Yes, You Need to Wear Sunscreen at Your Desk–And More Tips for Summer-Ready Skin
How to glow from the inside out.
The summer we’ve been waiting almost two years for is almost upon us–and like many, we plan to double down on the fun. But before we hit the road or head to the beach, we also plan to double down on our sun care routine.
Looking ahead to the season of long days and busy weekends outdoors, we tapped Coppertone’s Dermatologist Partner, Dr. Nava Greenfield, to answer our most pressing sun care questions, and share the summer skin care essentials she shops and recommends.
The summer staple she’s stocking up on this season is the new Coppertone Glow Spray–a convenient, easy-to-apply lightweight spray sunscreen from Coppertone, that is blended with an illuminating shimmer to give your skin a beautiful glow, while stopping up to 98%* of the sun’s most damaging UV rays (*97% for SPF 30; 98% for SPF 50).
“I recommend this for anyone who is looking for a convenient, lightweight spray sunscreen that not only protects skin from the sun’s damaging UV rays but leaves an illuminating shimmer on your skin. It’s so easy to reapply and perfect for those long sunny days by the pool!”
Not only does Coppertone Glow offer broad spectrum sun protection, but the new, convenient spray format helps achieve that healthy-looking summer glow while keeping skin protected from the sun, making it the stylish glow-getters go-to.
Ahead, Dr. Nava Greenfield shares her tips for summer ready skin, and three ambitious and radiant women share how they incorporate the Coppertone Glow Spray into their sun care routines. Keep scrolling for the ultimate glow-getter tips to help you maintain that glow, all season long.
What does summer do to our skin?
The summer affects our skin in many ways, but the most significant effect is exposure to more ultraviolet light from the sun.
How much sunscreen do I need?
Generally you need to apply about one shot glass full of sunscreen to any area of your skin that will be exposed to the sun, and about two finger-sized dollops to the face alone.
Should sunscreen come before or after other products?
Sunscreen should be applied last, and right before any makeup. It comes after your face wash, your antioxidant, and your moisturizer.
How do I know what sunscreen is best for my skin?
There are so many different types of sunscreen on the market, it can be confusing! Regardless of your skin type, Coppertone Glow Spray SPF 50 gives all skin tones a beautiful, illuminating glow while protecting skin from up to 98% of the sun's most damaging UV rays. It provides both UVA and UVB protection and leaves skin feeling hydrated, smooth, and silky after application. Coppertone Glow is also a great option because it is water-resistant (80 minutes).
Do I need to wear sunscreen indoors?
I would recommend wearing sunscreen every day, whether or not you plan to go outside. This is because if you are near a window, the UV rays from the sun can travel through the glass and still damage your skin. I ask my patients to incorporate sunscreen into their skin care routine every single day, and that they will be happy about making it a habit for years to come!
Does makeup with SPF work?
Yes it definitely does, but it is usually not enough to protect your skin. You would need to apply a lot of makeup for your skin to truly be protected. For that reason, I recommend using a broad spectrum SPF every day in addition to your makeup.
Do I really need to reapply sunscreen throughout the day?
Yes, you do. Thinking you are protected from only your morning application is misleading.
Does sunscreen expire? Can I use last year’s sunscreen this year?
Sunscreen does expire, just like everything else that is liquid based and bottled. The chemical structure of ingredients and preservatives break down over time and may no longer be effective after their expiration date. Check to see if last year's product has expired. If not, go right ahead and use it this season! But if it has, do your skin a favor and buy a new bottle.
What is the ideal pre and post sun skincare routine?
Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! One day in the sun can have effects for many days after. Moisturize before you go outside and then apply your sunscreen. The sun dehydrates your skin. After a day in the sun, wash with a gentle cleanser and apply a glycerin or ceramide or hyaluronic acid based serum or moisturizer liberally to your skin, and twice daily for the next week.
Jessica Franklin
“Self-love is one of the most important ways to maintain a glow from the inside out.”
–Jessica Franklin
Share your sun care routine. How do you get your skin summer-ready?
Growing up I wasn’t as consistent with protecting my skin from the sun as I am now. I used to actually lay in the sun for hours tanning with barely any sunscreen. Now that I’m older and more aware of the damage the sun can cause to my skin, my sun care routine involves making sure my skin is both moisturized and protected. I use the Coppertone Glow Spray because it is lightweight, easy to apply, and blended with an illuminating shimmer that gives me a beautiful glow while protecting my skin from the sun’s most damaging UV rays. This leaves my skin not only protected, but photo ready too!
Beauty is being confident in your own skin. What are your tips to maintain your glow?
