2,100-square-foot cafe area onto the side of its existing business space. This allowed the company’s menu to expand beyond juices, smoothies and smoothie bowls; it now includes salads, flatbreads, sandwiches and wraps, offering keto and vegan options as well.
“I use only fresh, organic fruit,” Davis says. “I don’t use sugar; I use organic natural sweeteners like agave. My pricing is higher because my quality is better.” Juicing LIFE never uses any type of preservatives, ensuring customers receive whole, healthy food and drinks.
Davis explains the difference between cold-pressed juice and juice produced with a juicer. “The heat produced during the juicing process kills vitamins, enzymes, probiotics and nutrition. Cold-pressed juice, on the other hand, is produced by putting whole fruit in a press, which retains those inherent nutrients and creates 100-percent pure juice. “It’s the best way to go,” Davis explains.
The motto of Juicing LIFE Bar and Café is “Cleanliness, Customer Service and Consistency,” which Davis describes as his three main focuses. Because of Davis’s personal connection to cancer, the company honors all customers who are cancer patients or dealing with major illnesses. Cancer patients can enjoy a lifetime discount when they visit the store.
“I want what we do incorporated in [their] lives,” Davis says of the store’s dedicated customer base. “We have customers come in every day, rain and snow. This is their daily thing; this is their lifestyle.
“[The business] is definitely growing every day,” Davis says. “COVID hit us hard with our employees because we had to shorten our hours, but we’re definitely still growing. We want our customers to return again and again. Eventually, we want to franchise.”
With future plans to open up a second location in Williamsburg, Davis looks forward to the continued success and expansion of Juicing LIFE Bar and Café across Virginia.
TO THE POINT:
Juicing LIFE Bar and Café
Address: 706 Town Center Dr., Ste. 100
and Ste. 102, Newport News, VA, 23606
Contact: Mike Davis
Phone: 757-534-5930, 757-256-3915
Website: juicinglifebar.com
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