She’s Smart

In this episode of She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Ellen Scherer Crafts — producer, storyteller, and creative force behind the Emmy® Award-winning documentary Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street.

Ellen shares her incredible journey from producing live boxing matches for HBO and Caesars Entertainment to leading global experiential events and founding Macrocosm Entertainment with her husband, Trevor. Together, they’ve built a career around heart, strategy, and storytelling — and Ellen’s insights on creativity, resilience, and collaboration are as inspiring as they are real.

Now based in Weston, Ellen is channeling that same creative spirit into her podcast Yard to Table, a celebration of local living, food, and community.

It’s a conversation about building something meaningful — at work, at home, and in the moments in between.

https://macrocosm.tv/

This week on She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Christina Roughan, the acclaimed interior designer and founder of Roughan Interiors, a global design firm with offices in Weston, Connecticut, and New York City.

Christina shares her incredible journey from the fashion world—working with Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger—to building a thriving design business known for its timeless, livable, and effortlessly chic interiors. Together, we talk about the link between fashion and home design, the evolution of style, trusting your instincts, and the beauty of creating spaces that truly reflect who you are.

https://www.roughaninteriors.com/

This week on She’s Smart, I’m joined by Irene Chen, co-founder of the California-based accessories brand Parker Thatch. Irene and I share roots in the same little pocket of Northern California, and we instantly connected over that shared sense of home.

In this episode, Irene shares how she and her husband built Parker Thatch from the ground up — starting with a single roll of canvas and a sewing machine in a dry cleaner — and how a few words of encouragement from handbag icon Kate Spade helped shape the brand’s future.

We talk about creativity, entrepreneurship, resilience, and how to find joy (and calm) in the process of building something meaningful. Irene’s story is full of heart and inspiration — you’ll finish this episode wanting to create something of your own.

https://parkerthatch.com/

Dr. Carla Caturia has worked with more than 10,000 teens and families as an elite mindset coach specializing in emotional intelligence. In this episode, we explore how parents can guide their kids without hovering, why resilience and independence matter more than perfection, and the practical tools families can use to create more harmony at home.

https://thehouseofrise.com/

Broadway veteran Jodi Stevens Bryce joins me to share her journey from New York stages to mentoring the next generation of performers. We talk about her family’s deep roots in music, her Broadway debut in Jekyll and Hyde, and the resilience it took to recover from a vocal injury. Jodi also opens up about finding balance through yoga and mindfulness, the joy of teaching, and how community cabaret nights are giving women their voices back.

It’s a heartfelt, inspiring conversation about artistry, life lessons, and why living fully makes us better at everything we do.

https://www.sbestudio.com/

Nikki Glazer — Owner and Director of Brand at GrayBarns — joins Maria to share the story of transforming a historic inn into a modern gathering place. From her early days at Google working on experiential pop-ups, to carrying on her family’s legacy in real estate and design, Nikki brings a unique perspective on hospitality, creativity, and community.

In this episode, we talk about:

The history and reimagining of GrayBarns

How pop-up experiences are reshaping luxury retail

The challenges (and rewards) of restoring historic properties

Finding balance between vision, family, and business

A conversation about heritage, creativity, and creating spaces that feel unforgettable.

https://www.graybarns.com/

Financial Times Article - https://www.ft.com/content/5b00577f-0787-412a-97e7-e23f5dbc489e

She’s Smart Season 2 is almost here! 🎉

Get ready for another season of real, inspiring, and lighthearted conversations with incredible women—founders, creatives, moms, and trailblazers—sharing their stories, passions, and the smart paths they've carved along the way.

In this quick teaser, host Maria Rowbotham gives you a sneak peek at what’s coming in Season 2 and invites you to join the conversation, starting September 11.

Share this podcast with a friend, family, or anyone who loves hearing from smart women doing amazing things.

And as always…

To close out Season 1 of She’s Smart, I’m breaking the mold—and the guest list rules—for a very special Father’s Day episode featuring the one and only man to ever appear on this podcast: my dad, Aldo.

At 85, he’s sharp, hilarious, and full of stories—from chasing me around the dining table with a broom to inventing a "froggy pinch" that somehow got passed down to my own kids. In this episode, we talk about growing up in Oakland, working in the family business, falling in love with my mom, raising two daughters, and the joys (and chaos) of being a grandfather.

It’s a conversation full of laughs, love, and a whole lot of heart. Thank you to all the dads and father figures out there—and to my husband Ben—for showing up in all the important ways.

This one's for the dads. 💙

In this episode, we journey into the realms of parenting, education, and maintaining sanity during the challenging teenage years. Special guest Kristen Ancker, a seasoned Montessori-trained educator and mindset coach, shares invaluable insights into positive discipline—it's not what you think! Discover effective strategies for getting out the door without chaos and the revolutionary "connection before correction" approach that most of us missed out on as kids. Kristen also reveals the raw reality of morning hustle, her path to mindful parenting, and what inspired her to lead women's wellness retreats. Tune in to explore how to raise respectful and independent children while keeping your cool. 

www.kristenancker.com

In this episode, Maria sits down with Ashley Holt — baker, artist, Bake Squad star, and founder of Sugar Monster Sweets — for a candid and inspiring conversation about creativity, reinvention, and chasing joy. Ashley shares how she went from modeling in New York City to building a cake empire (and winning Next Great Baker along the way), what it’s really like behind the scenes of a Netflix baking show, and how motherhood reshaped her approach to success.

They talk about her wild ride through TV production, the emotional weight of edible art, her dream to sculpt a butter cow (yes, seriously), and what it looks like to say no, slow down, and pivot toward something more meaningful. Ashley is warm, hilarious, and incredibly wise — this one is for anyone who’s ever dreamed big, burnt out, and dreamed again.

https://www.sugarmonstersweets.com/