Self-love is one of the most important ways to maintain a glow from the inside out. I’ve realized that if I truly love who I am, then I won’t worry about what other people think as much, and my confidence will radiate. It’s not always easy because insecurities are inevitable, but I try to remind myself of this daily–I often talk to myself and repeat affirmations such as, “I love you, you’re beautiful, you’re amazing,” etc, and this helps me maintain my glow!
“Taking care of your mental health is key for glowing from the inside out.”
– Tyla Lauren
Share your sun care routine. How do you get your skin summer-ready?
I change my skin care routine each season because my skin always needs different things throughout the year. For summer, it’s all about SPF, exfoliating and achieving the perfect glow. I exfoliate to keep my skin bright, I apply SPF like Coppertone Glow at least every 2 hours to keep my skin protected and I constantly moisturize to keep my skin glowing all day long.
Beauty is being confident in your own skin. What are your tips to maintain your glow?
For me it’s always about being my authentic self and being intentional with everything I do. Also, taking care of my mental health is key for glowing from the inside out!
“Find the humor in day to day and try not to take life too seriously. There is nothing more gorgeous than a big smile–and the more you do so, the more you can spread that same feeling and energy to others.”
– Jera Bean
Share your sun care routine. How do you get your skin summer-ready?
I am all about some summer skin! Here's how I get my skin summer ready:
Exfoliate! Love a good scrub while showering.
Moisturize! Slather it on everywhere!
Self tan! I usually mix in some self tanner drops into my moisturizer.
Protect and glow! Before getting dressed, I use my Coppertone Glow to both protect myself from the sun, and to give me a lil of that summer shimmer!
Beauty is being confident in your own skin. What are your tips to maintain your glow?
Here are my three tips to maintain your glow from the inside out:
Fill your cup with what gives you joy! Whether that's moving your body with yoga, taking walks with your dog, or reading a good book. Take time away from your screens and from work to tap into the things that make you happy.
Embrace your quirks and as I love to say, "let your freak flag fly!" Our personality is what makes us unique! So often we're afraid to stand out due to fears like "what will people think?!" or "what will people say?!" The truth of the matter is, not everyone is going to jive with you, and that's ok because you weren't put on this earth in order to receive everyone's approval. The more you can step into YOU, the less you'll seek other people's validation and the more authentic you can truly be... and that is a beautiful thing!
Find the humor in the day-to-day and try not to take life too seriously. There is nothing more gorgeous than a big smile or laughter, and the more than you do so, the more you can spread that same feeling and energy to others.
The first 100 readers to enter their information below will receive a complimentary Coppertone Glow box, which includes the NEW Coppertone Glow Spray, Coppertone Glow Lotion and some additional summer essentials to help you get your glow on. Make sure to share how you’re getting your glow on this summer tagging @CoppertoneUSA and using #CoppertoneGlowUp.
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Mom Point: Perfect Presents For Mother's Day
Shop Mother’s Day gifts from Hallmark.
“Motherhood” can be described in as many ways as there are many kinds of moms. Moms are tough and tender, fancy and fierce, warm and wise. They’re nurturing, compassionate, resilient and bold. And sometimes, they’re not actually your mom, but rather a mother figure – someone whose advice you can always trust, who has stood by you through thick and thin and who you love like family.
Moms also make mistakes. They teach us it’s okay not to be perfect. How to say, “I’m sorry.” How to forgive others. And how to forgive ourselves.
And after so many years of love and laughter and tears, they know when it’s time to let go … just enough, but not quite all the way.
So this year, let’s show all the moms in our lives how grateful we are for their giving, loving, perfectly imperfect selves. Let’s tell them how lucky we feel. And let’s thank them for all that they are.
We asked three stylish women to reveal the perfect presents from Hallmark for every kind of mom. Keep scrolling to see what gifts they’re giving to the leading women in their lives this year.
“I love that Hallmark has a wide variety of products. No matter who you’re shopping for, you can always find a card and gift that fits their personality perfectly!”
–Maddie Obray
To whom did you send a Mother’s Day card/gift to and why? Which card and gift did you choose?
My mom loves flowers so I picked out the Loved Mother’s Day Card With Floral Heart Wreath in Gift Box and the Bright and Happy Day Vase of Flowers 3D Pop-Up Card. My mother-in-law loves the spa so I got her the Spa Day Self-Care Kit.
What makes it a great gift?
These are great gifts because the products I picked have specific meaning for my mom and mother-in-law–they will know I was thinking about them when I picked out the gifts.
What message did you want to get across to them? How did sending a card and gift help convey your message and emotions in a more meaningful way?
I just wanted them to know I love them and care about them. I know when they get these gifts they will feel loved and appreciated!
