Discover why trust has become the most valuable asset in wellness. This article explores how education, transparency, and integrity drive lasting success in an industry where consumer confidence matters more than ever.
Influential Woman · Telehealth
Julianna Klee
Co-founder and Vice President, Nautic Health
Babylon, NY
2025Years experience
1Article published
Her Story
About Julianna
Julianna Klee is the Co-Founder and Vice President of Nautic Health, a physician-guided wellness company focused on weight management, hormone care, recovery, and longevity. As part of the company’s executive leadership team, she plays a central role in shaping business strategy, developing strategic partnerships, expanding brand awareness, and supporting the continued growth of the organization.
Since co-founding Nautic Health, Julianna has focused on building relationships across the health, wellness, fitness, and aesthetics industries while creating new opportunities for collaboration and national expansion. Her work spans business development, partnership strategy, operations, education, and brand positioning, with an emphasis on making personalized, physician-guided wellness more accessible and easier to understand.
Julianna holds a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science and maintains certifications as an EMT and through ISSA. Her background in health and human performance provides a strong foundation for her work, while her leadership at Nautic Health has allowed her to develop expertise in entrepreneurship, relationship building, sales strategy, and organizational growth.
As a young female entrepreneur in an evolving healthcare and wellness industry, Julianna is committed to building a company that prioritizes education, innovation, and long-term patient wellbeing. She is especially passionate about developing meaningful partnerships, creating scalable growth opportunities, and helping bridge the gap between emerging wellness solutions and the individuals who can benefit from greater access to personalized care.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Julianna
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute much of my success to hard work, resilience, and having the discipline to keep moving forward even when the path is difficult. I’ve always believed that mindset has a tremendous impact on what you are able to accomplish. You have to believe that you belong in the rooms you’ve worked to enter and that you are capable of reaching the goals you’ve set for yourself.
For me, success has come from refusing to become discouraged by challenges or setbacks. Instead, I try to look at every experience as an opportunity to learn, improve, and continue building toward something greater. I hold myself to high standards, remain focused on where I want to go, and remind myself that meaningful success is rarely immediate; it is built through consistency, perseverance, and the willingness to keep going when giving up would be easier.
That combination of self-belief and determination has been one of the biggest driving forces behind where I am today, and it continues to push me toward the next level.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I’ve received is to never wait until I feel completely ready before taking the next step. Growth often happens when you are willing to enter unfamiliar situations, take on greater responsibility, and trust yourself to learn along the way.
That advice has stayed with me because so many opportunities can be missed by overthinking whether you have enough experience, the perfect credentials, or the perfect timing. I’ve learned that confidence is often built after you take the risk, not before it.
I try to carry that mindset into every stage of my career. I believe in preparing as much as possible, staying open to learning, surrounding myself with people who challenge me, and being willing to step into opportunities that push me beyond what is comfortable. Some of the most important growth in my career has come from saying yes before I had every answer and then working hard enough to rise to the opportunity.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice to women entering this industry is to understand that doubt, setbacks, and even failure are part of the process. There will be moments when you question whether you are capable, whether you belong, or whether the goals you have set for yourself are realistic. I have experienced those moments myself, and I think learning how to move forward despite them is one of the most important parts of building a career.
I would also encourage women not to compare the beginning of their journey to someone else’s finished product. Building something meaningful takes time. Businesses evolve, strategies change, mistakes happen, and confidence develops through experience. You do not need to have everything figured out from the beginning.
One of the biggest lessons in my own career has been the importance of stepping outside of my comfort zone. Networking, speaking with new people, and putting myself in unfamiliar environments did not come naturally to me at first. But the more I pushed myself to do those things, the more confident I became, and many of those experiences ultimately created opportunities I would not have had otherwise.
Give yourself permission to grow into the person and professional you want to become. Stay patient, keep learning, believe in your ability to adapt, and do not let temporary uncertainty convince you to give up on a long-term vision.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest opportunities in the wellness industry right now is the growing demand for more personalized, proactive approaches to health. People are becoming increasingly interested in understanding their bodies, improving long-term health, and having greater access to physician-guided options that are tailored to their individual goals.
At the same time, one of the greatest challenges is building trust in an industry that is evolving very quickly. With so much information available online, consumers are often faced with conflicting messages, unrealistic promises, and difficulty understanding which options are appropriate for them. I believe companies in this space have a responsibility to lead with education, transparency, strong medical oversight, and a patient-first approach.
For Nautic Health, I see that challenge as an opportunity. As the industry continues to grow, the companies that prioritize credibility, responsible care, and long-term relationships will be the ones that create lasting impact. I believe there is tremendous potential to make personalized wellness more accessible while also raising the standard for how these services are presented and delivered.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
What is most important to me, both professionally and personally, is maintaining a strong sense of integrity and never losing sight of who I am. In business, it can be easy to become overly focused on growth, success, or financial results, but I believe those things should never come at the expense of your values.
I try to make decisions that I can stand behind and to lead in a way that feels ethical, transparent, and consistent with the kind of person I want to be. If something does not align with my values, I do not believe it is worth pursuing simply because there may be a financial opportunity attached to it.
