On Saturday, October 24th, we heard from some of the most innovative, forward-thinking entrepreneurs at our Small Business Summit presented by Mastercard on what small business looks like today and is going to look like tomorrow. Because if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that there’s nothing that can’t be done when people come together with unequivocal support and compassion for each other.
While the chaos and uncertainty were—and are—a lot to reckon with, the silver lining is that it’s been a major conversation starter. The pandemic helped us realize that we need to take care of ourselves a little more; there is need for change and the fight for racial equality still has a long way to go; and the election season reminds us that our voices matter. When talking about the new normal in a post-pandemic world, it’s not just about how it will look like, but what do we want and need it to look like?
So go ahead, sit back, relax, and sip on that glass of rosé you’ve been saving for just the right evening while we serve you some of the highlights from your favorites like Kate Hudson, Tika Sumpter, Lauren Gores Ireland, Morgan Mercer, and more! From creating authentic content, rethinking what it means to be an influencer, fostering inclusivity in the workplace, pivoting to digital, abandoning perfection to building a community, no leaf was left unturned!
The Three C’s: How Tika Sumpter and Thai Randolph Are Using Content, Commerce, and Community to Create a Destination for Modern Moms of Color
“
This is not a sprint, it’s a marathon.”
—Tika Sumpter | Co-Founder, Sugaberry
Panelists:
Tika Sumpter | Co-Founder, Sugaberry
Thai Randolph | Co-Founder, Sugaberry
Moderator:
Jaclyn Johnson | CEO and Founder of Create & Cultivate
On being frustrated with lack of content about Black motherhood…
“There were an array of white spaces, but Black women and mothers were a second thought.” -Tika Sumpter
“When you Google ‘Black motherhood,’ when you think about images of Black motherhood, it’s so heavy, it’s so weighty.” -Thai Randolph
“Where was the joy? Where was the light?” -Thai Randolph
On finding each other and building a partnership...
“One of the things I told our mutual friends was, ‘Sure, I’ll meet with her, so I can explain to her why she should NOT go into this business.” -Thai Randolph
“The big differentiator for me was [Tika’s] emphasis on a tangible call to action.” -Thai Randolph
On marketing a brand for Black, women-identifying consumers…
“Black women make up 7% of the U.S. population but drive 40% of purchases when it comes to certain categories like baby food or packaged goods and juices.” -Thai Randolph
“We are very quick to point out that this isn’t about altruism. This is about business and really catering to a smart and capable and influential consumer.” -Thai Randolph
On putting community first...
“We are creating content that our audience and community actually cares about, and with that content, we’re creating commerce, funneling back into the community to live their best lives.” -Tika Sumpter
On launching a podcast about motherhood…
“What we want to offer to our community is the opportunity of joy through every realm of our verticals in our sight.” -Tika Sumpter
“We not only wanted to bring joy but to also bring real quality content about our bodies. We don’t really talk about IVF enough, we don’t talk enough about different ways to motherhood, different pathways.” -Tika Sumpter
On creating content that resonates with their audience...
“What has been resonating with our audience is the sweetness, and the joy, and the honesty about the interior lives of Black moms who're just mothering.” -Thai Randolph
“We’re not saying suffering doesn’t exist in our community. We’re saying our community deserves joy.”-Thai Randolph
“The idea that someone just carves out and cares so much for Black women and Black moms, and is just totally centered on them—without any sensationalism—is what’s really striking a chord. -Thai Randolph
On dealing with the challenges of the pandemic…
“A lot of wine. I’m kidding, but I’m not kidding.” - Tika Sumpter
“It’s made me realize how many things I don’t need—in life, in general—whether it’s physically or mentally.” -Tika Sumpter
“Connecting is what has allowed me to make it thus far.” -Tika Sumpter
On running a brand during the pandemic…
“It has made us truly digitally native. It has made us agile and adaptable and resourceful in a way that might have taken us longer to grow those skills otherwise.” -Thai Rudolph
“It’s made us think differently about what community means in this new context of a pandemic.” -Thai Rudolph
On supporting Black mothers during times of economic duress and racial injustice ...
“The mental premise of having to jump around from trauma to trauma to trauma is not living anymore—it’s just surviving. And we don’t want to just survive here. That’s the ultimate reason for Sugaberry: it’s to thrive and spread joy.” -Tika Sumpter
“Who stands between the gap of trauma and trauma? We want to be that. We want to stand in that gap for Black women.” -Tika Sumpter
On abandoning perfectionism...
“If you choose wrong, you can always choose again.”- Thai Rudolph
On being a mother and a business person…
“What this pandemic is showing us is that you’ll work it out.” -Tika Sumpter
On giving advice to new founders…
“Make sure you live what you do, chile! This is not a sprint, it’s a marathon.” -Tika Sumpter
“You can do it all! You just can’t do it all at once.” -Thai Rudolph
Plug & Play: How to Streamline Customer Communications for Your Business, Powered by Messenger
“The community you build online is the lifeblood of your business.”
—Danielle Nagel | Owner and Designer, Dazey LA
Panelists:
Danielle Nagel | Owner and Designer, Dazey LA
Sabrina Zohar | Entrepreneur, Sustainability Advocate, and Founder of Softwear
Gianne Doherty | Co-Founder, Organic Bath Co.
Moderator:
Jaclyn Johnson | Founder and CEO, Create & Cultivate
On being authentic with customers during COVID…
“Just being open and honest about what we’ve been going through has been huge for us.” -Danielle Nagel
“It’s important to tell your audience that you’re going through it too.” -Danielle Nagel
On building strong relationships with customers…
“I’m a big believer in asking your customers what they want from you.” -Gianne Doherty
“A lot of my clients have my cellphone number. They’ll DM and send photos, talking about how they love the product and how other people love it too.” -Sabrina Zohar
On attracting people to your business during a pandemic…
“Yes, you can go to all the big brands, but you’re not going to get someone who genuinely cares.” -Sabrina Zohar
On connecting virtually…
“We found that 90% of our customers were on Facebook, so Messenger just made sense. We can meet them where they are.” -Gianne Doherty
“Messenger allows us to chat with customers in real-time, which affects purchasing.” -Gianne Doherty
On implementing customer service…
“If I’m not prioritizing my customers and not giving them that sense of urgency that they’re number one, they’re gonna buy it from five thousand other brands.” -Sabrina Zohar
“As a business owner, once in a while, you get an unhappy customer, and you take it so heavy and so personally. Having a third party who can handle that for you so you can focus on growing the business is such a huge game-changer.” -Danielle Nagel
“Customer communication is vital for trust.” -Gianne Doherty
On using social media platforms to convert sales…
“I use the Instagram platform to show when I’m making something new to be released or launched.” Sabrina Zohar
“The community you build online is the lifeblood of your business.” -Danielle Nagel
On supporting small business...
“Embrace the fact that you’re a small business!” Danielle Nagel
From Pandemic to Profit: How to Pivot, Reposition, and Reset Your Small Business
“It’s really important for us to be mindful of our customer’s mental health.”
—Patty Delgado | CEO, Hija de tu Madre
Panelists:
Sonja Rasula | Founder, Care Package and Unique Markets
Marissa Hermer | Owner, Olivetta and The Draycott
Jess Rona | Celebrity Dog Groomer and Entrepreneur
Patty Delgado | CEO, Hija de tu Madre
Mattie James | Influencer
Moderator:
Ginger Siegel | North America Small Business Lead, Mastercard
On experiencing COVID-induced delays or disappointments…
“We are all human beings, and we have ups and downs, and I think all of us entrepreneurs have to be gentle and kind with ourselves.” -Jess Rona
“It’s all about your mindset as a business owner.” -Jess Rona
On practicing self-care and staying positive…
“I focus on meditation and self-care because when you’re good, you can handle anything.” -Jess Rona
“When I focus on the things that I do have, even if they’re teeny tiny, that is the real pivoting for me. The pivoting is actively being a puppeteer with your thoughts and pivoting into a positive mindset.” -Jess Rona
On being a DTC business in the current COVID climate…
“COVID has really pushed us to be more responsible for our own in-house production.” -Patty Delgado
“I’m really listening to the needs of my customers and adapting our business model, and all-around business decisions, based around the current climate.” -Patty Delgado
On owning and operating a restaurant during COVID…
“It’s not just about health and safety, but trust in us—in any business.” -Marissa Hermer
“We’re just not a restaurant. We’re a face and a family, and we care.” -Marissa Hermer
On pivoting to digital during COVID…
“We cultivated our community online.” -Sonja Rasula
“I truly am a fan of email marketing, so we really cultivated our email list because those are people who have given us something of value. They have given us their email address.” -Sonja Rasula
“We started talking to our email list a lot more and we are going to have a very specific plan for holiday months.” -Sonja Rasula
On pressing pause and looking ahead…
“For the last month or two, I did take a pause on doing as many things virtually.” -Sonja Rasula
“For me, I pressed pause, so that I could really focus on what the business could look like in 2021 and start to put things into place for that.” -Sonja Rasula
On changing your content strategy as an influencer…
“I noticed that all we really had to shift our story and talk about home life.” -Mattie James
“I had to be really careful that I was authentic to my story and being truthful, first and foremost, but then make sure that anything I told my audience, whether it was organic content about what I’m currently doing or even in partnership with a brand, that I was really speaking to home life.” -Mattie James
“It was really important to me to make sure that I even pivoted the language I used day to day.” -Mattie James
On launching online business courses…
“So many more people want to take online courses, want an online masterclass. Again, they are making that space to learn because people are a little bit more still right now.” -Mattie James
On making cybersecurity a priority…
“I’ve been really active in making sure that I’m paying attention to little things like my passwords.” -Mattie James
“We definitely do spend a lot of time working with the best third parties to ensure our customer and business safety.” -Patty Delgado
“I will admit that I have put the responsibility on the third parties and I guess I’m just crossing my fingers and hoping it’s okay.” -Sonja Rasula
On supporting small businesses during this time…
“The whole idea behind Unique Markets was to feature and support small and independent businesses—designers, artists, makers—who are usually bootstrapped, independent, and own their businesses. And because we can no longer do that, I thought about how I could support all of these small businesses in a virtual space.” -Sonja Rasula
“So, I came up with this idea. My mom sends me care packages. No joke, I am a woman in my 40s, y’all, and my mom sends me care packages filled with random stuff, but it’s the thought that counts.” -Sonja Rasula
“I could take all these small businesses that I support and love and put them into a box.”-Sonja Rasula
“The idea is that everything in these care packages is curated by me or small independent businesses.” -Sonja Rasula
“This year it became very clear to me that I wanted to really help all of my fellow female founders, women-owned businesses and BIPOC businesses.” -Sonja Rasula
“Over 75% of the brands that are in all of the boxes are minority-owned or female-owned.” -Sonja Rasula
On paying it forward in the midst of the pandemic…
“It’s been the silver lining to this pandemic for me and our teams to know that we are facilitating and have created a platform for people to give back to the heroes and front line workers.” -Marissa Hermer
“We’ve raised over $50,000 and it truly gives us such joy to be able to give back, but equally our heroes are more nourished knowing that people around the world are thinking about them.” -Marissa Hermer
“I think that community, even global community, now more than ever, when our country feels equally divided, it’s really really important.” -Marissa Hermer
“Spreading happiness now is the most important thing we can do when there’s just so much doom and gloom.” -Marissa Hermer
On being a source of happiness and joy…
“I play with iMovie a lot and make fun videos. I’ll buy music from iTunes and tinker and play around, and tap into my creativity. If you are finding joy through that and you are getting that little fun out of that, I think people want to follow any joy right now.” -Jess Rona
“If you’re posting something that’s joyful, people will be attracted to it.” -Jess Rona
On adapting your selling strategy…
“Since day one, we’ve always been very digitally aggressive across every channel.” -Patty Delgado
“What has changed is our messaging. It’s really important for us to be mindful of our customer’s mental health.” - Patty Delgado
“We’ve shifted our focus from selling content to more mindful and empathetic content, and I think that’s been extremely beneficial for brand awareness and just overall brand-customer intimacy.” - Patty Delgado
On building community…
“While the pandemic has been very intense for all of us, this has been a time where community really does just organically explode if you give people a reason to come together and congregate.” -Mattie James
On the future of in-person pop-up events…
“For 2021, for all types of businesses, I think creating in-person experiences that can be safe and responsible are going to absolutely thrive.” -Sonja Rasula
Click and Connect: How Technology Is Driving Community, Growth, and Innovation in a Digital World, Powered by Dell
“I know that we would not be where we are today without the mentors who helped guide us.”
Lauren Gores Ireland | Co-Founder, Summer Fridays
Panelist:
Lauren Gores Ireland | Co-Founder, Summer Fridays
Moderator:
Jaclyn Johnson | CEO and Founder, Create & Cultivate
On launching the business right away…
“We had the idea and, quite literally, that afternoon we were already taking steps toward creating a business.”
“We truly just started, and never really looked back.”
On tapping into your immediate network…
“Once you have an idea and you start asking people, even within your friends-and-family circle, a lot of times, they know someone who knows someone who can connect you, whether that’s to a lab or a manufacturing facility.”
On knowing when it’s time to bring on a team…
“You get to a point where you realize you can’t do everything.”
“Once you’re with a retailer like Sephora, you can’t operate without a proper team behind you.”
On seeking out mentorship opportunities…
“I know that we would not be where we are today without the mentors who helped guide us.”
“Jen Atkin of OUAI was significant for us. She’s the one that introduced us to Sephora. She guided us when we had big questions.”
“Jamie Kern Lima of IT Cosmetics very kindly sat down with us for hours one day and just gave us so much information and advice, which was so incredible.”
On investing in your own business…
“Before you’re making money, you have to put money into the business.”
On the power of social media marketing…
“It’s remarkable what you can do in the beginning, without a ton of money, on a channel like Instagram.”
