Superwomen with Rebecca Minkoff

Cat Lee grew up with the intention of following in her father’s footsteps, and she did, for a while. After graduating from Stanford she immediately began work at Lockheed Martin where her father had made his career for 40 years. However, it wasn’t long until she realized that working in the defense industry was not kindling her passion for life. After pursuing an MBA, Cat graced the halls of Google, Facebook, and then Pinterest before realizing that what really gets her excited is angel investing and variations thereof. Now a partner at Maveron, an investment company that funds startups, Cat gets to do what she does best, breaking down barriers to entrepreneurship and helping to fund the next big rocketship! Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, ⁠Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success.⁠ Follow Superwomen on ⁠Instagram⁠. Big Ideas The cultural implications of not following your parents’ vision for your life. How to choose the right investment for you.  The importance of periodically checking in with yourself to make sure you’re staying true to who you are and what you want your life to be about.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever since she spent afternoons watching TRL and Oprah, Marianna Hewitt knew she wanted to be in entertainment. After various stints studying broadcast journalism, public relations, and hosting, a mix of timing and skill poised Marianna to become one of the first big influencers, first on YouTube and then through Instagram. Marianna’s understanding of PR and presenting helped her transform from influencer to full-fledged entrepreneur. Her background and sharp wit ensured she had the boss babe skills to build a business with longevity. Summer Fridays, her cruelty-free skincare line, is evidence of that. Now in its fifth year, Summer Fridays continues to grow and expand with each successful new product launch. The best part? Marianna loves creating products that help her customers feel confident and beautiful. Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Social Media @marianna_hewitt @summerfridays YouTube Guest Website SummerFridays.com LifeWithMe.com Life with Marianna Podcast Big Ideas Different ways to start a business. Stacking and categorizing tasks to support both boundaries and productivity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jenny Fleiss has been an entrepreneur since she was a child. Where most kids are content to simply sell lemonade by the cup, she spent her summer days figuring out how to bundle products, the best form of signage, and what location would generate the highest number of sales. That spirit stayed with her as she grew older, always finding creative ways to solve a problem, like the time she duct taped her heel on the fly. Co-founding both Rent the Runway and Jet Black, Jenny has only picked up steam since her lemonade days. Ever the entrepreneurial mind, she is constantly excited by ways of growing and adapting her businesses to the ever-changing needs of her audience. But that doesn’t mean that business solutions have to be complicated. According to Jenny, one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself is learning how to work creatively with what you have. Thanks for listening! We love our listeners! Drop us a line or give us guest suggestions here, or visit https://anchor.fm/superwomen/messages on your desktop or phone to leave us a voice memo! Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Big Ideas “Passing the baton” – leaving a good team in place when stepping down from a leadership position. [10:35] Two main categories of innovation: improvements on existing products and creating new products people didn’t know they wanted. [16:21] Creating an active role for your children in your business: talking to them about what you do and inviting their opinions on things. [20:59] Links HBR After Hours Podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

*This interview was released in November 2019. Kerry is no longer with Rothy’s.* When Kerry Cooper was hired as a consultant for sustainable footwear company, Rothy's, she didn’t think she’d be sticking around. After working for multiple successful companies, Kerry enjoyed the flexibility that consulting gave her. It wasn’t long, however, before the company culture won her over. Built upon a strong foundation of eco-minded operations, Kerry enjoyed the work the company was doing as much as the people doing it. Rothy’s loved her too. In her second year there sales soared to $140 million in direct to consumer sales. Even more impressive, however, is the fact that that those shoes were made from 38 million plastic water bottles saved from a long, slow demise in a landfill. They’re proving you can drink your water and wear it too. Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Big Ideas How to scale and build a team that is complementary to each others’ skill sets. The importance of standing up for yourself and asking for what you want or need. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bed. We spend a third of our lives there, and yet oftentimes, our beds, or what we put on them, become somewhat of an afterthought. Ariel Kaye sought to change that. After spending some years in advertising, Ariel came to a point where she was looking for more excitement, and more of a direct way to connect with people. She had always been passionate about interior design and home goods, going so far as to maintain her own blog on the subject in her free time. As she was pondering a change in career, it dawned on her that there were little to no direct to consumer options for bedding. That is when the idea for Parachute Home was born. Now in its fifth year and about to open the fifth brick and mortar (!), Ariel fondly recalls the early days when she would drive around in her car, delivering orders directly to buyers in Los Angeles. Growth and success have come with their own challenges. Here Ariel discusses entrepreneurial ups and downs, what makes her passionate about her company, and how at the heart of it all it’s really about building relationships. Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Big Ideas The changes that come with viewing your business as relationship-based rather than transaction-based. The invaluable importance of knowing your customer base well and growing with their needs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You don’t often hear people touting the benefits of seeing the glass half-empty, but Anna Harman believes that’s what makes her an effective decision maker in tumultuous times. After launching Studs piercing stores in 2019, the company quickly needed to grow an online presence in order to make it through the pandemic without closing permanently. Luckily Anna’s long-term vision helped them navigate a path to success. Now customers can get a top-notch piercing experience in 15 locations throughout the country, and find quality, affordable jewelry on Studs’ website 24/7! Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Social Media @studs Big Ideas How the role of a founder shifts as the company grows. How to market your product when you no longer represent your target audience. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