Why is Hallmark your go-to shop for Mother’s Day gifts?
I love that Hallmark has a wide variety of products. No matter who you’re shopping for, you can always find a card and gift that fits their personality perfectly!
Best advice you learned from your mom?
My mom leads by example and I’m always trying to be more like her. She is kind, compassionate, strong, caring, loving, genuine, and always puts God and family first. She is also the best grandma to my daughter! I don’t know what we’d do without her.
How did sending a card make you feel?
I always love sending cards because it’s such an easy gesture to let people know how much they mean to you. I love knowing it will brighten their day when they see it and read the message inside.
Maddie’s Mother’s Day Gift Picks
HALLMARK
Loved Mother's Day Card With Floral Heart Wreath in Gift Box
HALLMARK
Spa Day Self-Care Kit, 6 Pieces
HALLMARK
Bright and Happy Day Vase of Flowers 3D Pop-Up Mother's Day Card
“Gift giving is one of my love languages and a way I love to express my love to others. I love being able to shower my mom with gifts on her special day to remind her just how special she is.”
– Jalisa Vaughn
To whom did you send a Mother’s Day card and gift to and why? What card and gift did you choose?
My mom to make her feel special this Mother’s Day. I got her a Hallmark Paper Wonder pop up card as well as Lavender-Infused Crew Socks and a Spa Day Self-Care Kit so that I could express how much she means to me not just on this special day but every day
What makes it a great gift?
I love the variety of self-care gifts because she deserves to feel pampered, and the pop-up card really makes a statement! I know she’ll be wowed when she opens this gift.
What message did you want to get across to them? How did sending a card and gift help convey your message and emotions in a more meaningful way?
The importance of self-care and self-love. It was a tangible expression of my feelings for my mother.
Why is Hallmark your go-to shop for Mother’s Day gifts?
Hallmark is always my go to for Mother’s Day gifts because they always help me tangibly express my emotions and their gifts allow my mom to have keepsakes that she can reflect on for years to come.
Best advice you learned from your mom?
One piece of advice that I hold tightly to is, “when you keep God first, He will take care of His.”
How did sending a card make you feel?
Gift giving is one of my love languages and a way I love to express my love to others. I love being able to shower my mom with gifts on her special day to remind her just how special she is.
Jalisa’s Mother’s Day Gift Picks
HALLMARK
If You Can Read This Lavender-Infused Crew Socks
HALLMARK
You're a Blessing Hummingbird 3D Pop-Up Mother's Day Card
HALLMARK
Spa Day Self-Care Kit, 6 Pieces
“Hallmark always has the perfect cards to express exactly how I am feeling.”
– Dayna Bolden
To whom did you send a Mother’s Day card and gift to and why? What card and gift did you choose?
I decided to send a Mother’s Day card to my mother-in-law because she has been such a huge help to our family, from watching the kids, to keeping the house in tact while I am busy working. She has been a great help to me and has made my job easier.
I chose a Hallmark Mother’s Day Card and Hallmark’s Spa Day Self-Care Kit.
What makes it a great gift?
I love this gift for my mother in law because she works so hard she deserves a little me time at home. She also loves painting and doing my daughter’s nails, that is her favorite thing to do on the weekends, so this kit would make her so happy!
What message did you want to get across to them? How did sending a card and gift help convey your message and emotions in a more meaningful way?
The message I want her to know is that she is valued and appreciated. By giving a simple gift that I know she will love will show how much we love and value her presence in our life.
Why is Hallmark your go-to shop for Mother’s Day gifts?
Hallmark has always been my go-to destination–Hallmark always has the perfect cards to express exactly how I am feeling and the selection is great. I also love the selection of meaningful gifts that all moms will love and appreciate.
Best advice you learned from your mom?
My best advice from my mom is to work hard with everything that you do. She has instilled this in me by not just telling me, but showing me daily with how hard she works in her career and for her family. I knew I would always be successful solely on how she instilled work ethic in me.
How did sending a card make you feel?
Sending a card made me feel happy and blessed that I have mothers in my life that I am close to and value every day.
Dayna’s Mother’s Day Gift Picks
HALLMARK
Spa Day Self-Care Kit, 6 Pieces
HALLMARK
My Mom, My Friend Mother's Day Card
HALLMARK
Home Is Where Mom Is Quote Sign
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"Nothing Was Standardized"—How 2 Frustrated Moms Took On a $61.8 Billion Industry
“Let’s just do it ourselves!”
