Skimm'd From The Couch

Nancy Brinker started the Susan G Komen Foundation in 1982 after her sister was diagnosed with breast cancer. Back then, she had just $200 and a list of potential donors. Now, it’s one of the largest cancer charities in the world. In the 40 years since the organization got started, Nancy and the foundation have raised $3 billion to help fund cancer research. On the couch, she talks to us about starting the Susan G Komen Foundation, motivating a team, and taking breast cancer from a taboo subject… to a national cause.

Christina Tosi started baking at home with her family. And after going to college for applied mathematics, she decided to get back to those baking roots. She went to culinary school and worked in a few different restaurants around NYC. Eventually, Christina landed at Momofuku – where she started the franchise’s first bakery, Milk Bar. She serves as its founder and CEO. Today, the bakery has expanded all across North America, and it’s earned Christina a spot on the show “MasterChef.” On the couch, she talks to us about finding mentors, thriving under pressure, and baking as stress relief.

Susan Lyne’s career isn’t easy to Skimm. She grew up in Boston, and after going to college for a while, decided to skip school and get straight into her career. Susan was a journalist. Then she switched into entertainment, and even started her own magazine. Since then, she’s been an exec at major companies like Gilt, AOL, Martha Stewart, and ABC. Meaning, yes, you can thank her for “Grey’s Anatomy.” In 2014, Susan made another change: she started her own venture capital firm to invest in companies with female founders. It’s called BBG – Built By Girls. On the couch, she talks to us about networking (cough, stalking) your way to the career you want, prioritizing your time, and why introverts make great leaders.

Kat Cole started her career as a waitress at Hooters. At first, she was just helping out her family. But in her second year of college, she decided to turn that side hustle...into her main hustle. So she went to work at Hooters corporate instead of graduating. And at 20 years old, she was helping the company open franchises all over the world. A couple years later, Kat became a VP at the company. Eventually, she got a business degree and took over at Cinnabon, where she helped grow the biz to a billion-dollar brand. Now she’s the President and COO of FOCUS brands, aka the parent co of companies like Cinnabon and Auntie Anne’s Pretzels. On the couch, she talks to us about addressing negative feedback, choosing to go to business school without a BA, and “the brutal leadership mirror”. We’ll let her explain.

Margaret Brennan is the moderator of “Face the Nation” and a senior correspondent for CBS. But she didn’t always plan to be a journalist. At first, Margaret thought she wanted to be a diplomat, so she studied foreign affairs, the Mideast -- she even learned Arabic. But then she interned at CNN in college. And decided journalism was the path for her. Since then, she’s covered business news for CNBC and Bloomberg TV. At CBS, she’s covered everything from nuclear negotiations to US tensions with North Korea. On the couch, we flip the script and ask Margaret the questions. She talks to us about what it’s like to cover Washington, thinking through maternity leave, and the responsibility to cheer on younger women.  

You know Arianna Huffington as the woman who put the Huffington in The Huffington Post. But she’s got a lot more on her resume. Including ‘best-selling author’ and ‘ran for office.’ But in 2007, after working 18-hour days, she collapsed in her office. And decided it was time to focus on herself more. Enter: Thrive Global. Aka the company Arianna started to help people reset, recharge, and get a lot more sleep. On the couch, Arianna talks to us about being a proud outfit repeater, the time she interviewed Skimm B for a job, and putting your phone to bed. Literally.

Michele Promaulayko fell in love with magazines as a teenager. Since then, she’s gone from dreaming about magazines...to building a career in publishing, working at places like Women’s Health and Yahoo Health. Today, she’s the editor in chief of Cosmopolitan. Meaning teenage Michele is very happy. Oh, and she’s trained in transcendental meditation, too. NBD. On the couch, she talks to us about when male models ruled the world, managing up, and navigating how her industry has changed over the years.

Growing this B was not easy. Translation: we ask our family for advice all the time. In this episode, we talk to our dads about some of the things that we’ve learned from them along the way. And we play a game. It's inspired by the new Netflix dramedy "Like Father," about a father-daughter relationship. Listen in here.

Melanie has a personal rule for herself: if she hears about something three times, from three different people, she has to try it. That rule has led her to new books, restaurants, and… SoulCycle. Which she did while she was a VP at Equinox. Melanie eventually came on as Soul’s COO, and helped grow the biz from a few NYC studios...to more than 80 around the world. Now, she’s the company’s CEO. And yes, she taps it back multiple times every week. On the couch, she talks to us about taking over a community she didn’t create, managing instructors’ brands within SoulCycle’s, and having a millennial mentor.

