Parents naturally want to share their knowledge, experience, and goals with their children—along with love, respect, and support. What better way to share than to start a business together? The co-founders of the Bella CBD lifestyle brand include an entrepreneurial mother, Krista Whitley, her 13-year-old daughter, Bella Castellarin (who came out as part of the LGBTQI community when she was 9), and her 11-year-old son, Kai Castellarin, who is a trans boy.
THC and CBD industry trailblazer Krista Whitley has always loved blazing her own journey and not working any 9-to-5 J.O.B. “Once I discovered what entrepreneurs did, I understood the freedoms. Entrepreneurs can impact change more swiftly,” she explains. “I realized that if I want to be part of the change in the world, the best way was to lead by creating.”
But the business also had very personal inspiration. As a loving mom, Krista wanted to alleviate her daughter Bella’s lifelong suffering with extreme eczema. Nothing seemed to work for Bella who was prescribed steroids that offered only short-term relief. Krista was determined to find an all-natural, plant-based solution. With the help of dermatologists and other professionals, she started developing solutions in her kitchen, learning about ingredients, their sources, their chemistry, and how they are absorbed and affect skin toward healing severe eczema.
Krista tested every product in her bathroom cabinet on her own skin as well as on Bella’s skin. She would document what was an irritant and what helped heal. With Krista’s northwest Pacific farming roots, she explored natural and organic ingredients. “Every Bella CBD product is a marriage of good chemistry, good old-fashioned farming, and common sense,” she explains. The Bella brand is woman-led, woman-owned, woman-focused, and proud supporters of the LGBTQI community.
More importantly, Krista always planned to involve her children and mentor them as they learned how to own and operate a business. She involved them in the process from the beginning. She could not imagine either child working in a cubicle in an office for 30 years. “When you are being raised by a mom who is an entrepreneur in the THC and CBD industry, they are probably being raised a differently than other families,” she admits.
As a result of the pandemic and schooling at home, the two children become more involved, taking leadership in the company. At the ripe old age of 13, Bella stepped in as CEO. As a 7th grader, she can already eloquently educate adults on the benefits of CBD-infused products. Kai serves as COO, has learned how to code, works on the website, and directs all shipping and fulfillment.
Bella embraced being mentored by her mother. “I decided to become an entrepreneur to help other people like me who are struggling to feel beautiful in their own skin,” she says. “I wanted to create a solution and do good in the world. Like my mom told me, I can impact change, which is tremendously fulfilling.”
Because she’s young, many people don’t take Bella seriously, underestimating her knowledge and abilities. Yet Bella can discuss CBD’s benefits for conditions aside from eczema, including symptoms of perimenopause, menopause, and hormonal changes. Many are shocked that a teenager can intelligently discuss sexual wellness and incorporate CBD into their intimate lifestyles. She believes that knowledge is power, and that young adults should be educated about all aspects of sexuality and changes that can be expected throughout females’ lives. “I am insulted when people speak to children in baby voices and dumb down important information,” Bella says.
Kai has been applying labels and wrapping packages since he was very young. “My biggest challenge today as a young entrepreneur is that I don’t know what I don’t know. I am thankful for the mentors and advisors in my life who guide me. I can figure it out sometimes, but other times I need help from others,” says Kai. “Working in the CBD industry is very exciting with emerging markets around the world,” he says. In fact, Bella CBD was one of the first brands to be marketed in Japan and Singapore.
Bella and Kai have grown and thrived surrounded by love and support. “My parents always made a conscious effort to be supportive of living my truth. I was always surrounded by people who were already out, including my two gay uncles and my mother’s lesbian friends,” explains Bella.
It was a natural progression, she says. Over a meal at a casual chain restaurant, 9-year-old Bella told her mother that she had a crush on a girl. It was not dramatic or confrontational, she explains, more an opportunity to open a conversation. Her mother explained that it was okay for Bella to develop crushes on girls and, as she grew older, to explore her feelings. Bella knew she was loved and accepted by her family. Today Bella identifies as questioning and Queer, and her family continues to love and support her without any judgment.
“Their father and I did not grow up around openly gay people. I was raised in a small, conservative town. Their dad was homophobic,” says Krista. “Today we are transparent with our kids about what we used to think and believe, and that we can change on our own journey towards acceptance. When they are faced with homophobia or transphobia, they understand it as a closed-minded attitude, that its fear of people who are different from them.” She acknowledges that although the kids have an accepting environment at home, “they will be faced with people who don’t share our beliefs or acceptance,” adds Krista.
When Kai attends trans groups with his family, many adult participants cry over the support and acceptance given to everyone by his family. As he is taught about the history and movement of trans rights, including the Stonewall riots, Kai is learning about how cruelly trans people can be treated. He also understands why his family’s unwavering support moves trans people to tears.
While Kai came out to the public in the last year, he has lived as a boy since kindergarten. “All people deserve respect and be met with love and understanding. I am lucky to live in Las Vegas, where my school and our community have been overwhelmingly positive and supportive,” says Kai. Sadly, he does hear about other kids transitioning with fractured families and school administrators who do not acknowledge transgender.
Kai points to gender-assigned public restrooms as an issue needing attention. Although many countries offer gender-neutral restrooms, in the US it is still unusual. Kai asks if bathrooms really need to be assigned a gender, and, as he stated, if a woman has a problem with a transgender woman using a public restroom because that woman is scared of the transgender woman, it is not because of transgender women but predatory men.
Both kids grew up attending Las Vegas Medical Marijuana Association and Women Grow events. They have marched in Pride parades and have been encouraged by both parents to live authentically, to be fearless in sharing their stories to inspire others.
Bella is always candid about her authenticity, including her eczema and being a questioning Queer woman. She is not interested in proselytizing or “converting” anyone but in educating and informing while living her own truth. An artist, she is also working on getting accepted into the Las Vegas Arts Academy. Her ultimate goal is to attend an arts university in Milan and then work for a cutting-edge animation company such as Pixar. In fact, she is studying Italian in preparation.
Kai plans to continue learning coding and website design toward a potential career in technology—one tht will feed his entrepreneurial spirit. He wants to leave a legacy, living his best life and making the world a better place for others.
The family takes pride in their CBD products, knowing there are many on the market that haven’t gone to the lengths that Bella brand has with its ingredients. Bella ingredients are tested and the products are cruelty-free, vegan, natural, and organic. Most importantly, the family genuinely believes in the products for their benefits, not for their profits. It’s no wonder that over the last decade Bella has won awards for innovation, medical efficacy, quality, and diversity. The brand represents the best of Nevada on so many levels.
