WomenandBiz.com

Dear Pattie,

Could you share your background prior to starting WomenCentric^®?

I’ve worked in a few different industries, including advertising, textile manufacturing, yellow pages account management and non-profit companies. My experience covers production planning, advertising account production, customer service, sales, business development and marketing management and fundraising.

Pattie Simone

Been on an entrepreneurial path since 1988, when I went into business with my sister-in-law in a new, handcrafted-by-juried -American-artisans concept retail shop. When I first went out on my own, I did a variety of marketing communications planning & writing work for small to mid sized companies.

In 2003 I started writing as a reporter, covering events for a daily paper. I’ve since compiled over 650 bylines covering bridal, features and business in a variety of print and online newspapers, magazines, online publications and blogs.

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Dear Lila,

Could you share your background prior to becoming an entrepreneur?

Lila Allocca

I have always wanted to work for myself.  Before becoming an entrepreneur, I worked for Merrill Lynch as a Legal Assistant for 10 Years.  I just never liked sitting behind a desk.  It left me feeling uninspired.  Also, due to the fact that I do not have a College Education, moving up the corporate ladder would have taken much longer than I was willing to wait for.

How was it helpful to you as you began your entrepreneurial journey?

Actually, being in the corporate environment pushed me to want to break free on my own, so I guess just being there was helpful.

What led you to purchase BritchinPost.com?

That’s my favorite question.  Probably a common answer in my field as well.  The birth of my daughter Olivia inspired me.  I was shopping for her at one of my favorite online boutiques (Britchinpost.com) and had to call the owner to ask a question.  In the midst of conversation, she told me she was going to be selling her online store.  The Lila Lightbulb went on and I was soon the new owner of the Britchinpost.com online Girls Boutique.

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Could you please tell us about your background prior to starting your business?

Prior to starting my business, I stayed busy by homeschooling my four young children.  Prior to that, I sold B2B software.

Carissa Rose

Did you have any entrepreneurial experience? If yes, how did it help you in starting this business? If not, what surprised you as you started your business?

Although I never myself had been an entrepreneur before, I had been around entrepreneurs who taught me a lot about being an entrepreneur. My husband was a successful entrepreneur for more than a decade and I had worked for a couple of entrepreneurs as well. The most help I gained was from my husband; he was smart enough to grow his business so it could run without his presence.  A couple of things that surprised me the most in starting Carissa Rose Designs LLC was that first, the most important thing is choosing your vendor group and second, building a competitive and brand worthy website is expensive and time consuming.

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When I watched Liza Donnelly’s presentation: “Drawing upon humor for change” on TED WomenI was inspired by her cartoons and talk. I hope that this article encourages you to learn more about Liza and her projects, and that it motivates you to create your own projects to make a peaceful difference in the world.

Lisa Donnelly

Liza was inspired to draw since she was 7 years old, and she really enjoyed cartoons by James Thurber and Charles Schultz. She soon started to find her own style and making family and friends laugh motivated her to keep drawing.  After getting her degree in Liberal Arts from Earlham College in Indiana, Liza moved to New York City and got a job at the American Museum of National History in the Art Department. She kept sending her cartoons to The New Yorker magazine, and she eventually became one of only 3 women cartoonists (with Nurit Karlin and Roz Chast) with the magazine in the early 80s. Read more

Susan Butler

Congratulations on publishing “Women Count: A Guide to Changing the World”, it is an inspiring book, showing readers how far women have come and how far we still have to go to continue achieving equality and making a difference in the world. Could you share with WomenandBiz.com, a little bit about your journey?

WBiz: What was your background prior to starting The Susan Bulkeley Butler Institute for the Development of Women Leaders?

SBB: I was a small-town girl in Illinois (I’m from Abingdon, Illinois and went to Purdue University) and became the first woman professional at Arthur Andersen & Co. I later went on to be the first woman partner of what would become Accenture, the $19-billion global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing organization. After 36 years, I retired as the Managing Partner of the Office of the CEO. Read more

Dear Amethyst,

It is great to connect with you.

Could you share with WomenandBiz.com’s readers, your background prior to becoming a Shaman, Sound Healer and Soul’s Path Coach?

Amethyst Wyldfyre

Great to connect with you too!! Thank you for this wonderful opportunity to share and be of service!  So here is the story….

Up until about 8 years ago I was a Real Estate Developer and Common Interest Community Manager.  In my final years of that 18+ year career I developed a multi-use community of 51 single family homes, 56 apartments and an office building called “Crosswoods Path” (maybe a little hint from the Universe that I’d be moving into helping others with navigating their own Path?? Perhaps!)  In my final year of that project I was also the National Chairwoman for my trade association CAI – the Community Associations Institute and I traveled all over the nation speaking to local chapters and leaders in the field as well as representing the voice of the 1 in 8 homeowners across the country at that time who lived in common interest communities on Capitol Hill in Washington DC.  I was a consultant to several Fortune 500 real estate development companies including Pulte Home Corporation and K. Hovnanian, to the United States Agency for International Development (U.S.AID), the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the World Bank.

