Smart Women Smart Solutions

With Joy Chudacoff, Leading Expert on Business Success and Lifestyle Design For Women

The Problem with the “Never Ending” Harvest

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This is from one of my Instagram LIVES (I’m LIVE every Thursday at 7amPT – grab your coffee and join me!)

There’s a lot being asked of us and even the Wall Street Journal devoted a whole section to it this week. This pandemic is affecting women more than any other sector of the population… and not in a good way.

Click on the video below to listen-in:

This is EXACTLY where we’re headed in my private membership group, ALIGN online. We’re focused on finishing 2020 strong. If you’ve decided not to “cancel” 2020 and unearth the GOLD that will come out of this time for you and your business, head on over to https://smartwomensolutions.com/align-online, fill out an application and join us!

One of the many benefits of ALIGN online is our private forum. I’m in there every day offering support, business advisory and answering questions to help you move forward and finish the year strong.

We’re taking applications now so if you’d like to learn more & jump on board, contact Kathy@SmartWomenSolutions.com or call/text 310-266-0416.

Read all about ALIGN online:

SmartWomenSolutions.com/align-online

Ashley Merrill – Taking a Deep Dive on The Process of Business Growth

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Ashley Merrill on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff“Things break all the time.” My guest today, Ashley Merrill, CEO & Founder of Lunya, the modern sleepwear for women, takes a deep dive into what it means to grow and scale a boot-strapped business. She’s had blockbuster growth over the last 18 months and on today’s episode she gets radically transparent about what the journey has been like.

IF you are looking to grow your business in 2020 and have a goal to hire an A+ Team and truly understand what it means to lead, do not miss this episode. Ashley breaks down her hiring process, step-by-step, as well as her thoughts on leadership.

 

You can Subscribe and Listen to the Podcast on Apple Podcasts. And be sure to leave me a Rating and Review!

Once everybody is in the spot that they are really going to be successful in and they know what they’re supposed to do, it is amazing what you’re able to accomplish.” – Ashley Merrill

Show Notes:

  • HOW she came up with the idea
  • How to create an A+ TEAM – she breaks this down step-by-step
  • WHY it’s essential to be tapped into your core client for all decisions
  • How she came to the decision to create a men’s line – Lahgo
  • Her BEST Action Steps to Create momentum that continues to build
  • How she pushes through when “everything is breaking with an endless stream of challenges”
  • Ashley’s KEY to productivity as a mom with young kids while growing a business
  • The way to think about HIRING when it comes to hiring junior and senior hires – the process is extremely different
  • Why Ashley feels getting uncomfortable and expressing humility with a team is ESSENTIAL but it’s not a sign of weakness
  • She’s discovered that LEADERSHIP is what happens when the chips are down
  • Why she gets up so early and why she feels it’s important to honor your energy rhythms

The big game-changers have been a lot of org adjustments and a lot of really wonderful hires.” – Ashley Merrill

Connect with Ashley Merrill:

Instagram | The Deep | Lahgo | Lunya

Early on in the brand a lot of it is about you personally and how much you can do as an entrepreneur. But as the company has grown, hiring has been what has really enabled us to grow – getting the right people in the right spots.” – Ashley Merrill

Julie Deane – She Took 600 Pounds and Turned It Into a Company Valued at 40 Million Pounds Making Satchels

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Julie Deane on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

I’m so excited to share this humorous, transparent, Encore Interview with Julie Deane, Founder/CEO of Cambridge Satchel. If you haven’t heard her past interviews on my podcast, I invite you to go back and listen because they are a few of the most popular episodes we’ve ever done!

We’re bringing Julie Deane back on the show today because her company, Cambridge Satchel, has had tremendous growth over the past 18 months, but not without challenges and I needed to pick her brain on how she did it.

On today’s show, Julie talks about what it really means to scale a business, when you should let go, and how to take the reins of your company back if things stray from your vision, and much more.

 

You can Subscribe and Listen to the Podcast on Apple Podcasts. And be sure to leave me a Rating and Review!

It was the fact that we did everything differently from the big corporates around us, and that’s why they couldn’t compete with us. Because they never knew where we were going to come from next.” – Julie Deane

Show Notes:

  • WHY she needed to start a business in the first place – she had a real need
  • She had 600 pounds to invest; she needed 24,000 pounds – in 8 weeks. Yikes!
  • The FIRST step she took – so simple you’ll be shocked
  • The ONE THING to keep with you forever as an entrepreneur
  • The WORST thing that can happen to an entrepreneur
  • How she reclaimed the culture that made Cambridge Satchel an overnight success
  • The GRASSROOTS marketing that Cambridge Satchel has developed in the past 18 months
  • Julie’s SILVER BULLETS for getting through the hard days
  • And much, much more

It is a very strange smoke and mirrors kind of world that was not for us.” – Julie Deane

Connect with Julie Deane:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Cambridge Satchel

I’m not going to let myself feel like a failure because what this company was set to do was to send my kids to a great school. And they have gone to a great school, so it did that.” – Julie Deane

Kelly Love – How a Summer “Detox” With Her BFF From College Led to The Start of Branch Basics

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When Kelly Love’s college roommate, Allison Evans, started having health problems, which led to lots of medications with little or no relief, Kelly was concerned.

After graduation, Kelly and Allison decided to spend the summer with Allison’s “Aunt Marilee” doing a “detox.” Their eyes were opened wide when they began to learn about the harmful chemicals that people are exposed to everyday. It was during this summer experience, the three of them decided to start Branch Basics – a non-toxic cleaning product company to create a healthy home.

On today’s show, Kelly gets very vulnerable and transparent about her entrepreneurial journey thus far. She talks about what it was like to partner with her college roommate, how the company survived their biggest challenge (they even had to close for a bit), her advice on managing cash flow + more. 

You can Subscribe and Listen to the Podcast on Apple Podcasts. And be sure to leave me a Rating and Review!

It is totally ok to figure it out as you go.” – Kelly Love

Show Notes:

  • Their philosophy on the easiest way to take that FIRST step to living a healthy life
  • Their initial product was an enormous success….until it wasn’t
  • How they handled the embarrassment of having to close their doors and what they did next that has created BLOCKBUSTER success today (MOST people would have given up)
  • How Branch Basics is riding the “minimalist” movement
  • Tips for finding the right manufacturer for your product
  • The BEST decision they’ve ever made after re-launching the company
  • How to handle CASH Flow decisions; simple, smart advice
  • The words of wisdom she wished someone would have shared with her early on – PURE GOLD

It needed to work as well or better than the conventional product or else people weren’t going to stick to it.” – Kelly Love

Connect with Kelly Love:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Branch Basics

Just getting started and knowing that you’re going to improve over time is key.” – Kelly Love

Gail Becker – On Track to $100 Million in Just Two Years….Selling Cauliflower

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Gail Becker on She's Got Moxie with Joy ChudacoffShe had no food or nutrition experience. What she did have was two sons with Celiac disease. This is another Epic Encore interview with Gail Becker, the genius, Founder and CEO of Caulipower, a company that offers tasty, affordable and nutritious alternatives to highly-processed foods.

CAULIPOWER is on track to reach $100 million this year and her pizzas are in 22,000 retail stores… on their 2nd BIRTHDAY!!! They’ve had explosive growth in the last 575 days (since she was FIRST on the show) and Gail gets real, raw and transparent about her journey so far. She’s both funny and serious about her path and her attitude is infectious.

 

You can Subscribe and Listen to the Podcast on Apple Podcasts. And be sure to leave me a Rating and Review!

When you become an entrepreneur, you are betting on yourself – hook, line and sinker.” – Gail Becker

Show Notes:

  • The people she listens to most when deciding on new product lines
  • Her BEST Advice on how to handle fast & furious business growth
  • Her perspective on how to build an A+ Team
  • The Challenges that go along with being a Disrupter in your industry
  • Gail admits she has DAILY Struggles as an entrepreneur and how she copes
  • What really drives her (it’s not about Money for her)
  • Why a personal mission is important in business
  • How she went from a high-paying successful career one day to making nothing the next

You have to have people that are as passionate about the business as you are.” – Gail Becker

Connect with Gail Becker:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | CAULIPOWER

Always know what you don’t know and hire against that.” – Gail Becker

Ianthe Mauro – From SNL to Telling Stories Through Fragrance as the Founder & CEO of Objects With Purpose Candles

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Ianthe Mauro on She's got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

Ladies, you do not want to miss this interview. It’s real, raw and illuminating : -).

She was dealing with a serious health challenge combined with going through a divorce. Ianthe Mauro, CEO & Founder of Objects With Purpose Candles found that lighting a candle was the one action step she could take every day to soothe her soul.

But an interesting thing occurred during this time. Ianthe soon found out that the ingredients used to manufacture many candles weren’t good for her. So she did what most entrepreneurial women do; she saw a problem and she set out to solve it. It’s been over a decade now and the results have been amazing.

Ianthe’s candles have appeared in the Oscar Swag bag, The Hollywood Medium, The Today Show with Kathie Lee and Hoda, Dr. Oz, Let’s Make a Deal and The Price Is Right. Her candles have become the “go to” gift in Hollywood.

You can Subscribe and Listen to the Podcast on Apple Podcasts. And be sure to leave me a Rating and Review!

I’m allowing myself to be ok just focusing on a few things in my business rather than trying to do everything at once.” – Ianthe Mauro

Show Notes:

  • How going through both an illness and a divorce put her on a path to creating her own eco-friendly luxury candle.
  • How she made her very FIRST candle.
  • Her BEST Action Steps to be featured in major media and have her candles in over 200 stores.
  • The tried and true marketing method that got her noticed in Hollywood.
  • WHY taking imperfect Action is Key to Growth.
  • How she became known as the “scent expert.”
  • How she continues to overcome her Biggest Business CHALLENGE.
  • The MOMENT she almost gave up (this is vulnerable, transparent and involves $24 and “fancy glass” milk bottles.)
  • Her Best PRODUCTIVITY TIPS.
  • AND MUCH, MUCH MORE.

‘No’ is extremely powerful.” – Ianthe Mauro

Connect with Ianthe Mauro:

Facebook | YouTube | Twitter | Objects With Purpose

Fragrance is an opportunity for me to tell the story in a product that is outside of me.” – Ianthe Mauro

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