We know how daunting it can be to start a new business, especially if you’re disrupting an industry or creating an entirely new one. When there is no path to follow, the biggest question is, where do I start? There is so much to do, but before you get ahead of yourself, let’s start at the beginning. To kick-start the process, and ease some of those first-time founder nerves, we’re asking successful entrepreneurs to share their stories in our new series, From Scratch. But this isn’t your typical day in the life profile. We’re getting into the nitty-gritty details—from writing a business plan (or not) to sourcing manufacturers and how much they pay themselves—we’re not holding back.
Photo: Courtesy of Perelel
Did you know that one out of every 33 babies in the United States is born with a birth defect? In fact, birth defects are the leading cause of infant deaths, accounting for 20% of all infant deaths, according to the CDC.
So, when Tori Thain Gioia’s daughter was born with a cleft lip despite not having any risk factors or genetic link, “it really knocked me off my feet” she told Create & Cultivate. “I started looking for answers.” she continued. “I did a lot of research with my OB/GYN and learned that the type of cleft my daughter was born with is often associated with a folate deficiency.”
Shocked is an understatement because Gioia had been taking a prenatal vitamin with folic acid which she thought was the same thing as folate. “I later learned that folic acid is the synthetic version of the nutrient folate and some 60% of women cannot transform it into the absorbable format, known as folate.” What’s more, she learned that folate levels during the first nine weeks of pregnancy are crucial to development. “I was frustrated to find that so many prenatals had poor quality ingredients like folic acid and saddened that there was so little education out there about what and when you really in need your prenatal.”
So, she partnered up with friend and fellow frustrated mama, Alex Taylor to change the statistics. When they first met, they had both just given birth and as two people with a lot of startup experience, they were equally disappointed by the current offering for millennial moms.
Today, they’re taking on the $61.8 Billion supplements industry—it’s predicted to reach a value of $349 billion by 2026—with their own prenatal line, Perelel vitamins to be parallel to where our woman is in her journey, there to support her when she needs it most. These supplements have been designed to adapt to your body’s changing needs throughout your motherhood journey. Using only bioavailable, high-quality ingredients at doctor-recommended doses, their formulations offer targeted nutrients for each phase.
Read on to hear more about how Gioia and Taylor are disrupting the supplements space and sparking connection and community with new moms along the way.
On the lightbulb moment…
Alex Taylor: I had also recently given birth to my first child and felt frustrated with my prenatal vitamin experience. I’ve always been incredibly health-conscious, which was only magnified when I was diagnosed with a thyroid disease about seven years ago. I’ve been fortunate to have access to incredible practitioners over the years, so when it came to pregnancy I was especially privy to the nutritional nuances associated with each phase. In a nutshell, I learned that the timing of certain nutrients was paramount.
When I began my pregnancy journey, I supplemented my prenatal vitamin with CoQ10 and additional folate while we were trying to conceive. Once I finally got pregnant, I supplemented with added calcium and iron and tracked down a separate Omega that offered both high-quality DHA and EPA, and so on. I was chasing down vitamins from Amazon, Whole Foods, your name it, piecing together what I understood to be the optimal mix of vitamins. It was a haphazard experience, to say the least. Each morning, I’d line up my various pill bottles and sort out my daily dose, which my husband found very amusing.
What made things all the more confusing was the fact that there was very little credible information online about prenatal vitamin nutrition—nothing was standardized and most of the resources I found were on community forums, which just didn’t cut it. After putting together the puzzle pieces of our challenges, Tori and I knew there had to be a better way.
What we found were three major issues with the current one-size-fits-all prenatal vitamin market:
1. Poor quality ingredients
2. Timing the introduction of certain ingredients was vital
3. Lack of information from credible sources
Appreciating we weren’t MDs, we teamed up with Tori’s OB/GYN, Dr. Banafsheh Bayati, who eagerly validated our concept (and joined as a Medical Co-Founder). Along with Dr. Bayati, we also ran the idea by a handful of other leading OB/GYNs and maternal-fetal medicine doctors who were equally enthusiastic about the need for a more targeted prenatal vitamin with a holistic approach.
From there, we knew we were onto something special, and so, Perelel was born.
“There was very little credible information online about prenatal vitamin nutrition—nothing was standardized.”
—Alex Taylor, Co-Founder, Perelel
On writing a business plan…
AT: In our own way, yes! Instead of writing a memo, we used the exercise of creating a full presentation as a way to crystalize the brand, our product assortment, our mission, and what we hoped to accomplish. We used the deck as a roadmap for the concept, how we’d get it off the ground, and what the financial architecture would be. We built a financial model that contemplates a number of scenarios and strives to ensure a path to profitability. Both exercises have been invaluable tools for us and served as compasses that we often reference and discuss.
