Caring For Yourself For A Pleasure-Driven Life with Barella Roberson | Episode 69

This is an unedited transcript and the timestamps don’t match exactly with the final audio. Thanks for your understanding!

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Okay.

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Oh, and then just double checking, Berella Robertson. Rover, okay, okay, I’m glad I asked them.

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Robertson.

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Yeah. Okay.

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Just make a phonetic note robe person. Okay. Okay. Now we will start.

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So, arella, I would love to know what is your personality type from any framework that you know or love or resonate with?

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Okay.

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What is my personality type? Well, I, you know, I’ve taken some of those personality tests, but I couldn’t tell you the results right now.

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The only thing that I can reliably say to look for is I’m a Scorpio like through and through.

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Oh.

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And you know, I don’t know anything the ins and outs of other signs. I know my sign and I know every time I read a description I’m like that is literally me like I’m very passionate.

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Okay. I love it when, yeah, yeah, it’s so nice when we have those containers where we’re like, oh my gosh, I feel so seen.

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I’m not the only one. That’s amazing. Yeah.

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Yeah, yeah.

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So what is your current trajectory? What’s your vision for your life and your business?

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Oh my goodness. Well for the business, you know, we plan to grow organically. We have a very specific and niche, customer base that we wanna just really take care of them first and then kind of grow organically.

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And so that has really informed our sales strategy. Our retail partnerships, you know, we’ve really focused on a lot of small businesses.

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Product if they are aligned with that brand’s mission, if they like the packaging, all the kind of superficial stuff.

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And obviously if they think it can sell, if that product is something that their customer base will like. So that’s as far as the business go just in general in my life I just really want to continue to create and build community of like-minded folks.

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I’m really passionate about branding and marketing, of course, that’s been my bread and butter.

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But the reason why I got into it, of course, that’s been my bread and butter. But the reason why I got into it is because I’s been my bread and butter.

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But the reason why I got into it is because I love, the idea of taking a concept and, the idea of taking a concept and turning it into something that goes into a storefront or in the pages of taking a concept and turning it into something that goes into a storefront or in the pages of a magazine that’s always given me a lot of satisfaction and turning it into something that goes into a storefront or in the pages of a magazine.

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That’s always giving me a lot of satisfaction. And so, you know, I just see myself continuing to kind of grow as a business person, as a leader, as a mom, as an activist, as a friend, as a lover, as a partner, all the different roles that I play for other people in my life.

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While also kind of, making sure that I’m taking care of myself, mentally, spiritually, physically, in that, I’m always kind of living a, purpose and pleasure driven life.

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Hmm.

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Oh, and that’s so on brand, right? With Black Alchemy. That’s so it’s wonderful to know that the leadership behind the brand.

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Yes, absolutely. Okay.

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Is actively living that out. That is so important for trust that is so important for decision making that is so important for these partnerships that you are creating.

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Yes.

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And so wanted to reflect that back to you that that sounds like exactly what it is you’re building in your business and for your own life as well.

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Yes, and I always I always advise other business leaders that you know I know a ton of people who have emerging brands and we kind of bounce ideas off of each other and share information and resources.

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And I always say like customers understand authenticity and you know we are in if you’re in a store in to astrology at all we’re in the air age of Aquarius everyone keeps saying that we see a lot of shifting going on in the way that we receive information.

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People are kind of going through their individual deconstruction processes, whether that’s dismantling, internalized misogyny and racism that they may have classism, really kind of looking at the world and new eyes.

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And so customers, particularly ones that, you know, wanna buy better products for their health and for the for their personal health and wellbeing, but also the health and well being of the planet and people around them.

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They want to support brands with their who have aligned missions and kind of internal. values and so you know they know when you’re being authentic they know when you’re living the life of your consumer you know and so I really I don’t have to kind of I mean, I do do consumer research, of course, as part of the marketing branding process in the business building process.

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But I don’t have to go too far to think about our core customer and what she wants because I am her.

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So that has made the process easier because I understand our core customer.

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Yeah.

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Yeah, and that understanding that empathy is so important, whether we are our ideal customer or not, right?

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Or whether we are for a lot of service providers or coaches or course creators it is people who are you know my pass self is my ideal client right I love that for products it doesn’t have to be your pat self it can be your current self who is the model of exactly what it is that you’re creating and I think that’s such a beautiful way to look at it is we’re in this together and I think

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Yeah.

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Yes.

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that makes your decisions and your pricing and your packaging and your ingredients and your marketing and all the things so much just again more aligned.

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Yes, exactly. Oh wow. That’s really powerful.

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So what was the one decision or experience that changed the trajectory of your life?

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I, you know, wasn’t so much a decision that I made for myself, but that was one made for me as a child.

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My mother was an educator. I’ve come from a family of educators. So that was always a big deal in my family.

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I growing up nobody asked me about you know boyfriends or you know told me that I looked cute in my outfit it was you know how school going you know that was always the question and so I always knew that that was important to my family and what was expected of me was that I would excel academically and I attended a really fancy prep school from seventh to twelfth grade in the DC area and all ghost

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prep school and it completely changed the directory of my life. Just in terms of my confidence as a, a girl, in my intelligence, and my ability to, speak up for myself, my ability to, if I know the right answer, to say it, you know, my communication skills, we’re definitely home there.

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And I and I didn’t really appreciate it until I got to college and I would be in class and I would be the only female speaking up or asking questions or asking for help.

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And that really surprised me and disappointed me. And it also, you know, I was a scholarship kid, you know, kind of getting busted from the city and going to school with, you know, kids whose dads were, you know, in Congress or work for the World Bank, you know, really powerful families, really wealthy, powerful, connected families.

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Wow.

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And I just for a long time didn’t feel like I belonged, but what ended up happening was instead of, you know, kind of getting this deep seated, jealousy because these girls have so much privilege and access that I didn’t have.

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I used it as an opportunity to open up my world, and, and, and, what was possible for my life.

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And that the only difference between them and I was that, you know, they were born into privilege and I was not, but at the end of the day we were sitting next to each other in school.

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And so it was really up to me to just literally make the decision that I want it more for my life than otherwise would have been kind of easier for me.

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Yeah.

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To do and it just completely changed my path. And so I’ve always kind of you know since that experience since high school middle school I’ve always believed that there is no space that I’m not welcome in.

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There is no table that I’m not welcome at. And so I kind of like, and maybe it’s internal response, but I kind of like over prepare and, you know, make sure that my teaser cross and my eyes are dotted and not so much in a perfectionist sense, but just in a sense of like.

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I wanna make sure that when another person that looks like me steps into a room like this that they feel safe and they feel comfortable.

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And just, by my existing and just, just being an example of what’s possible for your life.

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Yes, that representation is so important. So from whatever identity you have, whatever background you have. That idea of I deserve to be here.

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I know what I want to say. I know how I want to make people feel. I want to set the tone for myself for other people who might resonate.

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Yes.

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That is something that translates across, again, any identity, any business. So many of us are afraid to get visible quote unquote online or Be on a podcast or create content because they might make waves.

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Yes.

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Yes.

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They might polarize. They might. Put themselves out there and receive some hate for it. And yes, it is absolutely scary and all of us have, and you mentioned a trauma response.

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All of us have varying degrees of trauma that we need to consider. And yet all of us has a message that matters.

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Yes.

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All of us has a message that is worth sharing because someone else needs to hear it. And so thank you so much for setting that tone for so many other people and and for sharing that experience too.

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So then. Okay.

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What an awesome way to really seize what life gives you.

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Absolutely, absolutely.

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So. Sort of along those lines. What are some of your guiding values and how have they sparked action?

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In your business specifically.

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Hmm. So, you know, our guiding principles, for the brands, you know, first of all, we created the brand because we saw, an opportunity in the beauty space.

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That, they were just not having the conversations that we wanted to have. And so we didn’t really feel like they were any brands out there that really kind of understood our core customer.

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And so we kind of are at the intersection of 3 categories within the beauty space. One is clean beauty.

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So that’s, we do not include, any ingredients, taxing ingredients that, have been found to cost on to our bodies, particularly our reproductive parts.

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Or the environment. Clean beauty is a growing global business. It’s estimated that it’s last year, was about a 7 billion dollar global business.

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It’s, estimated that it’ll be about double that in 2,02814,000,000,000.

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So this is something that’s a growing category. The second category would be ethnic skin care or skincare for melanated skin tones.

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And so, you know, people of the global majority, people of color, you know, our skin tends to be drier, you know, our skin tends to be drier, and more sensitive.

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And more sensitive. And so, to be dryer, and more sensitive.

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And so, and even though we need less sun protection per se because we have melanin naturally, which is a natural sunscreen and we’re so grateful for that.

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There are other issues, you know, we scar easier. Our skin tends to be very, very dry.

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And so it has, it needs a lot of moisture. And a lot of the kind of common, body moisturizers that we see in drug stores and grocery stores and mass market in particular, you know, the first ingredient is water.

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Hmm.

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Yeah.

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Reflect back that you’ve mentioned conversation so often in the context of your brand and I think that’s so core to what it is you’re doing and the waves that you’re making and the way you’re welcoming people in.

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Hmm.

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It’s not saying, oh, you know, what you’ve been using your whole life. From the drugstore shelves is bad for you.

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It’s a conversation around what is clean beauty. What does it mean to us? What does it mean to you?

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Yeah.

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What is sexual wellness for you, for us? And I really appreciate how it is a give and a take.

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It is a conversation and that seems so, so central to what it is that you’re building. And then also you said that the brand itself is at the intersection of these 3 categories.

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And again, that translates so well to your customers. They are also at the intersection of so many identities.

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We all are. Right? Some of us more mainstream than others. Some of us more privileged than others, but we all have multiple roles, multiple identities.

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And so I think it’s so beautiful that the brand can be multifaceted just like your customers are multifaceted.

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Yes.

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Yes, yes, yes. And we’re, you know, women are not amount to live, women of color and black women in particular are certainly not a monolith.

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Yeah.

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And so I think the mistake that a lot of brands have is they try to be everything to everyone and you can’t do that.

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Hmm.

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And so even with a product like, like body care, you know, everybody needs soap and lotion and shampoo.

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You, there’s still variants in, you know, what our skin can tolerate for a number of reasons.

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Hormonal changes, you know, some of us have more sensitive skin than others, even if an ingredient is natural, doesn’t necessarily mean that it will work for you.

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So a lot of skincare is a is a lot of, you know, trial and era, just buying a product, seeing how it works.

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If you love it, you buy it again, you saw all your friends. And again, I am a career marketing strategist.

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I’m not like a social media person. I’m not, you know, I’m a career marketing strategist. I’m not like a social media person.

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I’m not, you know, I’m a big picture marketer. And so it’s always at the end of the day about connecting with your customer and having that conversation and just making sure that they understand, listen, I made this product for you.

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And again, to your point, you know, women are monolith. And so, we are very, very intentional about who represents our brand, who we partner with, so that we can kind of, again, build community.

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And so we do that in a number of ways, who we partner with, so that we can kind of, again, build community.

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And so we do that in a number of ways in our content, on our social media platform and so we do that in a number of ways in our content, on our social media platform, in our, our podcast.

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On our social media platform, in our, our podcast, we have a podcast where we interview a lot of folks. We have a podcast where we interview a lot of folks that we, collaborate with.

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I interview the woman who is a roman therapist. Her name is Aba and she developed our, custom fragrance for our body oil.

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And she talks about, you know, the power of fragrance to shift your mood and to kind of as part of a wellness.

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No.

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Forward. Living living, you know, clean limits. So, and we also have conversations with, sex therapists and relationship coaches and people who help other people heal themselves so that they can be better partners.

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Hmm.

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And in all of this, of course, goes into, you know, the kind of the, one of our brand pillars, which is just living, essentially empowered, enchanted life with cleaning ingredients that are safe for you and safe for the planet.

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So it kind of all goes in together. And I think our customers really understand all of that.

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Oh, I love that word enchanted. That is not something that we come across. Every day.

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Yeah.

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And for those of you listening, you can’t see her beautiful wallpaper, but she has this like massive floral bright fruity wallpaper in her background and Yeah.

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Yes, it makes me very happy and everyone always compliments me on it. So I appreciate it.

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I feel like that is enchanted. Yes, amazing. So, and I’ll be sure to link, the podcast as well in the show notes.

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For anyone who wants to check it out. So You said you know you’re a career marketing strategist and what has been the biggest lesson you’ve learned as an entrepreneur?

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Awesome. Yeah.

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Oh wow, as an entrepreneur.

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As an entrepreneur, it’s, you know, it’s you really have to you know i have a habit of really trying to see the best in everyone and you know i get as a marketer you know you work very very closely with creators with the people who get your photographers and designers and you know they’re so full of passion and they are so connected to the work that they do that

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Hmm.

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you’ve really kind of like I get really inspired by that. And a lot of times like they don’t understand, you know, the business piece.

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And so you have to make sure that, you know, no, no matter how excited you get about an idea, for a new product or, you know, whatever it is, content, partnership, whatever it is that it has to make sense for the business side.

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That you can’t get so wrapped up in kinda like, you know, the excitement of an idea, and not work through the viability of it for your business.

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Like, does this really work with the whole story, you know, you know, what are the, you know, let’s get it on black and white.

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You have to do that. And so I think for a lot of founders, you know, they start businesses because they have an idea.

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You know, and ideas. You know, I get pissed all the time. People push me all the time.

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Oh, you know, my art makes the best hot sauce or my husband is really good at that.

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And that all sounds great and a lot of people, you know, they just want to get out of the, and a lot of people, you know, they just want to get out of the 9 to 5 grand.

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Hmm.

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So they’re like, I’ve got this idea, you know, but then I start asking them really hard questions.

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About like turning that into an actual product or service and then it gets a little choppy. You know, so even as a consultant, I put aside, you know, black alchemy for a moment as a consultant.

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I don’t really take on clients unless I think that they have really kind of done the deep digging.

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I’m gonna make them dig even more, but I just want to see, you know, how far they’ve gotten in terms of just getting the initial kind of, dopamine high of coming up with the idea and just kind of like ruminating about like how cool would it be, how cool would my life be if I didn’t have to, you know, drive myself to this job that I hate and I

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could do this, you know, and it’s not that black and white, people somehow think entrepreneurship is easier in some way than having a job.

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Thank you.

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And it’s, you know, it’s a lot of pressure. It’s a lot of work.

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Hmm.

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It’s a lot of decision making. And you can make a couple bad decisions in a row and be done, you know, so it’s really about the balance of of the creative.

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Hmm.

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Piece and the viability piece.

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Yeah, okay, so much I wanna talk about here. One, that decision-making.

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Yeah.

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That is where values are such a useful tool, values and really understanding your customer are such a useful tool.

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You know where you want to grow. You can have all these amazing ideas. It can be a not right now.

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I know you have a very limited product suite right now because you know what’s viable for you.

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Yes, yes.

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Yes.

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It doesn’t have to be a no forever, right? You said you want to grow organically, maybe even a little bit slowly.

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Absolutely.

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You’re not seeking, you know, funding from anyone who will give it to you, you are really making sure that you’re creating things for your perfect fit people and then growing from there.

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You’re working with perfect fit partners to sell your products and then growing from there. And that doesn’t have to be the case for everyone.

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Yes. Yes.

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But that is a way to really manage. Resources and expectations and stress. So I’m so glad you mentioned the decision making.

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Yes.

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And then Also, this idea of ideas, right? So, I mean, anyone who has like an entrepreneurial bone in their body, it had like 600 ideas before Brexit, right?

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Okay, yes, I’m in the shower like, oh my god, I’m gonna, I’m gonna start a beverage company.

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Yeah. Yes, and ideas are a diamond, and right? They’re all as good as they are implemented.

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You know what I mean? Yeah.

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Good day.

00:23:51.975 –> 00:24:04.975
A strategy is only as good as it is implemented. And that is why I talk so much about taking confident, meaningful action because taking action toward that one idea.

00:23:53.224 –> 00:23:55.224
Hydrogen.

00:23:56.124 –> 00:23:58.124
Hi.

00:24:04.674 –> 00:24:22.674
Is so much more important than finding the right time for the perfect idea. Because the idea will probably change, the market will change, you will change your resources change, technology will change, your customers will change, everything will change.

00:24:12.474 –> 00:24:14.474
Exactly.

00:24:19.874 –> 00:24:21.874
Yes.

00:24:20.674 –> 00:24:29.674
So yes, have a vision for what you are building. Be on a mission to create some sort of change.

00:24:30.525 –> 00:24:59.525
And yet, know that the how will absolutely 100% shift in the meantime. And so Yeah, basically reiterating everything that you just described because, that is such an easy trap that we fall into because we know what we want to build is so beautiful and wonderful and worth it, but sometimes we get wrapped up in it rather than seeing the big picture.

00:24:57.974 –> 00:25:05.974
Absolutely. And it’s that, yes, so you definitely have to have a mission and a very clear mission for your brand.

00:25:01.125 –> 00:25:18.125
And because you need a North Star to always go back to, right? In a perfect example, you know, we decided, yes, we do have a perfect example, you know, we decided, yes, we do have a purpose, you know, we decided, yes, we do have a purposefully have a very limited collection.

00:25:17.775 –> 00:25:23.775
We only launched last summer and for a number of reasons. We only launched last summer and for a number of reasons.

00:25:20.375 –> 00:25:33.375
Number one, I think for beauty, I’m just used to launching things in threes. I don’t know why it works. It just does.

00:25:23.324 –> 00:25:28.324
Number one, I think for a number of reasons. Number one, I think for beauty, and for a number of reasons. Number one, I think for beauty, I’m just used to launching things in threes.

00:25:28.924 –> 00:25:30.924
That’s funny.

00:25:31.325 –> 00:25:36.325
And when someone has been introduced to launching things in threes. I don’t know why it works. It just does.

00:25:35.725 –> 00:25:39.725
And when someone is being introduced to your brand, they’re really only gonna try one or 2 products.

00:25:38.225 –> 00:25:43.225
They’re not gonna try one or 2 products. And when someone has been introduced to your brand, they’re really only gonna try one or 2 products.

00:25:42.775 –> 00:25:47.775
They’re not gonna try the whole line. They’re gonna, they’re gonna take a risk on one, maybe 2 products.

00:25:47.275 –> 00:25:57.275
And so I’m always like, if you come out with like a 10 skew line, you know, 7 or 8 of them are not gonna do very well.

00:25:53.826 –> 00:26:11.826
You do best with between one and 3. You’re always gonna have a best seller. But you will probably have between one and 3 that do very well.

00:25:59.675 –> 00:26:01.675
Yeah.

00:26:03.524 –> 00:26:53.524
And the others, not But the caps and the dispensers are plastic. And that’s just most brands.

00:26:09.829 –> 00:26:11.829
Hmm.

00:26:46.725 –> 00:26:57.725
It’s really, we just have not reached critical mass. We’ve been able to replace plastic for certain functions.

00:26:47.124 –> 00:26:49.124
Yeah.

00:26:54.724 –> 00:27:03.724
And they just, right now, our only real option for closures is plastic right now. So that’s why we decided to do that product and it was kind of like a nod to our culture.

00:27:00.574 –> 00:27:06.574
So this is the little baggy that our, lotion bar comes in and this bag is reusable.

00:27:02.025 –> 00:27:30.025
We called our little mini crown well bag and you can go to anybody’s home any you know black home or someone has a crown roll back and they will find you know loose change you know all kinds of like random things in these little bags and again this is sustainable living this is like reused it for your jewelry for making a travel bag make it whatever you want put your condoms in your little mini louvenir and

00:27:02.774 –> 00:27:07.774
And we all grew up with like our grandparents, you know, holding on to a crown rollback.

00:27:03.374 –> 00:27:05.374
Good.

00:27:29.225 –> 00:27:34.225
then the personal lubricant, again, we didn’t realize that we needed to educate around there.

00:27:34.275 –> 00:27:51.275
So then it’s a whole conversation around like what is Lou and what do you need it for? It’s not just for sex, it’s for also, you know, women have told us that they use it to slick down their flyways and their hair or prevent chaping between their legs when they’re exercising.

00:27:44.125 –> 00:27:58.125
And then a lot of women, you know, just have been having uncomfortable sex and they’ve been ashamed.

00:27:48.126 –> 00:27:50.126
Oh.

00:27:51.025 –> 00:28:06.025
To admit that. And so they didn’t even, and so instead of just saying, you know, how can I resolve this problem or what can I buy?

00:28:04.224 –> 00:28:13.224
They just stop having sex, which of course, you know, it causes issues in your relationship when you’re, you know, refusing to be intimate.

00:28:12.424 –> 00:28:19.424
A lot of women don’t believe that they have agency to, talk about issues, a pleasure in their relationships.

00:28:14.474 –> 00:28:29.474
And so there’s a lot of education that has to go around, just what is a personal lubricant and why do I need it and what’s in it and what is it for.

00:28:23.974 –> 00:28:37.974
And so And in the fourth product that I was thinking about launching. I was a water based personal lubricant.

00:28:36.974 –> 00:28:44.974
And we didn’t get the formula, right? Because you have to put preservatives because the water will introduce.

00:28:41.324 –> 00:28:43.324
Hmm.

00:28:44.175 –> 00:28:53.175
Bacteria into the formula. So that was a very different. Formulation process, then the silicon based loop.

00:28:50.724 –> 00:28:55.724
And a lot of times people don’t even know the difference between silicon and water.

00:28:52.224 –> 00:29:10.224
So, we were underestimating the amount of education we needed to do. And so once we kind of like get a hold on that, you know, we will release other other product, but we just, we, were really intentional about launching those 3.

