Hey, you, 

Yep, you, reading this. 

I talk to people like us [retail entrepreneurs] every day, and I hear the same thing:
they’re tapped. 

Retail is an industry where SO many things have to go right or it all goes wrong. There’s a reason we’re exhausted, because it’s impossible to do all this [well] on your own. 

Then on top of all that, we have these “experts” constantly telling us how easy it is.

You know what I’m talking about. The constant pressure by those “you’re-just-one-ad-campaign-away” gurus. There are “secrets” that apparently all your competitors know already [except you!]. All the while you’re working 5-9, scraping by, and ____fill it in____!

All this can make you wonder “What am I missing?? Am I flawed as an entrepreneur?! Am I f*ckin stupid!!??”

This chips away at your confidence, self-worth, and joy in your work…leaves you feeling useless. Numbed out. Paralyzed. Then, somehow, you get sucked into craving and believing the very quick-fixes they’ve all been peddling. 

Maybe, at best, they work for a stent, but then we’re right back to the cycle. 

This is how I picture all those “gurus” out there:

How are you supposed to feel like a business owner, when you’re six feet under?

Well, you can’t. So, instead, you get absolutely owned by your business and succumb to the perpetual whirlwind… just like I did over the years:

• I gave my own company every ounce of me only to burn out. 

• I showed up for my team and others as this confident visionary but inside I was riddled with insecurity. 

• I almost lost my company multiple times only to keep tying life preservers to it and narrowly escaping.

So, what changed? 

In 2018, during a two week span, I lost my beloved mother-in-law in a tragedy and my younger brother found out he had cancer. My body collapsed. I lost the gear I’d been operating in. 

It was a real “what’s the point” moment. 

I didn’t work for a month. I couldn’t. 

It made me reconsider my priorities, see how short life is, and come to terms with what I was sacrificing to “build a great company.”

• I asked for help and changed my environments. I got into therapy, hired a business coach, surrounded myself with mentors, created a board, and chose who I would listen to. 

• I found the bottom on purpose. I became fixated on finding the core issues and building stability into the business. I didn’t care how hard it was, I was committed to the right work. I fired toxic employees, we said no to opportunities that didn’t align with values, I had crucial conversations with landlords…etc. 

• I made time for priorities and protected them. I let the other chips fall where they may.  

These changes not only grew my business but also developed me into an entrepreneur that I was proud of. 

^ the second part of that is a monumental statement for me. 

Ultimately, the pandemic took my business. It’s too long of a story for here but in short here’s the formula:

Big Lease Increase + Pandemic + New Debt + Loss of Margins + Wonky Traffic + Decrease in Inventory Control = Closure

I was extremely proud of what we built and sad to let it go. Both were true at the same time. 

But the next part of the story is the best part of the story:

The process I started over all those years to help myself, continued. I didn’t stop pursuing answers, health, harmony... 

I turned all of this into a methodology and used it to help others. 

I’m not talking about help in a fluffy way, but help in the way that only someone who’s been in the fire and survived can. 

It’s possible to grow a business not at the expense of your soul. Yes, even in retail.  

You can find your people and build a business in a way that feeds your soul.

You can be creative and do hard things at the same time. 

You can build a stabilized business in a chaotic world. 

You can land some amazing opportunities because you are so clear and confident that it appeals to the right people. 

Strategy doesn’t have to be bouncing from fire to fire. 

There are no shortcuts, secrets, growth hacks to get you there - because if it was that easy, everyone would do it. 

In other words, truly owning your business is meant to be hard. 

When we accept that, it makes the hard work more attainable, it’s nothing but part of the process. It doesn’t mean you are flawed, broken, stupid…etc. 

We reshape our minds when we know this. 

You go from anxiously hoping the plan works to choosing to stepping into the uncertainty with confidence.  

My goal is to help make your journey a bit more fun, efficient, and profitable. To make it more of what you want and protect it. 

Here are the three ways I’m helping entrepreneurs just like you. 

• My Newsletter: Sent out every two weeks. Based on my experience, client work, and insights.

• Join the Group: Surround yourself with resources, experts, and peers that are focused on getting you results that matter.

• Work with me Personally: 1-to-1 Coaching or Consulting