Latest / Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast) / Fave Hits: 6 Quick Questions with Jessica Warch,Founder of Kimai (part 2)

Transcript

Fave Hits: 6 Quick Questions with Jessica Warch,Founder of Kimai (part 2) · Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast)

• 0:00
  Hey, it's Dune here. This is just a quick message to let you know that for the next two weeks, we're bringing you a roundup of our favorite episodes that you might have missed the first time around. Episodes from women like Leslie Carls, the founder of Midday Squares, Ju Ru, the founder of Hero Cosmetics, and Michelle Grant, the founder of Lively. I hope you enjoy these episodes as much as I did recording them. And if you learned something, please do shout about it by posting it to your Instagram stories.
• 0:30
  Welcome back. Here are the six quick questions. So question number one is what's your why? Why are you doing what you're doing?
• 0:48
  So our why and my personal why as well, for us it's really about, it's great to produce, like to create a new product and to kind of like have an alternative that is more sustainable, but we don't want to forget what's happening in those mines and we don't want to forget like the impact
• 1:06
  that diamond mining has. So today for us, it's about like being able to make more money in order to give back to those communities and figure out a way to find new opportunities for them. Because I think it's not just about the product we're creating, but it's really about the impact we can have in the long run. And hopefully that's where we want to get to.
• 1:28
  Is it just a side note question again? Is it possible to get a non-lab-grown diamond, like an earth-grown mind diamond that is conflict-free? Or is it just, is that like a myth that we're told?
• 1:44
  I think it's really, really hard to know and it's really, really hard to get. Uh, there's a few kinds of like the Kimberly process and a few kind of like things that have come up to say, okay, we're those diamonds are conflict free. For example, the Kimberly process has many loopholes. So what it means.
• 2:03
  a diamond that is certified with the Kimberly process, it means that it hasn't sponsored work, but it doesn't mean that like there's no child labor. It doesn't mean that the working environments are healthy and safe. And on top of it, of course, the environmental impact of mining. So it's very hard today to trace where diamonds come from because it has so many middlemen. And on top of it, like knowing really if those diamonds are conflict-free or just like...
• 2:30
  human free or whatever we want to call it is close to impossible. Oh, that is really crazy. So crazy. Question number two, what has been, and I think I know the answer to this, but maybe we'll have to do a different answer. What's been the number one marketing moment so far? It's Megan, of course. Let's do number two. What's been your second biggest marketing moment?
• 2:54
  So I think, yeah, we've launched Engagement Ring over a year ago, and we've done a campaign. For us, it was important when we started looking into how brands were talking to their customers for Engagement Ring, it was always talking to men. Like men should buy it for women. It's always focused on how much men can afford the ring. Well, today, like firstly, women are wearing their rings and they should be part of that decision making.
• 3:22
  Secondly, like women are more independent, making our being part of, yeah, our being part even from a financial perspective of that decision making. And thirdly, like when you look at those campaigns, it's all about like being dressed up as if you're going to a gala, the perfect couple with a beautiful dress. But us women today are wearing jeans, sneakers, I'm wearing leggings today.
• 3:47
  and wearing our diamonds, right? So we wanted something that represented us. And we felt that the marketing side of things had never evolved with our generation. It was talking to us the exact same way as they were talking to our great-grandparents. So when we started working on that campaign, we really focused on the woman wearing jeans, wearing sneakers on her way to work.
• 4:10
  And we've done a campaign in the tube, in a few tube stations in London. So that was, yeah, that was a cool milestone as well. I love that. That's so cool. Question number three is what's your go-to business resource when it comes to book, podcast or newsletter? Newsletter, I like LeanLux. I don't know if you know them. It's more US-based. And...
• 4:38
  It's luxury, but not just like they talk about they cover a bit of everything in terms of. Yeah, they cover a bit of everything in terms of startups. Then I go to TechCrunch every morning to look at the news. And then podcast, of course, yours.
• 4:58
  Oh, thank you. And then there's some good ones in Paris. One is Entreprendre dans la mode, which is focused more on fashion brands. And then in the US, like the traditional ones, How I Built This and another one.
• 5:14
  But I'm not the best one at, I think the best way as well is just connecting with like entrepreneurs and like meeting people and have people that you can reach out to if you have any questions. So it's more like those personal touch and personal relationship that I value a lot. Yeah, 100%. It's all around the people who you surround yourself with. Absolutely. Exactly. Yeah.
• 5:40
  Question number four is how do you win the day? What are your AM or PM rituals and habits that keep you feeling happy and successful?
• 5:47
  motivated? I'm like a black or white person so I'm really in extreme and now at the moment I'm in my extreme where I wake up at 5 30 I go to the gym at 6 30 I'm at the office around 8 30 and then at yeah meetings and work until the evenings
• 6:11
  I love that for you. I wish that I could wake up at 5.30. I dream of being that person. But to be honest, I feel so much more empowered and energetic because I love waking up before the world. I feel like I've done so much before anyone else wakes up. And for me, but it's super important to have a balance. I'm not the kind of person that's going to
• 6:35
  do work and not have like a social life. Like I'll go to my dinners, I'll meet my friends. Cause what's the point in doing it if you're not having fun? And I really think that's super important. A hundred percent. Absolutely. Question number five is what's the worst money you've spent in the business? Oh, wow.
• 6:57
  It's hard. Because I think, again, as we said, you're learning from each mistake, right? Every money that we spend, we've learned from it. But I would say it's a tricky one. I would say PR has been a very hard one. I think PR is
• 7:15
  most important thing for a business, even more for a business where like ours, like we're educating customers. It's a new industry. You need to like tell a story rather than just showcase a product. But it's so hard to find the right PR agency or freelance to work with. So we kind of like...
• 7:35
  worked with different agencies that hasn't delivered and we've spent a lot of money on it and I think talking to other brands it's also like the feedback we often get it's about like finding again the right fit for you um but yeah I would say this and I think branding is super expensive as well um the PR is the biggest one I would say yeah
• 8:01
  Mm hmm. That's true. I don't know who's listening to the podcast. I'll lose a few friends. Maybe you'll also find someone. Maybe someone will knock on your door. No, but now we have an amazing PR and we were super happy, but it took time to get there. Yeah. Yeah. I have heard that as well. Question number six. Last question. Is there a major fail or mistake that you can share and how did you deal with it? Yeah.
• 8:30
  major fail or so many, but I need to find one. I think it's when you spend that money and you just realize that it doesn't return on investment and it's super stressful when you're at our stage because like every dime counts.
• 8:48
  But you then learn and also you need to learn to kind of like get over it and get up, get on to the next thing. Right. And that's the trickier part. And I think definitely as well, like when I talked about fundraising, it seemed super easy and it definitely was the first time because I think it's easier to fundraise when you don't have like when you're early on because what they're investing in is yourself, the idea, etc.
• 9:14
  The vision. Exactly. And I think like today it's trickier, even more for brands, female founders, etc. So at one point last summer, we thought about going out and fundraising. And everyone was telling us we love it. It's amazing, but not for us. And then like you kind of like get it hard to take on and then like stand up again and continue doing it. So we ended up like bringing on some angel investors.
• 9:43
  But it's not a failure, but it's more something that kind of like demotivates you and you need to figure out how to continue and get on again. Yeah. Rejection's a big part of it. And it's something that you have to develop a thick skin over time, but you can say that, but it doesn't make it easier. No, exactly. So I think definitely like many, and I feel definitely when there's a podcast or anything, we always talk about the wind more than like,
• 10:11
  what's not going well, but it's important to say that like so many things are not going well either, but it's easier to talk about the other side. And I feel that's something that like I don't hear enough or I didn't hear enough before starting either. So you always think it just happens to you, but it actually happens to everyone else.
• 10:30
  Yes. Amen. I've heard plenty. Don't worry. Jess, this was awesome. Thank you so much for taking the time to come on the show and share your very exciting journey with me and our listeners. I've loved this. Of course. Thank you so, so much for having me and really enjoyed chatting again. And I'll see you on Friday. See you on Friday.
• 10:59
  Hey, it's June here. Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast. If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter. We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D2C, and interesting business resources.
• 11:24
  And if you're a founder building an e-commerce brand, you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called Hype Club at femalestartupclub.com forward slash Hype Club. We have guests from the show joining us for intimate Ask Me Anythings, expert workshops, and a group of totally amazing, like-minded women building the future of D2C brands.
• 11:46
  As always, please do subscribe, rate and review the show and post your favorite episodes to Instagram stories. I am beyond grateful when you do that.
• 12:02
  Hey, it's June here. Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast. If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter. We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D2C, and interesting business resources.
• 12:26
  And if you're a founder building an e-commerce brand, you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called Hype Club at femalestartupclub.com forward slash Hype Club. We have guests from the show joining us for intimate Ask Me Anythings, expert workshops, and a group of totally amazing, like-minded women building the future of D2C brands.
• 12:49
  As always, please do subscribe, rate and review the show, and post your favorite episodes to Instagram stories. I am beyond grateful when you do that.