Written by: Kaylee Franklin
Welcome to another Stairway to CEO monthly recap! This month we’re covering April 2022 and we’re also celebrating the launch of our 100th episode! That’s 100 episodes of hearing inspiring entrepreneurial stories about what it takes to build and grow a business. Let’s see what episodes we launched in April and take a look at what is coming soon for the rest of May!
For our 100th Episode, Lee sat down with Max Kislevitz to talk about his wild journey to founding Bala!
Bala is an LA-based movement company on a mission to create beautiful design-led, functional fitness accessories and equipment that will change the way people work out.
In this episode, Max shared with us his entrepreneurial journey from growing up in New Jersey, to working in advertising for nearly 13 years, which led to meeting his wife, Natalie, and starting Bala in 2017.
He talked about how a trip to Indonesia led to a sketch of the first Bala bangle on a napkin, how they launched a Kickstarter campaign to cover the upfront costs in the first year of business, and how they landed a $900,000 investment from Mark Cuban and Maria Sharapova from pitching on Shark Tank. If you’re interested in a deeper dive into how Shark Tank works, I highly recommend taking a listen to this episode, and don’t forget to watch their episode on Shark Tank for some great 80s vibes.
Best piece of advice:
“Baby steps are still steps. And as long as you're taking them, you're moving forward.”
Walking into the second week of April, we heard from Kevin Rutherford, CEO of Nuun, better known to the Nuun team as, Chief Eternal Optimist.
Founded in Seattle in 2004, Nuun quickly became known for its low sugar electrolyte tablets, which revolutionized the sports beverage market and was acquired in July 2021 by Nestle.
Kevin shared his impressive career journey working as a brand manager at SC Johnson, to turning around Miller Genuine Draft from a 17-year decline, to landing his first CEO role at Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day, to starting as CEO at Nuun almost nine years ago.
Kevin talked about the positive changes he's made while leading Nuun, what he thinks makes a great leader, the importance of progress over perfection, and how to support your team when they're struggling.
Best piece of advice:
“Once you're there, you've gotta be thinking what's my next evolution to make it better and stronger. Then of course you want to figure out how to extract that value.”
The Stairway to CEO team also got the opportunity to try out Nuun. If you want to know more about the flavors and product itself, head over to our blog and get an inside scoop!
Heading into the middle of April, Lee chatted with Katina Mountanos, Founder and CEO of Kosterina.
Founded on the simple belief that high-quality olive oil is a superfood, Kosterina is on a mission to set a new standard and showcase how extra virgin olive oil works from both the inside and outside to provide significant health and wellness benefits.
Katina shares her journey from growing up as a Greek American living between Long Island and Greece, to starting her first company, to working for Jet.com, to launching Kosterina in 2020. She talks about how Kosterina started as a side hustle, what she wished she had known about selling wholesale, some limiting beliefs she had to overcome around fundraising, and why she's expanding the brand into the beauty space.
Katina also shares the positive benefits Kosterina experienced with the pandemic, launching just two months prior to COVID-19 hitting the U.S., what she wished she had known about selling wholesale, and her experience launching in Whole Foods.
Best piece of advice:
“Get it out into the market and get some feedback because it's when you get it into consumer's hands and you're getting that sort of feedback loop that you can really begin to build a business on a product that people love”
Continuing the month with a strong ending, we heard Only The Good Stuff from Lilian Umurungi-Jung, Founder of Mumgry.
For those that don’t already know, Mumgry is a better-for-you nut butter brand made using no added sugar, palm oil, or additives, and no refrigeration needed. And they are DELICIOUS! If you need any more convincing, check out our product review of Mumgry!
Lillian shares her story from growing up as the youngest of five, moving from Uganda at just two years old, to becoming a child actor, attending film school, holding 16 jobs in just 10 years, and launching Mumgry in October 2019. She talks with us about how she bootstrapped the business with her severance pay, how she collaborated with ice cream parlors, and how she avoided losing her retail accounts during the pandemic.
She also talks about how one of the most important things is to connect your product in front of others to gain feedback, the challenges she's been facing in fundraising, being completely bootstrapped and self-funded, and the advice she has for entrepreneurs looking to build their brand without funding.
Best piece of advice:
“Be consistent. If you say you want to do something, reach the finish line every time, don't stop halfway through.”
In April, we had a common occurence of Founders and CEOs who believed that the most important things were to get your product in front of potential customers to gain valuable feedback, and to be consistent. Having those two things in place will help your company to grow and build.
Stay tuned throughout May to hear from amazing CEOs such as:
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Have any guest suggestions, comments, or questions about Stairway to CEO? Drop us a line here!
Welcome to the third edition of Stairway to CEO's Holiday Gift Guide– your ultimate resource for finding the perfect gifts. As we’ve reached almost 200 episodes, the options of your favorite leading direct-to-consumer brands. We have a lot of amazing gift ideas for you and we’ll be sure to cover everyone you’re shopping for, so we hope you enjoy!
Welcome back to another monthly recap! I know for some, the month of September felt like the longest month of the year, and for others, it flew by. But nonetheless, we had an incredible lineup of four amazing guests, with incredible backgrounds and stories. Let’s jump in to see what they all had in common, some life lessons they had to share, and take a peak into what we have coming out in October.
As the year hurtles towards its close, the fourth quarter (Q4) offers a prime opportunity to not only meet financial targets but also leave a lasting impression on your customers. It's a time when holiday festivities mingle with year-end goals, and careful planning can make all the difference. In this blog post, we'll explore strategies to navigate Q4 with a focus on delivering outstanding customer experience, and how to partner with Awesome CX to offer seamless solutions to help your business not only weather the storm but also thrive during this crucial season.
