Day: March 22, 2022

Women In Wellness: Carrie SiuButt of SimpleHealth On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Don’t be afraid to use PTO. Everyone needs a vacation, even the CEO. Don’t feel guilty about that!

As a part of my series about the women in wellness, I had the pleasure of interviewing Carrie SiuButt.

Carrie SiuButt is the CEO of SimpleHealth, a nationally recognized telehealth provider of reproductive wellness. She is a former Wall Street Business executive-turned global minority wellness leader who uses her personal experience as a key motivator to bring diversity, inclusion and accessibility to healthcare. Under her leadership, the company was recently recognized as one of the 50 Fastest Growing Women-Owned/Led Companies.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

I grew up in Trinidad and Tobago and moved to the United States as a young adult. At the age of 11, I noticed that I began limping at the onset of puberty. After navigating through the healthcare system, it took about 2–3 years to finally be diagnosed with Dystonia.

Dystonia is a rare movement control disease that affects around 300,000 people. Symptoms include a foot cramp or a tendency for one foot to turn or drag, writer’s cramps, tremors, and involuntary pulls of the neck. It’s often considered a “hidden” disability or an “invisible” illness because it’s so rare and, therefore, difficult to diagnose.

Around the time of my diagnosis, it became difficult for me to write with my dominant right hand, so I taught myself to write with my left. Although my disease progressed throughout college, I graduated and went on to work in an extremely fast-paced environment where I was successful, but not in the best health due to the lifestyle that came with being a Wall Street executive.

After I completed my Masters of Business Administration program at Stanford University, my disease became significantly worse so I decided to seek options for treatment. Since I wasn’t a fan of taking medicine that would increase fatigue, I was presented with another option — deep brain stimulation surgery. Although it was a challenging decision to make at the time, it helped unlock many doors for me, including running my first 10K marathon. My journey with Dystonia is what led me to make the career switch from Wall Street to healthcare after realizing the lack of accessibility and diversity within the industry.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?

I joined SimpleHealth as the CEO in February 2020 and little did I know a pandemic was on the horizon. I started weeks before the COVID-19 lockdown and once it went into effect, I knew I needed to make immediate changes to the business. I moved quickly to improve our systems and operations to achieve profitability and increase employee engagement by 6% during a period of crisis.

Within my first year with the company, I was able to grow the SimpleHealth’s revenue by 900% because I quickly adapted the company to the changing landscape. Because of the uncertainty of coronavirus, I knew I needed to rise to the occasion to be the steadfast leader the company and my employees needed during such difficult times.

Can you share a story about the biggest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

The biggest mistake I made when I was first starting out was trying to make everyone happy. I quickly learned as a leader that you can’t. There will always be someone unhappy with your decision, regardless. You simply cannot make everyone happy and that’s okay, as long as you believe in yourself and the decision you’re making for the company.

Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?

At SimpleHealth, we’re committed to providing patients with personalized care, starting with reproductive health, which ultimately contributes to holistic health. We leverage our telemedicine platform to provide convenient access to comprehensive birth control options that can be tailored to each individual’s needs, including the pill, patch and ring — which are affordable and cost- effective for those with and without insurance.

With our recent acquisition of award-winning birth control and health tracking system EMME, we have united with another female-led company in its mission to break down barriers to reproductive healthcare across a wide user base spanning the U.S. SimpleHealth and EMME will integrate our product offerings and innovative technology to provide users with a best in class healthcare experience across their full reproductive cycle, all at their fingertips. Together, our hope is to eventually eradicate contraceptive deserts and provide better support for fertility preparedness, perimenopause and other transitional life phases through the accessibility of our platform.

Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.

Working out on a regular basis. It’s important to maintain a fitness routine and to establish healthy habits to fuel your body and mind. There are plenty of times where I’m completely exhausted by the end of the day and it’s a struggle to find the motivation to get a workout in. Once I carve out the time, I always feel much better after as exercise is a great way to relieve stress.

Eating clean! What you put into your body will affect your everyday life. Maintaining healthy eating habits helps fuel your body and keeps you going during those long, stressful days.

Take breaks throughout the day. This is especially important in the midst of our heightened Zoom culture. Zoom fatigue and burnout is real. It’s crucial to give yourself 15 minutes in between calls to do something as simple as stretch.

Getting a daily dose of Vitamin D. It truly does make a difference when you begin taking Vitamin D supplements or when you step outside for a short walk when the sun is out. You’ll find your mood changing immediately.

Sleeping 8 hours a night. Try to set a healthy boundary of shutting down and focusing on your rest in the evening. As most of us are still working from home, you can easily find yourself blurring your boundaries between your work hours and rest time. Carving out meaningful rest and sleep time for yourself is the best way to recharge and avoid burnout.

If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I believe we’ve already started a movement at SimpleHealth with our mission to provide reproductive wellness to everybody. To cater to each individual, all of our physicians receive training on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging as well as best practices for empathetic communication.

Having access to birth control can give people the opportunity and advantage to lead a healthier and better life. I firmly believe in this as I’ve experienced first-hand the advantages of being on birth control which is why I want to ensure it is available to everyone.

In the past, I’ve struggled with chronic migraines and it would affect my daily life from being able to focus at work to my ability to train for marathons. As I searched for remedies, I discovered one of the many benefits of hormonal birth control is that it helps manage migraines because it helps even out estrogen levels. About one in five women in the United States have migraines, and it’s most prevalent for women in their twenties, thirties, and forties. Oftentimes women experience migraine symptoms when their estrogen levels change.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

Don’t be afraid to use PTO. Everyone needs a vacation, even the CEO. Don’t feel guilty about that!

Take your time hiring. You want to make sure the person you hire is aligned with your company values and brings out the best in your work culture.

Reward your high performers. It’s important to focus on the good, not just the bad.

You can’t please everyone. As a leader you have to make tough choices and many times people just won’t agree with you. That’s okay!

Culture evolves. You have to make sure your company grows with the changing world.

Sustainability, veganism, mental health and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?

Mental health is a topic that means a lot to me, especially now that we’re in year two of the pandemic. Focusing on physical health has long negated the need to take mental health as seriously.

It is extremely important that we all carve out moments of self-care so we can feel and do our best in our daily lives. No matter how big or how small that moment of care is — whether it be through morning meditation, cooking yourself a delicious meal, an afternoon walk, or winding down at night with a new book. The body can only go as far as the mind can.

What is the best way our readers can follow you online?

Your readers can follow me on LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter @carriesiubutt.

Thank you for these fantastic insights!

Women In Wellness: Carrie SiuButt of SimpleHealth On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Lila Limon of Squeeze De Citron: Why We Need More Women Founders & Here Is What We Are Doing To Make That Happen

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Be thoughtful about your sales channels. We create in-house designs with artisanal products. I’m originally from Mexico and I had to sadly block all my channels from Mexico, along with China and Canada due to the high amount of knock off designs and products.

As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Lila Limon.

Lila Limon is the owner and Creative Director of luxury women’s handbag brand, Squeeze De Citron. The brand fuses together culture and ethnicity in the form of vibrant, sustainable bags that are handwoven by female artisans in Mexico.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business in Mexico, I went to New York to study Fashion Merchandise Management at the Fashion Institute of Technology. A year after I graduated, I met my husband. We had two children and moved to Orlando, FL. I always wanted to be a young mom, because I always knew that I wanted to build something after I had my kids. I didn’t necessarily know what that would be — but it didn’t matter. I had a thirst to create something of my own. My dad inspired that thirst in me. He raised us to be career driven visionaries. So, there I was, in Orlando in 2014, ready to go but frustrated because I was not legally able to work — I am from Mexico City and came to America with the student visa then on my husband’s visa. One day I said to myself, “If I cannot work, then I will create!” And, that is when the lemon seed was planted. From that moment, I began creating charity events to benefit children in need and I shared the beautiful creations of Mexican artisans with our bags.

Squeeze De Citron, or “Squeeze the Lemon”, is based on the principle of taking advantage of every fresh and juicy drop that a lemon, or a life, has to offer. We believe in celebrating a zest for life and adventure. The brand was born in 2015 with me, Lila Limon, serving as Owner and Creative Director. Squeeze features eye-catching, beautifully colored bags that are handmade by Mexican artisans. All of our products create a full circle impact for our seven artisan communities.

Our Core Collection is ethically made and gracefully sourced by Mexican artisans. These bags take 7–10 days to make just one. Our bags are hand woven with 100% PVC recyclable plastic. These bags help to create jobs for artisans. They all work on a fair trade basis.

Our Capsule Collection is ethically made by an older group of Mexican artisans that are in correction centers. These bags help create jobs so that they can support their families. They take 2–3 days to make and are, like the Core Collection, hand woven with 100% PVC recyclable plastic.

Our Lemon Drop Project provides Guatemalan artisans with jobs, which in turn provides them with hope and a better quality of life. They build a sustainable income to continue their studies and provide for their families. They are made of 100% RECYCLED plastic thread and each takes 5–10 hours to make.

After four years of learning the potential of the United States market, I began to sell the bags independently. I decided to create exclusive, in-house designs and color mixtures to appeal to the American market. With my background in fashion, business, and event planning, I began to showcase each of my collections at charity events.

After selling more than 500 bags, I realized the full potential of the U.S. market and launched Squeeze De Citron. My vision is that each bag inspires a happy celebration of culture and ethnicity.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?

There are so many interesting stories for me to share but one of my most prominent stories is from when I was a little girl. I used to collect Care Bears and I always found the world of color, texture, and happiness so appealing. I could have never predicted that would translate into Squeeze De Citron, which has all those colors and textures while also having a positive impact with all of our products.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

When I was getting started, I was so excited about my vision. And, it being so colorful and happy, I would share it eagerly with everyone and I trusted that they would all respect my endeavor. But, as everyone could see our growth day by day, we started seeing our in-house designs all over Mexico! And then we started to see local people here in the states trying to copy what we have created.

