A Lot Can Happen In A Year: 2024's Biggest Moments - De-Influenced with Dani + Jordan

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[00:04]
A
The following podcast is a Dear Media production. Hello, hello, hello, hello.
[00:09]
B
Dear Jesus, Dear Jesus, Dear Jesus, please get Danny through this.
[00:13]
A
This episode. He's giving me the energy to finish this episode and to go over an hour. Under an hour. Yes, Father.
[00:27]
B
You should keep that. You should keep it. Okay.
[00:32]
A
Okay. Hello, hello, and welcome back to your favorite podcast, the Influence. Oh, my goodness, it's almost the new year. Are you so excited, you guys? Welcome back to the rebrand of D. Influence. Look, my name's on the door, so this is insane. Jordan. We. We listened to what you guys wanted, your feedback, and Jordan and now is now a co host of the podcast.
[01:01]
B
Which is really tough for me, honestly, because, you know, we are 75 episodes into this podcast.
[01:07]
A
This is our 75th episode, which does not.
[01:09]
B
It does not feel like that at all because we don't listen to any of them.
[01:12]
A
Never.
[01:12]
B
And so it. It feels like maybe 20, right? Which is wild.
[01:16]
A
That's what I said.
[01:17]
B
20.
[01:18]
A
Yeah. Whenever our podcast producer told us, like, she surprised us with this cake this morning, and I was like, 75 episode. I would have said maybe 22 episodes.
[01:28]
B
Well, what's so funny about where we're at now is that I think with my name on the door, it's like, mentally, it kind of does something for me because this was always a project where I. I felt like I was a part of it, but I was always like, I'll peace out soon.
[01:41]
A
Yeah, you just kind of show up.
[01:42]
B
And, like, because, you know, when you started, it was going to be, like, your thing.
[01:46]
A
Well, that's why it was all pink. The branding.
[01:49]
B
No, I know.
[01:49]
A
It's my favorite color.
[01:50]
B
And so I. I very, very much felt like a temporary part of this.
[01:54]
A
Yeah.
[01:55]
B
And honestly, I just saw my name on the door a second ago. It kind of. It's a little bit more pressure.
[02:01]
A
And we. We chose neutral colors for our rebrand. Well, plus a pop of red, which was. We were gonna go just all neutrals. And I literally had a dream about the pop of red in our podcast.
[02:12]
B
Yeah.
[02:13]
A
So, like, we had already gotten all this branding done. It was like browns and coffee and tans. And then I go to, like, our girl, and I'm like, guys know, like, we have to add the pop of red. So we did. We had the pop of red. And then another big deal for us is we signed with an agency, which is so crazy, because in my 12, almost 13 years of influencing, I have never worked with an agency. Everything we have ever built, Jordan, I has been in house even from, like, when we started hiring people for Divi, my personal team. We've always been very like X, like stay away.
[02:53]
B
We're very like hands on entrepreneurs.
[02:55]
A
Yes, yes. But we decided to sign with Dear Media and we're so excited. These are like our first partners. It feels really good to have like, support. The news is out.
[03:10]
B
Rip it off. Just for the pod listeners. They already know we're pregnant. We are pregnant. Do we say we?
[03:17]
A
Yeah, we're pregnant. We have our third baby coming in January. It was a really sweet moment when I told my parents because like this third baby is kind of like when I look at all my dreams as a little girl, like when I have this third baby, like, all my dreams will have come true.
[03:37]
B
Yeah.
[03:37]
A
I always saw myself as a mom of three minimum. You know, I've always said minimum. Right. For maximum. And so it's like, it's so crazy that it's like actually all happening. And my dad, after I told my dad, he walked out, he goes, you know, all my dreams are coming true because all your dreams are coming true.
[03:59]
B
Wow.
[04:00]
A
It was so sweet.
[04:01]
B
I know. I heard him whisper something and then he, whenever he knows he's about to say something sentimental, he starts tearing up.
[04:07]
A
So I was like, my dad's very sentimental. My mom's like, wow, like, how are we gonna do another baby? Ooh. Guys, you know how much our family loves Minky Couture blankets. I'm most upset because Stella steals mine all the time and she's never stolen my blankets before, but she's obsessed. I actually am gonna order her like the kids version. They're seriously the softest, coziest blankets ever. And they just look so luxurious when you have them out on your sofa in your bed. We have one just in about every room in our house and so I can have one available at all times because that's how much we love them. Mickey Couture is the creator of the original Hugs blanket. A stretchy, plush and double sided blanket that hugs you right back. That's so true. I didn't realize how much they like, they have like a stretch to them. It really does feel like a hug. That's why our family loves them so much. Mickey Couture is a female owned business love that started by a mother who wanted to provide luxurious comfort to her daughter. Plus, they are also passionate about giving back to the community. Donating over 30, 000 mini minkies to NICU across the country every year. There are so many different colors and sizes. There's a Minky for everyone in your life, which means it is the perfect gift for loved ones this holiday season. Stella and Stratton love them so much that they have actually asked for the kids sized ones for Christmas. It's serious blanket ever. It's so soft. The most luxurious feeling and looking blanket I've ever owned. You guys have to try them and right now you can get them for half off. Visit softminky blankets.com and use code D influence 50 at checkout for 50% off of all full price blankets. That's softminky blankets.com use code D influence 50 for 50% off of all full priced blankets. Truly the best holiday Christmas gift for pretty much anyone in your family.
[05:47]
B
If you've heard of Ozempic or Wegovy, you've probably heard three things. They're effective but they're expensive and they're hard to get. That's where RO comes in. We've talked about Ozempic here on the podcast as it took the Internet by storm and proved to be really helpful for those in need. But with the heightened awareness of GLP1s and what they can do for people who are overweight, it became harder to access. That's where Robody comes in. We're huge fans in this house of getting medical care and support you need. Conveniently through RO you can access prescription compounded GLP1s with the same weight loss ingredient as brand name GLP1s at a fraction of the cost. RO has compounded GLP1s in stock. Now you can get it in one to four days if you qualify. RO members have support through the process if you if eligible for medication, patients have access to their provider on demand for any questions and you can see if you qualify from the comfort of your home. The this means no scheduling a doctor's appointment, no commute to the doctor's office, and no waiting rooms, which may eliminate a barrier for someone's GLP1s to help. If prescribed, your medication ships directly to you in one to four days. Go to ro co Danny the membership starts at $99 for your first month. Medication costs are separate. That's r o dot co Dani to learn more go to rode.com safety for black box warning and full safety information. Compounded medication is not required to and does not receive FDA review or approval. RX only.