00:28:56.576 –> 00:28:58.576
Hmm.

00:29:09.625 –> 00:29:21.625
And for the person who’s listening who’s like, I’m not going to be launching a sexual wellness conversation education based company anytime soon.

00:29:17.024 –> 00:29:19.024
Okay.

00:29:20.175 –> 00:29:33.175
I think that idea of you know, a 3 skew launch or whatever the equivalent is for you and your business absolutely translates to a service provider too, right?

00:29:30.774 –> 00:29:41.774
You can probably do 10 different services or 20 or 30. You know, whether you’re a graphic designer or a copywriter or anything in between.

00:29:41.124 –> 00:29:54.124
You probably could offer that. And yet. Your formula for success, which is not nearly as complicated as an actual chemical formula.

00:29:42.374 –> 00:29:46.374
Yes. Yes.

00:29:53.974 –> 00:30:01.974
Or, you know, lab created formula, it will still not be perfect and it won’t be the perfect fit for everyone.

00:29:55.184 –> 00:30:12.184
And so really having those signature offers, those core, again, you said everyone has a bestseller.

00:30:08.074 –> 00:30:18.074
Just inherently you’re going to have a bestseller. So I think that lesson translates to any business no matter the scale.

00:30:11.873 –> 00:30:14.873
Right, and study it. Yeah.

00:30:13.075 –> 00:30:28.075
And really keeping in mind what is your capacity, what is your mission, who are your customers coming back to those things and finding creativity within those constraints.

00:30:21.825 –> 00:30:37.825
And can feel really good. And then even the education front, again, most of us are not selling a taboo like you are.

00:30:31.075 –> 00:30:50.075
And yet, we still need some level of education on what is brand messaging even matter? Why would I hire a VA when I can do this myself?

00:30:31.624 –> 00:30:33.624
Yeah.

00:30:47.225 –> 00:31:01.225
Or whatever it is that you are offering to the world, that level of education absolutely needs to happen just to, to what degree is very, very different for every business.

00:31:00.174 –> 00:31:05.174
Absolutely. It depends on what it is. Absolutely. Yeah, yeah.

00:31:01.826 –> 00:31:06.826
And how and how you do it too. Yeah. Yeah.

00:31:01.875 –> 00:31:25.875
And keep in mind that, you know, I do have an MBA, and there’s a reason why when you go to business school you study the same companies over and over again you know you learn from the big boys and the big boys they don’t take risks they test markets they do they do all kinds of testing and then they come back to the drawing board and they analyze that data and then they move forward.

00:31:19.274 –> 00:31:21.274
Hmm.

00:31:25.675 –> 00:31:36.675
So, but with long before I even went to business school, one of the most important, branding and marketing lessons I learned was in the marketing department at Narcosmatics.

00:31:35.225 –> 00:31:47.225
This was, you know, way before, you know, now NAS is a household name in the early, well, I was there like late ninetys early 2,000.

00:31:43.875 –> 00:31:49.875
In the early, well, I was there like late ninetys, early 2 thousands, they were not as well known as they are now.

00:31:49.474 –> 00:31:58.474
And at that time, our one of our goals was to take the best selling product that we had at the time, which is the orgasm blush.

00:31:55.975 –> 00:32:03.975
And build a story around that one product and from there we built a story around we did the orgasm.

00:31:57.274 –> 00:31:59.274
Hmm.

00:32:03.574 –> 00:32:16.574
Laguna Bless Bronzer Duo, which they still sell. We did, orgasm, various lip glosses, a nail polish, and now there’s all kinds of face products.

00:32:15.674 –> 00:32:24.674
And so that what we were able to do by creating a core star product was we built a whole brand around that one product.

00:32:21.926 –> 00:32:41.926
And so that’s what you have to do. And maybe it’s, so you find that one service that one product and you kill it and you make it perfect and you make the story around it perfect and then you get them to buy other things where there’s another service another product.

00:32:36.975 –> 00:33:03.975
And so that was a really important lesson. I learned about marketing and branding very early in my career that I’ve taken with me and today, you know, orgasm blush is One of the best, if not the best selling blessings in history, in globally, and it’s doing, still doing very, very well, but it probably is still the number one best selling product, single skew

00:33:04.674 –> 00:33:05.674
that that brand has.

00:33:06.274 –> 00:33:11.274
Also how fitting for today’s conversation and the trajectory of your career.

00:33:09.025 –> 00:33:15.025
Yeah, irony that I will be making lose this many years later.

00:33:11.974 –> 00:33:25.974
So funny. So given your expertise, either in CPGs or in business building in general or in creating community and conversation, whatever angle you want to take.

00:33:24.725 –> 00:33:36.725
What sort of tactical tip do you have for fellow business leaders? I know we’ve covered a lot already, but any other specific tactical tips for anyone who wants to to take action.

00:33:36.625 –> 00:33:47.625
Well, you have to start somewhere. And again, I, I don’t want people to ruminate about the idea itself to really kind of get out of that kind of like dopamine space.

00:33:40.924 –> 00:33:42.924
Hmm.

00:33:46.825 –> 00:33:53.825
And kind of come back to reality and just really say, okay, what will it really take for me to run this business.

00:33:51.475 –> 00:34:06.475
What is my actual goal? Am I looking at an exit in 5, 10 years? Is this something that I want to kind of maintain and, you know, train my, my children to run like what’s the real goal?

00:34:06.181 –> 00:34:18.181
So that’s number one and then 2, just, you know, opposition research, market research is key, key, key, maybe you think your product or services is so great because you don’t see it anywhere else.

00:34:15.675 –> 00:34:24.675
Well, you know, maybe nobody else is doing it because it’s not really a viable business idea that they tried it and it didn’t work.

00:34:22.182 –> 00:34:40.182
You know, but, and, and there’s a lot of and there’s also I think a lot of times founders will be like well You know, my whatever product is better than, you know, this very popular product that might be true.

00:34:39.125 –> 00:34:50.125
Just because something is selling very well doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the best that there is and a lot of emerging companies just to even kind of get the press and the kind of get in there.

00:34:46.025 –> 00:35:01.025
To even fight in the market has to do something different and extraordinary, right? But that doesn’t necessarily mean that, you’re gonna overtake.

00:35:00.976 –> 00:35:14.976
That other businesses market share so you know be optimistic by all means I think that’s kind of a part of our like American kind of spirit, but also kind of be really realistic. Like, how am I gonna get the funding?

00:35:14.476 –> 00:35:28.476
How am I gonna maintain my lifestyle while I’m doing this? Like, so I’m adding another 2030 h of work to my plate. I’m already working, I’ve already got family obligations.

00:35:22.875 –> 00:35:49.875
I’ve already got all these, you know, how am I really who do I need to help me do this can I you know kind of get away with you know a very lean team can I get away with not having an office you know all of that is really really important I think one of the biggest mistakes in the beginning that a lot of founders make is just kind of like not getting their head out of the clouds kind of

00:35:49.475 –> 00:36:00.475
like, just like going straight to the finish line and like, oh, you know, I’m gonna exit in 10 years and then I’m gonna have this pot of gold and then I’m gonna live my real life.

00:35:59.182 –> 00:36:06.182
It’s like, well, that doesn’t usually happen, particularly for women founders. We get a fraction of.

00:36:05.325 –> 00:36:15.325
You know, the capital that’s out there for entrepreneurs. And we have to figure it out, you know, and sometimes we’re figuring out with children and other obligations.

00:36:10.475 –> 00:36:26.475
So it’s significantly harder for women founders and to not be so hard on yourself and to kind of take it one day at a time.

00:36:24.975 –> 00:36:31.975
You’re human being and you can do, but so much in 24 h. So yeah.

00:36:28.475 –> 00:36:40.475
Yeah. And. Really recognizing and being realistic about your strengths, right? If you know you’re an amazing ideas person and cannot bring your own head out of the clouds.

00:36:37.424 –> 00:36:58.424
You mentioned who do I need to bring on? You know, can you bring on a co-founder, an OBM, a thought partner, an accountability buddy, like who is it that you need or what sort of tools or infrastructure or systems do you need to be able to make those tough decisions?

00:36:43.524 –> 00:36:45.524
Bye.

00:36:57.775 –> 00:37:04.775
Play to your strengths and, and not ignore your weaknesses, but fill those gaps, right?

00:37:01.525 –> 00:37:11.525
That is such an important part of building a sustainable business for sure.

00:37:04.674 –> 00:37:06.674
Yes.

00:37:10.324 –> 00:37:12.324
Yes, yes, yes, yes.

00:37:11.325 –> 00:37:23.325
So what do you wish you had known about? Either the beauty industry or launching a startup or anything in between.