I know that they say this is a form of flattery, but the reality is that not everyone is ethical. If they see an opportunity, they will take it. So, beware of the copycats. Protect your company. Lesson learned!

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I have three people in my mind that have been very important throughout my success and each one added in their own way. One is now an angel — my Dad. He always showed us how to have a vision. He taught us that if you have an idea, put it down in writing. And, the only thing that matters when you create that idea is that just one person believes in it. And that one person is you. He inspired me to believe in myself and in whatever my mind is daring me to dream.

The second person is my husband, Chava. He has not only mentored me but also pushed me when I was afraid to move forward. He is my number one supporter. He is always encouraging me and telling me, “You’ve got this!” I’m so grateful because without that backbone I don’t think we would’ve reached where we are today.

The third, is very dear to my heart: the Town of Windermere, FL. I could name so many wonderful ladies that spent days grinding with me, supporting me and the growth of Squeeze De Citron. I am particularly grateful for one special friend and mentor, Debby Heggins. She would spend Sundays teaching me that basics from how to do my taxes to how to use Shopify. Debby shared her time and talent out of the goodness of her heart and that kind of friend is hard to find. I will always be grateful to her and the Windermere Community.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?

It is wonderful that times are changing and that women hold more credibility in the business world now. I feel we’ve figured out that we can be stronger when we all stick together, support each other, and continuously empower each other. I feel that business owners should take responsibility to continue to advocate for, to support, and to empower upcoming entrepreneurs. That will help grow the number of women owned businesses. There’s nothing holding us back — it’s just a matter of time. But we’ve figured it out.

One of the things I am most proud of at Squeeze De Citron is that the company is completely run by women. We’ve learned that we can be extremely productive within our “mommy schedule.” We work 20 hours per week and we get it all done AND we get time with our families. Why a mommy schedule? Because we work 10–3 for four days a week and we get it all done! We’ve learned that finding that work-life balance has a lot of power and keeps us focused, efficient, happy and feeling fulfilled.

Can you help articulate a few things that can be done as individuals, as a society, or by the government, to help overcome those obstacles?

Community! Take the time to get to know your community and get to know your surroundings. It is so powerful because you will meet the amazing women that already surround you. We started by bringing together different entrepreneurs and business owners from our community for our events. We would, and still do, create community events not only for the purpose of making sales, but also to give and share exposure, network, meet new clients, and expand reach. Just because a business is small or just getting started, doesn’t mean they can’t add value and talent to your network. When you give someone an opportunity to collaborate, you support and empower them. That is what we need. And, that is something we can do so easily to “pay it forward” and start a path for the ones that are interested in building their own way.

This might be intuitive to you as a woman founder but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?

I am a mother of two and becoming a founder gives me the flexibility I need to balance my personal professional thirst and caring for my home and family. Becoming a founder allows you to grow as a person and to learn to work with a team. It gives you the power to really make an impact. I hope that, by my example, I inspire other women to know that everything is possible if you put your heart and soul into it.

What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a founder? Can you explain what you mean?

There is a myth that founders have powerful personalities — and this usually has a negative connotation. I think a founder or new entrepreneur can have a powerful mind and not necessarily a powerful personality. A founder listens to her inner voice, instinct, guts and brain, and takes risk in what her mind is daring her to dream. That is powerful.

Is everyone cut out to be a founder? In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful founder and what type of person should perhaps seek a “regular job” as an employee? Can you explain what you mean?

If you have a thirst to create and the passion to fuel your vision, you can achieve anything your mind dares you to dream. Not everyone has this thirst or passion. Some get excited and maybe even get started — but, as soon as things get hard, which is always does, they give up. Once that passion falls, they really just need to stand back up stronger and give it another try!

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Protect your vision. Sadly, when others see your success, not everyone will feel happy for you. And, it is not uncommon that they might try to “replicate” your vision for themselves. I remind myself now: Although they copy, I create. I wish I knew that earlier. Don’t take anyone lightly. Protect everything you create. I now have individuals sign a Terms and Conditions Agreement to protect SDCs proprietary information when they join our team.
2. Be thoughtful about your sales channels. We create in-house designs with artisanal products. I’m originally from Mexico and I had to sadly block all my channels from Mexico, along with China and Canada due to the high amount of knock off designs and products.
3. Business costs can be high and unpredictable! For example, shipping costs can be so high, and they fluctuate wildly. Sometimes our shipping cost is higher than our actual product! So, we have learned to be more strategic about our cost structures across product lines.

How have you used your success to make the world a better place?

Because I curate artisanal products, Squeeze De Citron makes full circle impact in everything we do. All our products are made and imported on a fair trade basis. Each weaving style helps groups of artisans. Not only does this provide jobs but also dependable income. We are currently sold out through 2022 so our artisans know that they have work for the entire year. It brings them stability.

Our Lemon Drop Project helps Guatemalan artisans to go back to school. The Lemon Drops are made by young Guatemalan artisans. It is such a beautiful project and creates an incredible impact for these girls to go back and have an education.

The Lemon Drops are 100% recycled plastic and all of our other bags are 100% PVC recyclable plastic. We offer a sustainable program on our website for all of our clients in the United States. When they are done using a bag, they can ship it to us at our cost and we will make sure it is recycled correctly. We will also give them 15% off for a new bag. So we are working towards environmental sustainability, as well.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

I would create a movement where schools would add more entrepreneurial classes or guidance for kids from a young age. Creativity is a skill and must be nurtured and explored and learned to be used just like math and reading. It could be the “Think Out of the Box 101” movement. Embracing young entrepreneurs!

We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

I would love to have breakfast with Oprah Winfrey! She is just such an inspiration and I love that she is a soul feeder. She shares always wise learnings through her questions when interviewing.

Another person I would love to have breakfast with is Martha Stewart. My friends call me the Mexican Martha Stewart. I love hosting and creating things. I enjoy using my creativity for a nice little setting or an event or really anything. I admire how she goes deep into detail and she appreciates the little things.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.

Lila Limon of Squeeze De Citron: Why We Need More Women Founders & Here Is What We Are Doing To… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Modern Fashion: Louis Joseph Of Alps & Meters On The 5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand Today

An Interview With Candice Georgiadice

Team & Network: Fashion is one of the oldest forms of collaboration and assembling a team of passionate Co-Founders I have found to be a key success factor. Likewise, ensuring a broad network of supporters and advisors who can help guide a brand’s creative endeavors while also establishing glide paths of awareness and distribution development will help to bring more rapid ignition to the brand & concept even when operating at a modest scale. Truly, in my experience, one cannot be conducting enough conversations and network nodes; this is time consumptive for certain but many positive networking results are long-tail in nature and aggressively building one’s internal and external rolodex is an investment that will pay dividends across the various stages of fashion venture development.

Many in the fashion industry have been making huge pivots in their business models. Many have turned away from the fast fashion trend. Many have been focusing on fashion that also makes a social impact. Many have turned to sustainable and ethical sourcing. Many have turned to hi tech manufacturing. Many have turned to subscription models. What are the other trends that we will see in the fashion industry? What does it take to lead a successful fashion brand today?

In our series called, “5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand Today” we are talking to successful leaders of fashion brands who can talk about the Future of Fashion and the 5 things it takes to lead a successful fashion brand in our “new normal.”

As a part of this series I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Louis Joseph.

With 25 years of brand strategy, product design, and general management experience, Louis has a reputation for global entrepreneurship, creative innovation, imaginative marketing, and multi-million dollar P&L responsibility.

Louis is currently CEO of Alps & Meters, a luxury alpine sportswear brand, which he Founded & launched in 2018.

Prior to making the transition to full time entrepreneur, Louis spent three and half years as Global Director of Strategy and Innovation at Kering/PUMA SE where he reported to Kering’s COO and PUMA’s CEO. As a key member of the executive ranks, Louis’s time and energy were centered upon the production of “big ideas”, transformational brand-product concepts, and consumer experience across Kering/PUMA’s multiple commercial divisions and disciplines.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood “backstory”?

I was born in Santa Monica, California but was raised in Massachusetts by parents from a blue collar city called Brockton. My father was a first generation American whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from Albania and my mother has a Lebanese heritage. I was extremely fortunate to be raised in an upper middle class home whose values were very much informed by my parents work ethic and general belief in the American dream. Another aspect of my childhood which many find unique is that I am one of 4 brothers comprising two sets of twins; my twin and I are fraternal twins while my younger brothers are identical twins. Such an environment made for a wonderfully rambunctious atmosphere that was full of sport, friendly competitiveness, and camaraderie.

Can you tell us the story about what led you to this particular career path?

