The Story of a Brand Show

Living life as an entrepreneur has its challenges. As Grace Eleyae, CEO & Founder of Grace Eleyae likes to quote  (from a popular author): "Fear and faith have something in common, they both require you to believe in something that hasn't happened".  That's why she suggests when fear is overwhelming you, just write down the realities of the future, not the fearful ones.   In Part 2 of this two-part episode listen to Ramon Vela interview Grace Eleyae, CEO & Founder of Grace Elayae, as she shares with us the story of building a brand. Including The wonders of Satin, What a partnership looks like, Product marketing strategies, Grace's Kids line, The Challenges and growing pains of manufacturing, How Grace deals with stress, Advice for people considering Entrepreneurship, and lastly, What Grace would do differently.    Check out other episodes at https://www.commercefocused.com/   For more on Grace Eleyae visit: https://www.graceeleyae.com/

As a little girl, Grace Eleyae didn't see a lot of messages directed at her that said she was beautiful. With parents who came from Kenya and settled in California, this bothered her. Now as the CEO & Founder of GraceEleyae.com, she's made it her company mission to help inspire confidence in all women with the knowledge that they are beautiful.    Before Grace, there were products out in the market that had been used for years to help women with tight curl patterns, which according to many statistics accounts for anywhere from 30-50% of women globally, but fortunately, there was nothing like the "Slap". As she describes, there was nothing that combined the style & fashion of a nice cap & the function of modern hair protection. She goes on to say, "if the beanie and the bonnet had a baby it would be the Slap.     In Part 1 of this two-part episode listen to Ramon Vela interview Grace as she shares with us the story of building a brand. Including everything from why she created the product, how she grew with a $10,000 credit card, how one Influencer made the difference, the challenges to running a business, dealing with competitors, funding ongoing operations, using a laser vs. shotgun approach for marketing and how consumer research is helping her hone in on her ideal consumer.    Check out other episodes at https://www.commercefocused.com/   For more on Grace Eleyae visit: https://www.graceeleyae.com/

In Part 2 of this two-part episode, we continue the story of  Hamish Khayat, CEO & Co-Founder and Brittany Stewart, COO & Co-founder of Burst Oral Care as they share with us their obsession with Oral Care, their community, creating the greatest product for the ages, and living your Burst life!    You'll hear Hamish and Brittany give us the inside story of building a brand. Including marketing to consumers, creating a compelling experience offline for customers, how they're using capital, their growth, what makes a great entrepreneur and why being one is not selfish, the ups and downs of being a co-founder, taking care of yourself physically and emotionally, why Dental professionals will always be the backbone of the company, and their obsession with "Being the One-Stop-Shop for Oral Care".    Check out other episodes at https://www.commercefocused.com/   For more on Burst Oral Care visit: https://www.burstoralcare.com/

If you're a growing brand, there's nothing like having a loyal, fanatical, and growing community. Having a community can help you build brand awareness, help you with product innovation, and help you find out what consumers really want. But building a community isn't easy. There are essential ingredients that can help ensure success.    So when Hamish Khayat, CEO & Co-Founder and Brittany Stewart, COO & Co-founder of Burst Oral Care wanted to revolutionize the Oral care, they wanted to do something different in an industry that lacked innovation and was historically not fun. So they set their sights on building product with the help of their community. The result was what some people have referred to as the "Batmobile of Tooth Brushes" or the "iPhone of toothbrushes" because of it's innovative design. That innovative design, price point, and differentiation in the market was a direct result of growing and utilizing their Brand Ambassadors.    In Part 1 of this two-part episode listen to Hamish and Brittany as they give us the inside story of building a brand. They share how the brand started, their reasons for success, how they employ an old school business philosophy to building their community, and how building this community has been the greatest part of the Burst Oral Care Journey.    Check out other episodes at https://www.commercefocused.com/   For more on Burst Oral Care visit: https://www.burstoralcare.com/

In this episode, Ashley Merrill, CEO & Founder of Lunya, gives us an intimate look inside her brand as well as a take on employees, entrepreneurship, life, children & family, and treating the customer like a real person and not a target market. Here's what you'll hear:   Getting the message out digitally, Looking at consumers as real people, Why we can relate to "her", She's like our sister, girlfriend, Striking the resonance chord with your customer, Innovation is really optimization, Understand your customer intimately, you can create products they really want, Don't want to leave men out of the conversation, Making women's lives better through product, experience, & an example, It can be helpful to be cash restrained, Advice for Young Entrepreneurs, Make sure it's more than passion, it's got to be a business, Success is building the life you want, and more...   Listen to Part 2 of this 2 Part episode and hear Ashley Merrill share the inside story of the building a brand.    Check out other episodes at https://www.commercefocused.com/   For more on Lunya visit https://www.lunya.co/

For Ashley Merrill, CEO & Founder of Lunya, the intention was never to start another fashion company. But there was a business idea that kept gnawing at her.  She didn't know anything about how to make clothes or production but she had a big vision. She wanted to create sleepwear that both looked great but was functional. She wanted to reach consumers who really cared about Wellness because as she saw it, Wellness is like the food pyramid with sleep as the foundation.    In this episode, you'll hear how fear almost stopped her from starting the business, how she didn't start with a business plan, how she used to surveys and feedback to design her collections, how she dealt with productions problems, why creating a great culture is so difficult to find and maintain, how she deals with stress and being present, what entrepreneurship means to her, and how she deals with growing Lunya and having a family.    Listen to Part 1 of this 2 Part episode and hear Ashley Merrill share the inside story of the building a brand.    Check out other episodes at https://www.commercefocused.com/   For more on Lunya visit https://www.lunya.co/

In Part 2 of our interview with Omar Sayyed, CEO of Ties.com, we continue our conversation on entrepreneurship and growing Ties.com. In this episode, we discuss Why team building is so important, why doing business face-to-face really matters, why scaling is one of the biggest challenges he's faced, why it helps to have a network outside the business to share with, Why he's chosen to build his own back-end software vs. going with Shopify, and Why it helps to have customers who evangelize your brand and so much more.    Listen to Part 2 of this 2 Part episode and hear Omar Sayyed, share the inside story of the building a brand.    Check out other episodes at  www.commercefocused.com   For more on Omar Sayyed and Ties.com visit: www.ties.com

According to Omar Sayyed, CEO of Ties.com, there are 3 Pillars of Entrepreneurship: 1) be good at marketing, 2) have a differentiation, and 3) hire the right people and maybe one more, 4) love to build things.   In today's episode, Omar, a one-time college dropout turned successful entrepreneur, gives us a mini MBA education on entrepreneurship covering areas such as customer segmentation, lesson's on doing an exit,  why most entrepreneurs make terrible CEO's, why entrepreneurship is a narcissistic endeavor, the truth about working long hours, why most entrepreneurs don't do it for the money, the cost of taking on debt and taking orders from your new overlord, why everyone wants to be the next Gary Vaynerchuk, and why if you plan on getting married, it helps to be married to another entrepreneur. We cover so many more topics that we can list them all.    Listen to Part 1 of this 2 Part episode and hear Omar Sayyed, share the inside story of the building a brand.    Check out other episodes at  www.commercefocused.com   For more on Omar Sayyed and Ties.com visit: www.ties.com

In this episode, June Pai, General Manager of Asia PAC for Manduka, one of the most well known, and some would say, the brand that started it all for Yoga and apparel products, breaks down Manduka's international e-commerce strategy and the Asia Pacific markets.    Listen to June as she discusses global e-commerce strategy and marketplaces, how Asia distributors help spread Manduka's message, the difference in demographics in Asia for Yoga practitioners and the difference of styles. In addition, she discusses wellness trends in Asia, the future of Manduka, Yoga apparel for non-Yogis, and career advice for those just entering the job market and interested in the Wellness Industry.    In Part 2 of this 2 part episode listen to June Pai give us inside story of the building of a brand   Check out other episodes at  www.commercefocused.com/category/the-story-behind-the-brand/   For more on Manduka visit: www.manduka.com

It all started with the belief that products could improve your yoga practice and that yoga, in turn, will help you become the best version of yourself. For June Pai, General Manager of Asia PAC for Manduka, yoga and that mission is what led her to work at Manduka some 10 years ago. According to June, yoga is not about being the most Zen person in the class, it's really an opportunity to make time for yourself: body, mind, and heart.    In Part 1 of this 2-part episode listen to June Pai give us inside story of the building of a brand including Manduka's products, it's philosophy, it's outreach to different markets, it's business model, and the global expansion for one of the most recognizable names in yoga.     Check out other episodes at  www.commercefocused.com/category/the-story-behind-the-brand/   For more on Manduka visit: www.manduka.com