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Krystal Frost – Part III
Married • Missoula, Montana • Owner/Operator Body and Sol
Krystal started as a yoga teacher at a hotel in the northern hotel zone doing classes on the beach and then expanded her capabilities of include massage therapy. “There were maybe two other people in all of Vallarta who were doing massage therapy back in the mid-1990s. I opened my business, Body and Sol, in 1995 in a location very near the popular Rizzo’s grocery store on the south side of town. It was great for walk-in traffic and also had Access to parking, which was a real plus.”
Since she was a pioneer in her field and found it difficult to find products to use and sell, she searched out raw materials and developed and produced her own emollients and other products that she used and sold at Body and Sol. She also offered massage training programs for local people interested in learning the craft. “Many of the people who own massage therapy businesses in town were trained by me,” she notes.
To add to her business offerings, Krystal enrolled in a first ever acupuncture degree program at the University of Guadalajara’s Puerto Vallarta campus in 2002. The three-year program was developed within the university’s medical school in Guadalajara in keeping with Mexico’s recognition of acupuncture and Eastern medicine as accepted and certified medical practices.
Krystal followed her degree in acupuncture with post-graduate study at Bastyr University, a leader in natural health science education located north of Seattle, Washington. She specialized in aesthetic acupuncture.
While studying acupuncture and natural health science, the energetic Krystal still found time to star a parallel business in 2005 called Organic Select (http://www.organic-selec.com), an online store that sells organic food to consumers interested in a healthy lifestyle. Based in Vallarta, the firm Works directly with local farmers to provide products for the online store.
The company charges an annual membership, which brings additional benefits to members and helps support research and expand local growers. “We have customers around the bay and up the north coast. They appreciate the service because the Web site is user-friendly, and we sell hard-to-find organic products that are delivered directly to their homes. Lots of people like it because of the traffic congestion, and many don’t have cars.”
Krystal honed her marketing skills back in the mid-1990s when she discovered and developed the coffee business in San Sebastian del Oeste, the tiny mountain town east of Vallarta.
“I work primarily from passion and inspiration, and the coffee business in San Sebastian was a true passion for me,” Krystal says. Her first trip to the mountain town was in 1994. “At that time, it was a five-hour drive to San Sebastian from PV or a short flight in a rickety old plane that was held together with baling wire. There was just one place to stay in town and no restaurants.” During Krystal’s first trip, she wandered around San Sebastian for a while before coming upon the la Quinta hacienda. “It was such a beautiful place that I just knocked on their door because I wanted to meet them,” she remembers.
She didn’t realize at the time that her knock on the door would open an opportunity to a passion that she pursues to this day.
After establishing a relationship with the family at the hacienda, she learned that they grew hade-grown coffee in the perfect high altitude of San Sebastian. “They had no idea what potential their business had. They had been growing these beautiful coffee beans since the 1940s on ten acres of land. I became impassioned by the care they took in the whole authentic process. They harvested all by hand, dried the beans in the sun, and took great care with each step of the process. In fact, they still do.”
Krystal was so impassioned about the La Quinta coffee that she took a class on coffee growing and processing at the National Institute of Coffee in the state of Veracruz, the coffee center of Mexico. She took a simple of the La Quinta coffee to the institute, where they tested it and gave the coffee their highest rating, a marketer’s dream. During the course, she learned the entire coffee process, including how to roast, blend, and grade the coffee beans.
Armed with her new coffee kwowledge, Krystal returned to San Sebastian to help La Quinta become a well-know local coffee brand. “The first thing I recommended was the purchase of a roaster. They were using this big barrel over a fire to roast the beans that was turned by hand. So, we found a state-funded program for small coffee growers, applied for a low-interest loan, and bought a roaster in the states to help modernize and control the process. We also worked on packaging and other things to help market the product.” Krystal became so involved with the coffee Project that she moved into a house and lived part-time in San Sebastian while continuing to operate her business in Puerto Vallarta.
Krystal enjoys staying very busy these days with Body and Sol and her online organic food business, but she often fondly remembers the days when life here was far simpler.
“So many things in Vallarta have changed during the last twenty years.
It was more of a small town when I first moved here. Then, the road from the airport to dowtown was just a two-lane asphalt highway, and you could find a place to park wherever and whenever you wanted to. There were a lot fewer restaurants, also, and it was easier to get in without a reservation. I really loved those days because PV had a real laid-back, small town atmosphere. Also, Punta de Mita at that time was a place we would take our kids to on a weekend top lay in the caves. There weren’t many people out there then, just local villages.”
After years of traveling, Krystal finally found her personal Paradise in PV. “I was looking for a place to and where I could use my skills and develop a lifestyle, and Vallarta just reached out and embraced me. I lived in South America, Montana, Canada, and California, but never really felt like I fit in. When I came to Vallarta, I loved the Latin culture and immediately felt at home and at ease. I also loved the international feel to the city. People from all over the choose Vallarta. I’m glad I did.” Email to a friend.
Will continue next month…
• Please click here to read Chapter 2 – Part I
• Please click here to read Chapter 2 – Part II
• Please click here to read Chapter 2 – Part III
• Please click here to read Chapter 4 – Part I
• Please click here to read Chapter 4 – Part II
• Please click here to buy the book
• Please click here to read book reviews
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To add to her business offerings, Krystal enrolled in a first ever acupuncture degree program at the University of Guadalajara’s 
held together with baling wire. There was just one place to stay in town and no restaurants.” During Krystal’s first trip, she wandered around 
Armed with her new coffee kwowledge, Krystal returned to 