My professional career began during the early & development stages of the New Balance Athletic Shoe Brand of Boston, MA. 21 at the time, I was accepted by New Balance as a Marketing Intern and was kindly taken under the wing of the owner, Jim Davis, his Chief Marketing Officer Paul Heffernan, Head of International Catherine Jakaitis, and the wonderful group of Category Brand Managers including lifelong friends Steve David and Craig Heisner. The immediate mentorship and coaching I received from the New Balance family provided a lot of professional tailwinds which helped me sail into the PUMA/Kering organization thereafter where I contributed to Product-Marketing, Strategy, & Innovation in many arenas across Kering’s luxury & sportswear portfolio. My luxury learnings at Kering coupled with my passion for alpine sport eventually converged to conceptualize the Alps & Meters brand concept. Centered on a mission to uphold the classic traditions of alpine sport, Alps & Meters brand architecture, values, and business model were certainly influenced by my early career stints as well as my lifelong love of skiing and life in the mountains.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

One of the aspects of my career that I have most appreciated is the global nature of the brands & business with whom I’ve been associated. Since my first foray into the sportswear and fashion arenas I have been blessed to have traveled throughout the world meeting a host of interesting people with whom I worked directly or indirectly nearly all of which I still count to this day as friends. Working with fast paced and ambitious organizations most certainly created a bond that transcended nationality and language. To this day I recall spending months at a time in Europe, Asia, and South America and in each setting, the stories that unfolded enriched my life personally and professionally. When in Europe for a time I met the world’s most famous soccer player Pele; in Brazil I connected with the country’s most famous Jujitsu athletes; during a period in London my creative teammates and I collaborated with fashion icon Alexander McQueen, and when with PUMA, I had the opportunity to interact with Olympic 100 & 200 meter champion Usain Bolt. Looking back I recognize how fortunate I have been to experience these exciting moments and when I think about the future of my career I’m eager to remain centered upon what helped to deliver those interactions; hard work, a global mindset, professionalism, and kindness.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Reflecting on my own personal make-up, I believe that the following characteristics and learnings have positively influenced my leadership style….1). Adopting & maintaining a beginner’s mentality…2). Authenticity … 3). Grittiness. This trifecta of qualities I believe ensures a humble and real approach to leadership with an ability to navigate challenges and difficulties that inevitably arise with a firm resolve and long-term outlook. From my experience, adopting a beginner’s mentality helps to avoid decision-making bias while opening a wide aperture of possible solutions that can be provided from a set of alternative, and sometimes unobvious perspectives which is terribly important when innovating. Likewise, being one’s authentic self creates trust and in a start-up environment such bonds are critical for culture development. Honesty is the fuel of motivation and as a believer in servant leadership, I feel that sharing aspects of my own vulnerability is a means of flattening an organization while further empowering teammates to help drive the brand & business forward. Lastly, grittiness is inherent in all entrepreneurs and displaying and embracing such qualities builds an institutional fortitude that builds significant and nearly bullet-proof strength over time. Having navigated the recent and ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the team at Alps & Meters was especially full of grit and it is this quality beyond all others that has helped the venture climb to new heights despite stiff headwinds within the macro environment in which we are operating.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

Alps & Meters’ mission is to uphold the classic traditions of alpine sport. We believe that our company’s mission and purpose manifests itself in a deeply emotional manner that connects our community to the origins, romance, and nostalgia of skiing’s past. In many ways, our product provides the most clear expression of our traditional values. Each piece is designed to fuse classic garment construction techniques, natural materials, and contemporary technologies to deliver handsome alpine sportswear that is tailored, technical, and timeless.

Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that was relevant to you in your life?

My grandfather was an Albanian immigrant and my father a first generation American named after the President at the time of his father’s arrival to Ellis Island in the USA, Teddy Roosevelt. Before marrying, my mother and father grew up in a blue collar city in Massachusetts called Brockton. More so than any particular quotation, their work ethic, fortitude, and gritty spirit has greatly influenced my general attitude while also helping me to maintain a sound perspective about the good fortune I have found within my career to date. Within my family we often talk of an “immigrant’s mindset” which I feel encompasses an interest to blaze new trails, to realize family oriented long-term goals, and to strive and to always do one’s very best work. It is this particular “life lesson” that has been front and center during my childhood, adolescence, and which helps to inform and guide the winding professional path which I have walked since beginning my career 25 years ago.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Do you see any fascinating developments emerging over the next few years in the fashion industry that you are excited about? Can you tell us about that?

While I am quite an analog soul, I do have a deep curiosity about how virtual reality will come to impact the fashion industry. The applications of this particular technology are wide ranging and can influence aspects of sustainability (think about trying garments on virtually without the need for physical product production), shopping (lower carbon footprint without the need for cumbersome shop as well as the enhance ability for universal peer-to-peer interaction on the “shop floor”) and the creative possibilities to push the boundaries of what fashion is and what it means to audiences around the world.

Can you share how your brand is helping to bring goodness to the world?

In an effort to uphold the classic traditions of alpine sport, Alps & Meters is focused upon the following Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) initiatives: 1). The ongoing development of the brand’s Mountain Memories Upcycled Product Collection designed in partnership with Tersus Solutions of Denver, CO, a sophisticated sustainability engine focused upon the re-use of R&D waste and re-commerce aimed at extending product life cycles while reducing the environmental impact of high frequency apparel consumption…2). Within the social arena, Alps & Meters is working hard to build a clear DEI (Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion) roadmap and has embraced partnership with the Share Winter Organization whose mission is to provide winter sport access to under-resourced youth….4). From a Governance perspective the brand and its Board of Directors have, since inception, practiced conscious capitalism with the aim of ensuring a virtuous cycle of benefits among all connected company stakeholders including both internal personnel and external vendors.

Can you share with our readers about the ethical standards you use when you choose where to source materials?

As expressed within our Corporate Responsibility Manifesto, Alps & Meters is committed to the use of natural materials such as wools and cottons. When harvested properly, these materials can be developed into garments that minimize ecological impact. When choosing our partners such as Allied Down, UPW Yarns, Botto Guiseppe Crade-to-Cradle cashmere, and British Millerain, Alps & Meters seeks suppliers who can supply raw materials that are obtained according to our values. While Alps & Meters dreams of operating on a global scale in the future, due to our boutique size at the moment our company aims to leverage supplier innovations to improve our methods of making while mitigating as much as possible environmental impact.

Fast fashion has an advantage, that it is affordable for most people, but it also has the drawback that it does not last very long and is therefore not very sustainable. What are your thoughts about this? How does your company address this question?

Alps & Meters intention is to build the highest quality alpine sport garments that command timeless durability such that the pieces may be handed down from one generation to the next. Our company is firm believers in a “less is more” attitude and such philosophy is reflected in our very tight & scarce product assortment and drive for maximum quality and durability. Creatively, our brand believes firmly in designing garments that are built such that the pieces become a kind of memory keeper for our client that will house the embellishment of wear, travel, recreation, and experience for multiple years on end. Alps & Meters prides itself on delivering such comprehensive sturdiness and long-term reliability as a manifestation of our mission, love of tradition, and effort to deliver a positive promise of first class craftsmanship for our worldwide clientele.

Thank you for all that. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand”. Please share a story or example for each.

From my point of view, the 5 things you need to lead a successful fashion brand are as follows:

1. Purpose: the inherent reason that the company exists and mission that permeates every facet of the organization. At Alps & Meters our purpose is to uphold the classic traditions of alpine sport and this intention may found in our products, story-telling, culture, and partnerships
2. Authenticity: a clear and differentiated point of view about the world and how you would like to create an impact. Amidst an ever faster, more technologically advanced way of life, Alps & Meters is interested to embrace the simplicity and traditions associated with alpine sport and life in the mountains. In some ways we think of our brand in a “farm-to-table” manner by revisiting and reintroducing classic methods of making while distilling a narrative focused upon simpler times and the generational
3. Imagination & Insight: a mix of imagination and foresight makes for a powerful one-two punch when aiming to brand build within the fashion sector. Harnessing the idea of a brand, bringing it to life in myriad ways from product creation to content to distribution is obviously a creative and somewhat artistic endeavor, but calibrating the concept of the company with foresight surrounding unarticulated market needs and opportunities is an essential aspect of success. In the tech sector, this is called “product-market fit” and while need states of the consumer market place are likely not as linear as they are in tech, the needs nonetheless exist and are often emotional in nature. When leaping to build a fashion brand it is just as important to ensure that the water is deep enough to take the plunge and this act of entrepreneurial faith when married with a consumer driven insight is often the recipe for long-term success rather than a one hit wonder.
4. Team & Network: Fashion is one of the oldest forms of collaboration and assembling a team of passionate Co-Founders I have found to be a key success factor. Likewise, ensuring a broad network of supporters and advisors who can help guide a brand’s creative endeavors while also establishing glide paths of awareness and distribution development will help to bring more rapid ignition to the brand & concept even when operating at a modest scale. Truly, in my experience, one cannot be conducting enough conversations and network nodes; this is time consumptive for certain but many positive networking results are long-tail in nature and aggressively building one’s internal and external rolodex is an investment that will pay dividends across the various stages of fashion venture development
5. Conviction: Maintaining conviction for the brand building effort after the shine of inception has worn off is difficult but essential. There will be failures and disruptions and as we’ve learned when navigating the pandemic, significant headwinds out of the Founding Team’s control. Holding on to the creative conviction, insight, and purpose of the brand is a challenge and most especially because there is certainly not a shortage of opinions from tastemakers and influencers regarding which brands are hot and which are not. Nevertheless, commanding a long-term view of the brand building exercise and recognizing that the entity is only ever just a work-in-progress will allow fashion entrepreneurs to maintain a course of “true north” while steering the ship toward changes and opportunities that might more succinctly align the brand to its existing and new clientele.

Every industry constantly evolves and seeks improvement. How do you think the fashion industry can improve itself? Can you give an example?

Two areas that excite me about improvements within the Fashion sector are democratization and sustainability. Democratization is the idea that fashion is influenced from the “bottom-up” and not the “top down.” More than ever, across industries the consumer commands great control and most especially with spending power which can be directed to brands which align with their personal makeup, values and ethical demands. Sustainability continues to be a work-in-progress but consciousness of the fashion industry’s ecological impact have never been higher nor has the pace of innovation which includes legitimate science steering toward carbon neutrality, biodegradable & recycled initiatives, along with greater respect for extended and closed-loop lifecycle management of which the combination immediate upcycling & re-commerce activities hold great promise.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

As an entrepreneur, if I could start a movement it would be to advocate for universal and paid apprenticeships for high school and post-high school students as an alternative to college. A version of 21st century apprenticeships would allow individuals to enter the paid working world across all fields (the arts, technology, marketing, traditional CPG, etc) in a manner that would foster continuous and practical learning while initiating financial independence in contrast to the significant debt which has saddled a generation of college students and families.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Readers may always learn of new initiatives and content at www.alpsandmeters.com New stories, publications partnerships may be discovered within the Journal, Podcast, and About the Brand section of the website.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.

Modern Fashion: Louis Joseph Of Alps & Meters On The 5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Female Disruptors: Anoop Virk of Basmati & Spice On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Start within. As individuals, we have a significant wealth of knowledge within us. We just need to believe in ourselves, look inward, and can find clarity and answers. The foundation within us is so pivotal to ensure we don’t get lost by others’ opinions and perspectives on this journey. If you know who you are, and believe in yourself, you will be able to navigate the process without getting distracted by external factors. Take the time to know yourself, listen to your gut, and be patient.

As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Anoop Virk.

Anoop Virk is an award-winning nonprofit founder, executive producer, authorized home builder, and restaurateur of Basmati & Spice, a wellness focused food concept that is now available in more than 900 hospitals serving patients and healthcare workers.

Known for her philanthropic initiatives including building a gender equality based school in Africa and reconnecting homeless in Vancouver to their lost loved ones, now at 28 years old, she has dedicated the last decade to successfully creating and executing businesses and purposeful projects, advocating for girls and education.

Through her philanthropic projects, Anoop has connected with some of the most influential movers and shakers around the world — the Royal highnesses, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate, Ndaba Mandela, Chelsea Clinton, President Jimmy Carter, Bono, and Nile Rodgers.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

Looking back at my journey, I do see a thread that has led me to where I am now. From some of my earliest memories as a child, I felt a deep connection that I was on this earth to serve and really enjoyed helping people, which I feel naturally led me to embody this as my passion. This undoubtedly came from watching my mom, who was a single immigrant mother. I witnessed her start from the bottom — from barely speaking any English, and having no money, or family support, and running away to a women’s shelter with me as an infant, to cleaning people’s home during the day and learning English at night. My mother’s story is one of true resilience in my eyes, as she got her Master’s in Education, became an award winning national best selling cookbook author, and hosted TV shows on Food Network.

I knew the hardships and challenges she overcame would not be the journey for everyone, and I felt a connection to her injustices, and found my purpose to help people in this lifetime — in the areas of homelessness, gender equality, and food insecurity. This led me at the age of 14 years old to cofound a project that helped reconnect over 500 homeless in Vancouver to their lost loved ones, at the age of 18 years old to create a 50% gender equal school in Zambia, Africa, and to now help revolutionize hospital food and patient care menus all across the US. As a teenager, I was named Top 20 under 20, and then a Global Teen Leader for the We Are Family Foundation in New York. My degrees in International Studies focusing on politics/foreign policy, in addition to working along side the most vulnerable communities globally helped me understand the complexities and variables involved in development. At the age of 24 years old I understood the power of storytelling which led me to join TED’s mission of ideas worth spreading as the first female Executive Producer for TEDxVancouver.

Food and especially wellness focused food has been a big part of my life. I think most of us have experienced either ourselves or our loved ones being in the hospital, and often not having healthy food options. I remember thinking, why hasn’t anyone thought of a solution for this? A hospital should be a sanctuary for healthcare, and the food being served should not be an exception.

My mom and I have always been business partners since I was a teenager (from helping her manage her media tours or helping produce her cooking shows). Fast forward, she partnered with Morrison Healthcare, a leading national food and nutrition services provider, serving 7 of the top 20 hospitals and health systems and 3 of the top 10 children’s hospitals. They too believe in our philosophy food is medicine, and we created Basmati & Spice, a wellness focused food concept that is now available in more than 900 hospitals, for patients, doctors, nurses, and hospital staff to enjoy.

Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?

Hospital food should be delicious and healthy, and that’s what we are doing! Our food concept Basmati & Spice provides wellness focused food in hospitals for doctors, nurses, hospital staff, and patients. Hospitals can be stressful, and if you’re a patient, the food sometimes feels like it can be the only choice or control you have. Instead of having a bland meal, wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a healthy and wellness focused meal? Perhaps a lentil and spinach soup? We have doctors and nurses say their diets can be really bad as they are running around all day during long shifts and it’s easier to grab something from the vending machine, but now they have options such as our plant forward bowl filled with chickpeas and roasted cauliflower, or perhaps a butter chicken with yams and mushrooms. The emails we get from the hospital staff saying the healthy meals helped them fuel their day, is very rewarding feedback. Our food itself is plant forward, and also spotlights the healing power of food by both boosting immune health as well as supporting local farmers and regenerative agriculture.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Chilli pepper flakes! This is an ingredient you have to keep your eyes on! Recipes are normally created for smaller portions, say 4–6 servings. When you have to create the same recipe say for a few 100 people, you can mostly multiply most of the ingredients…except the chilli pepper flakes. This seemed common knowledge, but we definitely should have made a warning note in bold letters. Let’s just say, when we arrived to taste the food, it had a kick to it. It’s funny now, but I remember in the moment, the food was going to be served in 30 minutes, and there was no way to start from scratch. I can’t remember what the solution was (probably because I tried to block this memory out ha!), but we just had to smile and nod while everyone was eating and sweating. The lesson learned here is even if something comes second nature in your mind, if it needs to be recreated by someone else besides yourself, go into as much instructional detail as you possibly can, even it seems redundant or over explanatory. Better to be safe than sorry!

We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?

I’m grateful that my mom is both my mentor and my business partner. I feel like we have this synergy that makes us this dynamic duo, and the fact that we are over 10 years into business together, I wouldn’t have wanted to be on this journey with anyone else.

I’ve been grateful to have wonderful individuals in my path that have helped me. I would also say individuals from my projects have incredibly helped me along in my journey and motivated me to keep going. One of my earliest experiences was with a woman named Sandra, who was not my mentor but left a profound impact on me.

The Downtown Eastside of Vancouver is known as one of the poorest neighbourhood with hundreds of homeless people on the streets. In high school, a few students, counsellor, and I, created an idea of helping reconnect families through writing cards to their lost families and loved ones. After spending time volunteering on the streets and homeless shelters, it became evident that hundreds of individuals hadn’t seen their families in 5, 10, 15 years. I remember walking up to an older woman named Sandra on the street, and I helped her write a card to her daughter she hadn’t seen in over 10 years. Much to my surprise, we were able to locate her daughter, who in fact had come down to the streets several times to find her mom but was unsuccessful. But with that card, we brought them together for a mother daughter weekend. This was the first moment I was able to witness how just one person could make a profound difference in someones life. We successfully reconnected over 500 lost loved ones and these stories and heartfelt experiences of the project are instrumental to my journey.

In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?

Before any disruption takes place, there needs to be a clear plan in place and an understanding of WHY. Why is the change needed? Just for the sake of it or is it actually going to make the industry better. Is the disruption there to find a solution to a problem?

I think disrupting an industry for the greater good, especially when it’s helping people, is a good disruption. If there is a system that has been running the same way but is creating more challenges, there is room for good disruption. For example, most of us have known or had bad experiences with hospital food. Finding a solution to this traditional structure is a good disruption as it’s helping with peoples health and well being. If there was a hospital that was providing wellness focused food and someone came in and wanted to disrupt it by bringing in unhealthy food or taking away the food altogether, that disruption in the industry would not be so positive.

Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.

1. Start within. As individuals, we have a significant wealth of knowledge within us. We just need to believe in ourselves, look inward, and can find clarity and answers. The foundation within us is so pivotal to ensure we don’t get lost by others’ opinions and perspectives on this journey. If you know who you are, and believe in yourself, you will be able to navigate the process without getting distracted by external factors. Take the time to know yourself, listen to your gut, and be patient.

2. Lead with Compassion, purpose and hope. Just because you are in a position of power or authority doesn’t mean you need to lead with an iron fist. Being authoritative doesn’t equate to power. You can support and encourage people around you by building trust and loyalty, and using collaboration to get to your end goals. You can still be efficient and care about the wellbeing of the ones around you. In times of darkness, hope and light are the answers through.

3. Family First. Family is my everything and has been the biggest motivator in my life that continues to both drive me and ground me.

We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?

The core of my projects and work comes down to service and helping people. I’ve seen how essential and pivotal food is around the world — from my school in Zambia, Africa where we were providing 7,000 meals a month to the most vulnerable children in the community, to now here is the US providing nutritious meals in hospitals to serve patients and hospital staff, especially in a pandemic. Through the pandemic, we have seen how challenging these times have been for healthcare workers, and if we can play a small part in taking care of them, I think we are on the right path. Our food concept Basmati & Spice is now available in more than 900 hospitals, and the focus is to continue and provide as many healthy meals to patients and healthcare workers as we can.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

Like many women, from the very earlier stages of my career, all the way up to holding the most senior positions, I have faced discrimination. To create disruption, you need to be able to convince others of why this change is necessary to get the support around you, but I think women still have to work harder to get the respect needed to be taken seriously to lead. I’ve been aware of the challenges I’ve faced have not been there for the men who held the positions before me. As more women are holding higher positions and normalizing women in those roles, I think it is becoming easier, and will continue to do so for the next generations to come.

Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?

Eckhart Tolle has been the most influential author I’ve read where his teachings deeply resonate with me. I remember a shift occurred after reading “The Power of Now” and “Stillness Speaks”. We can get really wrapped up in this narrative we have of ourselves where our brains can become so busy in thought it can become overwhelming. If we focus on the here and now, the present moment, there is peace and acceptance.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

The Power of Food! Food is medicine. I think it is important to be mindful what we put into our bodies, and there is significant amount of research and data backing the benefits of eating better. If I was to inspire a movement that would help people, it would be to take care of yourself, and one of the ways you can do that is your lifestyle and the food and nutrition you provide yourself and your families.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“If not us, who? And if not now, when?” — Hillel the Elder

I was introduced to this quote in university from reading about Ronald Reagan using it, and it resonating with me because when thinking about world problems or the problems in our communities, the mindset of waiting for someone else to take action that is more prepared or better equipped to handle the situation can cause a level on inaction as everyone is waiting for a saviour. I think we all have the capabilities to stand up and make a difference. Whether it’s addressing homelessness in our cities, addressing gender equality, or creating change in our hospitals with providing wellness focused food. The time is now!

How can our readers follow you online?

@anoopvirk + anoopvirk.com

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

Thank you for the opportunity!

