Starter Girlz Podcast

For entrepreneurs and aspiring founders, skincare entrepreneur Sarina Pilaroscia shares how her dad’s struggle with psoriasis led her to build a lab and launch a skincare brand.

Watching her father struggle with severe psoriasis led Sarina to research ingredients, approach laboratories, and eventually hire her own chemist. She wasn’t a chemist herself, but she had a clear idea of what she wanted to create.

Jennifer Loehding sits down with Sarina Pilaroscia, founder and CEO of Phoilex, to explore the journey from a family need to a self-funded skincare brand that launched online with Ulta Beauty.

They discuss developing products from scratch, funding research, navigating regulatory delays, and finding the right customers. Sarina also shares her perspective on natural versus scientifically formulated ingredients, what persistence taught her, and why she’s learning to stop starting new things and focus.

Chapters

00:00 Doctor Dismisses Psoriasis
01:07 Meet Sarina and Phoilex
01:36 Small Talk and Setup
02:42 Dad’s Psoriasis Story
05:39 Inside Out Healing Approach
08:32 Topical Steroid Withdrawal
12:43 Holistic Meets Western Care
17:48 Phoilex Products Overview
19:00 Building the Brand From Scratch
23:33 Funding and Regulatory Hurdles
25:17 Building Through COVID
26:09 Cross-Border CBD Rules
27:37 Plant Meets Science
28:51 Stevia Sensitivity Story
31:01 Free-From Reality Check
34:13 ChatGPT For Research
35:12 Entrepreneur Lessons Learned
37:47 Ulta Launch And Vision
40:53 Advice To New Founders
43:34 Avoiding Burnout
45:34 Where To Find Phoilex
46:36 Final Wrap And Call To Action

Connect with Sarina Pilaroscia

Website: https://phoilex.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phoilex.releaf/

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

https://startergirlz.com

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For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, and leaders, this conversation explores how nearly dying changed what it means to be alive—and what that means for personal growth and success.

Career success can become part of your identity while creativity, happiness, and personal ambitions get pushed aside. What changes when you stop waiting for permission to pursue what matters to you?

In this episode of the Starter Girlz Podcast, Jennifer Loehding sits down with Tracy-Ann Palmer, known as TAP the Warrior—a singer-songwriter, global technology executive, and advocate—to explore how surviving domestic violence changed her perspective on being alive.

From childhood loss and immigration to an accomplished corporate career and returning to music at 53, Tracy-Ann shares the experiences behind her evolving definition of success. The conversation explores reinvention, supportive relationships, people pleasing, setting boundaries, and reconnecting with the parts of yourself you’ve put away.

Subscribe for weekly conversations about entrepreneurship, professional development, personal growth, and building success on your own terms. Then tell us in the comments: What have you been putting off that would make you feel more alive?

About Tracy-Ann Palmer

Tracy-Ann Palmer, known as TAP the Warrior, is a singer-songwriter, recording artist, global technology executive, and advocate helping women overcome trauma and reclaim their voices. A twice immigrant born in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, she built a 25-year corporate career before returning to her lifelong love of music at 53. Through her music and work with women, she encourages others to feel seen and explore what is possible for their lives.

Chapters

00:00 Near Death Wake Up Call
00:52 Welcome and Guest Intro
01:43 No Script Real Talk
05:00 Tracy Ann Origin Story
07:53 Music Roots and Comeback
11:35 Bucket List Studio Leap
13:36 Husband as Creative Partner
18:22 Reinvention and Creator Mindset
25:16 Finding Joy Through Creativity
33:49 Tap the Warrior Backstory
36:08 Surviving Domestic Violence
37:44 Finding Courage to Leave
38:13 Warrior Spirit and Empathy
39:25 Sawubona and Giving Back
41:32 New Lease on Life
45:19 Happiness and Core Values
47:29 Intuition and Boundaries
51:32 From Victim to Seeker
57:34 The Power of the Pause
01:00:41 Music Album and LA Trip
01:04:16 Defining Success Today
01:07:00 Where to Find Tap
01:07:53 Final Thanks and Sign-Off

Connect with Tracy-Ann Palmer

https://tapthewarrior.com
Find her music on Spotify and Apple Music under TAP.
Find her on Instagram as TAP the Warrior.

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

https://startergirlz.com

Want to Be a Guest on Starter Girlz?

Apply here:
https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, and leaders, rethinking the clothes we buy connects sustainable fashion with a bigger question: how can a business make everyday life better while reducing waste?

