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Smart Women Smart Solutions

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

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

Gail Schenbaum – Achieving Massive Growth with the Umergency App in the Last 18 Months

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Gail Schenbaum on She's Got Moxie with Joy ChudacoffThis week, I’m having Gail Schenbaum, Founder & CEO of Umergency, back on the show as one of my encore interviews!

Gail was first on She’s Got Moxie in March 2018 to talk about how she created the Umergency app for college students and their parents’ in emergency situations.

After receiving a middle of the night phone call from her own daughter (who was in an ambulance) while she was across the country attending college, Gail knew that she had to do something to make it easier for parents to get in touch with their kids in emergency situations.

The Umergency app prepares and empowers college students, their parents, and extended families with the real-time tools they need to navigate through any emergency, health or safety situation at the touch of a button.

The content is college-specific, and comes pre-loaded with data for over 1200 colleges, including local emergency services, on-campus resources, trusted contacts, a GPS enabled urgent alert beacon, built-in access to national crisis hotlines, and the ability to upload secure copies of students’ insurance card and signed medical consent form.

Umergency removes confusion and chaos from an urgent situation, before it happens.

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

You still have to go back and trust your gut. But many times, people who know a lot in a certain area bring many ‘aha’ moments to you.” – Gail Schenbaum

Show Notes:

  • How Umergency has achieved massive growth in the last 18 months
  • The staggering statistics about college students and ER visits and what parents really need to know
  • The creative “gorilla marketing” that Gail is using to gain brand awareness for the Umergency App
  • Gail discusses the things you must do to get your product or service in the hands of the right consumer
  • Gail’s BIGGEST CHALLENGE and how she gets through it
  • The SECRET TOOL that has positively influenced Gail’s life
  • Why Gail ASKS for advice often
  • The ADVICE she would give to entrepreneurs who are experiencing growth
  • How she makes DECISIONS for the business
  • And much, much more…

No matter how fast you’re moving, don’t forget to take time to plan. Because you can get lost in the details (especially with technology) and there is so many moving parts.” – Gail Schenbaum

Connect with Gail Schenbaum:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Umergency

What really helps me is to connect with other entrepreneurs who are going through similar stuff.” – Gail Schenbaum

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

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Christina Stembel on She's Got Moxie with Joy ChudacoffYou 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

Carly Stein – How a Chance Encounter With a European Pharmacist Turned Into The #1 Cold & Flu Product on Amazon

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Carly Stein on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

My guest Carly Stein was studying abroad when a bout of chronic tonsillitis sent her to a pharmacy in search of a cure. What she learned was kind of a miracle.

Carly is the CEO and founder of BeeKeeper’s Naturals, a company committed to “reinventing the medicine cabinet” through the healing power of bees. Her product for colds & flu is currently #1 on Amazon and she’s been recognized as a game-changing entrepreneur on the 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 list.

On today’s show, Carly talks about how to build a loyal customer base and a robust social media following, why bees have medicinal properties, how she has overcome her biggest challenges, how she has built an amazing team of loyal and passionate people and much more.

 

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

The amazing thing is that everything is so accessible. Every single one of us can figure it out.” – Carly Stein

Show Notes:

  • The FIRST step she took to give the business traction
  • Her SIMPLE, SIMPLE strategies to build a loyal following and awareness – “I didn’t know anything!”
  • Refreshing, easy to follow grass roots strategies
  • How to use SOCIAL MEDIA to help build your business – she should know. Her Instagram boasts over 100K followers!
  • Why bees have medicinal properties
  • She didn’t allow an inquiry from LinkedIn to throw her; instead she figured it out
  • The MINDSET to adopt when building a new business
  • How Carly overcame the biggest challenge in her business
  • Cash flow tips on how to handle the fluctuation in sales when you are marketing a product
  • Advice she doesn’t agree with in the start-up arena
  • The surprising new app to help with workflow
  • Tips for building a great A+ TEAM

What you’re doing at every single step every single day is building muscle memory. The muscle memory that you’re building is how to respond to challenges with resilience.” – Carly Stein

Connect with Carly Stein:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | BeeKeeper’s Naturals

I know that failure is not the end of a line for me. It is just a red flag that is showing me to go a different way.” – Carly Stein

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

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Amy Franko on She's Got Moxie with Joy ChudacoffIf 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

Beata Kirr – A Wake Up Call For Women About Wealth Building

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Beata Kirr on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

In full disclosure, I met my guest Beata Kirr at a presentation that I was convinced was going to be fairly boring. I actually thought it was going to give me thirty minutes to scan my email feed and swipe right to delete : -). Guess what? I was wrong. Once I heard Beata share some of the most recent research on women and money, I put my phone away and grabbed a pen and paper.