Female Disruptors: Anoop Virk of Basmati & Spice On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Female Founders: Ursula Eysin of Red Swan On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Don’t become your own slave master: When I founded my own business in 2015, I became my own worst boss, a real slave master, until I learned to develop healthy boundaries and take a rest. As a business owner, of course, you COULD work 24/7 as there is always something to do, but that will kill you. Definitely.

As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Ursula Eysin.

Ursula Eysin is a Vienna-based Creative Strategist and Founder of Red Swan that helps individuals, companies, and other organizations to turn uncertainty into a competitive advantage with future scenario thinking methods. Master in Sinology, Political Science, Economy, and Advanced Studies in Public Relations Ursula uses her knowledge to share information on future scenarios, technology, business, and the human factor and helps her clients become wildly successful by diving deep into their subconscious minds.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

It looks as if I started my career in a completely different area, but in fact, everything comes together beautifully in my business now . I used to work as a production manager, moderator, and presenter in theater, opera, and film before I became a technology consultant and communication professional. As a sinologist, I am fluent in Mandarin and several other languages. My broad knowledge and experience enable me to not only develop various future scenarios and new business ideas, but also create the right story, vision, and action steps around them.

In my business, Red Swan, I focus on the strategic future process of “scenario thinking”,the creation of creative concepts, innovation, technology transfer, business development, and strategic communication. I had the great opportunity to learn the scenario method from one of the best: former chief strategist with Royal Dutch Shell, Karl Rose. During the past 11 years, I conducted future scenario projects for a variety of ministries, companies and business associations. Besides that, I am an Expert Evaluator with the European Commission (Startup Accelerator), mentor various Austrian and international startups, give lectures at several universities, and write the monthly column “Code Red” for the Austrian technology magazine E-Media.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?

In 2014, right after I quit my job and in the preparation phase for my own business, Red Swan, I traveled to China for the first time in a long time for a conference. At that event, the keynote speaker was the Israeli Nobel Laureate (2011 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of quasicrystals), who at that time was also a presidential candidate in Israel. People were lining up to take selfies with him. Not me. I consider this a dehumanization of well-known personalities. But then he suddenly stood in front of me and I asked, “And who are you?” I was startled. “Do you mean that as a philosophical question?” I uttered. “No, not as a philosophical question. Give me your business card.” I didn’t have one! So he said, “Here is my business card; write me an email.” I did, but I didn’t expect an answer. I was wrong. A month later, I received a message from him: “Is Salzburg far from Vienna?” I am giving a lecture there, and if it is not too far for you, we could meet. Salzburg is not far from Vienna, and we had a very interesting conversation, which should be the beginning of a wonderful friendship and business partnership.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

It wasn’t my funniest mistake, but definitely, the biggest one that I learned a lot from. Prior to launching my own company, Red Swan, in 2015, I assisted a former colleague in the development of another company beginning in 2011. He poached me from PWC at the time, and when he asked me to help him build the business, I said, “You know, I have strong entrepreneurial thinking, which means I want to own shares in the business I help build. He said: “Yes, of course. Now I have already founded the company as my company, but in two years I will give you your shares. “ Of course, after two years, he couldn’t remember that. We then discussed it for another year before I decided to turn my back on him and start my own business. I was then told several times that this was a typical woman’s mistake. A man would never have agreed to transfer the shares later but would have demanded immediate delivery. It was only recently that I found out that he has sold the company for a whole bunch of money. Guess how much I did see of that money? Zero. My learnings: I didn’t fall for that kind of future faking again and developed a healthy distrust at the beginning of each business partnership.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

My brother Johannes, He is a great sparring partner, and though he frequently says, “I didn’t do anything,” he was the one who helped me shape my business the most. He was also the one who came up with the beautiful name “Red Swan.”We often walk around downtown Vienna for hours and just talk. In the process, we also always discover new things. Whether it’s a nice new pub, great architecture or small winding paths that we had never noticed before. And on these paths, new project ideas and visions often emerge.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience, what is currently holding back women from founding companies?

I talk a lot with other women who tell me: “I could never do what you do. I couldn’t take the risk and the constant uncertainty of owning a business.” I need a secure job. “ I think safety thinking and risk aversion are the issues that often keep women from starting their own business. To that, I would say: the biggest risk is not taking a risk at all. I like to quote Jim Morrison in this context: “No one here gets out alive.” That may sound a bit morbid, but it’s also very comforting. What are we waiting for? For death to arrive safely? We are not here to live life safely. Taking risks is part of life. And there are no safe jobs anyway. Especially in times like these. It’s just a big illusion that people like to believe in. But they are fooling themselves.

Can you help articulate a few things that can be done as individuals, as a society, or by the government, to help overcome those obstacles?

Paradoxically, you have to help people to feel safer to be able to take risks and to understand that the biggest risk is to not take risks at all. This starts in childhood. Children who feel safe with their primary caregivers develop healthy autonomy. They are ready to venture out to conquer the world. We have to start in this early phase at the very root of the problem. And we have to abolish the punishment-reward-system in education, school, and socialization. This system makes people so risk-averse. They want to avoid punishment and be perceived as good at all costs. That hinders creativity, experiments, and taking risks. It is hindering innovation and the development of new businesses.

This might be intuitive to you as a woman founder but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?

It is always good to have mixed teams. Female and malefactors are both enriching businesses and organizations in general if they play beautifully together.

What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a founder? Can you explain what you mean?

Many new founders tell me they want to found their own business because they want to be their own boss and “just do what THEY want” Well, that’s not the reality of owning a business. There are obstacles to overcome every single day and there are a lot of things interfering in your business. Things like tax, regulation, etc. And of course, your clients are your bosses now. :).

Is everyone cut out to be a founder? In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful founder, and what type of person should perhaps seek a “regular job” as an employee? Can you explain what you mean?

I think that’s a myth I used to believe in, too. I learned that not everyone is feeling well as an entrepreneur. Some people are just very good in leading teams, or being part of a team. Everyone provides valuable contributions, but you have to allow them to find the specific role they can thrive in. Entrepreneurs have to be risk-takers and are willing to take on a lot of responsibility. That’s not for everyone. And that’s ok.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Don’t become your own slave master: When I founded my own business in 2015, I became my own worst boss, a real slave master, until I learned to develop healthy boundaries and take a rest. As a business owner, of course, you COULD work 24/7 as there is always something to do, but that will kill you. Definitely.
2. There will be obstacles to overcome every single day. And that’s exactly how it is supposed to be, nothing went wrong.
3. Unsolicited advice has much more to do with the advice-giver than with you. When I started my business I still believed that we should always be open to criticism. It is interesting HOW many people, especially men, feel that they should give you unsolicited advice especially if you are a female founder. Then, one day, there was this guy who told me: “One thing I would like to tell you is that your overwhelming enthusiasm and passion will not take you very far.” Well, I thought to myself, that’s EXACTLY my biggest strength which opened me all kinds of doors worldwide and on all levels. I realized that he actually was jealous of a trait he didn’t possess himself and tried to raise himself up at my expense. That kind of thing happens a lot. I took unsolicited advice and criticism with a grain of salt ever since.
4. You are nothing without a good, trustworthy, and reliable team. This was something I knew very well, yet, it was not easy to find that team and this kind of business partner for myself. Until I became very clear about my own driving forces in business, developed future scenarios for my business partnerships, and used them as a checklist for finding the right business partners and employees. With great success. I know have people I can really rely on who support my business 100%.
5. Better communication = better (business) relationships = better life and more successful business. As a communication professional it came as a surprise to me how many people are so very bad at interpersonal communication. Especially in the communication sector. Connecting to people and communicating in a way that makes you recognize what your clients, employées, and business partners really want and need comes so naturally to me, that I didn’t consider it a valuable asset. In my own business, I learned that that’s actually the secret of my success. It makes me co-create an endless number of opportunities and new projects with new and also with existing clients.

How have you used your success to make the world a better place?

I try to make the world a better place with what I do every single day. How? The most important thing for me in every meeting, in every project, in every interaction is deep human connection. If this is established, it was a good meeting, etc., and low and behold, the money, the business success, etc. just comes all by itself. And better relationships with other human beings are the way we can change the world for the better one step at a time.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

I think the biggest problem right now is that human relationships are in a deep crisis. I try to change that every single day in my life and in my business by becoming aware of my own patterns and triggers and integrating them. And by deeply connecting to other people. To listen to them, to feel into them, to really see them. That’s how we create trust and better relationships.

We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

The former FBI hostage negotiator Chris Voss. His book “Never Split the Difference” is the best book on interpersonal communication I’ve ever read, and his master class and videos are priceless! His often counterintuitive approach to negotiations and communication in general works every single time. I use it every day with great success. I use it every day with great success. With his methodology, I gained many clients and new projects.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this

Female Founders: Ursula Eysin of Red Swan On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Women In Wellness: Amrita Sen of RoundGlass Living On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Confront Your Fantasy Bubbles: The one thing I find to be so real in my appreciation of humanity is the suffering of people. And time and again, I am learning that suffering is directly linked to people’s fantasies and the gap those fantasies have with reality. Think about what fantasy bubbles you have created for yourself and if you have too many. If you have too many you have in effect created polka dots and those polka dots become noise because at the end of the day, you can’t focus. The opportunity is to make those Fantasy Bubbles into ideas through the use of collaboration and building coalitions for your fantasies. Coalitions around fantasies become ideas. Ideas change people and people change the world.

As a part of my series about the women in wellness, I had the pleasure of interviewing Amrita Sen.

RoundGlass Living’s Music for Wellbeing lead, Amrita Sen, is a U.S.-based singer, artist, film producer, and designer of Indian-themed music, products, and entertainment for global audiences. In addition to serving as lead to the music category, she also composes music, sounds, beats, and moving art to support the dynamic platform. Her influences derive from classical piano, strings, and flute with a fundamental grounding in both Western Classical and North Indian motifs. Her longform melodic music is scored and accompanied by moving art drawn by Amrita from her various art collections.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

I’m passionate about working in design, film production, and entertainment — but music has always been at the center of my creative process.

