Juice It Up! New Juice Bar Opens in Ancona’s Market

What do private jets, television and juicing have to do with one another?

If you’re Joy Eller–who just one month ago opened Juice Joy, a business that includes not only a line of fresh vegetable and fruit juices but also it’s first juice bar at Ancona’s Market–the link between aviation, TV and juices is completely logical.

Eller, a Wilton resident, has been an entrepreneur and business person for years. “I had a private aviation company from 2003 to 2008, where I found private jets owned by companies that were just sitting, and matched them with people who wanted to fly privately. Before that I was a television producer, which is a lot like running a business, because you’re overseeing all the details. I worked on the Olympics and other things.”

Then two years ago, after getting a certification with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, she started working as a health coach. “One thing I really believed in was juicing. Even if you eat healthfully, to actually get to that tipping point, you’re not going to eat enough vegetables.” She tried to advise the clients she coached about how to juice and where to find the things they’d need to do so.

That’s when her business mind clicked with her own interest in health and juicing. “I realized people didn’t want to buy their own juicers, or if they did they didn’t keep the protocol going, and it was a big trip for them find juices or ingredients. That’s when I came up with the idea of putting live stands in markets.”

Eller’s philosophy is that juicing is more than just a trend. According to the company’s materials, she believes that, “When prepared individually and fresh with good basic ingredients, juicing can provide an additional boost of vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants. When added to an already healthy diet, juicing can help you to gain the maximum benefits vegetables have to offer.”

Some of those benefits, said Eller, include helping the body maintain a normal pH balance, detoxifying, aiding digestion and staying hydrated.

“I put this menu together both from a nutritional perspective as well as working with a chef to look at ingredients from a taste perspective. That’s why these juices are so popular because people look at green and they’re like, ‘Ergh!’  But they drink it and they’re totally into it. I’m so excited, because I’m a big believer in it.’

That ‘don’t judge a book by it’s cover’ thing certainly applies to the first item on the JuiceJoy menu–the “Full ‘Green’ Monty.” Even with the mix of kale, spinach, parsley, cucumber, celery, lemon and ginger, it’s all about the yummy rather than the yuck, and there’s no grassy taste you’d expect from a green beverage.

With her first juice bar nestled in at the end of the produce aisle at Ancona’s, shopper can order a juice to enjoy while they shop, and they can also bring home several bottles to keep at home. The kiosk has been very popular, so much so that it’s fitting into Eller’s hope for expansion.

“I’m looking at opening these kiosks in several other local markets, including Village Market. I think the access is awesome. I have seniors coming in here who never even touched a green juice and they try it and love it, and now they’re juicing. Kids love it. They come running down the aisles for it.”

JuiceJoy has a basic menu of 11 juice combinations, using leafy green vegetables, sweet root veggies and fuits: kale, spinach, carrots, beets, tomato, apple, pear, cantaloupe and pineapple, to name just some. Then they add zest for additional balancing flavor–lemon, mint and lime are some favorites. But they can also customize a juice recipe depending on what customers prefer.

“Every single one of these tastes good. If somebody is not a novice and is a seasoned juicer, they might say, ‘Make this without the apple.’ We want it to taste good. Every one of these ingredients, you can’t beat them for a positive experience. Right now, we sell a lot of our “Jump Juice” with apple, lemon, ginger and cayenne. It’s great for people who are congested.”

They also offer cleanses, where people can purchase a full program and supply of  juices per day for a three- or five-day detox juice cleanse. Eller prepares the 6-juice packs daily for the clients that sign up for programs. “It’s designed to detox.” Eller runs them once a month and people can sign up to start on the same day. Eller does that for two reasons–not only to be able to simplify production by making the same juices for everyone on the same day, but also so that she can supervise everyone. “I like to keep track of everyone at the same time.” That’s especially the case if there are any particular health issues or concerns that a client has, like high blood pressure.

“I tell people if it’s an issue and this is a huge departure from their daily life, they should speak with their physician. I wouldn’t suggest this for someone with diabetes or who is hypoglycemic. High blood pressure, actually, in all the classes and certification that I’ve done, I’ve learned that juicing actually helps.”

Eller says there is an educational component to juicing. “It’s really important that people understand the ingredients that we use, what they’re a source of, and what they’re good for. People who work for me have to go through a training and understand the benefits of all the different drinks that we have.”

From a business perspective, the partnership with local markets is a great move for both Eller and the stores that host her. It helps that she doesn’t have to open her own place on her own, and she gets great traffic from customers who are ripe for the picking when they’re walking through a produce section. For the markets, JuiceJoy is an added benefit they can offer to their customers.

Clearly, shoppers are enjoying having JuiceJoy there. In just the one month since Eller has opened, she’s gone through one full box of customer loyalty cards (to earn holepunches for each juice bought to evenutally earn a free juice) and she’s starting to bottle juices that the store carries to sell when she’s not there.

Eller hopes that the business has the earmarks of success that she sees in its potential. “Ideally, I’d love to franchise these, to women who would like to go back to work.” Right now the juice bar at Ancona’s is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and she hopes to grow that as well.

Harkening back to what she used to do, with the private jet business, Eller reflects with a laugh: “The last part of my business life it was about a luxury product. Now I really feel like I’m doing something beneficial, something positive for people.”

To get in touch with JuiceJoy, and to find out about their cleanses, visit the JuiceJoy Facebook page or sign up for Eller’s email newsletter via her website. The JuiceJoy juice bar is open daily at Ancona’s Market (720 Branchville Rd., Ridgefield) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m..