[07:21]
A
Landon getting engaged Big the miracle from God Himself we never thought it would happen.
[07:30]
B
We tried though. We tried to. We tried to force the timing before.
[07:34]
A
I tried.
[07:35]
B
We ran three three seasons of the Matchmaker for this guy and you.
[07:39]
A
So true.
[07:40]
B
You can't put a square peg in a round hole. It's.
[07:42]
A
Well, you can't. You can't force love. You know?
[07:45]
B
You can't force it.
[07:45]
A
And you know what? Like, God. God's timing, baby, not Danny's timing.
[07:50]
B
Y.
[07:50]
A
She tried. She tried to push it along. And God said, I got the perfect girl in mind for Elena. You just wait, baby girl. It's really all about me.
[07:59]
B
You know, the craziest thing is I really have never seen him like this ever before, ever. And that's why it feels very divine. And maybe this is, like, comforting for, you know, anyone single out there, but it was like he was so just not ready. I mean, we. We kept forcing, and we're like, man, this girl's not gonna make it till Thanksgiving. And when he met the right girl.
[08:22]
A
Either, to be honest.
[08:23]
B
No, I know that. But when he was sure. He's sure.
[08:26]
A
I've never seen. I've never seen him sure about anything like that. And I'm so happy. But I'm gonna be so big. Atlanta, Olivia's wedding, and I'm a bridesmaid, and, like, I'll be at the point in, like, pregnancy where, like, things are, like, actually big. Like, you know, like, there's a point when it's like, oh, she's cute. Like, he's pregnant. But, like, this is, like, when your nose starts to split and look like it's two noses in one. And it starts to, like, your voice starts to change. Like, it sounds like you're like an old man. You're like. Like, you know when. Like, you remember, like, my laugh changes whenever I. Do you remember, like, I got a really good voice with Stratton.
[08:59]
B
Yeah.
[09:00]
A
Do you remember my voice was, like, really raspy, and my. And, like, baby was, like, sitting on my diaphragm. And, like, I was, like, good singer. I was.
[09:10]
B
You were. It was incredible. It was like Selen Dion was my wife.
[09:14]
A
It was, like, low and, like, sexy.
[09:16]
B
Yeah, like Adele. That's. A lot of people said you sounded like Adele at that time.
[09:20]
A
I have gotten that before.
[09:22]
B
Try and sing Rolling in the Deep one more time.
[09:25]
A
Just wait till I'm, like, six weeks, six months pregnant, then I'll sing. She'll.
[09:29]
B
That'll be the intro song.
[09:30]
A
We. Okay. We have a. Did I tell you that I did it?
[09:35]
B
Did what?
[09:36]
A
Okay, so the wedding. My brother's wedding is this weekend. It's miracle. Did you ever think we would be saying this?
[09:44]
B
Well, yeah. I mean, three. What, three seasons of the Matchmaker Yeah.
[09:47]
A
Three seasons. Three seasons. And I'm so excited. I'm so obsessed with Olivia. They moved back to Nashville, as you guys know. That's probably where they're gonna end up for good, and. Which I hate. But it's okay. I understand that they love it.
[10:01]
B
I don't know. You might be close to moving there on the path that you're on.
[10:05]
A
We'll see. Maybe when I finish the book, we'll talk about it, but. Okay. So I really wanted to. This wedding process has been very stressful for them. And sweet Olivia, she's so sweet that I think that sometimes she. It's hard for her to make decisions because she doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, which is just. It's the best thing about her. Because I'm like, olivia, who cares? It's your wedding. You do what you want to do. And she's like, I want everybody to be happy and comfortable. And, like, it's really sweet.
[10:37]
B
We're so. Olivia and I are such a counterbalance to the Austin family. Yeah, a great counterbalance to the Austin family.
[10:44]
A
It's. It's so true. Like, we need y'all. So I called their. And I'm sharing this because this will come out after their wedding.
[10:54]
B
Yeah.
[10:55]
A
And I don't know how I'm going to surprise them. Did I already talk about this on the podcast?
[10:58]
B
I have no idea what you're talking about.
[10:59]
A
So I called their wedding planner and I was like, is there anything that Landon Olivia really wanted for their wedding, but they cut because of budget? Like, you know, or they just, like, decided it wasn't smart and they wanted to spend money, like, in a smarter way. And she's like, oh, well, there was this room that there. There's like a cocktail hour in, and Olivia really wanted to drape one side of it to make it feel more intimate. I was like, no, no, no. I was like, no, I'm not doing drapes. I was like, okay, what else? And she's like, well, there's like, you can get, like, a wedding stylist and she can come the day of and help all the bridesmaids. And like, no, no, no, no. I'm like, I'm looking for, like, the wow factor. I'm looking for the oohs and the ahs. And she's like, well, there was something that your brother really wanted. I was like, tell me more. She's like, we have these nine foot LED robots that come and dance on the dance floor and, like, break dance on the dance. And your Brother was really excited about them, but they were just like, it didn't make sense at the budget. And I was like, yes.
[12:07]
B
Bingo.
[12:08]
A
Bingo.
[12:09]
B
I was like, they're nine feet tall.
[12:11]
A
I don't. I don't remember. I think I said nine foot, cuz I just bought that nine foot nutcracker. No, I think they're. No, I'm sorry. I think they're taller. They walk around on stilts.
[12:19]
B
Wait, they like as in, oh, I got two.
[12:22]
A
So I told them my budget. First of all, these things are outrageous. Okay? Let me tell you. At first I was like, you know, I want to put a couple grand in there. Like, I want it to be a big. Like, this is. I love them. This is my. The only. Like, this is the most important wedding of the year for me. And she told me that for like. I mean, I think it was for like two. It was for two robots. It was me, like six grand or something.
