The Debbie Nigro Show

It's A Pretty Big Deal When Walmart Says "Yes, We'll Carry your New Product".

Entrepreneurs Abby Wallach & Caroline Fabrigas couldn't be more excited. Their idea to risk disrupting the fragrance category worked! Walmart is putting their new perfume brand 'Sparti Scents' into almost 1800 Walmart stores nationwide.

As part of Walmart’s fragrance innovation strategy, Sparti is filling the beauty aisles with it’s new mini-stick powered by Scentinvent Technologies, LLC.  It's portable, clean, playful, accessibly priced, alcohol free and fun to show off.  The brand is powering up social media feeds with joyful content built around community.

The 'Sparti' Founders say they're really excited that after 8 years from inception, their GIRL ON THE GO campaign is going  live with The NEW Cool Way to Wear Fragrance and words of empowerment. 

Girls nationwide are sharing how Sparti fragrances make them not only smell great but give them a boost of confidence throughout the day.

Abby Wallach & Caroline Fabrigas, beauty industry veterans, joined me to share the news of their big launch and also share the back story of just what it takes to bring a new perfume concept to life.

They also share how the 'Sparti' brand got its name. Let's just say somebodys' son is really smart. Wink.  If you like entrepreneur stories you'll enjoy this fun and informative interview. 

In front of the NYSE in NYC is a 4 foot high bronze  'Fearless Girl' Statue that has become a major tourist attraction. The statue symbolizes female empowerment, and the higher representation of women on corporate boards.

NYC decided her time was up. I has no idea why the heck they thought thought she should go, until I caught the story in a post on LInkedIn by Michelle Tran on the day there was to be a public hearing in NYC about all of this.

Michelle, a Top 100 Women in Fintech Founder and Leader, was passionate the 'Fearless Girl' statue should not be moved.

"The 'Fearless Girl' is a symbolic reminder that women deserve a seat at the table. I teared up in December when I walked up to her, thinking I'm just about to walk into NYSE to celebrate how far NYC Fintech Women have come. She is me. She is us."

Michelle continued, "She represents every single woman in NYC, and in particular, women in financial services and tech who have fought for her place at the table. Her current location in front of NYSE is symbolic, inspiring, and important, especially because of how hard women have had to fight for careers."

When I read in Michelles' post that NYC Fintech Women had written a letter of support to the Design Commission at NYC City Hall and that Michelle was asking others to write letters or attend the public hearing that morning, I threw my hat in the ring. I wrote her on LinkedIn and threw out a last minute invite for her to join my show to get the word out. She caught my message minutes before my show went live so we just went with it. 

The collective efforts must have worked  beacuse 'Fearless Girl' gets to stay! (For awhile anyway). 

An article in the NY POST after the hearing reported the decision.  “We today, the Public Design Commission, cannot make this a permanent piece of art,” commission president Signe Nielsen said. “We can urge that steps be taken to enable this work to be considered for the public collection.”

She gets to stay in front of the NYSE for 11 more months. Other smart people in NYC are already scrambling to claim her and take ownership. Whoever or wherever that is will surely win with women everywhere. Hmmmm where might that be?

For the recordd, the  'Fearless Girl' statue was put at the NYSE  'temporarily' back in 2017. It was commissioned by State Street Global Advisors, an asset management firm out of Boston. There's been a load  of controversy involving this statue since then, and seems even the amazing artist Kristen Visbal, is somehow in some kind of litigation with that company.

This conversation with Michelle Tran took place on the morning of the hearing. She's great. Enjoy! 

 Go #FearlessGirls Everywhere! 

Womens Gyms Are Trending! Not a new idea but one that’s noticeably picking up speed in 2022. I'm pickin' up speed too ever since I joined one and out of nowhere I'm dancing like JLo in a halftime show, at 8am in the morning. 

I joined a womens' gym called HealthyFit  after all the pandemic isolation made me soft and agitated. I'm so happy with the experience of exercising at an all women's gym, I'm telling other women about it.

During the pandemic I tried to walk whenever I could, weather permitting. Being in NY I often settled for power walking in Stop & Shop. Seriously, I would GO to Stop & Shop or Costco just to MOVE. (Need to know which aisle for gluten free crispy onions? Just call me.) 