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Dear Helen,

Could you share with Womenandbiz.com’s readers about your background prior to becoming a Money Relationship Mentor?

Helen Kim

From the age of nine until I began this work, I was in the performing arts. I was a performing cellist, worked and consulted for Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center and was also an agent at one of the largest performing arts agencies where I put my own artists on the international stages. The rigorous discipline required to be a performer and the knowledge that a great performance is part practice, part inspiration and part innovation taught me some basic lessons about life and business.

What inspired you to become a Money Relationship Mentor?

My “financial awakening” came when I realized I had made the same amount of money for 10 years straight. Once I stopped making up excuses and dealt with the grief that came with facing that reality, I decided to seek ways to understand why I had created that situation in my life. Fast forward, based on my own experience and my insatiable appetite to understand what drives us to do what we do I now strive to help raise consciousness through the portal of money.

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Dear Lisa,
We’ve known each other for many years, and it’s been great seeing your business grow and you moving into new directions. Thank you for sharing your journey with our readers.
Could you please tell us about your background prior to starting Careers Advance?

I had dreams of becoming an art director in the advertising world, which were derailed when my family moved to Florida in my senior high school year. After two years of community college, I returned to NY with 36 credits and landed my first office position with Seiko Hattori Corp. When that company decided to relocate to NJ, I took an entry level position at a money market brokerage firm (way off my career path, but an opportunity to earn a progressive salary and put myself back through college). I advanced to broker liaison while attending Baruch College at night. Two weeks after I graduated with a BBA in Marketing, I was fired.  Yes, fired.  I took an internship at a local parenting newspaper and jump started my marketing career (at a 60% pay cut).  After one year I was offered a Marketing Assistant position with Golden Books Children Entertainment and progressed to Art Director.  Unfortunately, the company went into a bankruptcy and I jumped ship before the pending buyout.  My next job search led to a squeeze play between the well known, multi-billion dollar Phillip Morris, and a small, woman-owned educational marketing firm.  I chose the latter for personal and professional decisions and managed their Colgate account.  Eight months later, I resigned due to pursue freelance writing.

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EB. Dear Jane,

It was great to listen to you speak during the “Powering Your Legacy Through Business Success” panel at the NAWBO/AWBC National Conference in Washington DC. Your presentation was very inspiring!

Could you please tell us about your background prior to starting Dermalogica and The International Dermal Institute?

Jane Wurwand

EB. How did you spot the opportunity to start your business?JW. First came The International Dermal Institute, then Dermalogica, the skin care brand. Most of my 30-year career has been spent developing and expanding these two brands, and more recently our third brand, CLEAN START by Dermalogica, our much-imitated line for teens. In fact, I began in this industry when I was 13 myself, working as what is called a Saturday Girl in Britain, sweeping up hair-cuttings from the floor of the local salon. Just a couple of years later, I worked as a makeup artist for the legendary Mary Quant in London, which was very exciting and glamorous. But once I got my hands into professional skin care, versus beauty, I knew there was no turning back.

JW. It began with the school, The International Dermal Institute (IDI), which is now acknowledged around the world as the gold-standard for advanced education among skin therapists. Quite honestly, it didn’t take much to spot the opportunity, or rather the crying need. I had come to Los Angeles from my native UK, by way of South Africa, where I was working with Takara-Belmont.  And I was immediately struck by the disparity between the training that the American skin therapists received in contrast to their British and European counterparts. These were people who had received a license and were working. So, I created the IDI. As soon as I began teaching our advanced skin care program, I was struck that there were no products which were suitable for our curriculum. Read more

Dear Tayelor,

It is a great pleasure to interview you and learn more about your entrepreneurial journey and your business Absolute Style and Beauty.

Could you share your background before starting your business? What was your education and professional experience?

Tayelor Kennedy

I actually started my business on a part-time basis before I went to college.  I have an MBA and I worked in the financial and insurance industry for a while.

When did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?

Since I was 5.  At 5 I worked in my Aunt’s corner store.  I also had a lemonade stand. I come from a family of business owners.  In addition to holding down full-time careers, my parents and several of my aunts, uncles, and cousins all have businesses.  

Did you have a start-up business plan of any kind? Please tell us about it. No,

I jumped right in without any idea of what I was in for.  I made a ton of mistakes with regard to marketing, and the biggest mistake is, I didn’t document my process and my financials were a mess.

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