On coming up with the name…
AT: Naming was probably the toughest part! We created endless lists of ideas but never seemed to pull the trigger. Finally, Tori called me one evening as I was driving down the 405 and said that we had to pick a name so we could incorporate the business. As luck would have it, we both gravitated toward the same name on our long list of options: Perelel. We chose this name because our goal is to always be parallel to where our woman is in her journey, there to support her when she needs it most. Plus, we loved that our version of the spelling used the root word “pere-” which means “to produce”—a nice wink to the goal of taking our products: to produce a healthy pregnancy.
As soon as we locked in the name, we secured the web domain, social handles, and applied for the trademark. From there, jumped into the formulation process with our doctors while also interviewing manufacturers that met our high quality and production standards.
On finding a trustworthy manufacturer…
TTG: While the FDA does not approve dietary supplements, we manufacture our products in accordance with the FDA’s current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMPs) to ensure quality and safety. And for good measure, we test all of our products for heavy metals, microbes, allergens, and contaminants. To find our manufacturers, we teamed up with a supplement consultant who has 20 years of experience in the space to help us find the right partners while also working hand-in-hand with our team of doctors and Medical Co-Founder, Dr. Bayati, to formulate the perfect product.
Due to COVID-19, we encountered some hurdles as many supply chains were disrupted and manufacturing lines were backed up due to the shutdowns. Eventually, we found an amazing partner who met our long list of requirements. We did many reference checks and Zoom interviews. If you’re looking for a manufacturer, we suggest pulling in a consultant with a deep category experience. There are so many nuances you need to be aware of, and unless you’re an expert yourself, it helps to have the reassurance an insider can offer.
On funding the company…
TTG: We raised a small friends-and-family round, but because we’re focused on proving our concept and establishing the brand, we decided to primarily bootstrap through launch. We have plans to raise a small institutional seed round in early 2021 from the right partners who believe in the mission of the brand and an efficient path to break-even.
“
We chose this name because our goal is to always be parallel to where our woman is in her journey—there to support her when she needs it most.”
—Alex Taylor, Co-founder, Perelel
On paying themselves a wage…
TTG: Right now we’re not paying ourselves, but hope to someday soon! When we reach an appropriate scale, we will both look to take a salary, but as we bootstrap through launch, we’re not.
On the building a team…
AT: We have two primary co-founders along with an OB/GYN who is our medical co-founder. Additionally, we have two full-time employees, an amazing intern, and we have a panel of 9 experts and advisors who support us with content, community building, product review, and development.
Both Tori and I have managed larger operations and teams in the past, so hiring and building out the infrastructure came second nature to us.
On staying on top of the financials…
AT: Tori has a finance background, which spans investment banking, investing, and operations. She also has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a lot of experience building financial plans for very early-stage businesses, so we’ve leaned heavily on her savvy there for sure. That said, strategic finance and operations are a different beast than accounting, so we’ve onboarded a great partner to help us there. We want to be buttoned up and organized from the start so we don’t have to undo (or redo) a lot of work there.
On the biggest learning curve…
AT: There’s never a dull moment, especially when you’re dealing with third-party operators and have supply-chain dependencies. We’ve had to block-and-tackle as we go, making tough decisions. But honestly, the process has helped us build a strong foundation as partners. We trust one another implicitly and deeply respect each other, too.
There are so many nuances you need to be aware of, and unless you’re an expert yourself, it helps to have the reassurance an insider can offer.
—Tori Thain Gioia, Co-founder, Perelel
On having a business coach…
AT: I’ve worked with an incredible coach on-and-off for the past five years or so. He’s helped me build a resilient mindset, grow as a leader, make leaps in my career to better align with my personal values, and has equipped me with tools to not only make better decisions but also insights that have helped me become a better person, too. I am deeply grateful to him. If you can, I highly recommend finding a coach or a mentor you can regularly check in with.
On creating buzz around the brand…
AT: I come from a content, marketing, and strategy background where I’ve built many brands you might know and love today, so building Perelel came second nature to me. Part of it was pulling the more obvious levers such as social media and building our email list ahead of launch through compelling programming, but what’s been especially fun are all of the new and unconventional strategies we’ve been pursuing! Consumer habits are shifting a mile-a-minute so we’ve been focused on understanding fresh ways to engage our customers and pull her into our universe. Think outside the box!
On advice for small business owners…
AT: In the very early days of starting Perelel, I was chatting with a mentor of mine and he shared a story with me: He told me about a dinner he had with Elon Musk, who said being an entrepreneur is like waking up every morning and chewing glass. I laughed it off at the time, but it’s true. You have to be prepared to deal with a whole new set of challenges each day. And these challenges don’t ever go away, no matter how successful your business. Starting and running your own company is not a cakewalk. And it’s definitely nothing like the “girl boss” fantasy you often see portrayed in the media or founder press out there.
