Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Ann.
Hi Julie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I left the UK in 1998, leaving behind a very successful career in marketing, a husband and my house, to sail around the world for 7 years. Starting in South Africa, sailing Tanzania, Kenya, Dar es Salam, Zanzibar, Madagascar and across the Indian Ocean, I lived on a desert island for 3 months. The islands had no population and the only people who were permitted to visit these forbidden islands were sail boats, with the necessity to rest and repair during a major ocean crossing. It was a once in a life-time of experiences, sailing 24/7 across the dark ocean, thousands of miles from the nearest mainland, to live on a desert island for 3 months and catch your own fish, hunt giant coconut crabs, catch your own rain water and survive only on the supplies packed in the boat. With no refrigeration or solar energy, I learned a lot about being self-sufficient to bottle meat and preserve eggs with Vaseline, and make my own rice wine. During the 2nd leg of the Indian Ocean passage, we encountered pirates in the Malacca Straight and arrived in Thailand, with no water of food left to sustain us. After resting and making a life for 2 years in Thailand and Malaysia, offering boat charters, it was time to move on to Canada and join another boat to sail from Vancouver island, down the whole west coast of the USA, into the Sea of Cortez, an adventure that took in all the coastal towns of the USA and took 6 months. After living for 2 years in the remote islands and bays, a short 6 month trip back to my home country of the UK, was the decider to immigrate to Canada. That was the completion of my 7 years journey around the world and the start of a new career as a writer and author, publishing my book “Around the world in seven years – A life changing Journey” That led to me becoming a book publisher, based in Vancouver, B.C. for 10 years. Fast forward to 2018 when I started to visit Puerto Vallarta in the winters to run writers retreats and fell in love with the place. Realizing that my nomadic lifestyle was coming to an end, now that I had found the one true place I could call ‘home, I decided to move down to Puerto Vallarta, permanently in 2019. My publishing company could work just as well with remote workers as it could with a full publishing office in Vancouver, and has now published over 300 authors in the last 14 years.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I’ve had many challenges but the death of my fiancée 3 years ago, and nearly my own death, could have been the biggest obstacle to being here today. I had never lost anyone close to me and the grief was overwhelming, especially since all my family was in the UK, all my friends in Canada, and everyone had returned from Puerto Vallarta during covid, leaving me truly alone in my grief. My fiancée was in a coma for 3 weeks and I threw myself at Facebook live everyday, to raise funds for the private hospital bill. His death was very public, as I had thousands of followers, praying with me for his survival. The tsunami of love and generosity gave me the momentum to chase the dreams we had together to build a retreat center in Puerto Vallarta. Magic and Miracles made the dream a reality when I purchased a 5 story, 10 apartment building and converted it into a retreat center, complete with a rooftop garden that included a wooden dance floor, stage and bar for events and retreats. My daily challenge is living with chronic pain with scoliosis, but I do not let it influence my life. Since having a major back operation at 18 to straighten my spine by breaking my back and inserting a steel rod, I lived with back pain caused by the operation. It has never stopped me travelling and I manage it with pain killers and staying fit and healthy.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The House of Influence retreat center in Puerto Vallarta features 3 podcast studios, a workspace with dedicated Starlink high speed internet, a rooftop event space with a stunning ocean view, a wooden dance floor, stage, bar and garden. The lower terrace features a 16 person conference/dining table and a large kitchen for catering. The 8 apartments provide accommodation for up to 20 people. The building is presently for sale because the House of Influence Publishing and Media are now expanding to build an Eco Village in the jungle on the beach! As the corporation expanded to include a weekly podcast show, the Vortex TV channel on Roku TV and ‘write a book in a week’ retreats, it became clear that we have ‘outgrown’ the original ‘House of Influence’ in Puerto Vallarta and it is time to build our own village! We are actively looking for investors to join us with the creation of our Eco Village and seeking a buyer for our property in Puerto Vallarta. The property is for sale for only $1.5 million USD and this will give us the capital we need to buy the land we have found in a truly beautiful location called Litibu, 45 mins North of Puerto Vallarta, just down the road from Bill Gates ‘Four Seasons’ in Nayarit. You can find out more about the property for sale at www.houseofinfluence.mx and contact us with your interest in our Eco Village.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I have taken risks ever since leaving the safety of my family home in England. I guess you can’t get more risk-taking than leaving a 6 figure salary in the UK, signing over my home to my husband that I left behind, and setting sail around the world, with no previous sailing experience! Unless you count leaving Thailand and the boat I started out on, to fly to Vancouver and join another boat, with no knowledge of the Captain or what it would look like to sail the Pacific coast. Or moving to Puerto Vallarta and buying a retreat center with the money raised by investors. I always believe in taking risks, without risks you will never truly experience all that life has to give you. I think you would agree, taking all the risks I have taken, has given me a very rich and fulfilled life!
Pricing:
- 1.5 Million USD for Puerto Vallarta retreat Center purchase.
- $5 Million USD Eco Village investment
Contact Info:
- Website: www.houseofinfluence.mx
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InfluencePublishing
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JulieAnnVortexTV/videos
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/CasadeInfluenciaPV/
Image Credits
All photos taken by the author at the House of Influence