While out and about one day I ran into a gal who I used to take a great morning weight class with years ago. She was gushing about a women’s gym she joined called HealthyFit in Mamaroneck, NY. Our random run in was right after ‘pandemic laws’ allowed gyms to open again, and I was so fed up with walking supermarket aisles, I went to just ‘see’.

All I could muster up initially was walking on the treadmill with a mask on. A little uncomfortable with the mask but I  felt comfortable at the place. It was just what I needed. No drama. No hoopla. Easy parking. Very clean. Covid protocols in place. Nice dressing room. Nice gals. Zero pressure to do anything I didn’t want to do. I went there ‘ugly’ without one thought about it. That’s comfortable.

I joined. I started walking more intensely, added in lifting a few light weights, and started feeling more and more like my lively old self. Up to this point I hadn’t even spoken to another woman there. (I know hard to believe me not talking right?) I was just doing my thing whatever that is these days.

Soon I decided to try a few group classes. Yoga. Loved it. Weight class. Loved it. Zumba. OMG LOVE it!  (If you ran into the women in this class in the supermarket you’d never ever suspect how sexy they can dance. Ha! )

Women of all ages and sizes are very comfortable in this setting. I think more women should consider women’s gyms right now.

I invited HealthyFitNY Fitness Director Jamie Levine to join me today to talk about the trend of women’s gyms. (Jamie’s an aerobic teacher, turned school teacher, turned mom, turned lawyer, turned back into Fitness Expert)

Jamie says, people are kind of shy to get started exercising again and they remember the big gyms with the big scenes and don’t want people watching them. A women's gym is a safe comfortable space with no judgement. The comfort level and community encourages women to do more and push themsleves more. It boosts everybodys energy. The moms, aunts, grandmas, and even the High School girls who come.

Jamie Levine and I have a warm chat talking about the rise of Womens' Gyms in this podcast. 

Lavender has had a rebirth says Cynthia Sutphin founder of the famous Cape Cod Lavender Farm in Harwich, Massachusetts.

Besides being beautiful to look at, Lavender has amazing wellness benefits, one of which is calming people down. Yes, Lavender is a natural remedy for anxiety, insomnia, headaches, bug bites, and burns. Bug Bites? Who knew? If you get a bug bite of any kind, Cynthia says just rub a little lavender oil on it or the ZEN Lavender Oil Hemp roll on product  Cynthia just launched in a collaboration with Primabee CBD - and youre good to go!

Cynthia Sutphin founded the famous Cape Cod Lavender Farm 27 years ago so that she could stay at home and work while she raised her kids.

She was initially discouraged because Lavender is a Mediterranean plant and and the soil where she's located in MA was acidic. But she figured out how to fix that by adding some lime to the soil and that combined with the  mild winters and good soil drainage (the other components of a successful lavender plant) she made the farm a success. 

Cynthia started with 400 plants and as they bloomed and were harvested, she would drive back and forth to the fresh flower market in Boston. Well that was exhausting, so she decided to open her farm to the public instead, and let people come there to buy it.

Now 27 years later Cynthia has thousands of Lavender plants she sells fresh to some 10,000 visitors a year. People go there to buy her lavender bunches hanging from ceiling. Each day what she doesn't sell, she distills to create lavendar oil and lavender water and makes all kinds of cool lavender gifts like candles and lavender infused edible treats. 

Located at the heart of 11 secluded acres, The Cape Cod Lavender Farm  property is surrounded by 75 acres of conservation land with woodland walking trails. The farm is free to visit and open March-December. 

The lavender harvest occurs in a 3 week window between late June to mid-July (peak bloom). But people still go right up to Columbus Day. 

Cynthia just collaborated with Primabee CBD and owner Paul Borde to create an amazing new little Zen Lavender Oil / Hemp roll on product that seems to be calming everybody down!  Their coming together was serendipity as Cynthia says. The two had an immediate connection and the product combination of the hemp and the Lavender was 'a natural' to her. 

Timing is good for this little ZEN roll on you can keep in your pocket, purse or next to your bed to help relax you into sleep because people are coming out of an intense experience from Covid and everythings changing. Anxiety and fear are high and the search is on for more self care. Hey even Pantones Clor of the Year is based on the color Lavender but thye made up a color name. It's Very Peri! Pantone says 'Very Peri' places the future ahead in a new light.

One  upside of the Covid experience is that people are now stopping to think about and enjoy things they might not have otherwise known about. Different things in nature. For exmaple, natural remedies.

The Cleveland Clinic: LAVENDER

Supports sleep; Reduces pain and inflammation; Helps with mood, anxiety and depression: “Lavender is known for its ability to calm the nervous system. Relieves menstrual pain; Kills harmful viruses and bacteria,  Reduces colic symptoms. 

Lovely conversation here with Cynthia Sutphin Owner of The Cap Cod Lavender Farm if you have a few minutes to listen to the podcast. 

Robotic Pets Are Doing Wonders For Dementia Patients, Veterans, Pediatric Patients and Now Even the Children of Ukraine Who've Had to Leave Their Pets Behind.

Capital Caring Health, one of the nation’s oldest non-profit advanced illness care and hospice providers, has begun to incorporate Robotic Companion Pets into their care plans in a partnership with Ageless Innovation and their  'JOY FOR ALL' robotic pets. This company was Co-Founded by former Hasbro Executive Ted Fischer who is now the CEO.

These pets have proven in numerous clinic studies to provide joy, comfort, and interactive companionship to patients and peace of mind to their families and caregivers.

In the cases of devastating dementia, among the benefits are reduction in agitation, prevention of depression, and often a reduction in medications being administered.”

Steve Cone, Chief of Philanthropy at Capital Caring says, “The robotic pets are quite remarkable and interactively react to human touch, movement, and voice—like real pets. As we like to say no need to feed or walk or clean up after them—just enjoy their LOVE.”

Capital Caring aims to make these robotic pets available free of charge to anyone around the country.

Capital Caring Health (CCH) efforts to provide Ukrainian Children who fled their homes and left their real pets behind with a companion robotic dog or cat, has the blessing of the Polish Government, and the robotic pets will be flown to Poland for distribution to refugee children.

You can support this effort by donating directly on CCH’s website capitalcaring.org and by clicking the green donate button in the top right of their homepage, and selecting the ‘Patient Pet Services and Robotic Companion Pets’ program option. Then indicate donation is in honor of the children of the Ukraine.

Both Steve Cone Chief Of Philanthropy at Capital Caring Health and Ted Fischer Co_Founder and CEO of Ageless Innovation join me to talk about this remarkable partnership.

Adventures await You In New Brunswick 

American travelers in search of outdoor adventures should take a look at a thrilling getaway in New Brunswick, Canada. There are some very cool things going on there and some very cool places to stay. Add in a fabulous collection of road trip routes and the current exchange rate, and New Brunswick Canada is an affordable option for Americans to travel internationally. 

If you like sea kayaking, hiking, cycling, camping, glamping, fishing, hunting and tours to get up close with nature by watching whales, seals, puffins and hundreds of species of birds - this might be for you. 

Neil Hodge, Travel Media Representative for Tourism New Brunswick got in touch to chat about it all.

BTW: New Brunswick has an eclectic history, from the music, food, festivals and joie de vivre of French culture to Indigenous tourism experiences. French and Indigenous cultures are strong in this province and visitors can experience both.

Candace Mayeron was kind of like a Den Mother to the Chippendales, even though she wasn’t much older than them at the time. Here she is below in the middle of a gaggle of them.

And here I am below, a young Debbie Nigro with dark hair, posing with a handful of ‘Chips’ in comparison.

We both have a Chippendales story. Mine is light and funny and happened in one night long ago. Candace Mayerons’ story is way more interesting, way longer and sadly way more tragic. It involves the murder of her close friend and boss, Chippendales Producer & Choreographer Nick de Noia,  sitting with Candace celebrating in probably the last photo of him alive.

Candace Mayeron was the Associate Producer of the Chippendales show and basically the Den Mother to the Chippendale men up until 1987. I would never have known this information or anything at all about Candace had I not been sparked by reading that A&E was launching a limited series called "Secrets of The Chippendales Murders."

I thought I’d heard something about that crazy story before, so I googled and sure enough "Curse Of The Chippendales" came up as Discovery+ docuseries.  

a stunt in LA in the 1980s. The show then became involved in a slew of scandals, including the 1987 assassination of Chippendales choreographer Nick de Noia and two other planned hits on a dancer and producer, all orchestrated by Chippendales Founder Steve Banerjee.

Then I came across an article  in which Candace told her Chippendales story originally to Elle Magazine then through Hollywood411 called, "Sex, Money, and Murder. My Life as The Chippendales Den Mother".

I have to admit when Candace’s photo came up and I saw she outnumbered me in ‘chips’ I was impressed enough to track her down and invite her on my show to talk ‘girlfriend to girlfriend’ about her experience which you'll hear here in tis podcast clip.

For a lot of women who would never dare have that kind of scandalous fun before, Chippendales provided a revolutionary form of entertainment that Candace will surely tell you, was more about the women who attended the shows than the men who performed.

The  brief version of my Chippendales story?  I was live on the air as a radio DJ, and had just mentioned Chippendales was opening in NYC, and as a joke I said anybody want to come with me? The phones started ringing off the hook! A few promotional ‘bus loads’ of women later we arrived -and all of them bought me drinks of appreciation for my good thinking. This photo of me above with The Chippendales was taken before I LOST 35 women who I was responsible for bringing home with me. Completely psycho story for another time.

Do You Snore? Are You Sleeping With A Snorer? According to the research peeps  OnePoll, 51% of Americans snore. 

A new little product may just mute the snoring! It's called MUTE! (Sounds like a realtionship saver!) 

Michael J. Breus, Ph.D.  “The Sleep Doctor”  joined me to talk snoring. He’s the Clinical Psychologist for Diplomate of the American Board of Sleep Medicine, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. He explained, many people breathe through their mouth, which causes a vibration in the back of the throat that can result in snoring.

Mute, he said, is an FDA-approved nasal dilator that sits inside the nose to increase airflow, improve nose breathing, and reduce snoring. (Looks do-able not that I snore or anything.)

Funn thing about snoring you got to admit it's kinda funny , but in truth it's no joke. 39% of Americans who snore or live with someone who snores say their sleep is disrupted between one and three times each week. And it’s leaving them so tired that 34% are oversleeping, and 24% have fallen asleep at work.

Severe snoring, where the snorer stops breathing between inhalations, may be a sign of sleep apnea and should be checked by a sleep specialist. I our podcast chat Dr. Breus explains what happens to your heart if you ignore severe snoring. Let's just say it ain't pretty.

So What About This New Little Thing Mute? 

• In product trials, 78% of Mute users could breathe better and 75% snored less.
• 59% of snorers are ages 45-54, 56% are ages 35-44 and 54% are ages 55-64.
• 51% of U.S. adults who snore are men and 57% of men admitted to being a snorer.
• More than any other region, 53% of residents in New York, Washington, Connecticut and the surrounding states keep their partners or housemates awake from snoring.

(I'll report back once I do a trial run, not that I snore or anything)

Michael J. Breus is a double board-certified Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Sleep Specialist. He is one of only 168 psychologists in the world to have taken and passed the Sleep Medicine Boards without going to Medical School. He's the author of four books with the newest book (2021) Energize! Go from dragging Ass to kicking it in 30 days, adds the concepts of Movement (not exercise), and Intermittent-Fasting to his already famous Sleep Chronotypes. And it was recently named one of the top books of 2021 by The Today Show. In his 3rd book (2017) 'The Power of When' which is a ground breaking bio-hacking book proving that there is a perfect time to do everything, based on your biological chronotype (early bird or night owl). Dr. Breus gives the reader the exact time to have sex, run, a mile, eat a cheeseburger, buy, sell, ask your boss for a raise and much more based on over 200 research studies.  He is an expert resource for most major publications doing more than 400 interviews per year (Oprah, Dr. Oz, The Doctors, NY Times, Wall Street Journal etc.-list available). Dr. Breus has been in private practice for 23 years and recently relocated to and was named the Top Sleep Doctor of Los Angles, By Readers Digest.

I love Dive Bars. Go figure I met ‘my guy’ in a dive bar. There are great dive bars in every state but I bought my local lohud newspaper last Sunday just to read reporter Jeanne Muchnick’s story about the local dive joints. She found a great bunch of 'under the radar' dive bars to showcase in the Westchester and Rockland N.Y. areas but there are great  local dives bars all over the country. Many were challenged during the pandemic, but many prevailed and now serve up just the right nostalgic vibe people are craving. A fun read is the Best 33 Dive Bars in America from Thrillist.com. TimeOut.com just published the 18 Best Dive Bars in NYC.  

I've become an online information junkie, but feeling nostalgic I bought an actual ‘physical’ newspaper when the dive bar story caught my eye.  I thought it might be fun to keep handy and figure out how my boyfriend Dave and I could have some fun trying to hit all those dive bars at some point.

Why are dive bars called dive bars? According to Wikipedia, the term ‘dive’ was first used in the press in the U.S. in the 1880’s to describe disreputable places that were often in basements into which one ’dives below’. Once considered a derogatory term, dive bar is now a coveted badge of honor bestowed by aficionados looking for authenticity in such establishments. “

Jeanne Muchnick, the fun and fabulous food and dining reporter for lohud.com/The Journal says, these days we’re all craving ’nostalgia’, so these neighborhood stalwarts have become more popular than ever.

Jeanne describes the modern day dive bar as, “Humble decor (most often highlighted by a dart board and/or pool table or both) cheap beers, a long history and dedicated regulars.”

Dive bars are places where all kinds of people from all walks of life drop by to feel ‘community’. And everyone has a favorite.

Jeanne featured fan favorite dive bars in the NY area. 24 are listed in her article from the Sunday Life Section of The Journal News called "UNDER-THE-RADAR 24 dive bars beloved By Rockland Westchester fans."

A few NY area highlghts are mentioned below but read her article for the entire list and pick a few to stop by and hey maybe I'll see you there. And please enjoy our fun dive bar conversation. 

Peppermill South, Congers

Plan B Suffern

Sportsview Stony Point

The Pearl River Hotel Pearl River

AJ’s Bar & Grill Yorktown

Cellar Bar Larchmont

Duck Inn Bar & Grill Mamaroneck

Foleys Club Lounge Plesantville

Set Back Inn Tarrytown

Been Thinking About Writing A Book 'Someday'? Well This Might Actually Be The Day!

Many ‘would be’ authors procrastinate because they have no clue how to get a book published. I hear the topic of 'writing a book' come up often. Things I always hear people say?  "I should really write a book”.  "I've been meaning to write a book”. "I've been working on a book for years that I really need to finish”. "I need to find someone to help me write my book.” “I’ve written a book but I have no idea how to get it published”. “My book is done but I have no idea how to market it.”

I thought maybe Cheryl Benton could help some of you. I've been a fan and supporter of Cheryl for years. A former English teacher, PR guru, and ad agency whiz, Cheryl has  always been a prolific writer and avid reader. She combined all her skills when she founded 'The Three Tomatoes' lifestyle guide for 'women who aren't kids'.

 A couple of years ago Cheryl decided to write her first book. She managed her way through the entire self publishing book process herself with her first novel, "Can You See Us Now"? The book was a hit! Six months after that, she created another book with her daughter Roni Jenkins, called 'Martini Wisdom'. Another hit!  That one quickly became #1 on Amazon’s hot new releases. Both books were published under 'The Three Tomatoes Publishing' imprint.

Cheryl got so many requests for information about how they did it, she decided to expand their book platform to provide services to help other authors realize their dreams. And now ‘Three Tomatoes Publishing' is doing just that. They’re on a roll and picking up speed and bringing all kinds of books to life. Maybe yours is next?

For the record there are various publishing models. The traditional publishing model usually requires an agent, can take up to two years, and offers fairly low royalties. There are hybrid publishing models where you pay and then share in royalties. There’s the self-published model, where you do everything, including all your marketing. (Cheryl points out that marketing is the most critical factor after a good book and one that is often left to the author, even with traditional publishers). 

In our conversation here Cheryl sparks all the ‘would be’ authors out there to come on and get it done!  'Three Tomatoes Publishing' she says can help you get your book published, your audiobook produced, create a book marketing program and if need be even help write the darn book for you. There's also the option for authors  to choose to cherry pick some of their services. Three Tomatoes Publishing is particularly interested in books by women for women over forty that can be marketed via The Three Tomatoes media platform to their audience of women over 40. But they do accept male authors as well.

 BTW: The Three Tomatoes started as a just for the fun of it newsletter which Cheryl originally sent to 60 friends. They now have several newsletters a week, a major website, a weekly podcast and events. With 15,000 subscribers and over 40,000 visitors each month to the web site, theirs is an excellent vehicle for promoting books.