On the #1 piece of financial advice for new business owners…
AT: Loaded question! The first is spending the time upfront to do an honest assessment about what capital is required to break-even, even if it’s a range. Forming a point of view as to what your cash needs are in the near and long-term is crucial given there is no business if there isn’t cash. The second piece is being thoughtful about what KPIs you’re targeting to determine what success looks like. We’re trying to identify the metrics that we’ll need to achieve and not fall into the trap of cherry-picking data points to make strategic choices.
On developing a solid working relationship as co-founders…
TTG & AT: We are launching this business while also expanding our families (Tori just had a new baby and Alex is due in December). Fortunately, we are not first-time moms and fully understand what is involved in coming home with a newborn. We have great respect and understanding of what each other is experiencing, and because we are a small, nimble team, we can flex when the other needs to retreat to be with family, but we still feel fully supported by each other. We also knew we would need to have some support, so we brought on two full-time team members to Perelel to help keep the day-to-day rolling when we need to focus on family.
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8 Ways Millennials Are Changing the Face of Parenthood
We're confident that we're good parents.
According to population estimates released last month by the U.S. Census Bureau, Millennials have surpassed the Baby Boomer's as the nation's largest living generation.
We're here and we've taken over, except, we're also waiting longer to have kids than any other generation.
The reason most often cited? Financial stress-- whether it’s low starting pay, the burden of student loans, or the high and rising cost of child care-- is number one.
Still the new generation of working millennial mothers is putting their own brand of mommyhood into the world. From understanding that there’s more than one way to be a good mom to being more forthcoming about their shortcomings. This generation may be doing it later, but we’re doing it our way.
Here are 8 ways we're changing the mom game.
1. We're confident that we're good parents.
All of those trophies and gold stars weren't for naught. There's nothing wrong with a healthy self-esteem and according to a Pew survey, 57 percent of Millennial moms say they're doing a very good job at parenting, compared to 48 percent of Gen Xers and 41 percent of Baby Boomers.
2. We no longer believe we have to keep a perfect home.
That might in part be related to the fact that our pop culture role models are very open about their flaws. And that's a big deal.
It's made us much more willing to not be "perfect" all the time. This is not June Cleaver's version of parenthood. These are women who portrayed a real version of motherhood and who often held their own in two-income families. Claire Huxtable from "The Cosby Show" was a lawyer who showed us an unapologetic strong working mom role model. Aunt Becky from "Full House" was an anchor woman, mom to twins, and had fabulous hair. There are also inspiring women everywhere showing us how mom and boss work together: Tina Fey, Shonda Rhimes, Jessica Alba, Amy Poehler, Bobbi Brown, Maria Jacquemetton, Marissa Mayer, and more. These exemplary powerful women, both fictitious and real, have given us a much different version of "mom" than generations prior. And we seem to be taking notes.
3. We're bringing home the bacon for our fam.
There have been some dramatic shifts that underscore modern mom life. Nearly half of all U.S. mothers are either the primary breadwinner or “on par financially with their significant other,” according to the new study “The Breadwinner PheMOMenon.” According to the study from Ketchum, this shift goes hand-in-hand with the above. “With more breadwinning and less breadmaking, nearly half of moms surveyed no longer have expectations that they should be a ‘domestic goddess,’”says Kelley Skoloda, partner and director of Ketchum’s Global Brand Marketing Practice and author of Too Busy to Shop: Marketing to Multi-Minding Women.
4. Everybody's working for the weekend, but our jobs aren't just about money.
Gasp! Are we happy about our jobs?! According to The Working Mother Research Institute's "Mothers and Daughters: The Working Mother Generations Report" Millennials are more fulfilled by career prospects and compensation than Baby Boomers or Gen Xers. The most "optimistic" generation in the survey, 47 percent of Millennials said they would prefer to work even if they did not have to financially vs. 37 percent of Gen Xers 36% of Boomers.
5. Being a good parent is more important than a good marriage.
According to a Pew Research Center study, 52 percent of Millennials put a premium on being a good parent, while only 30 percent said having a good marriage is one of the most important things in life.
6. Independent, but social, is part of our nature.
We have fewer attachments to traditional political and religious institutions, but are more connected to personalized networks of friends, colleagues and affinity groups through social and digital media.
