Entreprenista

“Just surround yourself with people that are not necessarily better than you, but that bring something to the table you don't—and [don’t] be intimidated by that or threatened by that. I love collaborating and I love having people on my team that bring something to the table and can teach me, and I feel like we've done a good job of that.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Renee Pa...

“There's a lot of things that come with being able to support a retailer like that… If you're not ready for those things, then go DTC first because you also have to have: Is your product merchandisable? Do you have unit cartons? Do you have UPCs?  All of these kinds of operational tactical things that you can really kind of speak to, but high-level it's like, ‘Do you have enough money?’ It would b...

“So many of us, me included, suffer from imposter syndrome. And it's so misleading because we know so much more than we think we do—and more importantly, we know how to navigate what we don't know.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Taryn Jones Laeben, president and founder of IRL Ventures, a bespoke early-stage advisory and investment firm focused on building operational excellen...

“So often in the beauty world the purpose of the communication is to create a sense of fear and insecurity and I refuse to participate in that.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with April Gargiulo, founder and CEO of Vintner’s Daughter, a Nutritional Skincare brand founded on the principles of unparalleled quality and efficacy. When creating the brand, April was motivated by her own...

“Every email that goes out with a pitch to tell someone about the brand—they may not answer, they may not opt in for product, and we may not gift them, but I built one more touch point of brand awareness and maybe [they] read that email and discovered our brand. You have to be what 99% of the world is not, which is consistent.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Divya Gugnani, a se...

“I realized with every business that I've ever had, that is my strength, being of service. I'm an excellent waitress. I am an excellent people pleaser. I will serve until the day I die because I genuinely love doing it so much.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Cassandra Thurswell, Founder and CEO of Kitsch, an international brand focused on sustainable hair care and beauty acces...

“Step after step, it’s like climbing a mountain. You don’t necessarily get to the peak really fast—it’s consistent, steady growth.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Julie Smolyansky, CEO of Lifeway Foods, a company specializing in kefir to support the gut microbiome.  Born in Ukraine, Julie immigrated to the US and watched her parents pioneer the introduction of kefir to the Amer...

“That journey of self reflection and really being humbled by the business punching you in the face was not something I anticipated. I knew there were going to be hurdles to climb. But actually challenging yourself with ‘I might need to look at myself in the mirror and take a second to reflect on  how I can be a better leader’ and then actually doing the things that you’re fully aware that you need...

“There's a lot of beautiful healing things that we do and they're all amazing, but the thing that will heal those old versions of you the fastest and most effectively is when you embody the version of you who no longer believes that.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Tracy Litt, a rapid transformational hypnotherapist, best-selling author, and TEDx speaker. Tracy is also a certif...

“You're pushing yourself beyond what you feel is comfortable, which means you're gonna have chapters of discomfort or feeling like, ‘I'm not really sure if I'm there yet. And sometimes that's true. Sometimes you're not there yet. It's good to tune into that because then you know where you should be focusing to improve.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Haesue Jo, Head of Clinical...

“Keep the momentum going. And that's continuous meetings, continuous networking. And then set dates really set a, ‘We are looking to raise this by this time,’ so that you give yourself a deadline, and you give the investors a deadline, and you can hold yourself to it.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Emilie Fritz Veloso, founder of One Tribe, an integrative, expert-led community...

“[You’re] spending money and growing not at a sustainable pace, but at this hyper-accelerated pace in order to rapidly take up market share and drown out competitors. When you keep raising money to do that, you keep giving more and more people big chunks of your business. The only way it works is if you have a little bit of luck, but also great execution, the ability to fundraise, and a great prod...

“Expose all of the elephants in the room. We just try to hide them… We're trying to throw our skirt up over the elephant… I have gone into everything. It's been a superpower. I'm like, ‘Here's the elephant. Here's the elephant. Here's the elephant. Yes, I'm new at this. Yes, you might be afraid of this. Yes, I understand that fear of yours around this, but here's why I'm still the person for this....

“It's not just about selling your products anymore. You need to know how your products work, you need to know what you're putting out there, and you need to be the expert at it so that you can educate your consumer. That also builds trust, so it's like, ‘Okay, she did the work. She has her license in cosmetology. She's a hair expert.’ And then being able to talk about it, I think that truly sets u...

“Nothing lasts forever, we're all gonna die. It’s all very short. So, having that perspective kind of makes you say, ‘We're not around for that long, we probably should make the most of it and be happy.’” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Aishwarya Iyer, founder and CEO of Brightland, a stylish olive oil, vinegar, and honey company that sources its products directly from small fam...

“We'll always meet with any business owner to talk about where they are today and what their goals are. That can lead to one of three results. One, we decide to move toward an exit planning and consulting process… The second option is we go to market, we've developed an assessment of value, and we agree that now is the time. And the third option is, it might not be the right option to sell and we'...

In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Dr. Ronak Mehta, founder and CEO of Nerdbugs, anatomically correct plush toys aimed at educating and engaging people about the human body. With a background as a family medicine doctor, Dr. Ronak has leveraged her expertise to develop the toys’ educational content. Her mission with Nerdbugs is to demystify medical and mental health conditions, cha...

“You really, really need to trust your gut. Human nature is everything. It's like your first date where everyone's on their best behavior. But when there's smoke, there's fire. If you feel something in your intuition, it's not right.”  -Ariana Chernin In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Jillian Lorenz and Ariana Chernin, co-founders of The Barre Code, a boutique fitness franchise ce...

“If you're not good at it, that is 100% okay. You don't need to be good at everything. But just make sure, in the beginning at least, you're spending a little extra time figuring it out—or you can lean on someone to look into it for you to make sure you're doing it right.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Abby Price, the founder of Abbode, who pivoted from her original venture in...

Hi Entreprenistas! It’s Steph here again with another quick minisode. Today, I’m sharing all about the inspiration behind making my 2024 all about wellness. You’ll hear some of my favorite wellness tips and secrets, why it pays to give yourself grace, and all about the importance of having an accountability partner.  You’re going to hear about:  My secret for prioritizing wellness: put everything...

Hi Entreprenistas! It’s Steph here and this year we are going to be bringing you content beyond our weekly interviews with founders. This is our first Minisode of the year and I am excited to share with you some of my best relationship building tips and how I handle events as an introverted extrovert. Plus I will be sharing a behind the scenes of what to expect at our upcoming Entreprenista Founde...

“I think you have to stay calm when the world is on fire. You might have a small fire, you might have a massive fire, but your job as a leader is to create that calm… There's days you feel like you're drowning, but you still have to be able to show up for your team, show up for your company.” In this episode of Entreprenista, we sat down with Tylar Brannon, CEO of Optimal Bio, a company that provi...

“We've helped founders secure so much money just by sticking to the foundations and not doing crazy-flashy things or over-thinking… We had one founder secure $85,000 in one pitch opportunity—the money really is out there.” -Kat Weaver In this episode of Entreprenista, we’re sitting down with angel investor Katie Dunn and serial entrepreneur Kat Weaver to talk about Power to Pitch, their joint vent...

“When we tie so much of our happiness to [the] brass ring… It really just keeps us even more insecure and more overachieving.” -Lisa Sun In this episode of Entreprenista, we sit down with fashion entrepreneur Lisa Sun, founder and CEO of Gravitas New York, a lifestyle and apparel company that’s revolutionizing the concept of shapewear. Lisa is also the best selling author of Gravitas: The 8 Streng...

“Sometimes when fear shows up, it's really pointing to a gap in knowledge” - Farnoosh Torabi  In this episode of Entreprenista, we sit down with Farnoosh Torabi, a trailblazer in the world of personal finance. The author, speaker, and host of the "So Money" podcast, shares with us her journey as the daughter of Iranian immigrants, becoming one of the world’s leading personal finance experts. Her l...