A full closet doesn’t always make a style decision easier. Wardrobe organization can help us see what we own, discover outfit combinations, and use our clothes longer. But textile waste also raises questions about what our clothes are made from—and what happens after we stop wearing them.

Jennifer Loehding sits down with Lacey Cadieux-McLean, Founder & CEO of Rhubaia Ventures, to explore her sustainable clothing line and AI-powered clothing app. Drawing on her background in IT project management and creative design, Lacey is connecting personal style, confidence, and environmental responsibility.

They discuss sustainable fashion, synthetic fabrics, clothing waste, virtual try-on technology, and how decision fatigue affects getting dressed. Lacey also shares the entrepreneurial lessons behind her work: learning from mistakes, seeking mentorship, and staying committed as a business grows.

Chapters

00:00 Why We Need to Rethink the Clothes We Buy
00:51 Meet Lacey Cadieux-McLean
02:16 From Ranch Life to Fashion Technology
04:04 Building Rhubaia’s Clothing Line and App
06:41 Sharing and Organizing Your Virtual Closet
09:18 Decision Fatigue and AI Virtual Try-On
11:37 Textile Waste and Synthetic Fabrics
13:59 Discussing Microplastics and Health
16:00 Rethinking Everyday Choices
25:09 Personal Style and Confidence
30:29 The Future of AI Wardrobes
33:39 Training AI to Your Style
35:39 Lessons from Building a Business
42:07 Grit Through the Messy Middle
47:47 Where to Find Rhubaia
48:48 The Story Behind the Name

Connect with Lacey Cadieux-McLean

Website: https://rhubaia.com
Find Rhubaia on social media.

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

https://startergirlz.com

Want to be a guest on Starter Girlz?

https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders and entrepreneurs, The Two Warriors Within explores leadership, emotional intelligence, and personal growth. TJ Baird, the Warrior Dad, asks: Which One Are You Feeding?

Drawing on 32 years of military leadership, TJ examines how anger, self-awareness, and your actions affect the people you lead. His philosophy connects the battles within us to the trust we build—or damage—in our businesses and relationships.

When social media shows only the finished success story, struggle can feel like evidence that you’re falling behind. This conversation explores why sharing the unfinished journey matters, and why leadership requires honesty about your own challenges.

Jennifer Loehding sits down with retired U.S. Army Command Sergeant Major TJ Baird, founder of Warrior Dad Stories, to explore the philosophy behind “the two warriors within.” His 32-year military career and a pivotal conversation with his daughter give that philosophy a personal foundation.

They discuss why actions must match words, how presence builds trust, and why leadership is a human business. TJ shares his four principles for life and leadership, the lessons behind his storytelling platform, and how he uses strategic planning and AI to support his business.

Chapters

00:00 The two warriors within
00:43 Meet TJ Baird, the Warrior Dad
03:08 Which warrior are you feeding?
04:20 His daughter’s wake-up call
06:24 From military experiences to Warrior Dad Stories
09:40 The struggle behind the success story
14:27 Planning, execution, and adapting in business
16:31 Using AI as a business tool
18:58 The AI challenge for authors and creators
24:23 Do your actions match your words?
25:23 Four principles for life and leadership
28:43 Leadership is a human business
31:39 The human side of military leadership
35:06 Complex problems need more than logical solutions
39:07 Inside Warrior Dad Stories
41:28 Why storytelling connects people
45:55 Finding the courage to tell your story

Connect with TJ Baird

Website: https://warriordadstories.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warriordadstories

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

https://startergirlz.com

Want to be a guest on Starter Girlz?

https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, and leaders, growth can bring a difficult question: are you building a business you can lead, or one that demands more of you every day? In the messy middle of entrepreneurship, business growth can come with shrinking profits and mounting business debt. Brent Garrett’s story shows why moving forward means facing the numbers, setting the culture, and growing into the leader your business needs.

In this episode of the Starter Girlz Podcast, Jennifer Loehding sits down with business owner and coach Brent Garrett. After discovering his business was nearly $1 million in debt, Brent had to examine the finances he had stopped watching, the culture he had allowed someone else to shape, and how far his work had drifted from his values.

Brent explains the five stages of entrepreneurship and what happens when a growing company reaches the ceiling of complexity. He and Jennifer discuss the shift from doing the work yourself to leading a team, and why growing as a leader has to keep pace with growing the business.

The conversation moves through business finances, culture, delegation, emotional intelligence, sales language, and finding your unique ability. Brent draws on his experience in skilled trades, while the lessons reach business owners well beyond that industry.