7. We waited to have kids.
The Urban Institute found that Millennial women are the slowest to have kids of any generation in U.S. history. According to the Pew Research Center, highly-educated moms are waiting until their 30s to have children. Among women ages 40 to 50, the median age at which those with a master’s degree or more first became mothers now stands at 30.
8. If knowledge is power, this bunch is going to be pretty powerful.
A record share of new millennial mothers have a college degree, more so than any other previous generation of young adults, according to the White House Council of Economic Advisers. The picture is even more dramatic for graduate school: While 2.8 percent of young adults had a grad degree in 1995, 3.8 percent received one in 2010, which amounts to a 35 percent increase. If knowledge is power, we have some of the most powerful moms out there.
More from our blog:
Wait, What?! How This Founder Is Applying the Tinder Model to Motherhood
Motherhood used to be about wiping, not swiping.
We're not going to mince words. The solo dolo doldrums of new motherhood is real. Too real. We'd say it's almost harder to find your #momsquad than to master breastfeeding (which, power to all breastfeeding mamas and your boobs; it's no walk in the park).
This thinking is exactly what drove Michelle Kennedy, the former deputy CEO of European dating app Badoo, to develop Peanut, a social app aimed at platonically connecting mothers who feel isolated, alone, and often cut off from friends and their old lives. It's a pain point for many women (which means, there's a solve). "When you're up for a 2am feed and your friends are just leaving the club, those feelings can compound and you wonder 'What does Michelle the mommy look like? Do I have to change?'” the founder shares. The answer the mom and business woman arrived at was no. You certainly don't have to change. But that doesn't mean you have to feel alone.
Taking what she learned from the dating app space, Michelle applied to the same thinking to motherhood. As a generation armed with a fleet of apps at our disposal, from transportation to shopping, to dating and streaming music, Michelle, who was the first of her friends to give birth in 2013, decided that moms "should be able to have that too." And it didn't have to be through a patronizing or unsexy product. "I really learned a lot from working in the dating industry," she says. Including, a unique understanding of how, why, and when people use social apps. It's why the app includes a poll feature and a scheduling feature, making it easier for moms to meet up-- which is highly encouraged.
The founder says Peanut is not meant as substitution for grabbing coffee with a mom friend in person, but rather, the point is "break down the barriers to make it easier to have the conversation." For Michelle that means any conversation. "Yes, sometimes it is not all roses when you become a mommy and that is OK. It's safe to say that. It won’t make you a bad mom and no one is going to judge you. And sometimes you drop plates and you feel like the worst mom in the world or employee, or partner. Whatever it is we can keep having those conversations and it is all OK."
Peanut is the barrier to entry for many moms who are too anxious to approach strangers in the park. When she became a new mom, Michelle says, "I could never approach those groups of women who looked like they really have it together and like they were all so close. I couldn't put myself out there in case I got turned down. I used to mentally exhaust myself, as I judged them thinking about them judging me."
She recalls a bad experience in a Starbucks when her own son was tiny. She saw a woman who looked like she had it together and so Michelle gathered her courage and asked if they might want to get together. "She then said to me, 'You know what I’m so busy at the moment I don’t want to take your number incase I never get back to you.' I was so traumatized by this. So I thought is there a way to erase all of this and make it easy?"
"Sometimes you drop plates and you feel like the worst mom in the world...it is all OK."
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It's also why Peanut uses the double opt-in model favored by dating apps. "You have to think about a woman and the position she's in and how rejection would feel-- especially if it's her and her child. It's one thing for you to reject me for a date, but if you reject me and my baby, that's a whole different ballgame." Michelle insists that the way Peanut works protects "your dignity and your pride. You can put yourself out there first and swipe right. The other mom will never know unless they swipe right on you too."
Though meeting a mom through an app might initially feel impersonal, it's the way we operate. And in this case, Michelle insists that a picture is worth a thousand words. "If you see another woman's profile, it is never about her picture. You are looking for the clue in her picture. Like is she wearing hiking boots, is that part of who she is, or is she eating food, where is she eating, what is she eating? You are always looking for those social cues, that look and acknowledgment that says 'let's play next to each and play together.'"
She also insists that, "Anything we do on our phones has to be an extension of what we are doing in our every day lives, otherwise we aren’t going to use it." And using it women are. After all, we all get by with a little help from our tech.
Follow Peanut on IG here. Photo credit: Peanut
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Tina Wells Started a Company in Her Teens, Today It's an Award-Winning Agency
How this marketing guru has survived twenty years, with aplomb.
When you start your company at 16, there’s a decent chance you won't be doing the same thing by the time you graduate high school, let alone two decades later. Yet Tina Wells, founder of Buzz Marketing Group, defied that decent chance and remains CEO, founder and captain of the marketing company she started in her teens.