“Trying to reach out to the networks that you have, doing gifting, sending things out to people, and investing in getting that product out to people is really helpful.”
“Now that we have grown, whether they’re our close friends or someone that we don’t know, we do pay influencers, and that is now part of our strategy.”
“What Instagram is best for is getting out the message so people can see it and it makes them want it.”
On networking with other brands…
“Reaching out to other brands that feel native to your brand is a really great way to grow.”
Building Big: How to Scale and Grow a Team and Business Successfully
“Leading a team requires the desire to be a leader.”
Morgan Mercer | Founder and CEO, Vantage Point
Panelists:
Morgan Mercer | Founder and CEO, Vantage Point
Arian Simone | General Partner and Co-Founder, Fearless Fund
Sharifa Murdock | Co-Owner of Liberty Fairs and CEO of ENVSN Fest
Moderator:
Marla Blow | SVP of Social Impact for North America, Mastercard
On accessing capital as a minority entrepreneur...
“Right now, Black women are receiving .0006% of venture funds. Women of Color are still under a percent, collectively.” -Arian Simone
“There is also a lack of diverse investors. The industry is eighty percent white male.” -Arian Simone
“It’s going to take a lot of movement and collaboration and allies in order to move the needle.” -Arian Simone
On finding the right employees…
“I want to know that someone believes in my dream, that someone is really on top of it, and wants to be a part of it.” -Sharifa Murdock
“Bringing on the wrong people is just as bad as having the role open, if not, worse.” -Morgan Mercer
On fostering inclusivity and diversity in the workplace…
“When you think about every single person on your team, they’re all an extension of your values, they’re all an extension of your mission.” -Morgan Mercer
On caring for employees…
“Once you find a good employee, you gotta keep them happy.” -Sharifa Murdock
“Be authentic about it too. Do it because you care and you really want to know how your employees are doing.” -Sharifa Murdock
“If employees feel like they can't actually voice their concerns with a project, they’re not going to voice their concerns with their role.” -Morgan Mercer
“The best thing to do is have an open-door policy.” -Morgan Mercer
On preparing to scale your business…
“You can’t just go out to find someone who will work for you for ten dollars an hour.” -Arian Simone
“You need to build on where you’re going, not just where you’re at.” -Arian Simone
On finding the right funding for your business...
“Make sure you have really strong allies and make sure you have really strong mentors.” -Morgan Mercer
“Whether it be VCs, whether it be startup programs and accelerator programs, whether it be grants, loans, pitch competitions, there are numerous avenues, and it’s really about finding people who align with you.” -Morgan Mercer
On having different revenue streams...
“The pandemic is a prime example of why we should have multiple revenue streams.” -Sharifa Murdock
“Have different ideas on how your one concept can do different things cause you never know what can happen.” -Sharifa Murdock
On creating a mentorship program…
“People who can train you and teach you where they have been are key.” -Arian Simone
On staying on top of cash flow...
“I am the cheapest person when it comes to business.” -Sharifa Murdock
“Stay as tight as you can.” -Sharifa Murdock
On leading a team...
“Leading a team requires the desire to be a leader.” -Morgan Mercer
On finding success…
“Success is incompletion. You always want to get to that next level.” -Sharifa Murdock
A Keynote Conversation With Kate Hudson
“The great leaders are the ones who listen to their team.”
—Kate Hudson | Actress, Author, and Entrepreneur
Panelist:
Kate Hudson | Actress, Author, and Entrepreneur
Moderator:
Aya Kanai | Head of Content and Editorial Partnerships, Pinterest
On finding the right vision for your business endeavor...
“I like being a part of something that everyone can be a part of.”
On connecting with Fabletics…
“It just spoke to me authentically.”
“It was affordable, cute activewear at a time when being involved in something that was affordable—as a celebrity—was considered not cool.”
On defining wellness…
“There’s no other beauty secret other than internally being healthy.”
“It starts with not putting too much pressure on ourselves.”
On creating the right wellness products for INBLOOM…
“How do you get people, in general, to feel excited about feeling good and not daunted by the things you need to do in order to be healthy?”
“We need to be able to educate people about wellness in a way where it feels like, ‘Oh, that’s easy enough. I can start there.’”
On being an authentic entrepreneur…
“I’d rather roll up my sleeves and get involved in the business.”
“I’d rather be proud of what I’m putting out there and fail than make money from something just because it’s an opportunity that I have. I like the long game.”
“I’d much prefer to build than just model.”
On being an empowering leader…
“The great leaders are the ones who listen to their team.”
“Anyone who’s gonna succeed leads with openness and availability in transparency.”
“You have to create a positive workspace.”
On being confident while running a business…
“I’m usually asking for business advice.”
“You gotta love what you’re doing cause people can feel it.”
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