Hi! I’m Doone, your hype girl in business. This is your weekly source of inspiration & information on all things in the female e-commerce and CPG space, read by like-minded Entrepreneurs like you. If you find value in this content please like & share above, or take 60 seconds to fill out our anonymous survey at the end of this email.

🔑 Insights From This Week’s Episodes on the Female Startup Club Podcast

Directly from the women building the world’s most exciting businesses in the e-commerce and CPG space.

1. ❌ Influencer Marketing ✅ Relationship Development 

EP184: This is an episode in which we get to learn from two brilliant women (Coco Meers & Marcy Capron-Vermillion), who are both serial entrepreneurs, they’ve both exited businesses and we’re going through the ins and outs of their latest venture Equilibria.

The number one tip that has propelled Equilibria forward? Don’t view your influencers as a channel, but as an extension of your company and team.

Let’s dissect this statement… 🔎

There are many types of relationships brands can have with their influencers:

• Blindly sending product in the hope of a shout-out 

• Pre-determining a price per mention of their product or service

• Giving clear content instructions vs. relying on the creativity of the influencer, and the list goes on

Equilibria has found their most effective formula 👇

🤗 This is not a transactional channel: this is a relationship development partnership

⭐ These relationships have come to create real and authentic product reviews, stimulated word-of-mouth and steamed ahead their referral programme to the next level 

THIS is the way brand builders need to approach Influencer Marketing moving forward to create meaningful connections, along with meaningful content.

2. The Proof is in the Product🧴

EP185: A chat with Lindsay Holden, one of the 3 Co-Founders of Odele, the brand that’s all about sharing (Odele means "to share” in Norwegian 😊)

At Odele, they believe that letting people try the product is the best way of helping them, and the best way to encourage purchase.

That’s right: SAMPLING! Just constant outreach, starting with friends and family. Try before you buy, and let that product speak for itself. And we’re not talking a few here or there, we’re talking 5,000 samples. Instead of putting budget into performance marketing and ads, the entire budget went towards sending those products and getting them into the hands of their target audience.

⚡ You’re creating a shared product, a shared experience, and it becomes all about word-of-mouth (sound familiar?)

FSC Mini-Series 🍷 from the Founder

Part 1:

Welcome to part one of a new mini-series, following me along the rollercoaster that is CPG brand development.

Let me introduce you to the idea

In this new weekly segment we follow my journey of building a beverage brand from the ground up, sharing the stuff that might be left out on other founders’ stories, and just seeing where this goes 🌟

The founding idea manifested during lockdown, trying our hand at dry-January just to find meal-to-wine pairing to be an absolute nightmare when it came to non-alc options…

🔎 Queue: a journey to find just about any non-alcohol wine we could get their hands on

🤔 The result: a disappointing selection of wine to get through (slash wastage)

🤩 The solution: we’re going to be the people to revolutionize this space 

To be able to provide the best content possible I’d love to hear what would be interesting for you; if you have specific things you want to know or deep dive into in the coming weeks; and what you’ve always been wondering but haven’t had the chance to ask.

👉 Just hit reply or drop me a message on IG (@dooneroisin)

Catch you next week! 👋

Dusting Off The Catalog: Saving the planet, one business at a time 🌎

Delving into the stories of the women behind some of the most innovative environmentally-friendly products out there. One place for the super useful insights & learnings picked up along their way:

• EP186: (Lauren Gropper, Repurpose)

• EP158: (Bethany Edwards, Lia) 

• EP139: (Caroline Cotto, Renewal Mill)

• EP130: (Kailey Bradt, Susteau)

• EP106: (Allison Evans & Kelly Love, Branch Basics) 

• EP92: (Carly Stein, Beekeepers Naturals)

• EP82: (Isabel Aagaard, Last Object)

• EP27: (Helen Reavey, Act+Acre)

What’s on this week? 👀

Let’s see what we have in store for you this week…

TUES: Lauren Gropper from Repurpose - Plant-based, Compostable Tableware ♻️

THURS: Dimitra Davidson from Indeed Labs - Targeted, high-potency formulas that address specific skin concerns 💖

SAT: Doone’s back - Part 2 of the (still nameless) non-alc wine brand journey 🍷

Click here to tune in! 🎧

A Quick Recap on Industry News 🗞 

How Co-Founders without tech backgrounds built an Enormously Successful Custom Platform. Sephora VET joins Three Ships as first CMO. Retail Sales are falling: what does this mean? Key learnings from the pandemic. Conversational Commerce will be the future of e-comm. Why Millennial women are turning to theSkimm. Phoebe Philo (formely Celine) x LVMH. The brand helping digital native brands open a store in NYC.

What to Read, What to Listen to 🤔 

📚 The Ride of a Lifetime; Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company, by Robert Iger: The title speaks for itself for this must-read memoir that has been recommended countless times on the podcast.

🎧 Expanded, with Lacy Phillips: Created by To Be Magnetic™, this is the go-to podcast for grounded manifestation.

Job Alert Time! 💼

Check out these cool job listings on our radar:

REMOTE 🌎

• Brightland, the fresher, healthier California extra Virgin Olive Oil company, is hiring a Customer Experience Associate to join their vibrant team. Easily apply here.

US-Based 🇺🇸

• Topicals, the happening science-backed skincare brand, has some cool job ops. Click here to check out the open positions of Editorial Director and Brand Marketing Lead.

AUSTIN 🌞

• Bumble, the inclusive female-founded connection platform, is looking for a Director of Internal Communications to help support scaling the business. Find out more & apply directly here.

PS:

If you’re working on something cool, hit reply and pop into my inbox. I’d love to meet you and hear about it.

Also.. Hype Club is all systems go! Our upcoming Modern Mentors include Kailey Bradt from Susteau, Allison Moss from Type:A, Alexandra Dorda from Kasama Rum & Becca Millstein from Fishwife.

If you’re building an ecommerce brand and you’re looking for network and access to the world’s most exciting founders, come join us. We’d love to have you. 👋