It wasn’t her intention. She didn’t set out to run a company. Rather, the goal was to be a fashion writer, ideally at a Hearst publication. “Seventeen was the dream,” she says.
“Never in a million years did I think I’d run a company or that twenty years later I’d be doing the same thing.” Like the start of many companies, her foray into marketing came from a place a need. As a fashion and beauty loving teen with five younger siblings she knew her parents weren't going to be able to buy her the newest trends. "My parents," she says, "were working their butts off to get us into private school and I knew I needed to come up with a way to make money. That's all it was. I figured out that I could review product and then wear it."
It is a resourcefulness that followed her through high school graduation, into college, and helped her grow BuzzMG's buzzSpotters-- a network of trendspotters that was cast to be a research network. It's a group of those in-the-know "and now and always looking around the next corner." In the beginning the buzzSpotters consisted of Tina and her ten friends. “I remember when we got to 200 people I thought it was too much," she says. There are now 37,000 people worldwide. "Consumers know what they want and want to be part of the process," she says. “That’s something I recognized as a 16 year old. I knew that if my friends and I wanted to be a part of the process of a company making something for us, then other people had to want it too."
"Consumers know what they want and want to be part of the process."
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It's a thought that has paid off. It was during Tina's freshman year at Hood University when someone said to her, “I just paid someone $25,000 to do market research and what you’ve done is ten times better.”
It was perfect timing. When this conversation occurred Tina was taking an Intro to Business class with the head of the Business Department. She went to visit that professor during office hours and told her what she’d been up to the last two years. That professor told Tina to take independent study with her to figure out how to make it a viable business. She did. “That was the launch pad,” she says. “It wasn’t me saying, ‘I have a great idea for a business,’ rather I was being told I was doing something really interesting that could be a business.”
Today, Buzz Marketing Group is an award-winning media communications agency that focuses on Millennials, moms, and multicultural consumers. They deliver data and strategies that drive the marketing approach for clients. “I’ve been doing this so long,” Tina says, “that back when I started it was youth marketing. There weren’t Millennials and there certainly wasn’t the idea of Millennial marketing.”
"So long," gives Tina and her team a certain edge-- even though the technologic landscape around her has moved seismically. “I still reference the business plan I developed with my professor 18 years ago,” she explains. In addition to running her company Tina is the current Academic Director of Wharton's Leadership in the Business World program and is teaching a summer program based on the principles set forth in that business plan. "The basics of building a business are still the same." she says. Adding, "You still need to answer those ten questions every business owner has to answer." (Check back, we'll be sharing those next week!)
What has changed are the tools. She jokes that if she had launched her business now she would have scaled in three months “Technology tools empower us to be better at our jobs every day.” It's technology that allows Buzz to survey people in their network better and provide better results for clients.
“Technology has the ability to do the unbelievable, but my business is built in a very brick-and-mortar way," a foundation she insists has the ability to withstand any tech wave or crunch. "I realized early on build a great business and let the tools empower you. But don’t be so focussed on creating a business for a particular tool."
"Build a great business and let the tools empower you."
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BuzzMG is built in a way that's evergreen-- they are, says Tina, "research first, not creative first, and we're very honest with our clients about that." They develop marketing strategies based on data from consumers of all ages and internally develop original research for the client. "We’ll go to our network of buzzSpotters, conduct an internal survey, and go back to the client with an audit of where their brand is, where it need to be, and what we will do to get to achieve that goal.”
"Because we’re research driven we never go into any situation assuming how a conversation is going to go." It also helps Buzz create campaigns that are likewise evergreen. One of the things Buzz is known for are their lists. They help build the inspiring Levo100 List, which was first released in 2015 and is still being shared today. They worked with American Eagle Outfitters on the aerie beauty and body line, leveraging their proprietary database of influencers to create and educate a curated in-market ambassador program of over 150 ambassadors in every state with an aerie store. Upon re-launch, aerie performed 500% better than projected, generating over $250 million in sales for AE.
It’s an approach Tina believes (and has the results to prove it) gives her a great advantage because her team is always looking at what the consumer will tell them. "We make decisions by looking at all sides. Culture is changing, it’s moving so quickly-- how we’ve survived for twenty years is by sticking to the solid principles of marketing."
“I never want to get caught in hype.” she says. “There are people who say 'this is dead,' 'that is dead,' 'blogging is dead', 'influencer is dead.' 'No.' I’ve said to clients, 'Print is not dead, bad print is dead.' And it should be."
"Print is not dead, bad print is dead. And it should be."
“A great brand is always a great brand," she says. "It’s just the tools that change.”
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