Katrina Lake spent the first part of her career watching other entrepreneurs pitch their companies to her VC firm. But then she decided she wanted to try it out herself. So she went to Harvard Business School and started her own company. Today, you know it as the multibillion-dollar online styling service Stitch Fix. And when she took Stitch Fix public in 2017, Katrina became the youngest woman to lead a company to IPO. Ever. NBD. On the couch, she talks to us about deciding to go to business school, hiring and managing a team, and not taking her dad’s advice.

Mindy Grossman graduated college at 20 and was on her way to law school. But then she changed her mind – so she broke her engagement, packed her bags, and moved to New York City. Luckily, that gamble worked out: today, she’s on Forbes’ list of the most powerful women in the world. Over her career, Mindy’s headed up companies like Chaps Ralph Lauren, the Home Shopping Network, and NIke. In 2017, she took her talents to Weight Watchers. On the couch, she talks to us about building teams, giving tough feedback, and stalking your business idols – politely. Oh yeah, and what it’s like to disagree with Oprah in the boardroom. 

Tyler Haney is the CEO and founder of Outdoor Voices. Today, you know OV as one of your favorite brands to wear to the gym...or to walk your dog around the block. Tyler got the idea for her company when she was on a jog. Since then, she’s grown it into a multi-million dollar national brand. And this week, Tyler is our guest on the couch. She talks to us about turning an investor's no into a yes, learning from mentors, and hiring passionate people. Leggings, on.

Our guest this week is Shan-Lyn Ma. She started her company Zola in 2013, after she realized that buying wedding gifts is fun for...pretty much nobody. Flash forward to now, and hundreds of thousands of people use Zola to register and shop for wedding gifts every year. On the couch, Shan-Lyn talks to us about building her team, not taking no for an answer, and convincing male investors to take Zola seriously.

Ariel Kaye's career in home goods started out as a side hustle. But in 2013, she decided to leave a stable career in advertising and turn that side hustle... into her main hustle. She called it Parachute. These days, if you're like us, you might go to sleep and wake up in Ariel’s products every day. On the couch, Ariel talks to us about staying zen, using her advertising background to grow her brand, and making sure her employees have time for themselves. Oh, and big news: the day we released this episode, Parachute announced that they received $30 million in Series C funding.  

Our guest this week is Linnea Roberts. She’s the founder and CEO of Gingerbread Capital, the venture capital firm she started after she ‘flunked’ retirement. Inspired by her mom Ginger, her company is all about investing in female-founded companies. Including theSkimm (thanks, Linnea). On the couch, she talks to us about making it in the finance world, finding a support system, and (figuratively) winning an Academy Award.

On the couch, Gregg Renfrew talked to us about being a manager. And how it’s not exactly her favorite thing to do. We can relate. Figuring out how to manage people was something we had to learn along the way. This week, we’re answering some of our go-to interview questions about management mistakes, bad advice, and how we made failure a part of our company culture.

Gregg Renfrew is all about side hustles. On her resume: everything from starting a cleaning company in college...to launching a biz to make dress shopping less awful for bridesmaids. These days, she’s the founder and CEO of Beautycounter. Aka the company that makes beauty and skincare products, minus all the harmful chemicals. On the couch, she talks to us about tapping into the female millennial community, learning how to be a manager, and trusting her gut.

This week at theSkimm is all about your wallet. On the couch, Hope Taitz talked to us about how women can control their own destiny...by controlling their cash money. Also happening this week: intern season. On this episode, we answer money q’s from our interns, like the difference between rounds of funding, WTF ‘diversifying revenue’ means, and when to take risks with your paycheck.

This week at theSkimm we're talking about your wallet. So our guest on the couch is CEO and Managing Partner of ELY Capital Hope Taitz. Hope invests in consumer tech – including theSkimm – and she’s got a rep for being no-BS in the boardroom. She talks to us about controlling your own purse strings, raising her kids to be courageous, and making sure maternity leave policies work for everyone. Oh, and the ELY in ELY Capital? It stands for ‘Elmo Loves You’. She'll explain why.

This week, Christie Hefner talked to us about her time at Playboy. And all the ‘WTF moments’ that come with being in charge of a company at 29 years old. Here are our tips on how to move up at work and how to hit snooze on imposter syndrome.