Beata Kirr is the National Managing Director in the Alliance Bernstein Chicago office. She was appointed Head of Private Client Core Asset Strategies of Bernstein in 2017. Beata is a member of Bernstein’s Private Client Investment Policy Group, which oversees strategic asset allocation for high-net-worth, nonprofit and family clients.

Beata has provided market commentary for the Chicago Tribune, WGN News, NPR and the Wall Street Journal. She is passionate about helping women investors succeed, and she speaks frequently to women’s groups nationally. Beata is also the host of “Bernstein Insights” Women & Wealth podcast series.

On today’s show, Beata dives into some surprising stats, how we as women can manage our wealth better, and more.

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

It is undeniable that women are a force to be reckoned with in terms of the financial decision-making power that they have.” – Beata Kirr

Show Notes:

  • The surprising facts about women creating wealth today – this is GREAT news!
  • Women continually say they’re not good with numbers but that’s not what the research shows
  • The THREE Critical numbers you need to know NOW
  • Startling facts about Women and WHY it’s essential that Women Need their Money to last longer
  • How to identify and rectify ACCIDENTAL SPENDING
  • You know your height & weight but do you know how much you are spending?
  • The 5 things women need to know about CREATING WEALTH
  • Easy to use Budget App suggestions to easily get going
  • Important information to consider when it comes to INSURANCE
  • What you can do today to get started on your path to wealth management – easy, doable steps to take Today
  • Why you need to keep your records up to date and FRESH. Beata shares a bit of a horror story here and I had a story too!

95% of women are going to be making the financial decisions for their households at some point in their lives – 95%!” – Beata Kirr

Connect with Beata:

Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn | Alliance Bernstein Women &Wealth

Next time you say ‘I’m going to do spring cleaning’ or hire someone to clean your windows, think about an audit of your assets at the same time.” – Beata Kirr

Lori Caden – Belly Bandit Co-Founder and Entrepreneurial Powerhouse Creating Solutions for Women

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Lori Caden on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

After a difficult moment in the cat litter aisle at Target that sent her running from the store, my guest Lori Caden, came to the conclusion that there had to be an easier way to look and feel better after childbirth.

Along with the collaboration of her two sisters, Lori co-founded their company, Belly Bandit, in 2008 and revolutionized the maternity world by introducing the first doctor-recommended, postpartum compression wrap. The Belly Bandit has had a major thumbs by Hollywood moms including Halle Berry, Jessica Alba and Kourtney Kardashian.

She’s full of energy and enthusiasm and additional new clothing lines, such as “Mother Tucker” are available online and also at Neiman Marcus.

 

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

All of our products are solution-based products.” – Lori Caden

Show Notes:

  • Lori’s embarrassing moment in Target that started the idea for Belly Bandit
  • How she got some early traction from major celebrity moms
  • The “old-school” marketing technique that put them on the map and helped them get noticed
  • The VERTICAL MARKET that Lori never expected to go into
  • How her new line, “Mother Tucker” shapewear came about
  • What it is like to be in business with her SISTERS
  • The 3 questions she asks herself before she says “yes!” to a new idea
  • And much, much more

Don’t be scared to ask for help to get to the next level.” – Lori Caden

Connect with Lori Caden:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Belly Bandit

As soon as people started asking for it, we would cut and sew these samples and hand them out.” – Lori Caden

Raegan Moya-Jones – Creating a 100M Blockbuster Biz With Baby Blankets

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Raegan Moya-Jones on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

When my guest, Raegan Moya-Jones, couldn’t find the muslin-fabric baby blankets that were a swaddling tradition from her native Australia, she set out to make her own.

In 2006, Raegan co-founded aden + anais, the baby lifestyle brand globally recognized for its high-quality, design-driven muslin swaddles and baby products. Aden + anais is a $100 million-dollar company today. You might recognize them because Prince George made his first public debut wrapped in an aden + anais blanket!

On today’s show, Raegan talks about what she waited for in order to quit her full-time job at The Economist Group (she worked there until 2009), what it was like when her co-founder/partnership fell apart, why she decided to go from “babies to booze” and much more.

I think you’ll find today’s show raw and authentic, helpful and inspiring.

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

There was definitely a period of time where I thought ‘well if I really want to spread my wings and do what I think I am capable of doing (that nobody else seems to think that I’m capable of), then I’m just going to have to go out there and do my own thing.” – Raegan Moya- Jones

Show Notes:

  • The TWO ingredients that carried Raegan through the first five years
  • The “old-school” marketing tool Raegan used to get her products into retail locations
  • Raegan’s humorous story about not having time to wash her hair for 15 days (too funny and I can relate!)
  • What it was like to watch the CELEBRITY who used her product for his public debut
  • What is was like to go through the loss of a good friend who was also her business partner
  • Raegan’s open, raw, transparent discussion about her many moments in the “fetal position”
  • WHY Raegan decided to start a second company
  • Business advice for women that she completely disagrees with
  • What it was like to be fired from a business that she co-founded and built to 100M

The first five years of aden + anais was basically hard work and Google that got me through it.” – Raegan Moya-Jones

Connect with Raegan Moya-Jones:

LinkedIn | Instagram – Raegan Moya-Jones | Raegan Moya-Jones

Saint Luna Spirits | Facebook – Saint Luna | Instagram – Saint Luna

aden + anais | Facebook – aden + anais | Instagram – aden + anais | Twitter – aden + anais

The big mistake that people make is they think they can’t do it because they don’t know how, but if you want it badly enough you really can just teach yourself. It was very much a one foot in front of another process for me.” – Raegna Moya-Jones

Heather Dominick – How to Succeed as a Highly Sensitive Entrepreneur

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Heather Dominick on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

When my guest, Heather Dominick, hit the million-dollar mark – it wasn’t a celebratory moment. She was burnt out, overwhelmed, and suspected that something wasn’t quite right.

That’s when Heather found out she was a Highly Sensitive Person, which is a trait that some people are born with. With that, Heather knew she had to figure out how to make entrepreneurship work for her. She became the founder and leader of the Highly Sensitive Entrepreneur® movement with her company, Business Miracles.

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

Really be willing to do the work to know who you are and how it is that you are meant to serve through your business.” – Heather Dominick

Show Notes:

  • What it means to be a highly sensitive entrepreneur
  • Heather offers INSIGHT on how to spot if you might be a highly sensitive entrepreneur
  • How “pushing” challenges the highly sensitive person
  • Her BEST Tips and coping strategies for entrepreneurs who are highly sensitive
  • How COPING can turn into CREATING for the highly sensitive entrepreneur
  • Why being highly sensitive can actually be a STRENGTH for entrepreneurs
  • Her most EFFECTIVE step to grow her business – BRILLIANT and surprising!
  • The ADVICE she hears about entrepreneurship that she absolutely DOESN’T agree with (“it’s shaming and manipulative”)
  • How to see yourself differently in order to overcome challenges of being a highly sensitive entrepreneur
  • Why Heather LOVES Pineapples and the meaningful significance they provide to her business

I remind myself daily how absolutely smack-down privileged I am to be able to be working in this space and energy of creation on a day-to-day basis.” – Heather Dominick

Connect with Heather Dominick:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Business Miracles

I don’t know it all and I’m not supposed to know it all, again, definitely not before taking action.” – Heather Dominick

Kate Torgersen – From a 4-Day Business Trip Disaster to Becoming The Founder & Creator of Milk Stork

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Kate Torgersen on She's Got Moxie with Joy Chudacoff

When she was detained by TSA after a business trip and asked to drain the ice around her carry-on breast milk bag before she could enter the plane, Kate Torgersen knew she had to do something. Kate knew she wasn’t the only working mom dealing with this. She’d heard horror stories about moms in broom closets at the office pumping milk and she saw the need.

The day after that disastrous event, Kate Torgersen decided to create Milk Stork, the FIRST and ONLY breast milk travel solution for working moms. She called her dad with the business idea to provide a service to help mothers easily ship their breast milk home, and with that, the idea was born.

Kate’s mom-led innovation and entrepreneurship have been chronicled in publications such as the Harvard Business Review, New York Magazine, Lifehacker, Fortune and Travel + Leisure.

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

My north star for the whole thing was that it had to be a two minute experience for moms in the hotel room and it had to be a two-minute experience placing an order.” – Kate Torgersen

Show Notes:

  • Kate knew she needed a “2-minute experience” for her idea to work
  • How she took her “DISRUPTIVE” idea and broke it down into manageable pieces in the beginning
  • The moment she knew she was on to something….it was right after she “flipped the switch”
  • Milk Stork was a side hustle for three years….she kept her day job at Cliff Bar for a long time (true inspiration for women who have a business idea but they aren’t quite ready to leave their day job)
  • The surprise phone call Kate received while in her mini-van that changed EVERYTHING
  • How Milk Stork tapped into an ENTERPRISE market
  • The KEY to gaining TRACTION
  • What it means to be a “painkiller not a vitamin” – BRILLIANT
  • Her Cash Flow Metaphor – GENIUS
  • What Kate does to recover from entrepreneurial fatigue
  • WHY she went about hiring differently than most other companies
  • The BIG Difference in having a career and owning a business
  • The advice she wished someone would have shared with her early on

If you don’t have good operations in place, traction can become a problem.” – Kate Torgersen

Connect with Kate Torgersen:

Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Milk Stork

Once we launched and got that first order, I knew that was never going to be quitting. There was no quitting because once you get traction you can’t quit. It is kind of like being a parent. Once you give birth, there is not really an ‘out’.” – Kate Torgersen

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