[12:46]
B
Wait, can you guys up? Yeah, I have to see these.
[12:49]
A
So I got the discounted version. I got the tissue.
[12:54]
B
It's from like, Alibaba. They like explode and it becomes a fire hazard.
[12:59]
A
They like, glue those little glow sticks on them.
[13:01]
B
Like, wait, so I'm just so confused. These are robots.
[13:06]
A
But here's the thing. I haven't told them yet. And the thing I told that. And I'm really trusting the wedding planet planner here because I was like, listen, like, what if Olivia didn't want these? Yeah, like, what if this was like. Like, Landon thought it was cool. And Olivia was like, no, that's tacky. And she was like, no, no, no. Like, Olivia thought it was cool too. And I was like, okay, well, I'm trusting you because we're gonna have nine foot LED robots on the dance floor.
[13:32]
B
So is the moment that they are gonna find this out the moment these, like, come out from the smoke machine, like, onto the dance floor. And everyone's just like. Everyone's just like, what is this?
[13:42]
A
So I. I don't know. I haven't planned it out yet how. How it's gonna happen. Maybe I just won't say anything. And I'll be like, I don't know. And if it goes over a ball, I'll be like, it was me.
[13:55]
B
Oh, my gosh. I mean, Landon will for sure freak out. Everyone else is going to be in a state of utter confusion.
[14:02]
A
Let's see.
[14:03]
B
But it will get the party started. 100. So you're telling me those are robots or that's a costume that someone gets?
[14:13]
A
Oh, yeah, I'm Sorry. It's a costume that somebody gets in.
[14:15]
B
Okay. That's what I was confused about, Danny.
[14:17]
A
Oh, I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
[14:18]
B
I was like. You bought nine foot robots?
[14:20]
A
Like, no, but look how cool they look. You don't like it?
[14:25]
B
No, it's. It's.
[14:26]
A
Your face is not.
[14:27]
B
No, it's incredible. It's incredible.
[14:29]
A
Look at it dance.
[14:31]
B
So you both had to hire someone to be on the stilts?
[14:35]
A
Yeah, that's why they were so expensive.
[14:37]
B
So.
[14:37]
A
And this is a good market if anybody's looking for a job. There's so many ways to make money these days. Oh, my God.
[14:41]
B
You know how, like, Jake Paul walks out with that robot when he boxes?
[14:45]
A
Yes.
[14:46]
B
That's what it reminded me of. And that's what it looks like. Like, that's crazy.
[14:50]
A
Yeah, so that'll be me. I guess if they need a third one, I could suit up.
[14:55]
B
Babe, you can't do that. You. You got a bunch of hate for being on a ladder.
[14:58]
A
People are so upset about my ladder content, and I'm like, don't tell me what to do. Like, I'm a woman still. I'm not, like, gonna be a bedridden. It's just. You know what's so crazy? I was looking back at Stratton's. What?
[15:13]
B
Nothing.
[15:13]
A
What?
[15:14]
B
It's just most of the time you are better.
[15:16]
A
No, I know. It's true.
[15:18]
B
Baby number three is quickly approaching and we are so excited to shop for them at Riley and Crew. The Riley and Crew collective combines art and imagination to offer unique clothing for modern children and moms. Each collection features hand drawn illustrations paired with beautifully muted tones and timeless designs. Riley and Crew is more than just a clothing brand. It's a one stop shop that caters to you and your children at every stage of life. Whether it's welcoming the newest member of your family in Quincy Mae, dressing your child in Riley and Crew for the first day of school, or celebrating special occasions in a Nora Lee dress, they have an outfit for every occasion. This has been a lifesaver because having our two older kids and a newborn on the way, there is something for each of them that perfectly fits their own stages in life and personalities. With a focus on modern baby basics, Quincy Mae is your one stop shop for baby and toddler essentials. Featuring a collection of beautiful organic baby basics and earthy solid colors and subtle prints. The perfect harmony of quality and style, each Quincy Mae garment and Accessories, made with 100% organic materials, is got certified and is ethically made. And if you're looking for a special occasion outfit. They have you covered. Nora Lee is their children's occasion wear brand. They have the most darling wedding and ceremonial styles, tutus and matching Mama and Minnie styles. For special moments, visit RileyandCrew.com dinFLUENCE and use code Danny at checkout for 15% off your first purchase. That's R Y L E-E-A-N-C-R-U.com dinfluenced use code Danny for 15% off your first order. Speaking of our favorite brands, as parents we want to talk to you about Nanit. Their baby monitor is a must have tool that we give to every parent in our lives. With two kids and a newborn on the way, it is extra important that we have a baby monitor we can trust. My fellow parents know it's so hard to leave your babies for work, but with Nanit, I can keep an eye on things at home and check in right from their app when I'm on the go. It's truly given me so much peace of mind, especially as baby number three is quickly approaching and things are about to get a little more crazy in the Austin Ramirez household. The Nanit baby monitor has won over 25 awards in 2024 alone, including from the New York Times, Wirecutter, Parents Magazine and the Skim Banana isn't just a high definition camera. It also monitors your baby's sleeping and breathing patterns. Plus it helps you not miss any of the baby milestones. With all these tools, Nanit makes more sleep for your baby and you possible Nanit parents tend to get an extra 36 nights of sleep per year and Nanit babies sleep 10% longer. I have one ready for baby number three but have already been using Nanit for Stella and Stratton and it's just as effective for the toddler stage. The Nanit baby monitor is the MVP of baby gear. It's the one baby item we can't live without. And of course we have a special offer just for our listeners. Get 20% off your first order with code DREAM20. That's D R E A M20NANIT.com now N A N I T.com.
[18:30]
A
I agree, but there's been some really cool, encouraging moments like getting an all doors Ulta. That was a huge moment in 2020. 2023 because I can't say 2023 because we were in Ulta. We were first online and then we got into like their Sparked category which was kind of like their new beauty. And then now we're in basically all doors Ulta on the shelf. Top shelf. People text me, send me pictures, you know, was there the other day. My friend Brianna was there all day. Every single hair vitamin, sold out. The shampoo, completely sold out. Like scalp serum, totally sold out. And like, people send me screenshots of that all the time. And that is so cool. It's so crazy. I just never thought that such a big retailer would ever notice us like that. And it's just very humbling. And so all doors. Ulta was probably, I mean, top five like work moment ever in my career. Divi launched in Ulta at Target.
