Amanda Tress – Founder/CEO of The FASTer Way to Fat Loss – From 11 Clients to Now Serving 110K Clients in Just 3.5 Years

October 2, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

I’m over the moon to share my guest, Amanda Tress, with you today.

Amanda is the Founder & CEO of The FASTer Way to Fat Loss –the premier virtual intermittent fasting fitness and nutrition program. She teaches her clients how to burn fat and live a truly healthy lifestyle through intermittent fasting, carb cycling, macro tracking, whole food nutrition, and strategic workouts.

Amanda started The FASTer Way just 3.5 years ago with 11 people, and now the program has more than 110,000 clients who are thriving!

On today’s show, Amanda talks all about how she has grown and scaled her business. She gets very transparent with me about what her journey has been like and the #1 skill entrepreneurs MUST possess to succeed, and much more.

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

I had 11 people in my first round of the FASTer way, they had incredible results and I immediately turned around and said ‘hey listen, I want to get this program into more households – will you help me?’.” – Amanda Tress

Show Notes:

Amanda’s simple “secret” to creating a brand that’s truly becoming a movement
How a visit to Lexington, Kentucky to see 20 women (which turned into 150 women) opened her eyes wide
How Amanda gained influencers and developed her marketing technique
Why “micro-influencers” are the key to early growth
Amanda could have 70,000 certified coaches and instead has 1700 – why she chooses to keep it small
Amanda’s very FIRST Steps to create a multi-million dollar brand in just 3.5 years
Amanda’s strategies to getting through the “dark, painful” days
How Amanda has GROWN and SCALED her business
The #1 Attribute a candidate must have to be considered for a spot on the FASTer Way Team
Why Amanda has decided NOT to raise money for the company
The #1 skill entrepreneurs MUST possess to succeed
Amanda’s tips on how to juggle raising a family (she has three children under the age of 10) while running a company experiencing rocket-ship growth
What Amanda has “concerns” about in the world of female entrepreneurship right now
And much, much more!

The best professional development out there is to be a business owner.” – Amanda Tress

Connect with Amanda Tress:

Facebook | Instagram | FASTer Way to Fat Loss

If you can develop interested in middle-America with little to no marketing then you must have a good product.” – Amanda Tress

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

September 18, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

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

Kim Kovacs – Founder/CEO of MyJane, Curated Cannabis Products Delivered to Your Front Door

September 11, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

When Kim Kovacs witnessed a close relative looking and acting 10 years younger (and relieved of the pain she had suffered for years from using opioids to combat the effects of cancer), she was intrigued. She found out this positive change and outlook on life was due to the use of cannabis products and at that moment, Kim decided to get serious and learn more about everything cannabis could do to help women.

Kim saw a void in the women’s cannabis space and decided to fill it by starting MyJane – a cannabis wellness community designed to help women feel better. MyJane sends a curated box of cannabis products right to your door delivered by women ambassadors who spend time educating each customer on the products.

On today’s show, Kim has a lot to share with you. She is a serial entrepreneur and investor across multiple sectors and has raised over $100 million in venture capital for companies that she has founded.

Kim talks about how MyJane got started, her best ACTION STEPS in growing MyJane thus far, her advice on fundraising, how the movie “Groundhog Day” gets her through tough times, and much, much more.

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

Let’s ask women what they want. Before we go ahead and do anything, let’s ask.” – Kim Kovacs

Show Notes:

How the name “MyJane” came about – it truly was a Perfect Storm
Why Kim decided to get her product DELIVERED in person by Female Brand Ambassadors
The GENIUS First Step Kim took that catapulted MyJane’s early growth – Simple & Easy
The MyJane model and WHY IT WORKS
The ONE thing MyJane is doing to ensure happy, loyal customers
Where your FOCUS has to be 24/7
Managing CASH FLOW in an extremely regulated industry
Her BIGGEST challenge
Why the movie “Groundhog Day” helps get her through the challenges of entrepreneurship
Her best advice on FUNDRAISING
The advice she hears being given in the entrepreneur arena that she doesn’t agree with
The Inventor versus the Entrepreneur Concept
Her Belief about Partnerships
What she wished someone would have told her BEFORE she entered the world of Entrepreneurship

Do your research as your fundraising. Find the right investors so you don’t spend time talking to people you don’t need to.” – Kim Kovacs

Connect with Kim Kovacs:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | MyJane

Once you crack that conversation about cannabis then the flood gates are open to talk about other things and we’re freely (now) talking about different things that I don’t think women used to talk about.” – Kim Kovacs

Christina Stembel, Founder/CEO, Farmgirl Flowers – A $30 Million Business Started with $49,000 in Savings

August 21, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

You do not want to miss this interview.

Originally from Indiana, Christina Stembel found herself in Silicon Valley where it seemed everyone was an entrepreneur. It was while investigating why flowers are so expensive for her employer at the time, Christina started to see potential big bucks in the flower industry. No college degree but she did have 49K in savings and that’s how Farmgirl Flowers was planted firmly in the ground.

