Dear FoundHer...

If you care about where retail is headed and how a brick-and-mortar business is getting publicity that converts, this episode of Dear FoundHer is worth your time. Host Lindsay Pinchuk sits down with Ariana Carps, a woman business owner and second-generation retailer behind Rear Ends, a nearly 50-year-old brick-and-mortar boutique that continues to thrive without chasing scale or trends. Ariana shares what actually drives in-store sales and customer loyalty, and why building a strong community around her retail business has been just as important as the products she sells.You’ll hear why daily social media routines can outperform flashy campaigns, how quiet followers often become high-intent buyers, and why removing friction does not have to mean removing people. Ariana breaks down how personal service, honest feedback, and relationship-based selling create a retail experience that feels human and keeps customers coming back.This conversation reframes retail success as something sustainable, repeatable, and deeply human. If you are a woman business owner looking to get publicity, or build a community-driven retail business, this episode delivers practical ideas you can actually use.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Getting Publicity: How Daily Instagram Videos Drive Retail Sales  02:31 The Story Behind a 48-Year Family Retail Business  05:16 Smarter Retail Buying Decisions That Reduce Stress  06:44 Why Human Connection Still Wins in Retail  12:14 Building Consistent Social Media That Converts  16:48 Selling Without E-Commerce Through Personal Shopping  19:27 Choosing Sustainable Growth Over Retail Expansion Connect with Ariana Carps:Follow Rear Ends on InstagramFollow Rear Ends on FacebookSubscribe to The FoundHer Files Follow Dear FoundHer on Instagram Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Getting press can feel like a lucky break until you hear how Annabel Love and her co-founder built a repeatable strategy behind it. In this episode of Dear FoundHer, Annabel shares how a dorm room hair-straightener hack became Nori, an eight-figure, profitable brand now sold nationwide at Target. This is a must-listen for women founders who want a clearer playbook for building visibility, earning trust, and turning attention into revenue.Annabel walks Lindsay through the early, scrappy days of the company, including customer discovery in the real world, focus groups, and building a product with zero hardware background. You’ll hear what it took to go from idea to manufacturing, then into a go-to-market plan that included Meta ads, influencer partnerships, and getting press that actually moved product. Annabel breaks down how they approached press opportunities like Oprah’s Favorite Things and The Today Show, plus how they repurposed those wins across paid ads, their website, and customer acquisition.This conversation also covers growing an audience before launch, choosing the right agency partners, and why a lean team can be an advantage when managing rapid growth. Annabel shares how Nori expanded from DTC into retailers like Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, and Target, and what changed operationally once mass retail entered the picture. If you are one of the many female entrepreneurs trying to scale without burning cash or building a bloated org chart, you will walk away with concrete lessons you can apply right away.Episode Breakdown:00:01 Nori Founder Story: From Dorm Room Idea to Eight-Figure Brand03:24 Launching a Hardware Startup Without Engineering Experience07:05 Customer Research and Product Validation Strategy09:32 Direct-to-Consumer Go-To-Market Plan11:54 Meta Ads, Influencer Marketing, and Getting Press13:52 Retail Expansion: Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, and Target16:10 Fundraising and Profitability in a Consumer Brand22:18 Scaling to $20 Million With a Lean Team28:46 The Today Show Impact on Sales Growth31:14 Advice for Women Starting a BusinessConnect with Annabel Love:Follow Annabel Love on InstagramFollow Nori on InstagramSubscribe to The Foundher Files: http://foundherfiles.substack.comFollow Dear FoundHer... on Instagram http://www.instagram.com/dearfoundherPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

After more than two decades in business, Kim Oser realized that working harder was not the answer. The missing piece was structure.In this episode of Dear FoundHer from the Forum, Kim, founder of Game Plan Organizing, shares the shift that changed everything. After years of strong results, she realized the real barrier was not the quality of her work but how clearly she could articulate it. Once she stopped winging her own growth and built a clear plan, her business momentum followed.Kim opens up about moving from inconsistent marketing to confident storytelling, and how clarity in her message led to stronger referrals and a calendar that finally reflected the value of her work. She also talks about rebranding, not as a fix, but as an evolution. Game Plan Organizing gave her the language to lead more strategically and the confidence to say no to work that no longer aligned.As demand grew, so did questions about capacity and sustainability. Those questions ultimately led to Clear Game Plan, an online program designed to help people get organized without shame or overwhelm. Throughout the episode, one theme remains constant. Growth became possible and sustainable because it was supported by community, accountability, and shared perspective.This conversation is for anyone who knows their work is solid but feels stuck explaining it, scaling it, or sustaining it without burning out.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Women Founders and the Power of Community01:55 What Game Plan Organizing Is and Why Planning Comes First02:52 When Experience Is Not the Problem but Marketing Clarity Is05:36 How Clear Storytelling Led to Referrals and a Full Calendar07:32 Rebranding a Service Business for Strategic Growth11:17 Using Events and Partnerships to Build Trust and Visibility14:09 Scaling Beyond Personal Capacity with an Online Program17:26 Why Community Accelerated Business GrowthConnect with Kim Oser:Follow Kim on Instagram Follow the Game Plan Organizing on Facebook Connect with Game Plan Organizing on LinkedInVisit the Game Plan Organizing websiteSubscribe to The FoundHer Files Follow Dear FoundHer on Instagram Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Building a breakout brand in the baby space usually looks slower and messier than people expect. It means facing real scaling challenges, making patient decisions, and staying committed to the product even when it would be easier to rush. In this episode of Dear FoundHer, host Lindsay Pinchuk talks with female founder, Andrea Faulkner Williams, of Tubby Todd, about what it really took to build a brand parents trust.Andrea shares how Tubby Todd began with a personal family need and a hard reset most founders would avoid. After spending years developing their first product, they chose to start over when it did not work for their own child. That decision shaped everything that followed, including how they focused on quality, earned trust, and started growing an audience through real word of mouth instead of shortcuts or paid hype. Community, consistency, and listening closely to customers became the backbone of the business.That foundation made the next stage possible. Andrea walks through how Tubby Todd expanded beyond direct-to-consumer, first onto Amazon and eventually into Target, without losing what made the brand work. Instead of relying on retail to create demand, they brought an already loyal audience with them. If you are a woman business owner, wrestling with scaling challenges or trying to grow an audience before taking a bigger leap, this episode gives a refreshingly honest look at what steady growth really takes.Episode Breakdown:00:00 How Tubby Todd Grew Without Paid Ads03:00 Two Years of Product Development and Starting Over04:00 Word of Mouth Strategy for Growing an Audience07:00 “Be a Good Friend” Marketing Philosophy14:00 Community Building Offline Through Play Dates19:30 Scaling Challenges: Amazon to Target Retail Expansion25:00 Founder Challenges: Confidence, Relationships, and Boundaries30:00 A Simple Founder Framework: Why, One Goal, Quarterly FocusConnect with Andrea Faulkner Williams:Follow Andrea of InstagramFollow Tubby Todd on InstagramFoundHer Faves:Keep Mahjing OnFoundation PRMaelove Dryness Treatment KitWomaness Let’s Neck Serum RollerKendra Scott 5 Link Match BandSubscribe to The FoundHer Files Follow Dear FoundHer... on InstagramPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

What it really takes to leave corporate with confidence and build a people-first business that actually works.Leaving a stable corporate role is rarely about courage alone. It’s about timing, clarity, and building the right support before you leap. On Dear FoundHer from the Forum, host Lindsay Pinchuk sits down with Jillian Bernstein, founder of The Wellness Extension, to unpack what the corporate-to-founder transition really looks like when it’s done thoughtfully. Jillian shares how she assessed her readiness, invested in learning where she had gaps, and resisted the pressure many women founders feel to rush decisions just to make it work.This episode challenges a common misconception about workplace well-being. Jillian explains why surface-level wellness initiatives often fall short for small business owners and how listening closely to clients led her to build a more comprehensive HR concierge model. Her pivots were shaped by real conversations, careful testing, and a willingness to evolve her services based on what businesses actually needed.At the center of it all is community. Jillian reflects on how her network supported her during the quiet early months of building her business and how she now creates paid opportunities for other women through her work. This conversation is for women founders who want to grow sustainably, think strategically, and stop trying to do everything alone.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Investing in Skills You Do Not Have as a Founder02:52 Building an HR Concierge Business for Small Businesses06:30 Knowing When You Are Ready to Leave Corporate11:25 Revenue Goals, Business Pivots, and Sustainable Growth16:27 The Key Decisions That Made This Business Work19:49 Why Community and Network Matter for Women FoundersConnect with Jillian Bernstein:Follow Wellness Extension on Instagram Connect with Jillian on LinkedInVisit the Wellness Extension WebsiteSubscribe to The FoundHer Files Follow Dear FoundHer... on InstagramPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

