From Concept to Market with Covey Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer Emily DiDonato

Do you dream of being an entrepreneur? Starting your own business or brand starts with finding your niche, researching your market, and believing that your service or your product can do better.

Today's guest shares the behind-the-scenes of how she turned her idea into a successful beauty brand. I am thrilled to introduce you to today's guest Emily DiDonato. Her community of 2.2M Instagram followers may know her first as a model, but in today's conversation, and as she takes her next steps in her newest venture, she is the Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Covey. Say so long to your 12-step skincare routine (guilty!) and hello to a simple and stress free regimen with three go-to products you can use both day and night.

In today's conversation, Emily shares with us what led her to launch Covey Skin, the value proposition of the brand that keeps customers coming back, her advice on how to change your career and try something new, and much more!

SHOW NOTES:

As a model Emily has always found taking care of her skin was an important priority. She realized there is a lot of varying information on the internet when it came to “how”. Through her own research, Emily discovered what products you actually need in a routine and in what order you really need to use them (0:55.)

Emily found her solution by creating her own 3-step effective routine, Covey Skin (2:19.) 

She found the key to success was finding high-quality ingredients that were compatible with each other and with all skin types (2:53.)

The brand name “Covey” means “a small flock of birds”. Emily chose this as her brand name because she sees her community and products as a “covey” (3:50.)

“Birds fly in flocks to protect and support each other and that is what Covey represents - your skin’s most trusted covey in itself.”

— Emily DiDonato

Creating a product and starting a business has been an exciting venture for Emily! She finds there are many hats she has to wear and even with all the excitement she occasionally will find herself dealing with imposter syndrome (6:17.)

Emily finds through her years modeling that she has developed the ability to take direction and do as she was told; but now as an entrepreneur, it is her job to direct and lead others (7:38.)

“Social listening” differentiates Covey from other brands by actively listening to the internet's questions across platforms. By doing so, Emily and her team were able to develop a product that met the public's needs (8:45.)

“Remember that no one really knows what they are doing at the beginning of a new venture or career. Even experts are figuring it out!”

— Emily DiDonato

When things become overwhelming Emily likes to keep in mind, “this too shall pass” (12:45.)

Emily’s big skin secret is finding a bedtime routine by going to bed and waking up at the same time every night. By doing so, Emily has found that puffiness and bags under the eyes will disappear (13:45.)

Interested in learning more and continuing to follow Emily’s journey? Follow her here! Want to follow Covey Skin? Follow here and use code “BRAVA” for 10% off the Covey Routine!

---

Thank you readers, to tuning into the Brava Podcast. If you like the show please leave a review on iTunes! 

What from our conversation inspired you today? What do you hope to hear next? Tweet or message us on Instagram @BravaPodcast to tell us what you want to hear, even if it’s your own story! 

Innovation and Clean Beauty with CEO and Co-Founder of Wander Beauty Divya Gugnani

Raise your hand if you have ever done your beauty routine on-the-go. Wait a minute, so I’m not the only one that has sat in a parking lot applying make-up? Ok, then I’ll admit it, that mysterious stain on the roof of my car? Mascara. How you ask? An over-packed schedule and a last minute dash for a touch-up gone wrong.

Meet Divya Gugnani, a serial entrepreneur who has taken the beauty industry by storm. She is the CEO and Co-Founder of Wander Beauty, a brand built for the modern woman that offers a line of multi-tasking beauty essentials so that you can take your routine on the go, mess-free, and stress-free.

Read on and tune in below to hear more from Divya as we discuss the power of clean beauty, how to differentiate your brand, her tips to growing a successful business by following your instincts, her beauty favorites, and much more.

SHOW NOTES:

Divya was inspired to launch Wander Beauty while on the NYC subway. She was applying make-up and realized many others were doing the same. She realized she was continuously finding herself doing her beauty routine on-the-go all the time (1:20.)

The need of an innovative solution emerged from a multitude of experiences and situations: from wanting a clean and safe beauty alternative to a product that fits a multitasker’s daily lifestyle (2:30.)

Wander Beauty focuses on real women in the context of their real lives (4:14.)

The driving force behind Wander Beauty’s fast five year success? Outworking the competitors. Divya speaks to the passion and intelligence of her team that has helped drive the incredible outcome and success of her brand (5:00.)

Wander Beauty is created by products that skin loves. (It’s free of parabens, phthalates, synthetic fragrance, and mineral oil. Wander Beauty is also gluten free and cruelty free.) The “clean” beauty movement is very important and a current topic of conversation in today’s industry. What makes Wander Beauty stand out is that their mission was developed from a personal story, not a trend (7:15.)

“The average woman is ingesting 5lbs of damaging chemicals from her beauty products every single year. ”

— Divya Gugnani, CEO and Co-Founder of Wander Beauty

Divya’s go-to tips when shopping for clean beauty products? She steers clear from parabens, phthalates, and sulfates (10:00.)

Her must-have products that she uses daily include 1) Mist Connection Essence and Toner, 2) Baggage Claim Gold Eye Masks, 3) Dualist Matte and Illuminating Concealer, and 4) Mile High Club Volume and Length Mascara (12:12.)

Let’s talk morning ritual: to balance her days with her busy schedule, Divya meditates for a few moments each morning, drinks ginger water, has breakfast with her kids, empties her inbox, streams a 15-minute workout, then starts her day. This allows her to focus on what she calls “deep work” when she gets to the office where she focuses on key projects that uses her full brain power (14:00.)