I’ve been a professional world music playback singer and musician for over 10 years and in 2009 I performed at the Academy Awards with music legend AR Rahman, singing Jai Ho from the Oscar-winning movie, Slumdog Millionaire. I’ve been lucky enough to perform and record with several global artists and groups including Justin Timberlake, Weezer, Timbaland, Pitbull, and the LA Philharmonic. Recently, I scored and performed in Leonardo DiCaprio’s HBO climate change documentary Ice on Fire.

I like to also work with my hands. My Bollydoll art collection was featured during Miami Art Week 2011 (when Art Basel Miami Beach descends on the city), presented by Timbaland. I’ve also created a variety of design collaborations with Mac Cosmetics, Barnes & Noble, and Pier 1, to name a few.

So you can imagine how delighted I was to lead RoundGlass Living music, it allows me tap into my passion for music and design. Creating new music for meditation and healing is fascinating. The history of music tells us a story of how different rhythms, frequencies and sounds affect our physical, emotional, and spiritual wholistic wellbeing. Collaborating with RoundGlass and leading its Music for Wellbeing is quite personal for me having been healed and seen others heal from music.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your work with RoundGlass? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?

The most interesting observation I have had is how invested RoundGlass is in music. Music is part of more than half the pillars of Wholistic Wellbeing — from mental, physical, social to community and spiritual. Its vibrational form supports our lifeforce. I started my collaboration with RoundGlass thinking I would be doing my own thing in a department that was not necessarily integrated with the rest of the company. But very quickly, I realized that I had an army of advocates who themselves had remarkable ideas that we could incorporate into our offering. For instance, I never thought that trance music had a place in the genre of wellbeing music until the Global Head of Mental Health and Wellbeing with RoundGlass, Prakriti Poddar, suggested we try it. Today, the trance piece, “Liquid Metal” is our most viral piece. It reflects that our demographic for Wholistic Wellbeing music is broader and more diverse than we think.

Can you share a story about the biggest mistake you made when you were first starting in your musical career? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

The biggest mistake I made was not leaning into the specific skill that differentiated me from everyone else — it’s something I call my unique atom particle identifier. That specific skill is my ability to do a vocal that combines my western classical operatic training with my training in Indian classical with an emphasis on Ghazals from the Northwestern region of India and my knowledge of Bengali music. People oftentimes ignore skills that are so specific because it may seem silly at first. And that’s exactly what I did. I ignored it. I assumed it was too narrow and didn’t realize how to convert a narrow skill into something that I could leverage as an artist and composer. But the realization I had much later in my life is that, at the end of the day, a good vocal is just a well-tuned instrument, and a well-tuned instrument needs to be played with and experimented with. The more you experiment and practice, the more directions it can take and the more music and art you can bring to the world. A good vocal is an opportunity to create a new piece of original art that cannot be erased from history.

Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing with RoundGlass helping to make a bigger impact in the world?

I’m very excited leading RoundGlass Living’s Music for Wellbeing category. RoundGlass is a global Wholistic Wellbeing company dedicated to empowering people on their personal wellness journey and we’re expanding the music offerings on its new RoundGlass Living App.

The Music for Wellbeing was created to enhance the app’s immersive meditation experience. It includes originally composed musical stories to inspire and help users on their personal journey to Wholistic Wellbeing.

To bring a variety of sound palettes to the category, we have invited composers and artists from different genres to collaborate with us. To start we have multi-platinum mega-producer and 3X Grammy Award winner Jerry Wond, who has created a unique musical journey called “Wondaland”. It’s a series of six long form and short version compositions customized to fit the mood of those on the path to wellbeing. Jerry’s work brings together world music, exotic vocals, Caribbean influence, and a multi-language format to immerse the listener in healing and meditative vibes.

Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.

Walk and Talk or Fitness & Mindfulness: I read a book called Geography of Genius that validated a working theory I have had for a long time — the best ideas, whether they be left brain or right brain — happen during times of spiritual movement. Spiritual movement CAN and WILL happen with walking and talking. Try it. It works! If you are stuck, go outside, walk with a friend, and talk it out. Your idea will come closer to some sort of horizon even if you don’t want it to!

Yoga, Fitness, Martial Arts and more: You simply can’t ignore your body. It just doesn’t work. The mind, the body, and the self. The body needs movement.

Knowledge and Wisdom: There is no such thing as going into a corner and divining inspiration. It is a fallacy. Very few creators operate this way. Most people who do creative things share and collaborate.

Confront Your Fantasy Bubbles: The one thing I find to be so real in my appreciation of humanity is the suffering of people. And time and again, I am learning that suffering is directly linked to people’s fantasies and the gap those fantasies have with reality. Think about what fantasy bubbles you have created for yourself and if you have too many. If you have too many you have in effect created polka dots and those polka dots become noise because at the end of the day, you can’t focus. The opportunity is to make those Fantasy Bubbles into ideas through the use of collaboration and building coalitions for your fantasies. Coalitions around fantasies become ideas. Ideas change people and people change the world.

If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?

To embrace music as an integral part of your overall wellness journey. I think many people don’t realize the critical role that music plays in how we feel — and not just music but sounds. There are sounds that when brought together can impact us in ways we never would have imagined. Studies in scientific journals even find that specific sounds have the ability to target disturbances in the body like inflammation, sleep issues, stress and anxiety, indigestion or healthy eating, breathwork, mindfulness, and many more.

Music for Wellbeing in the RoundGlass Living app addresses these and more. The diverse soundscapes are so important to having an immersive meditation experience and helping us to create our own happiness, health, and peace of mind.

I’m also thrilled to be collaborating with Prakriti Poddar, the Global Head of Mental Health and Wellbeing at RoundGlass, as we dive into the connection between music and wellness.

What are your 3 Things I recommend to anyone starting at a new wellness career??

Be clear in your intentions and words. The wellness journey is deep, but you need to stay clear. That’s what I love about RoundGlass Living is that it isn’t esoteric. It makes Wholistic Wellness a less complicated journey.

Always aim to get along with everyone in the workplace. That will bring so much joy to you. Even if you think you are right, you don’t want to be right in the wrong way.

Don’t fall in the corporate hamster wheel. Remember you’re in the business of wellness, so it’s important to still stay well. Work hard but also work well.

Sustainability, veganism, mental health and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?

Mental health is a crisis around the world. We have got to get a grip on how to give people a better sense of community. If we don’t, we will have more false religions popping up all over the place. Community is a tried and true path to joy. It works! This is why I’m so thrilled to be a part of the RoundGlass community. This is why Sunny Singh created it. RoundGlass’ mission is to bring people together and establish a sense of community and support.

What is the best way our readers can follow you online?

You can learn about RoundGlass Living’s Music for Wellbeing at Living.Round.Glass or follow on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. You can Download the app in the AppStore or GooglePlay.

Thank you for these fantastic insights!

Women In Wellness: Amrita Sen of RoundGlass Living On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The Future of Beauty: Indira Hodzic On How Image Spa MD’s Technological Innovation Will Shake Up The Beauty Industry

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Not to sound like a broken record, but the advancement of lasers is exciting. The treatments are becoming less painful, with less downtime, with better results and again, with so many new applications to help clients achieve results. Anything I incorporate into our practice is going to be because of the results.

As a part of our series about how technology will be changing the beauty industry over the next five years, I had the pleasure of interviewing Indira Hodzic.

Indira is the co-founder of ImageSpaMD, The Whole Wellness, the All Hands on Deck Foundation and FemMD (launching 2022). Indira consults for medical spa teams across the country and has built several successful businesses thanks to her results-driven approach and empathetic leadership style. Indira was born in Bosnia, and immigrated here with her family as Baltic War refugees. She currently lives in Encinitas, California.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

My very first job was working at a medical spa called Nuvo in Washington. I was just a teenager, but I realized quickly that I was good at it and working hard was rewarding. From interacting with clients to business operations, I ultimately put myself through college doing this kind of work. I learned skills that helped me become a business owner and industry leader, but honestly, what hooked me was helping people see results. That became my passion, and the driving force behind my team’s success.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

This might sound crazy, but Kimberlin Brown, a famous American soap opera actress, was a huge influence on my life from a young age. I grew up watching her on ‘The Young and the Restless’ and ‘The Bold and the Beautiful.’ First, we moved to Germany to escape war in Bosnia, then we came to the United States. Watching soap operas was one of the ways my family, including myself, learned to speak English. I always admired Kimberlin’s strong female characters, and of course, she was strikingly beautiful. I truly believe somehow, I manifested Kimberlin into my life, if that doesn’t sound ridiculous. When my partner Eddie Echegoyen and I started ImageSpaMD in Southern California, I met Kimberlin when she became a client. We’ve developed a wonderful friendship over the years. I now consider her a mentor and second mom. She’s a strong woman with a diverse business empire and a successful acting career.

Are you able to identify a “tipping point” in your career when you started to see success?

As I said, within the first few months of working in a medical spa, I knew I was good at it. I’d say the tipping point didn’t happen until I opened my own office. I realized how much it really took to get it going. Building my incredible team and creating an inclusive culture where everyone can thrive took probably 12 of my 16 years in this business to really get to that point. We’ve been so fortunate that we’ve always been successful, but we really rounded the corner when the right team came together. Any one of us can give a client good results, but as a team of professionals, we deliver even better.

None of us can achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person to whom you are grateful who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

Dr. James Chao has been a phenomenal mentor as both a business leader and as a medical professional. He’s a plastic surgeon, and the partnership between us has allowed all aspects of our aesthetics practice to grow exponentially. Sharing his acumen shaped my entrepreneurial drive and helped me see opportunities for success when you chase passion over money, and remain focused on patient results.

Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. The beauty industry today has access to technology that was inconceivable only a short time ago. Can you tell us about the “cutting edge” (pardon the pun) technologies that you are working with or introducing? How do you think that will help people?