00:37:23.375 –> 00:37:27.375
What do you wish you had known before you got started with Black alchemy?

00:37:26.625 –> 00:37:37.625
Oh my goodness. I wish I had known. It’s a lot harder than it looks.

00:37:29.775 –> 00:37:43.775
Significantly harder than it looks. And that you’ll be surprised who will come out of the woodwork and offer to help you.

00:37:35.674 –> 00:37:37.674
Yeah.

00:37:43.275 –> 00:37:55.275
You know the people who you know you think will just be all downh in your corner and helpful you know sometimes those people are not who you expect.

00:37:54.724 –> 00:38:18.724
And to just keep and to just say focus and, you know, believe in yourself and not get so caught up in other brands journeys like you see another brand win an award or you see another business have an opportunity, you know, what’s yours is yours, you know, yeah, I’ve really, really believe that.

00:37:55.625 –> 00:37:57.625
Hmm.

00:38:17.875 –> 00:38:28.875
And you just have to kind of like put yourself in a position to kind of accept blessings and sometimes that means making hard decisions and decisions that you might not.

00:38:27.825 –> 00:38:36.825
You know think are like The best or that you kind of have some guilt over or feel uneasy about.

00:38:30.874 –> 00:38:43.874
You know, particularly if you’re not sore about kind of. Advocating for yourself in your business.

00:38:41.725 –> 00:38:49.725
You know, it can seem like a hard thing to do in the moment.

00:38:44.273 –> 00:38:46.273
Yeah.

00:38:50.574 –> 00:38:52.574
Definitely. So what

00:38:53.185 –> 00:38:54.185
Yeah, cut that out.

00:38:55.375 –> 00:39:03.375
What advice do you have for women to take confident meaningful action in their lives in their businesses?

00:39:01.724 –> 00:39:11.724
Oh my goodness. Well, you know, we talk a lot about empowerment in the in the body sense.

00:39:10.325 –> 00:39:22.325
You know, read, we talk a lot about redefining, what empowerment even means, what wellness means, what an enchanted life means.

00:39:23.574 –> 00:39:29.574
What a soft life means. Sorry, what was the question again?

00:39:25.575 –> 00:39:27.575
Hmm.

00:39:29.825 –> 00:39:33.825
What advice you have to take confident meaningful action?

00:39:32.825 –> 00:39:34.825
Yeah.

00:39:38.824 –> 00:39:47.824
I think the advice that I have and I think most people post pandemic are doing this anyway is to really kind of stop.

00:39:47.825 –> 00:39:59.825
And really think about. What it is that you really want. Like what is it that you want, not your family, not what your friends are doing, not what other business owners are doing.

00:39:54.125 –> 00:40:09.125
But what is it that you actually want for yourself? Like when you’re in a quiet room and you’ve meditated for 1020 min.

00:40:08.724 –> 00:40:18.724
And you’re calm and peaceful, like really thinking about what brings you actual joy and pleasure and fulfillment and purpose in your life and just do that.

00:40:17.824 –> 00:40:37.824
If you focus on that and not trying to prove yourself to people and not trying to, you know, women are we are so conditioned to put everyone above ourselves and to not really think about what it is that we want and need and to eliminate people places and things.

00:40:37.225 –> 00:40:53.225
That do not serve us, did that do not, bring us joy and fulfillment. And of course adulthood is filled with people and places and things and obligations that you don’t want to have.

00:40:49.275 –> 00:41:08.275
Of course, I don’t mean we all have to do what we have to do and that’s what being a grown up is you do things you don’t want to do but outside of that to really really I mean that is really the only real path to happiness I think is to just really live your life the way you want to live it.

00:40:50.374 –> 00:40:52.374
Hmm.

00:41:07.875 –> 00:41:27.875
Yes, yes. Alright, that is absolutely a microp moment. So how can people connect with you if they want to learn more about an enchanted life or this intersection of clean beauty and limited skin care and sexual wellness and all the things that we’ve discussed today, how can they commit?

00:41:13.775 –> 00:41:15.775
Okay.

00:41:26.325 –> 00:41:39.325
All the things, yes, so our brand website again, our company is called Black Alchemy, BLK alchemy, and we have a central wellness and body care line, with 3 products.

00:41:34.575 –> 00:41:45.575
We have a lotion bar, a massage and body oil in a silicon lubricant.

00:41:43.974 –> 00:41:52.974
Our website is black alchemy.co. On Instagram. We are, black alchemy.