[19:33]
B
Crazy.
[19:34]
A
Crazy. Because that was when I. When Divi had one skew. My goal was to get it at Ulta by Target.
[19:44]
B
Does it feel like we're in Target? I feel like you and I both have been stressed about so many other things that it, like the Target, the fact that we're in Target kind of just like happened and we haven't really like high fived or celebrated about it.
[19:56]
A
Well, you know, these things take so long. Like, we knew this was happening months ago, but.
[20:00]
B
Right.
[20:01]
A
It's just now actually happening. So it doesn't feel like it happened because we've been working on it for like four or five months.
[20:06]
B
That's true.
[20:07]
A
You know, it's true. It's not like a moment. Like, it's like this has been like a process.
[20:11]
B
I think we should go to Cabo to kind of just like celebrate all these.
[20:14]
A
I think we should go to Target and look at it.
[20:16]
B
Okay.
[20:16]
A
And then go to Cabo.
[20:18]
B
Okay. I. I can, I can agree to that plan. But all stores, all Ulta by Targets. That's a big deal, babe.
[20:28]
A
When I'm telling you, it's just wild.
[20:30]
B
It's wild.
[20:31]
A
You know, it was the craziest thing to me though, to be honest.
[20:34]
B
How Divi was number four on Prime Day.
[20:36]
A
That too.
[20:37]
B
Yeah. WWD article. That was big.
[20:41]
A
That one. Ulta by Target and wwd, like were bucket list for me and they all.
[20:48]
B
Happen in one week.
[20:49]
A
I know. I feel nothing.
[20:52]
B
No, I mean, like, Divi has like some of the best researchers, innovators, product development people, marketers, like, talent at the company. It's just been a. It's been a hard thing just keeping that together. Keeping a team together just requires so much leadership and leadership requires so much time. And time is what we have the least of. And so it's just been like identifying that gap and that, you know, weakness and then figuring out how to fill it. Whether that means like, hey, like, I don't Know if I should be in this, like, CEO role anymore. Like, should I hire someone else? And so, yeah, that's just been tough.
[21:29]
A
Yeah. Okay, so basically, let me just give you a background. We launched Divi in 2021.
[21:34]
B
Self funded.
[21:35]
A
Self funded. We worked out of Stratton's. He wasn't born yet, but we worked out of his nursery. That's where we hired our first two employees, and we launched with just our Hero Skew, which was our scalp serum that I created with a chemist, essentially, and launched that and really had no idea where this thing could go. And it grew really fast. The first year, we did 40 million in sales of just that one skew. And that was mainly because that was even outside of me. It was like, mainly because of the. Just, like, the word of mouth, the before and after pictures, people like, the testimonies.
[22:16]
B
We've sold a million bottles of that serum now.
[22:18]
A
Over a million.
[22:19]
B
Over a million.
[22:19]
A
I think it's like 1.2 million of those. Yeah.
[22:23]
B
And so did not expect that.
[22:25]
A
Yeah. And so, honestly, ever since then, every product that we've come out with since has just been, like, listening to y'all and, like, hearing kind of what your concerns are, what your hair problems are, and coming out with solutions for that. So now we have eight SKUs, which is still, like, really small, you know?
[22:40]
B
Yeah, it's.
[22:41]
A
But, you know, we got into Ulta Ulta by Target on Amazon. And I have a lot of. I still have a lot of dreams for Divi. I want to go international. I also want to go more domestic because we actually did this. This, like, survey, and Divi has actually pretty low brand awareness. Like, if you took. I think. How many people did they take? A thousand?
[23:05]
B
No, I don't know how they ran the survey, but our overall awareness score is 6%.
[23:10]
A
So that means if you take 100 people, only six people. So like, a random people.
[23:13]
B
A neutrophil is, like, 80%.
[23:15]
A
Yeah. So if you take, like, a hundred random people all over the country and you ask them, do you know about divi? Out of 100, only six people knew, which is really exciting for us because that means that there's so much more growth that we could, you know, have. And there's some, like, major cities that I really want to hit, like Chicago and some of the west coast and east coast, because we're really, like, heavy in the middle, but not so much in, like, the coast. The coast. So anyway, there's just. We have a lot of dreams. We hired our first CEO this year, January In January. And that's why Jordan and I have a marriage again. It was really hard. He was CEO for a couple years and never again.
[24:00]
B
Guys, I think hardest job in the world.
[24:01]
A
Well, I think what we like to do together is we like to, to start companies and to like, grow them from zero to something, but not like, run the company.
[24:10]
B
Yeah. The way I, the way I characterized it is like, you know, when you're the CEO, you're responsible for everything. And I'm glad I had that experience for two years. But I like where I'm at now. Technically, my role is chairman.
[24:22]
A
Yeah.
[24:23]
B
And I'm like, fun uncle.
[24:24]
A
You get to come in.
[24:25]
B
I like to come in. I don't have to deal with any of the drama. And I can be like, hey, guys, like, we should do this idea. Like TikTok shop is popping off. We should work on it. And then like, you know, there's smart people that like, actually execute actually the work.
[24:39]
A
Yeah. Which is so great. And so anyway, we. In June you said.
[24:45]
B
Yeah, in June, we started a process to find a. They typically call them like growth partners or private equity partners.
[24:53]
A
Can I actually, like, go back a little bit?
[24:55]
B
Yeah.
[24:56]
A
To be honest, we didn't really start it. I feel like we were approached a lot. Like, my email every single day was like, 10 PE firms being like, we want to work with you, we want to partner with divvy. Do you want to sell one day? And I was like, no, I don't want to sell. I like, no, we're self funded. We don't need you. Da, da, da, da. And then like these emails just kept coming in, kept coming in, and we started having like, more conversations and we were like, wait, these people really know what they're talking about.
[25:22]
B