I also believe strongly in treating people with respect, regardless of their title or position. Leadership should never be about making someone feel beneath you. I remember what it is like to be in the earlier stages of a career, and I think the best leaders are the ones who remain approachable, fair, and grounded as they grow.
At the end of the day, success is important to me, but the way I achieve it matters just as much. I want to build a career and a life that I am proud of, while remaining true to my values and treating people the way I would want to be treated.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Julianna
Why Trust Will Define the Future of Wellness
Why trust matters more than growth in building a sustainable wellness business.
Trust Is the Foundation of Lasting Success in Wellness
The wellness industry is growing quickly, but I believe the companies that succeed long term will not necessarily be the ones that grow the fastest. They will be the ones that earn the most trust.
Consumers today have more access to health and wellness information than ever before. They can search symptoms, compare treatment options, read reviews, follow influencers, and learn about emerging therapies within minutes. While that access can be empowering, it also creates a new challenge: people are constantly trying to determine what information is credible, what is marketing, and what is actually right for them.
That is why I believe trust has become one of the most valuable assets a company can build.
In a rapidly changing industry, it can be tempting to focus primarily on visibility, sales, and growth. Those things matter, but they cannot come at the expense of education, transparency, and responsible decision-making.
I believe companies have a responsibility to make sure people understand what they are considering rather than simply convincing them to purchase something.
That distinction is important.
There is a major difference between selling a service and helping someone make an informed decision about their health.
Education Should Come Before the Sale
One of the biggest opportunities I see in wellness is the ability to make complex health information easier to understand.
Many people are interested in weight management, hormone health, recovery, longevity, and other areas of personalized wellness, but they often do not know where to begin.
The industry sometimes assumes that consumers already understand the terminology, science, and available options. In reality, many people feel overwhelmed.
I believe education should be one of the first steps in building a relationship with a patient or customer.
When people understand their options, they become more confident in the decisions they make. They are also more likely to develop realistic expectations and take a long-term approach to their health.
That creates a stronger relationship than simply focusing on an immediate transaction.
Growth Should Not Come at the Expense of Integrity
Entrepreneurship naturally creates pressure to grow.
There are revenue goals, competitors, marketing strategies, partnerships, and constant pressure to move faster.
But I have learned that not every opportunity is necessarily the right opportunity.
If something does not align with your values or the standards you have set for your company, being willing to walk away from it can be just as important as knowing when to move forward.
I believe one of the hardest parts of leadership is maintaining those standards when compromising them could be financially rewarding.
It is easy to talk about integrity when there is nothing at stake. It becomes much more meaningful when maintaining your values requires saying no.
For me, success is not simply about how large a company can become. It is also about being proud of how that company grew.
Consumers Are Becoming More Discerning
The modern consumer is much more informed than companies sometimes give them credit for.
People research the businesses they work with. They look at how companies communicate, how transparent they are, how they respond to questions, and whether their message feels authentic.
That shift is positive for the wellness industry.
It creates pressure for businesses to provide more education, communicate clearly, and establish stronger standards.
Companies can no longer rely solely on attractive marketing or big promises. Consumers want to understand who is behind a brand, what it stands for, and why they should trust it.
I believe that will ultimately make the industry stronger.
Personalized Wellness Requires a Personal Approach
Another major change happening in wellness is the movement away from one-size-fits-all solutions.
People increasingly want to understand what makes sense for their individual goals, lifestyles, and health needs.
To me, personalized care is not simply about offering more options. It is about creating an experience where someone feels heard, educated, and supported in making the right decision for themselves.
Technology will continue to make health and wellness services more convenient and accessible, but convenience should never replace human connection.
The best companies will find ways to use technology while still making people feel like individuals rather than transactions.
Leadership Means Thinking Beyond the Next Sale
As I have grown as a business leader, I have become increasingly focused on the difference between short-term success and long-term value.
It is possible to generate attention quickly. It is possible to create sales quickly. Building a trusted reputation takes much longer.
Every interaction contributes to that reputation.
How you treat people matters. How you communicate matters. The promises you make matter. How you handle mistakes matters.
Those decisions may seem small individually, but together, they define a company.
I believe leaders have to think beyond the next sale, the next month, or even the next year. The question should be:
What do I want people to say about this organization five or ten years from now?
That answer should influence the decisions being made today.
The Future Belongs to Companies People Believe In
Wellness will continue to evolve. New technologies, treatments, business models, and consumer expectations will continue to reshape the industry.
That creates tremendous opportunity.
But as the industry becomes more competitive, trust will become even more important.
Consumers will have more choices, which means businesses will have to give them stronger reasons to choose one company over another.
I believe the companies that ultimately stand out will be the ones that combine innovation with responsibility, growth with integrity, and convenience with genuine care.
People may initially discover a company because of its marketing.
They may try it because of its services.
But they stay because they trust it.
And in an industry built around something as personal as health, I believe that trust will always be the foundation of lasting success.
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