Latest / Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast) / Fave Hits: 6 Quick Questions with Cherie Hoeger, Founder of Saalt (Part 2)

Transcript

Fave Hits: 6 Quick Questions with Cherie Hoeger, Founder of Saalt (Part 2) · Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast)

• 0:00
  Welcome back. Here are the six quick questions. Question number one, what's your why? Why do you do what you do? So as a mother of five daughters, you can imagine that having a world where period care is not a barrier to education and opportunity and growth really means a lot to me. And my mother of five daughters, you can imagine that having a world where period care is not a barrier to education and opportunity and growth really means a lot to me.
• 0:28
  As an educated woman living in a first world country, I think it's hard for us to imagine how education can be limited by something as basic to the human condition as a period. And yet in developing nations, as soon as a girl hits puberty, then school dropout rates start to skyrocket. And so menstruation and education is so closely tied. And that's something that I want to change. And I feel that I can do that by donating cups to areas with the most needs.
• 0:57
  and being able to educate them and solving this issue around period care. Because I know that it'll keep girls in school. I know that it'll keep women being able to provide for their families and be able to break cycles of poverty for literally generations. Something as small as a cup can have that huge of an impact. And I feel like that's just one of the most important impact initiatives that I can be involved with. A great way to be spending your days. That's for sure.
• 1:25
  Question number two is, what do you think has been the number one marketing moment that made your business pop? Well, the number one I shared was launching into Target. I would say the next is our brand campaign and really just getting those out into the world and establishing ourselves as a brand, putting those production dollars behind a really great brand campaign. We were able to film our last one during COVID. And at first,
• 1:50
  Everything had shut down. We were trying to film that brand campaign in March, right when all the shutdowns were happening. And we had this decision to make. Well, should we postpone? And should we not put out this brand campaign? Or do we pivot a little bit? And so we pivoted. And what we were able to do is put on a call out to female directors to help us with this. We were able to use four brands.
• 2:11
  different female directors that all filmed in their separate locations around the world. We put it together for our campaign and we're able to make it happen, even though we are still socially isolated. So we just pivoted it as a business and we're still able to make it happen. And it's really been returning for us. Just solving those problems. Just keep on solving. Question number three is where do you hang out to get smarter? What are you reading or listening to or subscribing to or part of that others would benefit from knowing about?
• 2:41
  So I find a lot of value from interacting with different entrepreneurs and then having regular coaching. So I'm part of a national coaching program called Strategic Coach. And I really look forward to every quarter because I get new tools and ideas and also really find value in the discussions with other entrepreneurs as we go to our breakout rooms and bring our problems.
• 3:02
  I'm also part of a local EO forum. So that's Entrepreneurs Organization and they're worldwide. They have EO University that has events worldwide. And as part of a local forum, you can go into this private group that you meet with monthly and also talk to them about your problems, the ups and downs. Because as entrepreneurs, it's hard to be able to really share those really high moments and the lower moments because people who are entrepreneurs don't always understand that
• 3:27
  And you might say, well, we're able to bring in, you know, a million dollar contract. And someone who, you know, isn't in business for themselves might think, oh, well, they've made a million dollars. That's, of course, not the case. There's so many costs associated, like it's still a big win. But those entrepreneurs just understand everything behind there and understand all the costs and so forth. So it's just really valuable to be able to speak with people who are going through the same issues and challenges you are and be able to share insights.
• 3:55
  So I would really encourage any group that allow you to connect with other entrepreneurs. It's really valuable. 100%. Networking is so important, isn't it? Question number four is how do you win the day? What are your AM or PM rituals that keep you feeling happy and successful and motivated?
• 4:14
  So I do have a very strong morning routine and I feel like that really grounds me every day. If I miss my morning routine, then I don't feel as fulfilled. And I found early on that there's only, you know, five of my vital few. There's a book called Essentialism that I love and it helps you identify those vital few. And part of that for me is my family. It's my health. It's my contribution to the world and my relationship. And as long as I'm hitting those five vital few in the morning, it's not.
• 4:41
  then I feel fulfilled during the day. And it doesn't matter what else happens because I've already started that day feeling. My cup is full. I also really believe in reminding yourself of the end goal and remembering to enjoy the journey. So the startup grind is so much work, but it's also incredibly fulfilling. So if you focus too much on those day-to-day tasks, it's so easy to get dragged down.
• 5:05
  So it's important to make time for clarity breaks and also for free time, because I find that's when your creative juices start flowing and you're able to solve those problems. Often when you're off on the lake or you're hiking somewhere is where those solves finally come and those ideas flow. Just time of thinking. I love that. I need more of that. I'm on my phone too much. I hate it. Question number five is if you only had a thousand dollars left in your business bank account, where would you spend it?
• 5:34
  $1,000 doesn't make that big of a dent for ad spend. So if I was really thinking about where it would be, where it would make the most impact, I would say in our impact budget is devoting it to our impact mission and using it to get more products into the hands of more women and girls and menstruators around the world. Because $1,000 may not go very far in marketing spend, but it can literally change hundreds of lives. So that's definitely where I would allocate it.
• 6:03
  That's so true. Love it. And question number six, last question is how do you deal with failure? What's your mindset and approach? Well, I said earlier on that I don't believe in failure. I believe that you're winning or you're learning. So we're all about failing forward. It's something that's very ingrained into our culture. If you don't allow yourself to fail, then you're never going to be able to take those risks that will also help you win big.
• 6:28
  So look at the failure as a positive thing. 100%. Absolutely. Thank you so much for taking the time to be on the show today and sharing your story and what you're doing for women and girls around the world. I'm just in awe of what you're building. Thank you so much. Wonderful. Well, thank you so much for having me, dude. And it was such a pleasure.
• 6:52
  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.
• 7:17
  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.
• 7:39
  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.
• 7:55
  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.
• 8:20
  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.
• 8:42
  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.