Christina shares all of her tips and transparent insights on how she grew Farmgirl Flowers from nothing to an estimated projected 30M this year. She talks about her grassroots marketing that has grown the company, why and how to get started without investor money, and much more.

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

I wanted to take an industry and be either the first innovator or the first one doing it a completely different way.” – Christina Stembel

Show Notes:

CURIOSITY does not kill the cat; This is how Christina started out
The SURPRISING thing that happened when she was down to her last $411
Smart, Simple, Effective Tips for Grass Roots MARKETING – Truly Brilliant
The Two Most ESSENTIAL Skills You Must Develop if You Want to Grow and Scale
Bank and credit card tips for FUNDING your business
Why women should STOP waiting for investor money in most cases
How she reacted when someone told her to STUNT her Growth and “wait for the industry to catch up to her”

I wanted to test the market. I did not want to give up a decade of my life for something that was never going to work.” – Christina Stembel

Connect with Christina Stembel:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Farmgirl Flowers

I pivot all the time. We listen to our customers.” – Christina Stembel

Amy Franko – A Top Sales Blogger, Amazon Best-Selling Author, Sales Expert and Entrepreneur

July 24, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

If you don’t have all the clients or customers you want or need, you will want to block some time in your calendar to listen to this episode with my guest today, Amy Franko.

Amy is the author of the new best-selling book The Modern Seller: Sell More and Increase Your Impact in the New Sales Economy and she is also the founder of the Impact Instruction Group. The Modern Seller is an Amazon Bestseller and was also named a 2018 top sales book by Top Sales World. In addition, Amy is recognized by Top Sales World as one of the “Top 50 Sales Bloggers in the World”.

Today’s show is jam-packed with incredible business and sales advice, tips on building your network and using social media for business growth, how to write a book (even if you don’t really enjoy writing) and much more.

Enjoy the show!

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

People with strong networks can rise above the noise.” – Amy Franko

When you know those one or two very significant goals, that is going to give you the track to run on so that you can better prioritize your time.” – Amy Franko

Show Notes:

The Five Modern Selling Skill Sets
WHY your RELATIONSHIPS are the GOLD
WHY it’s essential to pivot between strategy and tactics
How to overcome the “I don’t have time to network” feeling you may be having
TIPS on how to create better business relationships (HINT: you don’t need to be an extrovert)
How to use SOCIAL MEDIA to build your business
How to write a book (even if writing doesn’t come easily to you)

If you want to build the skill, you can. It is the habits that you put into your everyday relationship building that becomes the ‘how’.” – Amy Franko

Links Mentioned:

Connect with Amy Franko:

LinkedIn | Twitter | Amy Franko

People who really get it (who are really intentional about building the RIGHT strategic relationships); they are focused on a big significant goal and that helps them make good choices about where they invest their time in building their networks.” – Amy Franko

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

May 1, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

She 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

Joanna McFarland – How HopSkipDrive Literally “Hopped and Skipped” Into a New Market That Has Resulted Into Explosive Growth Over the Last 500 Days

April 24, 2019 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

I’m excited to have Joanna McFarland back with us for an Encore interview! I interviewed Joanna back in October of 2017 and since that time, HopSkipDrive has literally “hopped and skipped” over their sales goals and catapulted themselves into a brand new market opportunity!

Joanna is the CEO and co-founder of HopSkipDrive, which is a safe and dependable ride share company for kids. After brainstorming with some frustrated parents at a child’s birthday party, they came up with a better way to provide transportation for their kids and HopSkipDrive was born.

On today’s show, Joanna talks about how HopSkipDrive KEPT their core message while uncovering a brand-new market that was craving what they had to offer.

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

Embrace it. Buy the ticket and take the ride and know that there are going to be moments when it is really hard. And know that you’re going to need to over-communicate and make sure that expectations are understood and that expectations are being met.” – Joanna McFarland

Show Notes:

The NEW MARKET that HopSkipDrive uncovered which led them to explosive growth (this is PURE Gold)
The person who has had a massive influence on her life and kept her going after 100 NO’s when she first started out
Why SAFETY is their #1 Core Value and the 15 point system they use to ensure safety on every ride
The mantra that keeps Joanna going (wise words from her hubby)
The secret to effective communication with your team during the scale-up phase
And much, much more…

Everything that we had put into solving this problem for consumers made the platform very easily extensible to schools as well.” – Joanna McFarland

Connect with Joanna McFarland:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | HopSkipDrive

It is really important to focus. There are so many opportunities that you can pursue and so it is really important to think about what are your best opportunities and make sure that you’re really focusing on those.” – Joanna McFarland

Sarah Naseer – Creating Good Products That Help Feed The World

November 7, 2018 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

They’ve provided meals to over 100M (yep, you read that right) children in 63 countries. How? Wait for it…selling handbags.

Today’s podcast is about entrepreneurship, but it’s also a PSA. My guest, Sarah Naseer, joins us to talk about FEED, a socially conscious company working every day to fight the war against hunger in a tangible way.

Sarah, President of FEED, oversees business development and growth strategies related to product marketing and merchandising. You’ll love what she has to say about how FEED has built an amazing company while changing the world!