*At the time of this interview, Amy Shecter was the CEO of Glamsquad. She is now the CEO of Ever/Body.* How would your life be different if you were less afraid to make mistakes, to “fail”? Amy Shecter doesn’t think women let themselves fail enough, and she thinks it’s high time we become less risk-averse. Statistically, she says, women will only take risks when they feel 95-100% confident in a favorable outcome, versus the average man, who will take the same risk at only 50% confidence. And what, really, is there to lose? Most of the time a supposed failure simply means you’re that much closer to the next success. Amy spent years in fashion and footwear before delving into the world of fitness and beauty. She immediately saw it as an expanding consumer market. Now the CEO of Glamsquad, a company that brings hair, nail and makeup artists to your door, Amy finds excitement not only in great products and services for clients, but also in the fact that Glamsquad gives freelance beauty professionals a platform to support themselves. Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Big Ideas Why saving time is so valuable to consumers. H-Commerce - the home as a new basis for services and revenue. “Competition” as an opportunity to seed the market. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Natalie Dawson and her husband sold their company, they had pretty much achieved every entrepreneur’s dream. But settling into a pseudo-retirement lifestyle didn’t sit well with Natalie, and it wasn’t long before she was brainstorming the next big way to make an impact. Pairing with Grant Cardone, Natalie co-founded Cardone Ventures, a management consulting firm that helps businesses grown tenfold and more. Natalie now trains founders in how to be radically honest in their team-building process in order to create the company culture and achieve the results that their goals reflect. Most importantly, she’s reminding women that it’s okay to dream big – and when you achieve success, you’re in a better position to help the world around you. Get a free copy of Natalie’s book at https://www.10xteams.com/teamwork-3 Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Guest Website TheNatalieDawson.com CardoneVentures.com WorkWoman Podcast Cardone Ventures Events Social Media @natalieworkman @thenataliedawson Big Ideas How to strategically build your teams by being honest and in expectations. Links Teamwork: How to Build a High-Performance Team Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jaclyn Johnson, one of our favorite serial entrepreneurs, is back and ready to share some of her most helpful insights as a recent co-founder of a venture capital brand. New Money Ventures seeks to invest in women-led brands that make it their mission to disrupt traditional models of products and distribution, and if they see a hole in the market with no one to fill it, they start the company themselves! Through Create & Cultivate and now her own VC firm, Jaclyn continues to champion fellow female founders to grow their businesses and build long-term wealth. The best thing you can do as an entrepreneur? Use your unique skillset to build a passion-driven business, and you don’t even need VC to begin! Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Guest Website DrinkMaie.com Social Media @jaclynrjohnson Big Ideas The many methods of funding, and why venture capital may not always be the right choice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’ll address the big question first: Christina Stembel of Farmgirl Flowers really did  grow up on a farm. Growing up in northern Indiana, Christina was expected to  fulfill her womanly duties as a wife and mother while her brother went  off to college. But Christina had other plans. She hightailed it to New York within two weeks of  graduating from high school and started working. Christina did not grow up with a lot of people cheering her on and wishing her success, and that made her strive for it all the more. Over some years and many different ideas, she saw that the floral industry held an opportunity to do exactly what she desired in starting her own business: disrupt the status quo, create scalability, and do good in the world. While not without its challenges (who knew the floral industry could be so cutthroat?), Christina has scaled from 56K her first year of business to $31 million 8 years later. As Christina fondly says, success is the best revenge. Thanks for listening!  Don't forget to order Rebecca's new book, Fearless: The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage, and Success. Follow Superwomen on Instagram. Big Ideas Less than 3% of women get funding from venture capital. Discussing the disparity in capital support between male and female founders. The value in trusting your instincts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices