Made it Happen

Calista Desousa is a young 19-year-old entrepreneur from Canada. She started a handmade crochet business at the age of 16 and has now launched her very own swimwear company, ALFA. Calista’s main focus and purpose is to empower women and to be a leader and a teacher for self-love.

We talk about everything from how the business got started, the messaging behind the company, self-love rights and body positivity, why she decided to handmake the products instead of manufacturing, fast fashion, learning to run her business without a background in business, the Girls for Days campaign, women empowerment, what's coming next for her business, and so much more! Thank you Calista, for being so open and honest in this episode while sharing your journey and I hope others can learn from it as well!   

You can also receive a discount on your purchase at https://www.alfawearboutique.com/ using the code MADEITHAPPEN at checkout!

Krista Wismer is the owner & designer of Kreative! She is a 24-year-old graphic designer, living on the bruce peninsula & has been running her business since high school. She is completely self-taught, has a love for formal stationery, an obsession with German cars & her two dogs, Ava & Maya! She specializes in wedding & personal stationery, business branding & handpainted doormats!  

We talk about starting her business when she was just 16 years old, how she learned graphic design, marketing her business, growing her Instagram following, how she got into running workshops, shifting her business with COVID 19, taking her business full-time, and so much more! Hear about all things Kreative on this inspiring episode!

Samantha Feher is a journalist based in NYC, where she works for Cosmopolitan Magazine, along with three side hustles. Sam is a content creator, the owner of an online clothing boutique called Brunch Club, and a freelance consultant. 

We talk all about working at Cosmo, including creating content for the magazine, her favourite thing about working there, and of course some behind the scenes Bachelor content you won't want to miss! 

We also discuss the creation of her online clothing boutique company and her advice for those thinking of starting their own. Plus, we talk about her work as a freelance consultant, and Sam shares how she became a content creator by complete accident!

This episode was SO much fun and you'll definitely want to hear all of Sam's great stories and amazing advice!

Nikki is a marketing manager for a service company, running social media accounts for clients on the side, and working on her own influencer accounts when she has free time! She calls herself the queen of writing captions and is an endless source of internet culture references. 

We talk about all things social media from starting her own social media business, finding her first clients, what it's like as an influencer, how she built her following, what to consider when working with brands, dealing with online negativity, and so much more! This was such a fun interview you won't want to miss.

Alexa Miller was born and raised on the Beautiful Bruce Peninsula, on a farm with her family in the small town of Wiarton. After college, she made the move to Alberta for almost a full year, but she missed the beauty of home and moved back in 2016. Upon returning she got a job as an assistant with a local top producing realtor, where her passion for Real Estate began. After a few years of being an assistant, her mentor sat her down to discuss getting her license. She put in the work, and after a year and a half, she became licensed and now sells Real Estate full time. She specializes in Residential homes, waterfront, acreage, and investment properties.

We talk about her journey into real estate, how she's overcome any obstacles that have come her way, making her first sale, how she's grown her client base, the highs and lows of the industry, advice for those thinking of entering the business, and so much more. If you are interested in entering into real estate, or just want to know more about the industry, this is a MUST listen!

After graduating from the University of Western Ontario & working in numerous fields, Julia has opened her own lash studio in her hometown. She now makes her own hours, executive decisions, and income. Julia strongly supports all women who want to become girl bosses and claim autonomy over their own lives. 

We talk about taking that leap to start a business, how she got into the industry, how she manages that work-work balance, advice for those thinking of starting their own business, how she built her client base, the benefits and downsides to owning your own business, how COVID-19 has affected her business & what being a business owner means to her!

You may know her as the Founder of Booje Media, a digital marketing agency in Vancouver, Co-founder of Dew Edit scrunchie brand and Spade and Sparrows wine, or most recently, Podcast Nation. She is also the manager of people and brands including Kaitlyn Bristowe. 

Clio and I talk about her journey as an entrepreneur, starting her own marketing agency, Booje Media's new Pay it Forward Campaign, working with influencers, co-founding a wine company, and scrunchie line, pivoting your business, advice for starting a business, and much more! 

Connie Lo and Laura Burget are the founders of Three Ships (formerly known as NIU BODY), a 100% natural and vegan skincare company. They started the brand when they were both 23-years-old, with just $4,000 and a huge problem to solve. Their mission is to make natural beauty accessible for all women, with effective products all under $40. Since launching 3 years ago, Three Ships is now carried in >350 retailers across North America, has thousands of 5-star reviews online, and has appeared in publications like ELLE, Popsugar, and Refinery29.

We talk about starting their business when they were 23 years old, how they became co-founders, starting their business with just $4,000, how they built a following before they even launched a product, when they knew they were ready to take their side-hustle full-time, how they landed their products in large retailers, what they've learned about themselves as business owners, and so much more!

Shop their all-natural skincare products at http://www.threeshipsbeauty.com/discount/MADEITHAPPEN20 and use code MADEITHAPPEN20 for 20% off your purchase!

One of Marketing Magazine’s top 30 Under 30, Erin is an entrepreneur, marketer, former journalist, and startup advisor/investor. She is the co-founder and CEO at Willful, an online estate planning platform that makes it easy for Canadians to create a will in less than 20 minutes. Prior to Willful she held leadership roles at communications agency Eighty-Eight, startup publication BetaKit, and at Sprouter, which was acquired by Postmedia in 2011. Erin is a frequent speaker with Speakers’ Spotlight, writes a column for the Financial Post, and is a tech commentator on CTV News. She has appeared in publications including The New York Times, Forbes, and CNN. 

During this episode of Made it Happen, Erin and I speak about her journey as an entrepreneur, being one of Marketing Magazines Top 30 Under 30, What to consider when starting a business, how to market your business and make your presence online know, building your personal brand, managing that work-life integration, tips for public speaking & getting retweeted by Oprah..twice. We also touch upon the current situation of COVID-19, how it has affected Willful, and what business owners can be doing right now to cope with the situation.