Well, so here's what I would say is like the reason. And I don't know how much people care about this, but we'll put it in the podcast. So, like, basically, I think that companies that are bootstrapped, you know, you typically have what I think are like, very founder led companies. That's when the magic happens. Right. You have these like, really cool stories of companies popping off because it has a extremely passionate founder behind it. Right. So usually the challenge is when you bring in like other partners or other money, you kind of lose some of the magic. Right. And so we had always been like, hey, we don't, we don't really need other people to like, run our company. Like, we're well capitalized. It's a successful company.
[25:58]
A
Well, we were trying to like, you know, they say, walk before you run. We weren't trying to grow really fast. I was like, I don't want more stress.
[26:04]
B
So we would have a lot of these investment groups reaching out. And, you know, usually they want to get in early enough. And typically what happens is they'll say, hey, like, let us invest. We'll help you do this, we'll help you do that. We'll help you grow. And we just kind of ignored their emails. Like, I remember snoozing a lot of them. Because I was just like, I don't.
[26:21]
A
Now I look back at, like, who are snoozing? I'm like, no, I know, it's horrible.
[26:25]
B
No, it's so funny. Like, I will say this and we'll. We'll finish this story. The group that we ended up going with, I'm there. I'm really close with them now. Like, I've never asked this question. I think that they showed up in Dallas, like, three times just being like, hey, we're in Dallas. And I literally snooze the email.
[26:44]
A
We're like, sorry, we're watching the football game.
[26:46]
B
But no, I never would even respond because I never wanted to give anyone hope or because if you get.
[26:51]
A
And I didn't know who they were.
[26:52]
B
No, yeah. I knew who all the groups were. They're very prestigious. Like, there's a group. Blackstone is like a big, huge. They did goop. Like, all of them were like, world class premium, built the largest beauty brands type of companies. But I just didn't want to entertain anything and give anyone false hope. So I would snooze.
[27:11]
A
Oh, false hope. I just didn't know who they were. I was like, can you leave me alone?
[27:15]
B
Yeah. Yeah. What's so funny?
[27:18]
A
And then they would get my phone number and call me.
[27:20]
B
Yes.
[27:21]
A
They would call randomly and I would, like, answer, and they're like, hi, this is so and so. And I would just be like, okay, can you call my husband? Yeah, I'm like, I don't know. I'm doing my makeup right now. Can you please call my husband? No.
[27:32]
B
What's hilarious. This is what's so funny is that, like, you know, we have an email for Danny that's like her divi email. But, like, it was really set up just for, like, like, insurance purposes because.
[27:44]
A
Like, I use it.
[27:46]
B
You do?
[27:46]
A
I mean, like, probably once every two weeks.
[27:48]
B
Well, what's so funny is, like, they would get my email and they would never get a response. And they would just email you, but it's forwarded to me. So I would just be like, hey, it's still me again. We're not looking for capital right now. But anyway, so, yeah, we would. We kind of just tried to, like, leapfrog the whole bringing in investors. But I think that what really changed our tune was, like, Divi grew so fast, and we were so tired as founders that, like, we really just kind of, like, needed help knowing, like, okay, if we want this to be a global brand, you know, there's like, kind of a mental toll that that would take on us by doing it alone. Yeah, for sure that we're.
[28:25]
A
And there's a lot of. There's a lot bringing in people that have kind of done this before. But also it. It came when, like, I just knew we were ready. I felt like we had. We had accomplished the goals that I wanted Divi to accomplish. And the next set of goals was over my head. Yeah, like, it was. It was over my head. I didn't know how to do it. And there was too much on the line. There's too many people's jobs at risks. At risk. There's too many. There's like. It's just. You can't make a wrong step. Like, maybe you kind of can, but, like, I wanted someone to kind of hold our hands and. And help us going globally if we ever went into other retailers or just, like, building our relationship with. With Ulta. There's a lot of, like, politics that go into the beauty space too. Like, that you just don't know how to navigate unless you've done it before. And so once I knew we were ready, I was like, okay, we can start having the conversation, but we're gonna, like, still maintain majority of our company. It's gonna be a minority partner that comes in that has a ton of experience and can just help us get from point A to point B. And so we did, like, tons of interviews and talked to so many firms, and we found a firm that I personally love because it was an all female team. Not only were they all female, but do you remember the first time that we, like, hung out with them? I was like, babe, I love them. I could have a sleepover with them. And I'm so sick of, like, it's. It's. It can be really hard working with men in the beauty space. Like, I remember one of the scientists that we almost worked with was completely bald. Yes. And now we have an all. And like, you live and learn, right? And. And he was a. He was a male, and he was not our demo. He had no idea what like, influencing was. And it was just so hard to create products with him because I want someone I can, like, text at, like, 7pm and be like, hey, girl, how's it going? What's the smell like? Should it smell more fruity? Should it smell, you know, whatever? And that's why we brought in, like, a female team of scientists. Because, like, I want. Not only that, but I want these girls to be the ones that, like, they're creating it for people like themselves too, you know? And so when I met with this team, I was like, not only are they all female, they're also, like, kind of around my age. Well, not. Not Sonya, but, like, some of the other girls on the team. And they're. They're like, our demo. Like, they get it. And they were young, and they were so smart. Like, one of them went to Harvard, right?
[30:57]
B
No, they pretty much all went to Harvard.
[30:59]
A
They all went to Harvard. No, they all went to Cal. Cal Poly.
[31:02]
B
They're all really smart.
[31:03]
A
They're also. They're just smart people. Smart gals. And so I just felt. I was like, we have some synergy here. Like, I can tell. Not only do they care, but they're the demo. And, like. And here's the thing. Like, it's so fun to work on growing a brand and growing products that you actually love. Thank you guys for listening. We will see you guys in 2024. We love our D influence community. Please note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.