One of the things that Divya has learned through the years is to trust your gut (17:05.)

“It’s great to take feedback. As an entrepreneur you should listen to everyone: your team, your retail partners, your customers, and read every comment on social; but, you need to react only to things that make sense to you when you see the wholistic picture.”

— Divya Gugnani, CEO and Co-Founder of Wander Beauty

Looking to enter the beauty space as an entrepreneur? Find an opportunity in a white space and innovate. Divya advises to “innovate, don’t imitate” (22:25.)

Follow Divya and Wander Beauty on Instagram to stay connected and continue following along!

---

Thank you readers for tuning into the Brava Podcast. If you like the show please leave a review on iTunes! 

What from our conversation inspired you today? What do you hope to hear next? Tweet or message us on Instagram @BravaPodcast to tell us what you want to hear, even if it’s your own story! 

Differentiating Your Product with CEO and Beauty Guru Lauren Napier

Today on Brava we’re uncovering the success of the entrepreneur and expert behind Lauren Napier Beauty with the founder herself. In today’s episode, Lauren highlights key takeaways of how you can differentiate your brand, gives details about how she launched her beauty line and products, and talks about how she pays it forward along the way. Tune in below or on iTunes to hear more about how this make-up artist turned CEO is changing and challenging the beauty space.

SHOW NOTES:

Lauren loved her career as a make-up artist but one of the things that propelled her to start her own brand was learning from her surroundings and wanting to create her own working environment (2:20.)

She believes that you have to have resilience as a leader (3:30.)

There is a transformation that people take when they put on make-up but also a transformation when they take it off. Lauren saw first-hand how her clients were hesitant to take off the “veil” of sorts they put on which upset her because they were beautiful just the way they were with or without make-up (4:20.)

The quality of Lauren’s beauty products is key to differentiating her product (7:50.)

“The beauty industry is really focused…on playing up and preying on our insecurities. The philosophy of itself [Lauren Napier Beauty] is that there is beauty in taking it off.”

— Lauren Napier

My goal is to make people feel good about their authentic self (10:30.)

Shoutout to Squarespace (not sponsored) for being an amazing partner for entrepreneurs (and podcasters alike!) That was Lauren’s first step in finding a space for her idea to flourish (12:15.)

Lauren thinks it is key to be “everywhere” - different search engines, website support, social media and more! (15:00.)

How did Lauren start her beauty brand? She was traveling and was using a face wipe that was completely dried out that just would not do! Her first step? Putting her idea into action (18:00.)

“Ask question, research, fact find, you will find the answers! ”

— Lauren Napier

She cutout all of the extras and the frills for a year to help save her money and utilize it to launch her company (21:00.)

“Be patient with yourself. It’s very important to know you don’t have all of the answers.”

— Lauren Napier

There is powering in sharing! Some people want to hoard information but Lauren believes what you give is what you get and shares her manufacturing lists, her contact lists, etc. with your colleagues. You can be generous without wanting something back (23:00.)

Lauren believes it’s important to be able to stand proudly behind her product and that is why she manufactures her product with solar energy and has created completely recyclable packaging (26:15.)

She’ll be celebrating five years for her business in May! Check out LaurenNapier.com now to support her next steps! #YouGoGirl

---

Thank you readers, to tuning into the Brava Podcast. If you like the show please leave a review on iTunes! 

What from our conversation inspired you today? What do you hope to hear next? Tweet or message us on Instagram @BravaPodcast to tell us what you want to hear, even if it’s your own story! 

Listen to The Brava Podcast!

Listen to the Brava Podcast on your favorite platform below!

I would love to hear what you think of the show! ✨
Click below, subscribe, and leave The Brava Podcast a review.

Thanks for joining the conversation!
#YouGoGirl

---

The Brava Podcast hosted by Stephanie Campbell has quickly rose to be one of Pittsburgh Top Podcasts and Top Women Business Podcasts to listen to. For more information, check out the Brava Podcast "About” page or reach out to Stephanie at stephanie@thebravapodcast.com.

Welcome to the Brava Podcast!

Hi my name is Stephanie and I want to welcome you to the Brava Podcast. I’m so thrilled to have you here! I can’t wait for you to hear from the amazing women highlighted in each episode.  

The Brava Podcast serves as a catalyst of discovery and inspiration for you, the leading lady, so you can advance your own passions, generate sustainable change, and hopefully make a difference in your community no matter how big or small.

So, let’s break it down. We all know the word Bravo…but Brava, what’s up with that? When I visited my family in Greece they exclaimed “Brava” Instead of Bravo and it resonated with me. It’s the feminine version of Bravo. The direct translation is “to applaud women.” And that is exactly what this Podcast is set out to do.

Each episode will feature at least one inspiring woman who is making a difference in her field and has a story to share. We’ll cover everything from careers and philosophies to wellness and finance.

That is the foundation of the Brava Podcast. It is to celebrate women and our accomplishments, normalize the success of women, and advance women through a community of our contemporaries.

I know I mentioned the amazing women we’re going to hear from on this podcast but they aren’t the only people I want to hear from, I want to hear what YOU want.

Tweet me, send me a message on Instagram @BravaPodcast with who or what you want to hear. Even if it’s your own story!

Listen and download The Brava Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn, Sticher and more!

Talk soon and so happy to have you join the conversation. You go girl!