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

Do your best to really push through whatever decision you decided to go with.” – Sarah Naseer

Show Notes:

WHY the company chose BAGS instead of shoes, clothing or jewelry
The GENIUS decision to put a Number on every bag and what the number means
What the proceeds from ONE BAG can do for a child
How Focusing on Collaborations and Partnerships early on were the BIGGEST & BEST Key Strategies
Why COMMUNITY is an essential ingredient in the mission of any business today
Why being both Focused & Nimble are core to their everyday teamwork
Managing CASH FLOW while still giving back

Women owe it to themselves to go into every meeting, every opportunity, every pitch, with confidence, and you don’t need to apologize for it.” – Sarah Naseer

Connect with Sarah Naseer:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | FEED Projects

You are your best advocate.” – Sarah Naseer

7 Business Essentials for Explosive Growth in 2019

October 3, 2018 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

You will cross the threshold to 2019 in less than 90 days.

Is your business ready?

Right now, you’re probably hard at work on accomplishing all the goals you set for yourself in 2018. And, you’re also probably beginning to ask yourself: “What changes or course-corrections do I need to make in order to start 2019 on a path to faster profits serving my treasured clients and customers?”

Your business or product is like a vehicle. You, the creator, the founder, are the driver of that vehicle.

On today’s show, I’ll walk you through the 7 Business Essentials for Explosive Business Growth and also how you can “fine tune” your leadership for uber success in 2019.

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

You need to make sure that you’re working in your genius and your highest level of creativity.” – Joy Chudacoff

Show Notes:

Simple tips to make sure you are accessing your GENIUS every day
The ONE thing you can easily do to bring more profit to your bottom line
The BEST strategy for your business
The INVISIBLE BLOCKS I see plague many women entrepreneurs and how they hold you back
Productivity Rituals to help you be at your best as a leader
WHY your business may be ‘satisfactorily underperforming’
How to build the team culture of your dreams
Your ticket to freedom as an entrepreneur
And much much more!

When you give yourself permission to take the time to prepare and plan for that next level of business growth, that next level of leadership, incredible leaps happen almost immediately.” – Joy Chudacoff

Links Mentioned:

Learn more about my Align Retreat 2019!!!!
Email, Call, or Text Kathy at kathy@smartwomensolutions.com or (310) 266-0416

It’s about being able to communicate that vision on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis to the people who are in this with you.” – Joy Chudacoff

Koel Thomae – How Cold-Calling a Dairy Farmer Turned Into a $170 Million Yoghurt Company

March 28, 2018 | By Joy Chudacoff Leave a Comment

On a trip home to Australia, Koel Thomae discovered a homemade yoghurt in a beach town corner shop, and she knew this was an entrepreneurial moment.

Inspired to bring the best-tasting yoghurt to the United States, Koel couldn’t stop thinking about the velvet tasting yoghurt that would one day become Noosa Yoghurt.

After cold-calling a fourth-generation dairy farmer in Colorado, Koel partnered with ‘Farmer’ Graves and brought Noosa Yoghurt to life.

What started in small farmers markets and local Whole Foods stores has led Noosa to be sold in 25,000 stores nationwide.

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

It is certainly ok to evolve things, but don’t ever get too far away from that core fundamental reason why you started the brand.” – Koel Thomae

Show Notes:

How a visit to Noosa, Australia led Koel to go on an entrepreneurial adventure
How her obsession with this yoghurt led her to a three-hour lunch that ultimately got her a “loose license” for the yoghurt
What it was like to QUIT her day JOB and jump right into her entrepreneurial idea
Why Koel took her life savings and put them into her business
WHY you should never over-think an idea
HOW she diverted Whole Foods attention when they initially didn’t like her packaging
Why she decided to pull out of a market that Noosa wasn’t ready for
A Deep Conversation on Cash Flow – pure gold
How Koel stayed PRODUCTIVE while building a business and raising a newborn
The ONE question Koel asks herself to stay on track every day
And much much more

I would say that if finance is not your strong suit, then get some really smart people who do know that and learn it really quickly.” – Koel Thomae

Connect with Koel Thomae:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | LinkedIn| noosa

Very simple productivity – tasks lists and really understanding what is the priority from what will most impact your business.” – Koel Thomae

Amanda Tress – Founder/CEO of The FASTer Way to Fat Loss – From 11 Clients to Now Serving 110K Clients in Just 3.5 Years

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

Show Notes:

Connect with Amanda Tress:

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

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

Show Notes:

Connect with Julie Deane:

Kim Kovacs – Founder/CEO of MyJane, Curated Cannabis Products Delivered to Your Front Door

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

Show Notes:

Connect with Kim Kovacs:

Christina Stembel, Founder/CEO, Farmgirl Flowers – A $30 Million Business Started with $49,000 in Savings

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

Show Notes:

Connect with Christina Stembel:

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

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

Show Notes:

Connect with Gail Becker:

7 Business Essentials for Explosive Growth in 2019

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

Show Notes:

Links Mentioned:

Koel Thomae – How Cold-Calling a Dairy Farmer Turned Into a $170 Million Yoghurt Company

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

Show Notes:

Connect with Koel Thomae:

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