Summary4 min read

De-Influenced with Dani + Jordan: A Lot Can Happen In A Year – 2024's Biggest Moments

In the December 26, 2024 episode of De-Influenced with Dani + Jordan, hosts Dani and Jordan reflect on a transformative year marked by personal milestones, significant business achievements, and strategic rebranding. This detailed summary captures the essence of their discussions, highlighting key moments, insights, and memorable quotes.

1. Celebrating a Major Milestone: 75 Episodes and a Fresh Rebrand (00:32 - 04:06)

Dani and Jordan kick off the episode by celebrating the podcast's 75th episode, a milestone that feels like a much shorter journey to them. Dani expresses her amazement:

Dani [01:06]: "It feels like maybe 20, right? Which is wild."

Responding to listener feedback, Jordan joins as a co-host, marking a significant evolution in their podcasting journey. This rebranding effort includes a shift to neutral colors with a pop of red, symbolizing a new era for De-Influenced. Dani shares her excitement about partnering with Dear Media, highlighting their decision to work with an agency after 12 years of managing everything in-house:

Dani [02:55]: "But we decided to sign with Dear Media and we're so excited. These are like our first partners. It feels really good to have like, support."

2. Personal Life Updates: Expanding the Family and Wedding Plans (07:21 - 15:17)

The hosts share joyful personal news, announcing their third pregnancy, expected in January. Dani describes the emotional moment of telling her parents:

Dani [03:36]: "I always saw myself as a mom of three minimum. You know, I've always said minimum. Right. For maximum. And so it's like, it's so crazy that it's like actually all happening."

Jordan recounts the journey of their son Landon's engagement, emphasizing the divine timing and their belief in letting things unfold naturally:

Jordan [07:21]: "You can't force love. You can't force it."

They delve into the preparations for Olivia's wedding, discussing the stress and sweet moments involved in planning such a significant event. Dani humorously shares her plans to surprise the wedding party with unconventional decorations, highlighting their creative approach:

Dani [13:31]: "So if they need a third one, I could suit up."

The conversation underscores the balance between personal life and their professional endeavors, showcasing their commitment to family amidst their busy schedules.

3. Business Triumphs: Divi’s Explosive Growth and Strategic Expansion (18:30 - 31:03)

Shifting focus to their entrepreneurial ventures, Dani and Jordan celebrate the remarkable growth of their beauty brand, Divi. Launched in 2021 with a single scalp serum, Divi soared to over $40 million in sales in its first year, selling more than a million units:

Jordan [22:16]: "We've sold a million bottles of that serum now."

Expanding their product line, Divi now boasts eight SKUs, catering to diverse hair care needs based on customer feedback. A pivotal moment for the company was securing a spot in Ulta Beauty and Ulta by Target, a dream achievement for Dani:

Dani [18:30]: "I just never thought that such a big retailer would ever notice us like that. And it's just very humbling."

Despite their success, Dani and Jordan candidly discuss the challenges of scaling the business. The decision to hire a CEO marked a significant shift, allowing them to focus on growth without the overwhelming responsibilities of daily management:

Dani [24:22]: "I just felt like we had accomplished the goals that I wanted Divi to accomplish. And the next set of goals was over my head."

They reflect on their initial reluctance to seek external investments, valuing their self-funded roots and the unique magic of a founder-led company. However, recognizing the need for experienced guidance to navigate global expansion and complex retail landscapes, they embraced a partnership with Dear Media to propel Divi to new heights.

4. Looking Ahead: Future Aspirations and Community Engagement

As the episode wraps up, Dani and Jordan express their ambitious plans for Divi, aiming to increase brand awareness from a 6% recognition rate to much higher figures across major cities like Chicago and coastal regions. They emphasize the importance of maintaining their company's core values while scaling:

Dani [23:04]: "There's so much more growth that we could, you know, have."

The couple underscores their dedication to their community, thanking listeners for their unwavering support and hinting at exciting developments in the coming year.

Conclusion

This episode of De-Influenced with Dani + Jordan serves as a comprehensive reflection on a year of growth, both personally and professionally. From celebrating podcast milestones and expanding their family to achieving significant business breakthroughs with Divi, Dani and Jordan offer an authentic glimpse into their journey. Their ability to balance personal joys with entrepreneurial challenges provides valuable insights for listeners navigating similar paths.

Notable Quotes:

Jordan [01:06]: "It feels like maybe 20, right? Which is wild."
Dani [03:36]: "I've always said minimum. Right. For maximum."
Jordan [07:21]: "You can't force love. You can't force it."
Jordan [22:16]: "We've sold a million bottles of that serum now."
Dani [18:30]: "It's just very humbling."
Dani [23:04]: "There's so much more growth that we could have."