If you're a woman business owner over 40, join the Dear FoundHer... Forum to find support, advice, resources and mentorship—JUST FOR YOU. It’s all inside, without the gatekeeping and without the overwhelm.If you’re a woman business owner over 40 who feels like growth should be louder or more complicated than it needs to be, this episode is for you.In this solo episode, Lindsay Pinchuk shares why real business growth rarely starts with a launch, funnel, or rebrand—and almost always starts with a conversation. Drawing from her experience building and exiting a seven-figure company, Lindsay explains how conversations have led to her biggest opportunities, partnerships, and long-term growth.You’ll learn why women over 40 are uniquely positioned to grow through relationships, how one aligned conversation can create more impact than ten pieces of content, and why community—not campaigns—is often the missing piece.If networking feels forced and marketing feels heavy, this episode will help you rethink what growth can look like.Subscribe to The FoundHer Files Follow Dear FoundHer... on Instagram

Join us for the FREE Dear FoundHer… Forum Open House + Networking (virtual) Event on January 28th. RSVP HERE we won’t host another Open House until later this spring.This female founded business began as a side hustle in an apartment and grew into a 45-location, company-owned beauty brand by staying grounded in reality.Courtney Claghorn, president and founder of Sugared + Bronzed, a natural sugaring and spray tan company shares how the company took shape while she still worked full-time, learned the service herself, and paid attention to what customers were actually willing to buy. Early decisions focused on cash flow, reinvestment, and keeping costs manageable. Profitability set the pace from the start and made it possible to scale without franchising or giving up ownership.The conversation traces what changes when a side hustle demands more than spare time, how standards hold up as scale increases, and why systems replaced intuition as the business grew. Courtney also talks through choosing when to raise capital, adjusting during COVID, and building something that could keep growing without depending on her presence in every room.Episode Breakdown:00:00 From Side Hustle To Growth At Scale: The Sugared + Bronzed Story  03:10 Identifying A Market Gap In The Spray Tan Industry  06:00 Early Customer Acquisition Without Social Media  07:00 Leaving A Corporate Job When Demand Takes Over  08:10 Bootstrapping The First Store And Prioritizing Profitability  14:50 Scaling Without Franchising Or Losing Control  16:10 Raising Capital After Proving The Business Model  17:30 Surviving COVID Through Creative Pivots  23:00 Maintaining Quality And Culture At Scale  34:00 Founder Advice On Moving Fast And Avoiding Overplanning Connect with Courtney Claghorn:Follow Courtney on InstagramVisit the Sugared + Bronzed WebsiteFollow Sugared + Bronzed on InstagramSubscribe to The FoundHer Files Follow Dear FoundHer... on InstagramPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Most real founder stories are not tidy highlight reels. They unfold in real time, with experiments, pivots, and steady progress. In this episode, Nina Badzin shares one of those real founder stories, tracing her path from writing advice columns to building Dear Nina into a podcast and newsletter that operate as the business itself.If you are growing an audience and wondering how to monetize without losing your voice, this conversation is for you. Nina breaks down how sponsorships support her podcast, how paid subscribers support her newsletter, and why she wishes she had started monetizing sooner. She talks candidly about learning to edit her own show, building revenue streams gradually, and treating content as a long term asset that compounds over time.This is also one of those real founder stories that highlights the power of online community building. Nina explains how joining the Dear FoundHer Forum led to peer support for entrepreneurs that she could not get from friends alone. From partnership marketing opportunities like podcast swaps to brainstorming bigger strategy decisions, the right room changed her trajectory.You will also hear practical event marketing ideas, including how she launched her first live event, secured sponsors for giveaway bags, and is planning future cities with intention. Along the way, she shares lessons about starting before you feel ready, embracing partnership marketing, and building systems that support sustainable growth.This episode gives you real founder stories that show how entrepreneurs build their audience, try out new ways to make money, and get help from other entrepreneurs.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Introducing Dear FoundHer From the Forum and Nina Badzin01:17 Turning Friendship Advice Into a Sustainable Business07:55 Starting a Podcast During COVID10:15 How Dear Nina Makes Money Through Sponsorships and Subscriptions13:58 Why Substack Works for Newsletter Growth and Discovery20:53 Why Community Matters More Than Friends in Business23:55 Real Business Results From the Dear FoundHer Forum27:11 Three Practical Lessons for New Business OwnersConnect with Nina Badzin:Follow Nina on Instagram Tune in to Nina’s Podcast: Dear Nina Conversations About FriendshipConnect with Lindsay:Subscribe to The FoundHer FilesFollow Dear FoundHer on InstagramPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm