Verena von Pfetten, a fashion and lifestyle writer who has contributed to many leading publications including Vogue and the Huffington Post, isn't about to do anything without a bit of class and creativity. And that includes launching Gossamer, a glossy new magazine "for people who also smoke weed." In this episode of Beauty Bosses, Dr. Lara Devgan talks with Verena von Pfetten about why it is time to drop all the negative connotations around cannabis and how you explain to your mom why you're quitting writing for the New York Times so you can launch "a magazine about pot".
Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd, Founders of The Laundress
So after many, many years you finally manage to fill up your closet with at least a bunch of the clothes you've been pining for for so long, only for those prized pieces to be worn (or washed...) too rarely because they are labelled: "Dry Cleaning Only" and life is too short (and too busy and too expensive) to want to deal with that. If you recognize yourself in this, well, then you are in the good company of Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd, the founders of The Laundress. In this episode of Beauty Bosses, they talk with Dr. Lara Devgan about how their revolutionary line of laundry products, now sold in 1,500 stores around the world, can help you avoid the dreaded dry cleaning runs and actually deal with those annoying red wine stains.
Bryce Scarlett, Celebrity Hair Stylist
If Natalie Portman, Bella and Gigi Hadid, Emma Stone, Margot Robbie, Lily Aldridge, Rachel McAdams, Kate Upton and countless other stunning celebrities trust him with their hair, then Bryce Scarlett probably does know a thing or two about beauty! In this episode of Beauty Bosses, Dr. Lara Devgan talks to Bryce Scarlett about how he became a real boss in the hair styling business and his personal, and compelling, definition of beauty.
Kate Ward and Lindsay Mannering, Bustle
In less than 5 years Bustle has grown from an idea into a site that attracts 80 million women who love the eclectic content mix that ranges from career advice and book reviews to fashion trends and popular memes. In this episode of Beauty Bosses, Dr. Lara Devgan talks to Kate Ward, Bustle's Editor-In-Chief, and Lindsay Mannering, Vice President of Editorial Strategy, about how they ended up at the same company but reached it very different ways, and why there should be no shame in plastic surgery.
Jennifer Bandier, Founder of Bandier
If some of the best business ideas stem from an entrepreneur's solution to a problem they are trying to solve for themselves, then there is no better example than Bandier. Jennifer Bandier started walking a lot as way to recover from a foot fracture, but she was frustrated that athletic wear was more frump than fashionista. So she decided to start the "Barney's of athleisure wear", and, in 2014, she did just that. Dr. Lara Devgan talks with Jennifer Bandier about how she went from managing R&B trio TLC to managing a quintet of high-end fashion boutiques, and how, through sheer force of will, she turned what even her friends called "the worst business idea they'd ever heard of" into one of the hottest new concepts in retail.
Natalie Kraiem, Celebrated Interior Designer
Natalie Kraiem is now an award-winning interior designer but she did not follow a traditional path to get there. Even though aesthetics were always very much a part of her life growing up in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she also had a knack for numbers and forged ahead with a career in finance. After moving to New York City to work as a private banker, Natalie decorated her apartment with her architect mother and felt inspired to go back to her first love: design. On this episode of Beauty Bosses, Natalie speaks with Dr. Lara Devgan about knowing the moment office work wasn’t meant for her, and how she used her finance background to build a celebrated interior design business.
Jennifer Vaughan Maanavi and Tanya Becker, Founders of Physique 57
In the wake of her favorite ballet-inspired fitness studio closing, Jennifer Vaughan Maanavi saw an opportunity to open her own replacement studio. Jennifer left her Wall Street job and teamed up with Tanya Becker, a leading Lotte Berk Method instructor, to create a modern Lotte Berk inspired workout – Physique 57. In 2006, the duo opened their first Physique 57 studio on West 57th Street, where it became an overnight success, with long waitlists, celebrity clients and talk of studio expansions. On this episode of Beauty Bosses, Jennifer and Tanya speak with Dr. Lara Devgan about defining the concept of boutique fitness before it was a trend, expanding globally, and the challenges entrepreneurs face when building a business.
Philip Burchard, CEO of Merz
When Philip Burchard took the reins of family-owned Merz, the more than 100 year-old German company had diversified into wide array of pharmaceutical products. Recognizing the potential of some key Merz products, Philip refocused the company primarily on aesthetics and neurotoxins while relentlessly growing the business geographically. Six years later, it is thriving in an industry otherwise dominated by multi-national behemoths. Dr. Lara Devgan talks with Philip Burchard, CEO of Merz, about why Christie Brinkley is a great spokesperson for the company, the need for continuous innovation, and why a boss is personally responsible for his or her employees' well-being.
Jasmine Lobe, Columnist for The Observer
Jasmine Lobe graduated from Vassar full of ideals about #GirlPower. Spending six years in Los Angeles as a young actress left her with a slightly more jaded view of how the world really works. Writing about those experiences led her back to New York where she took over Candace Bushnell's famous Observer column which served as the basis for Sex and the City. Dr. Lara Devgan talks with Jasmine Lobe about her #MeToo experiences with some well-known protagonists and how beauty is all about feeling confident in the way you look.
Aidan Donnelley Rowley, Acclaimed Writer
Aidan Donnelley Rowley, a Yale and Columbia-educated lawyer, realized that secret dream of probably every young lawyer: quit it all and write a successful novel. What stayed firmly secret however was how alcohol was playing an increasingly large role in her life as she dealt with the challenges of being a mom to three young daughters. She realized that, as a writer, she could add nuance to the discussion and she started to write increasingly about drinking while partaking ever less in it. In this episode of Beauty Bosses, Dr. Lara Devgan talks with Aidan Donnelley Rowley about motherhood, beauty, and how life can be better without booze.