De-Influenced with Dani + Jordan continues to be a platform for candid conversations, blending personal anecdotes with professional insights, all while fostering a supportive community for its listeners.

Loading summary

Transcript189 lines

[00:04]
A
The following podcast is a Dear Media production. Hello, hello, hello, hello.
[00:09]
B
Dear Jesus, Dear Jesus, Dear Jesus, please get Danny through this.
[00:13]
A
This episode. He's giving me the energy to finish this episode and to go over an hour. Under an hour. Yes, Father.
[00:27]
B
You should keep that. You should keep it. Okay.
[00:32]
A
Okay. Hello, hello, and welcome back to your favorite podcast, the Influence. Oh, my goodness, it's almost the new year. Are you so excited, you guys? Welcome back to the rebrand of D. Influence. Look, my name's on the door, so this is insane. Jordan. We. We listened to what you guys wanted, your feedback, and Jordan and now is now a co host of the podcast.
[01:01]
B
Which is really tough for me, honestly, because, you know, we are 75 episodes into this podcast.
[01:07]
A
This is our 75th episode, which does not.
[01:09]
B
It does not feel like that at all because we don't listen to any of them.
[01:12]
A
Never.
[01:12]
B
And so it. It feels like maybe 20, right? Which is wild.
[01:16]
A
That's what I said.
[01:17]
B
20.
[01:18]
A
Yeah. Whenever our podcast producer told us, like, she surprised us with this cake this morning, and I was like, 75 episode. I would have said maybe 22 episodes.
[01:28]
B
Well, what's so funny about where we're at now is that I think with my name on the door, it's like, mentally, it kind of does something for me because this was always a project where I. I felt like I was a part of it, but I was always like, I'll peace out soon.
[01:41]
A
Yeah, you just kind of show up.
[01:42]
B
And, like, because, you know, when you started, it was going to be, like, your thing.
[01:46]
A
Well, that's why it was all pink. The branding.
[01:49]
B
No, I know.
[01:49]
A
It's my favorite color.
[01:50]
B
And so I. I very, very much felt like a temporary part of this.
[01:54]
A
Yeah.
[01:55]
B
And honestly, I just saw my name on the door a second ago. It kind of. It's a little bit more pressure.
[02:01]
A
And we. We chose neutral colors for our rebrand. Well, plus a pop of red, which was. We were gonna go just all neutrals. And I literally had a dream about the pop of red in our podcast.
[02:12]
B
Yeah.
[02:13]
A
So, like, we had already gotten all this branding done. It was like browns and coffee and tans. And then I go to, like, our girl, and I'm like, guys know, like, we have to add the pop of red. So we did. We had the pop of red. And then another big deal for us is we signed with an agency, which is so crazy, because in my 12, almost 13 years of influencing, I have never worked with an agency. Everything we have ever built, Jordan, I has been in house even from, like, when we started hiring people for Divi, my personal team. We've always been very like X, like stay away.
[02:53]
B
We're very like hands on entrepreneurs.
[02:55]
A
Yes, yes. But we decided to sign with Dear Media and we're so excited. These are like our first partners. It feels really good to have like, support. The news is out.
[03:10]
B
Rip it off. Just for the pod listeners. They already know we're pregnant. We are pregnant. Do we say we?
[03:17]
A
Yeah, we're pregnant. We have our third baby coming in January. It was a really sweet moment when I told my parents because like this third baby is kind of like when I look at all my dreams as a little girl, like when I have this third baby, like, all my dreams will have come true.
[03:37]
B
Yeah.
[03:37]
A
I always saw myself as a mom of three minimum. You know, I've always said minimum. Right. For maximum. And so it's like, it's so crazy that it's like actually all happening. And my dad, after I told my dad, he walked out, he goes, you know, all my dreams are coming true because all your dreams are coming true.
[03:59]
B
Wow.
[04:00]
A
It was so sweet.
[04:01]
B
I know. I heard him whisper something and then he, whenever he knows he's about to say something sentimental, he starts tearing up.
[04:07]
A
So I was like, my dad's very sentimental. My mom's like, wow, like, how are we gonna do another baby? Ooh. Guys, you know how much our family loves Minky Couture blankets. I'm most upset because Stella steals mine all the time and she's never stolen my blankets before, but she's obsessed. I actually am gonna order her like the kids version. They're seriously the softest, coziest blankets ever. And they just look so luxurious when you have them out on your sofa in your bed. We have one just in about every room in our house and so I can have one available at all times because that's how much we love them. Mickey Couture is the creator of the original Hugs blanket. A stretchy, plush and double sided blanket that hugs you right back. That's so true. I didn't realize how much they like, they have like a stretch to them. It really does feel like a hug. That's why our family loves them so much. Mickey Couture is a female owned business love that started by a mother who wanted to provide luxurious comfort to her daughter. Plus, they are also passionate about giving back to the community. Donating over 30, 000 mini minkies to NICU across the country every year. There are so many different colors and sizes. There's a Minky for everyone in your life, which means it is the perfect gift for loved ones this holiday season. Stella and Stratton love them so much that they have actually asked for the kids sized ones for Christmas. It's serious blanket ever. It's so soft. The most luxurious feeling and looking blanket I've ever owned. You guys have to try them and right now you can get them for half off. Visit softminky blankets.com and use code D influence 50 at checkout for 50% off of all full price blankets. That's softminky blankets.com use code D influence 50 for 50% off of all full priced blankets. Truly the best holiday Christmas gift for pretty much anyone in your family.
[05:47]
B
