Posts tagged: The Mentor Files

Lindsay Pinchuk did something most expectant mothers would never do. At eight weeks pregnant, she started a business. After realizing that moms and moms-to-be needed a place to meet and connect with one another, she decided to create the community herself.Eight years later, The Bump Club and Beyond has sold out more than 1,000 events in over thirty cities and has a community of more than 300,000 parents and parents-to-be across the country.Today, Lindsay and Monica discuss how to best launch an event and work with national partners, how she...

With a tagline of “Fewer, Better Things,” Cuyana might be one of the only fashion brands that encourages their customers to actually purchase less. The cutting edge brand offers high quality leather products at an accessible price point by sourcing different materials from around the world.Along with her co-founder Shilpa Shah, Karla Gallardo spent two years building their companies supply chain before launching Cuyana in 2013. At the time, consumers had not yet grasped the idea of affordable luxury with a direct-to-consumer model.Listen in as Karla and Monica discuss how...

Mr. & Mrs. Smith co-founders, Tamara and James Lohan first came up with the idea for a carefully curated collection of hotels after their first international trip as a couple turned out to be quite disastrous. The experience led them to write down every single thing they would want from a hotel. Those notes quickly became their business plan. What originally started as a guidebook has now become Mr. & Mrs. Smith, a carefully curated collection of 1,000+ boutique and luxury hotels across the globe.Mr. & Mrs. Smith quickly gained...

'As an entrepreneur, you have a few, go-to key advisors. For me, Bobby Yazdani rises to the top of my list. In many ways, he's a start-up 'coach'. He doesn't lay out the answers for me, but gives me tools I need to help Monica + Andy grow. He has the keen ability to, as he says, 'see around the corner' and help use those insights to build processes that foster our growth. I'm so excited to share his invaluable insights with all of you.' - MonicaAs the founder and...

One weekend while studying abroad in Italy, Ariel Kaye checked into a boutique hotel on the Amalfi Coast and got into bed after a long day of travel. She felt sheets that were softer and more luxurious than anything she had ever experienced. The experience stuck with her.Ariel went on to graduate from NYU before spending ten years at an agency in brand development and advertising. In 2012, she was shopping for bedding and was faced with overpriced monotonous products. So in 2014, with those Amalfi Coast boutique hotel sheets...

When Morgan Hutchinson had her first child, she realized no one in the online retail market was catering to that fashionable mom who wanted to wear her favorite brands through every stage of motherhood. She wanted on trend machine washable clothing with easy access for nursing and more forgiving silhouettes. When she couldn't find it herself, she decided to curate it on her own and become the go-to style resource for pregnant women and new moms. Buru, a multi-brand ecommerce site dedicated to elevated style for moms was born. Today,...

If you're a mom or dad, you probably have one of today's guest's products in your home (and if you don't, you might wish you did)! Chelsea Hirschhorn is the president and CEO of Fridababy, a solutions based brand committed to making parents' lives easier by offering revolutionary products to safely and easily tackle common baby issues at home.Fridababy products are sold in 30,000 stores across the country and last year alone sold more than 2 million of their signature product The NoseFrida.In this episode. Chelsea shares the story behind...

Jacq Tatelman and her husband Scott are the Brooklyn-based duo behind State Bags, a one for one company that is making a difference in America. For every bag sold, they donate a backpack to a child in need.Their mission was inspired by an organization Jacq and her husband started in 2009 that sent underprivileged New York City kids to summer camp. They saw time and time again kids showing up with their belongings in plastic bags, and sought to start a company that could help change the lives of kids....

Since launching her line in 2011, Rebecca Minkoff has become a globally recognized brand with stores around the world and a cult-like following.She’s a pioneer in the fashion industry, merging tech with fashion and constantly evolving her product line. She offers products like “connected” smart bags that provide consumers access to exclusive content and was the first brand to feature interactive mirrors in the dressing rooms. Always thinking about her core customer, she decided to break the mold and offer her customers a front row seat at fashion shows via...

As a professional soccer player, Tim Brown was used to receiving and trying out lots of free shoes. Somewhere along the line, he started to notice that all sports shoes were beginning to look the same. So, with that in mind, he set out to make his own.Tim grew up in New Zealand and was familiar with the great qualities of wool - it's not only good for minimizing odor but also for regulating temperature. The benefits had been applied to clothing, but not yet to footwear. Alongside co-founder Joey...