Chapters

00:00 Trailer: From Debt to Leadership
01:14 Meet Brent Garrett
13:31 Aligning Values with Business Success
22:42 The Five Stages of Entrepreneurship and the Messy Middle
33:20 Emotional Intelligence in Leadership
35:12 Emotional Intelligence in Conversations
39:47 The Language of Sales
45:18 Moving Through the Messy Middle
50:28 Finding Your Unique Ability
54:05 The Role of Pets in Emotional Support
58:48 Building Meaningful Connections in Business

Connect with Brent Garrett

Website: https://brentgarrett.com

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

https://startergirlz.com

Want to be a guest on Starter Girlz?

https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, leaders, and anyone navigating a new chapter, this episode explores why you don’t have to start over to reinvent yourself—and how taking action can create clarity when the path ahead feels uncertain.

Change often challenges more than our plans. It can disrupt our identity, confidence, and sense of direction. Whether you are facing an empty nest, career transition, changing business, personal setback, or unexpected opportunity, moving forward may require reframing what is happening rather than waiting until you feel completely ready.

Jennifer Loehding sits down with Debbi DiMaggio, a top 1% real estate professional, six-time author, TEDx speaker, podcast host, and mindset coach who has spent more than 35 years helping people navigate change. When her children left for college, Debbi began a decade-long reinvention that expanded her life beyond real estate into writing, speaking, coaching, philanthropy, and endurance challenges.

Debbi shares why reinvention doesn’t always require leaving your career behind, how she completed the Los Angeles Marathon primarily through mindset, and why movement often comes before confidence. They also discuss resilience, accountability, reframing challenges, the Great World Race, Girls on the Run, preparing for a TEDx talk in South Africa, and the surprising connection between Debbi’s tenacity and her famous relative, Joe DiMaggio.

Chapters

00:00 Reinvention Starts With Motion
00:52 Welcome to Starter Girlz
01:09 Meet Debbi DiMaggio
07:02 The Journey Into Real Estate
13:39 Mindset and Personal Growth
18:22 Navigating Change and Accountability
23:44 The Great World Race Initiative
28:40 Debbi’s TEDx Journey
29:53 The Marathon Mindset
31:10 Reframing Challenges
33:44 Grit and Tenacity in Life
37:04 Defining Success
44:12 Family Legacy and Joe DiMaggio

About Debbi DiMaggio

Debbi DiMaggio is a top 1% real estate professional, six-time author, TEDx speaker, mindset coach, philanthropist, and host of the Mastering the Art of Success podcast.

With more than 35 years in real estate, Debbi has built her career around helping people navigate meaningful transitions and move confidently into their next chapter. Her work extends beyond real estate through writing, speaking, coaching, and her Mindset in Motion philosophy, which encourages people to build confidence, clarity, and momentum through intentional action.

She is also leading Debbi Runs the World, an initiative supporting Girls on the Run while inspiring people to identify, share, and pursue meaningful goals of their own.

Connect with Debbi DiMaggio

https://debbidimaggio.com

https://debbirunstheworld.com

https://networkdebbi.com

https://www.instagram.com/debbidimaggio

Connect with Starter Girlz

https://startergirlz.com

Want to Be a Guest on Starter Girlz Podcast

https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, leaders, and professionals navigating career transitions, this episode explores why your humanity matters more in an AI-driven job market—and how personal branding and authentic storytelling can help you stand out.

AI job search tools can be helpful, but relying on them alone can make your resume sound like everyone else’s. Human experts can help uncover the experiences, accomplishments, and unique value that automated hiring systems and generic AI-generated language often miss.

Jennifer Loehding sits down with Mae Schaefer and Deborah Wheatman, co-founders of Craft Career Studio, to discuss how hiring automation is changing the job search and why an effective career strategy requires more than keywords. They explain how to communicate your value, own your accomplishments, and build a personal brand that connects with the people making hiring decisions.

You’ll also hear why resume writing should focus on outcomes rather than responsibilities, how authentic storytelling can strengthen your resume and LinkedIn profile, and how to navigate job search rejection in a competitive market.

About Mae Schaefer & Deborah Wheatman

Mae Schaefer and Deborah Wheatman are the co-founders of Craft Career Studio, where they combine their backgrounds in marketing, research, career strategy, and professional writing to help people navigate career transitions. Through a personalized, high-touch approach, they help professionals clarify their value, strengthen their personal brands, and tell career stories that connect with real people.

Connect with Mae Schaefer & Deborah Wheatman

Website: https://craftcareerstudio.com

Chapters

00:00 Why Humanity Matters in an AI-Driven Job Market

00:58 Celebrating Grit and Determination

02:07 Founding Craft Career Studio

05:18 Services Offered by Craft Career Studio

08:40 The Importance of Storytelling in Resumes

13:40 Crafting Aspirations and Outcomes

17:36 Empowering Women in Career Advancement

20:33 Navigating the Entrepreneurial Journey

23:23 The Power of Delegation and Focus

25:00 Crafting Unique Career Stories

27:54 The Human Touch in Resume Writing

30:26 Navigating Career Transitions

33:45 The Passion Behind the Work

37:57 Dealing with Job Search Rejections

43:07 Defining Success in Business

45:31 The Boutique Experience in Career Services

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they’ve built, what they’ve learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

https://startergirlz.com

Want to Be a Guest on Starter Girlz?

Apply here:

https://podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders, entrepreneurs, creators, leaders, and other growth-minded professionals, success can become so closely tied to achievement that it becomes difficult to know who you are without the title, trophy, or next win.

In this episode of the Starter Girlz Podcast, Jennifer Loehding sits down with Dr. Angela Kerek—a former professional tennis player, global law firm partner, entrepreneur, author, and high-performance coach—to explore what her many reinventions have taught her about winning externally while learning how to win from within.

Angela explains why high performers often depend on achievement and adrenaline to keep moving, what happens when those external measures disappear, and why sustainable fulfillment requires an identity beyond titles, careers, and trophies. Their conversation explores career transitions, high performance, Active Giving, aging and fitness, menopause, creativity versus execution, listening to the body, creating space for growth, and replacing traditional to-do lists with “win lists” that recognize progress and rebuild self-worth.

Connect with Dr. Angela Kerek

Website: https://angelakerek.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelakerek

Connect with Starter Girlz

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

startergirlz.com

Want to be a guest on Starter Girlz?

podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/17044863446695017c1879d7b

For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, and leaders, the drive to achieve can sometimes hide the very patterns holding us back. What looks like strength on the outside may be carrying a hidden cost.

In this episode of the Starter Girlz Podcast, Jennifer Loehding sits down with structural engineer, entrepreneur, and speaker Jasper Calcara to explore what nearly three decades of building businesses, leading teams, and solving structural problems taught him about personal growth, self-worth, resilience, and the pressure to be the one who carries everything.

Jasper shares how his “Superman complex” helped fuel his ambition and professional success while also masking anxiety, perfectionism, control, and struggles with self-worth. He explains how learning to recognize those internal cracks changed the way he approached his personal life—and why the same drive that helps us achieve can eventually cost us if we don't understand what's underneath it.

The conversation explores Jasper’s Be Good, Do Good, Evolve framework, emotional healing, self-awareness, getting unstuck, asking for help, managing anxiety, resilience, and redefining success. Using lessons from structural engineering and bridges, Jasper explains how becoming more flexible and addressing our weak spots can help us withstand the inevitable “earthquakes” of life without collapsing.

CONNECT WITH JASPER CALCARA

Website: jaspercalcara.com

CONNECT WITH STARTER GIRLZ

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they’ve built, what they’ve learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

startergirlz.com

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For founders, entrepreneurs, business owners, and leaders, success isn't only about strategy—it's also about recognizing the blind spots that influence how we think, decide, and respond under pressure.

In this episode of the Starter Girlz Podcast, Jennifer Loehding sits down with cybersecurity expert Robert Siciliano to explore what more than 30 years of studying risk, deception, and human behavior has taught him about why we're easier to manipulate than we think—and how becoming more aware can make us harder targets.

Robert explains the Human Blind Spot, how scammers manufacture urgency to bypass better judgment, and why understanding human behavior is central to becoming a harder target. The conversation also covers social engineering, online scams, identity theft, password security, two-factor authentication, credit freezes, and fraud prevention.

CONNECT WITH ROBERT SICILIANO

Website: https://protectnowllc.com

Book: Identity Security, Identity Protection and Fraud Prevention — available on Amazon by searching Robert Siciliano.

CONNECT WITH STARTER GIRLZ

Starter Girlz features conversations with founders, entrepreneurs, creators, and thought leaders about what they've built, what they've learned, and the ideas that can help others grow in business and life.

startergirlz.com

WANT TO BE A GUEST ON STARTER GIRLZ?

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