Aesthetics is always improving, whether it’s the technologies or the techniques. There is always room to learn, and to improve the results that can be obtained for a client. Here’s an example: I attended a dinner recently which included training on a product we’ve used for years. We learned the technique of shaking the bottle before injecting this product has changed, as has the manner of injecting it. No one taught that ten years ago, and the improvement in the results from such a simple change is astounding. Another example is lasers. They’re constantly getting better. You always want to have the latest and greatest, for patient comfort and to optimize results, both of which improve patient satisfaction and loyalty.

Researchers are also constantly finding that lasers, and other products, can have benefits for other ‘off-label’ conditions, which in some cases can be life-changing for patients.

I’m launching a new venture this year called FemMD, which will focus on broader aspects of women’s wellness. The treatments we offer include things like vaginal rejuvenation and bioidentical hormone therapies such as pellets. There are surgical and non-surgical procedures, even topical products to enhance libido, improve confidence and can treat difficult, even embarrassing symptoms such as incontinence. Many of these treatments are done with lasers that have evolved from being used strictly for the face and neck. The possibilities are exciting. We feel poised to help so many more women look and feel their best, navigating through some previously taboo topics that don’t scare us one bit.

Keeping “Black Mirror” and the “Law of Unintended Consequences” in mind, can you see any potential drawbacks about this technology that people should think more deeply about?

I tell everyone to do their own research and be sure they know the provider they’re going to. Bargain treatments can be anything but, and that’s not specific to laser technology, it’s true of any treatment that is done by the wrong hands. There are risks to any procedure, and it’s important to know what those are, and how the provider you’ve chosen handles those situations ahead of time.

Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the “beauty-tech” industry?

Not to sound like a broken record, but the advancement of lasers is exciting. The treatments are becoming less painful, with less downtime, with better results and again, with so many new applications to help clients achieve results. Anything I incorporate into our practice is going to be because of the results.

Another area that’s exciting is the education being offered to providers. It’s much more readily available than it ever has been. The pandemic has even helped with that, thanks to remote learning opportunities. You don’t need to travel to every conference to take advantage of the content and the education that is offered. That allows for more training, and more patient time, both of which are beneficial to everyone. Better education equals better client results.

I’m also pleased to see a greater emphasis on things like DNA tests for your skin and individualized treatment plans based on things like skin tests. Traditionally, across all of beauty and medicine, we’ve spent far too much time trying to fix problems and symptoms instead of tailoring treatments to maintain and improve health and beauty from the inside. We’re moving in a more holistic and more personal direction, and clients are responding.

Can you share 3 things that most concern you about the industry? If you had the ability to implement 3 ways to reform or improve the industry, what would you suggest?

I would say overall, providers need more training and to remove ego from the equation when it comes to the client relationship. I’d like to see more providers create treatment plans tailored to each patient, both for safety and efficacy. We don’t always think first about a person’s medical history and overall health before beginning treatment. Considering things like hydration, performing skin tests to determine what products and services should be recommended. We also need to take gut health and hormonal health into account in creating these treatment plans. Follow-up is also critical to success and can easily be overlooked.

You are an expert about beauty. Can you share 5 ideas that anyone can use “to feel beautiful”?

Hydration — simple self-care that can improve every aspect of your health

Exfoliation — sloughing a little skin makes us all glow, whether achieved through a dry brush or a facial scrub

Treatment — create a plan for your skin and calendar it, for instance schedule a monthly facial

Product — your skincare plan should include a tailored, individualized regimen

Diet — eating the top 5 foods for your skin (in our practice we encourage clients to follow Dr. Mark Tager’s ‘Feed Your Skin Right’ protocols)

Vitamins — also from the protocols, taking collagen and vitamins C and D

Oh wait, that was 6.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

Our mission for the new FemMD clinic is to empower women through optimum pelvic health. That is the movement we want to create through this new aesthetics concept: to help women achieve optimum health in areas that are often difficult to even discuss, from a whole host of sexual intimacy problems to incontinence and dryness. By balancing their hormones, rebuilding collagen in intimate areas, and using products to help balance pH and gut health we’re allowing women to thrive in new ways. For too long, we’ve shied away from talking about these taboo or difficult subjects, which has left too many women feeling isolated and alone. We are ready to be part of the solution.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Knowing others is intelligence, knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.” -Lao Tzu

This quote is timeless, and it has always reminded me that self-awareness is the key to true happiness and inner strength. It reminds me that I am in control of my own destiny. When I want to connect with other people, which is so crucial to what I do, first I need to be sure my house is in order.

How can our readers follow you online?

I’d love to connect through Instagram, imagespamd.com and linkedin

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this!

The Future of Beauty: Indira Hodzic On How Image Spa MD’s Technological Innovation Will Shake Up… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Modern Fashion: Suzanne McKenzie of Able Made On The 5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand Today

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Empower your team — It’s important to understand what motivates each person on your team, and to be clear on goals and mission. We have a great and passionate team, which is so important to scale a business.

Many in the fashion industry have been making huge pivots in their business models. Many have turned away from the fast fashion trend. Many have been focusing on fashion that also makes a social impact. Many have turned to sustainable and ethical sourcing. Many have turned to hi tech manufacturing. Many have turned to subscription models. What are the other trends that we will see in the fashion industry? What does it take to lead a successful fashion brand today?

In our series called, “5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand Today” we are talking to successful leaders of fashion brands who can talk about the Future of Fashion and the 5 things it takes to lead a successful fashion brand in our “new normal.”

As a part of this series I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Suzanne McKenzie, founder of Able Made.

Suzanne McKenzie is Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Able Made, a responsibly made athleisure brand for the active and the activists. After losing her husband suddenly to cardiac arrest while playing the sport he loved, she founded the Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation in his name to support inner city youth through access to soccer, health and art education.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood “backstory”?

I grew up in Hollis, Maine, a town near Portland. Since I was young, I was three-sport athlete, playing soccer, basketball and softball in a highly competitive environment. Those lessons I learned on the court and field has really shaped my values and approach to adversity.

Can you tell us the story about what led you to this particular career path?

I lost my husband in 2009, and that loss has sent me on a journey to use my design, strategy and sports background to build my business, Able Made.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

My friend Bill introduced me to the late design icon Milton Glasier at a NYC design gala. I usually don’t get nervous, but I was in this instance… he designed the I (heart) NY logo and made many other amazing contributions to the field. Bill made brought me over to him and intro’ed us. Since then, we called him “Uncle Milty”.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Being brave –- don’t be afraid to ask because the if you don’t ask the answer is always no. I cold-called Anna Wintour at Vogue to inquire about a tee design collaborator and got a meeting with her team, which lead to the launch of Able Made.

Being creative — stay steady when you’re up against business challenges and have confidence you will get through them with creative thinking. During the pandemic, we pivoted our sock factory to make certified organic face masks and were one of the first face masks to market to help keep our communities safer.

Being positive — celebrate your wins. In fast-paced environments, it’s important to pause or take stock of milestones to keep a positive mindset. I was in our factory in the Garment District last week filming the making of our first full ready-to-wear line and all the people working hard make our collection. I allowed myself to just pause what I was doing take a moment to take it all in. Positivity will translate to your team, as leadership helps set the tone.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

Our collections aren’t just sporty because of trend. We merge our collections with our soccer/sports heritage, so we are athleisure actually conceptually inspired by our athletic background.

Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Fall down seven times, get up eight.” — Japanese Proverb

Achieving your goals takes a lot of hard work. I try to keep this quote in mind when challenges arise in business and in life in general.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Do you see any fascinating developments emerging over the next few years in the fashion industry that you are excited about? Can you tell us about that?

I see the fashion industry working on sustainability and cruelty-free initiatives, with commitments from both emerging and established heritage brands. Luxury parent company Kering is going fur free across all its brands, including Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga. There are massive CO2 emissions created by the fashion industry, and more brands, including Eileen Fisher and Patagonia are looking at natural solutions to remove carbon from the atmosphere, including implementing regenerative farming practices.

Can you share how your brand is helping to bring goodness to the world?

I started my brand to helping fund non-profit Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation and its city-youth soccer and health camps in Boston and Hartford. The award-winning programming is going into its 13th year and looking to expand into our third market, New York City.

Can you share with our readers about the ethical standards you use when you choose where to source materials?

First we want the highest-quality product that feels great on and will be long-lasting, so we start with those design standards first. Then we layer on top our priorities on certified organic and cruelty-free fabrics and yarns, including cruelty-free Merino wool and fruit-based vegan leather alternatives, as well as reusing material that already existing by prioritizing deadstock or upcycled fabrics.

Fast fashion has an advantage, that it is affordable for most people, but it also has the drawback that it does not last very long and is therefore not very sustainable. What are your thoughts about this? How does your company address this question?

Fast fashion is a huge contributor to the pollution and waste coming from the fashion industry. Their business model is based on an endless amount of styles to promote buying and consumption, regardless of working conditions of their factories and the impact of synthetic fabric production and waste of poor quality product that creates high-churn and landfill. Able Made is part of the movement to be seasonless with less styles that last longer, with low-environmental impact of our natural fabrics, and responsible manufacturing with fair wages and safe working conditions.

Thank you for all that. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand”. Please share a story or example for each.

Don’t follow the crowd — Be authentic to your story and your own point of view. We are leaning into the heritage story as to why I started Able Made: to fund Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation, a city-youth health and empowerment focused non profit created in honor of my late husband.

Be inclusive — Your end product will always be better if you have input from different ages, cultures and backgrounds. Since day one, Able Made has always employed and collaborated with an inclusive group of talent, from our investors, to management team, to the people we cast as models. Inclusivity is in our DNA and our team reflects the community we serve through our foundation.

Create a positive culture — Fashion has been notorious for being catty. At Able Made, we have created a supportive and collaborative environment where voices are heard and we work together really well. Many people on the team have been working with us since the launch.

Be open to change — Always stay open to improving no matter if you are in a leadership position. Taking the road less traveled has helped us push Able Made forward, from updating our factory list to exploring new fabrics.

Empower your team — It’s important to understand what motivates each person on your team, and to be clear on goals and mission. We have a great and passionate team, which is so important to scale a business.

Every industry constantly evolves and seeks improvement. How do you think the fashion industry can improve itself? Can you give an example?

I’d love to see more shared resources as it relates to sustainability. There has been more fabric information sharing I’ve seen recently which is amazing.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

I hope to focus more on the goals we currently have to create healthier and more empowered communities via Able Made and our non profit partner, Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Website ablemadeshop.com and @ablemade on IG, facebook and TikTok.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.

My pleasure. Thank you!

Modern Fashion: Suzanne McKenzie of Able Made On The 5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

An Interview With Candice Georgiadice

Trust — Every good leader of a fashion brand needs to have complete trust in their creative vision no matter the feedback they receive from others. It is crucial for the life of your brand to trust and execute the ideas you are trying to express as a brand to distinguish yourself in the market. No one will understand the concepts you have until you execute them to the best of your ability.

Many in the fashion industry have been making huge pivots in their business models. Many have turned away from the fast fashion trend. Many have been focusing on fashion that also makes a social impact. Many have turned to sustainable and ethical sourcing. Many have turned to hi tech manufacturing. Many have turned to subscription models. What are the other trends that we will see in the fashion industry? What does it take to lead a successful fashion brand today?

In our series called, “5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand Today” we are talking to successful leaders of fashion brands who can talk about the Future of Fashion and the 5 things it takes to lead a successful fashion brand in our “new normal.”

As a part of this series I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Eric Vicens.

Eric Vicens has been in the eyewear industry for the past eight years. With his passion for design and well-crafted goods, he’s created a name for himself in Miami through his highly curated eyewear shop, twelvesixtynine, as well as his passion project, Johann Wolff. Raised in the Dominican Republic, Eric has a great cultural background that allowed him to jive with South Florida’s culture easily.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood “backstory”?

Sure, I’d love to. I had the blessing of being born in Columbia, South Carolina, the only person in my entire family to bear the coveted blue passport. Even though the memories of this adventure are long gone, my older brother and business partner, Lorenzo, got to experience it for 4 years. This stint in America made him feel more at ease conducting business in the states. After my father finished his Ph.D., my family relocated to the Dominican Republic, one of the most amazing places. I honestly can’t ask for a better upbringing. Growing up with a culture highly influenced by its Spanish settlers, you knew you were part of something special from early on. I attended an all English American School and mingled with a small group of friends — a classroom wouldn’t exceed 20 students. My weekends were usually spent at the beach or Casa de Campo, obsessing over the endless summer weather we tend to enjoy. Even though I enjoyed the outdoors plenty, one thing was obvious; I was captivated by automobile design from first sight. The only sport that I dared to entertain, and still do, is racing. The countless hours obsessing over old Car & Driver magazines, reading, observing and imagining one day of being able to appreciate these beauties in person is instilled in my mind.

Can you tell us the story about what led you to this particular career path?

Sure. Fast forward to 2006, I moved to Miami thanks to my dad. I wasn’t fully vested in the idea, but he made it a point for me to understand the benefits it would bring to me as a young adult. As any good son would do, I lightly refused and ended up caving in. Now that I was settled in Miami, my older brother Lorenzo started to visit and from the get-go, he started to source watch brands that he could represent in the Dominican Republic. Soon I became his gofer and from there, I decided to do my own side hustle, in comes eBay. Looking back now, I can see why I hit the ground running. eBay had created and polished an e-commerce machine without me even noticing. In 2014, Lorenzo struck a substantial deadstock (no longer trending merchandise). I wasn’t entirely in, but we followed our gut feeling. Low and behold, this transaction allowed us to purchase our first store in Coconut Grove, one of the most enchanting neighborhoods of greater Miami. The rest is history. After our first visit to Vision Expo East, my brother and I understood our path curated independent brands.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

The way Johann Wolff started. Lorenzo and I left for Mido, Milan, Italy’s yearly eyewear show. With all the confidence in the world, we arrived at our hotel. We planned out how to comb the manufacturers’ pavilion and find our coveted factory. The days came and went with the show quickly coming to a close. Not only did we realize that there was a strong language barrier, but we had concluded that the quality that we were expecting wasn’t to be found. With our morale lower than ever, we decided to visit our good friend Shane Baum, owner of Leisure Society. His booth, at any eyewear shop globally, is considered a haven. With an abundance of Aperol Spritz and a fully staffed bar, we sat down to have a chat. As if it was meant to be, after explaining to him our lack of success, he texted a good friend he had worked with during his days at Bulgari. What we couldn’t achieve in 3 days, he managed to do so in 15 minutes. There you have it, that’s how Johann Wolff started.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Drive: Friends and family are the first to encourage you to move forward with your dreams. Now, very few of them pitch in financially, ultimately taking a lot of work before they recognize how good you are and how far you’ve taken that idea that seemed so far out. Even though our family and friends believe in us, they never invested in the business throughout those first few years. We had to duke it out with our sweat and tears.

Passion: If we weren’t passionate about design, there’s no way we would have landed the brands that we did or curate the way we do. It takes a passionate owner who’s business savvy to make it work in the fashion industry. Success will be hard to come by if you lack one of these. During our initial phase, brand reps would love to push product upon us. With little understanding of our target audience, we caved. I remember the countless times we sat on inventory because we believed what someone else thought was good for us.

Courageous — Small businesses fail, it’s a fact. It’s a tiny percentage that can withstand the first few rocky years and enjoy the fruits of the labor. If Lorenzo and I didn’t act as a team and believed in our hearts that our vision could be translated to reality, we wouldn’t be here. We both had the education and possibility of working in the private sector and making a good living while we were at it.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

Even though we collaborate with outside agencies or companies, we like to do most of the work in-house. This intimate process allows for a unique result that can easily be seen through our offerings compared to similar businesses or products. At twelvesixtynine the curation is immaculate, even though it targets a niche market. We’ve traveled the world visiting shops and we can confidently say we are one of the best in the US market. Through this process, we’ve managed to mold Johann Wolff into a brand that can hit every sector of the market, focusing on timeless designs while offering a fun, eclectic collection of light tinted lenses for a hip audience.

Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that was relevant to you in your life?

Be here now. Starting a business in my mid-twenties, I had a lot of distractions. Friends, parties, family, girls, you name it. Thanks to my mother and father who brought me up, I learned the value of hard work and perseverance from early on. Even though I still need to center myself and practice meditation, I know it has aided me to keep my cool, understand my goals, and focus on actualizing them.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Do you see any fascinating developments emerging over the next few years in the fashion industry that you are excited about? Can you tell us about that?

Definitely, I’m a big fan of young consumers’ interest in the idea of repurposing clothing and upcycling materials/garments. The word ‘sustainability’ has been thrown around for years now. Still, ever since the world slowed down due to COVID-19 it seems as though many consumers have caught on to the importance of ‘slow fashion’. Lately there has been a visible emphasis on supporting independent designers that focus on small-batch productions that push the sustainability envelope.

Can you share how your brand is helping to bring goodness to the world?

We are one of the only brands that invest heavily in polarized lenses. 90% of our selection is polarized and the reason for this is that they do a better job at protecting from harmful UV/UB rays. Most eyewear brands in the market lack polarized lenses. Some of them even opt out on anti-reflective coatings on their lenses.

Can you share with our readers about the ethical standards you use when you choose where to source materials?

We work with cellulose acetate. Not only is it incredibly strong and beautiful, it is hypoallergenic and renewable. This plant-based material is mainly used by high-end eyewear manufactures. A lot of what you find in the industry is plastic or what you would call injection mold.

Fast fashion has an advantage, that it is affordable for most people, but it also has the drawback that it does not last very long and is therefore not very sustainable. What are your thoughts about this? How does your company address this question?

We are not fans of fast fashion. For us, eyewear is the most important accessory one can wear. In today’s culture, we focus more on shoes and handbags. Now ask yourself, how much time do you spend looking at shoes vs. a person’s face? Exactly. We believe in selling a product that withstands the test of time and is continuously wearable, no matter where fashion trends stand. This also allows our clients to build a collection similar to how watch, art, and automobile collectors do.

Thank you for all that. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand”. Please share a story or example for each.

Innovation — Be it quality, design, or giving back to the environment, a brand you need to develop and improve to maintain your competitive advantage continuously.

Design — There are numerous one-hit wonders out there. You need to push the envelope consecutively and develop designs that captivate a new audience and keep your existing clientele interested and engaged.

Trust — Every good leader of a fashion brand needs to have complete trust in their creative vision no matter the feedback they receive from others. It is crucial for the life of your brand to trust and execute the ideas you are trying to express as a brand to distinguish yourself in the market. No one will understand the concepts you have until you execute them to the best of your ability.

Respect — Paying homage to technical processes, fabrication methods and past designers is an essential trait of being at the forefront of the industry. As well as respecting your consumers through your brand’s transparency.

A Team — This might be the most important one of all. A passionate team that believes in your vision, aiding in supporting and actualizing your creative endeavors is the key to the continuous growth of your brand.

Every industry constantly evolves and seeks improvement. How do you think the fashion industry can improve itself? Can you give an example?

We need to step away from fast fashion and quick. The fashion industry is one of the most significant contributors to global warming. We need to reeducate consumers to move into a thrift/repurpose vibe. Nothing makes me more proud than a compliment on a well-thrifted item.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

To cultivate awareness in every being. Awareness for our bodies, for our planet, for others. In this society, we are too caught up with upping one another instead of focusing on living the best life we can while respecting our planet and others.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

They can follow our Instagram posts and our blogs at both twelvesixtynine and Johann Wolff. We are working on a series of articles that will educate our readers on eyewear in a very romantic and story telling manner.

@twelvesixtynine

@jweyewear

Twelvesixtynine.com

Johannwolff.com

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.

Modern Fashion: Eric Vicens On The 5 Things You Need To Lead a Successful Fashion Brand Today was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.