If you've heard of Ozempic or Wegovy, you've probably heard three things. They're effective but they're expensive and they're hard to get. That's where RO comes in. We've talked about Ozempic here on the podcast as it took the Internet by storm and proved to be really helpful for those in need. But with the heightened awareness of GLP1s and what they can do for people who are overweight, it became harder to access. That's where Robody comes in. We're huge fans in this house of getting medical care and support you need. Conveniently through RO you can access prescription compounded GLP1s with the same weight loss ingredient as brand name GLP1s at a fraction of the cost. RO has compounded GLP1s in stock. Now you can get it in one to four days if you qualify. RO members have support through the process if you if eligible for medication, patients have access to their provider on demand for any questions and you can see if you qualify from the comfort of your home. The this means no scheduling a doctor's appointment, no commute to the doctor's office, and no waiting rooms, which may eliminate a barrier for someone's GLP1s to help. If prescribed, your medication ships directly to you in one to four days. Go to ro co Danny the membership starts at $99 for your first month. Medication costs are separate. That's r o dot co Dani to learn more go to rode.com safety for black box warning and full safety information. Compounded medication is not required to and does not receive FDA review or approval. RX only.
[07:21]
A
Landon getting engaged Big the miracle from God Himself we never thought it would happen.
[07:30]
B
We tried though. We tried to. We tried to force the timing before.
[07:34]
A
I tried.
[07:35]
B
We ran three three seasons of the Matchmaker for this guy and you.
[07:39]
A
So true.
[07:40]
B
You can't put a square peg in a round hole. It's.
[07:42]
A
Well, you can't. You can't force love. You know?
[07:45]
B
You can't force it.
[07:45]
A
And you know what? Like, God. God's timing, baby, not Danny's timing.
[07:50]
B
Y.
[07:50]
A
She tried. She tried to push it along. And God said, I got the perfect girl in mind for Elena. You just wait, baby girl. It's really all about me.
[07:59]
B
You know, the craziest thing is I really have never seen him like this ever before, ever. And that's why it feels very divine. And maybe this is, like, comforting for, you know, anyone single out there, but it was like he was so just not ready. I mean, we. We kept forcing, and we're like, man, this girl's not gonna make it till Thanksgiving. And when he met the right girl.
[08:22]
A
Either, to be honest.
[08:23]
B
No, I know that. But when he was sure. He's sure.
[08:26]
A
I've never seen. I've never seen him sure about anything like that. And I'm so happy. But I'm gonna be so big. Atlanta, Olivia's wedding, and I'm a bridesmaid, and, like, I'll be at the point in, like, pregnancy where, like, things are, like, actually big. Like, you know, like, there's a point when it's like, oh, she's cute. Like, he's pregnant. But, like, this is, like, when your nose starts to split and look like it's two noses in one. And it starts to, like, your voice starts to change. Like, it sounds like you're like an old man. You're like. Like, you know when. Like, you remember, like, my laugh changes whenever I. Do you remember, like, I got a really good voice with Stratton.
[08:59]
B
Yeah.
[09:00]
A
Do you remember my voice was, like, really raspy, and my. And, like, baby was, like, sitting on my diaphragm. And, like, I was, like, good singer. I was.
[09:10]
B
You were. It was incredible. It was like Selen Dion was my wife.
[09:14]
A
It was, like, low and, like, sexy.
[09:16]
B
Yeah, like Adele. That's. A lot of people said you sounded like Adele at that time.
[09:20]
A
I have gotten that before.
[09:22]
B
Try and sing Rolling in the Deep one more time.
[09:25]
A
Just wait till I'm, like, six weeks, six months pregnant, then I'll sing. She'll.
[09:29]
B
That'll be the intro song.
[09:30]
A
We. Okay. We have a. Did I tell you that I did it?
[09:35]
B
Did what?
[09:36]
A
Okay, so the wedding. My brother's wedding is this weekend. It's miracle. Did you ever think we would be saying this?
[09:44]
B
Well, yeah. I mean, three. What, three seasons of the Matchmaker Yeah.
[09:47]
A
Three seasons. Three seasons. And I'm so excited. I'm so obsessed with Olivia. They moved back to Nashville, as you guys know. That's probably where they're gonna end up for good, and. Which I hate. But it's okay. I understand that they love it.
[10:01]
B
I don't know. You might be close to moving there on the path that you're on.
[10:05]
A
We'll see. Maybe when I finish the book, we'll talk about it, but. Okay. So I really wanted to. This wedding process has been very stressful for them. And sweet Olivia, she's so sweet that I think that sometimes she. It's hard for her to make decisions because she doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, which is just. It's the best thing about her. Because I'm like, olivia, who cares? It's your wedding. You do what you want to do. And she's like, I want everybody to be happy and comfortable. And, like, it's really sweet.
[10:37]
B
We're so. Olivia and I are such a counterbalance to the Austin family. Yeah, a great counterbalance to the Austin family.
[10:44]
A
It's. It's so true. Like, we need y'all. So I called their. And I'm sharing this because this will come out after their wedding.
[10:54]
B
Yeah.
[10:55]
A
And I don't know how I'm going to surprise them. Did I already talk about this on the podcast?
[10:58]
B
I have no idea what you're talking about.
[10:59]
A
So I called their wedding planner and I was like, is there anything that Landon Olivia really wanted for their wedding, but they cut because of budget? Like, you know, or they just, like, decided it wasn't smart and they wanted to spend money, like, in a smarter way. And she's like, oh, well, there was this room that there. There's like a cocktail hour in, and Olivia really wanted to drape one side of it to make it feel more intimate. I was like, no, no, no. I was like, no, I'm not doing drapes. I was like, okay, what else? And she's like, well, there's like, you can get, like, a wedding stylist and she can come the day of and help all the bridesmaids. And like, no, no, no, no. I'm like, I'm looking for, like, the wow factor. I'm looking for the oohs and the ahs. And she's like, well, there was something that your brother really wanted. I was like, tell me more. She's like, we have these nine foot LED robots that come and dance on the dance floor and, like, break dance on the dance. And your Brother was really excited about them, but they were just like, it didn't make sense at the budget. And I was like, yes.
[12:07]
B
Bingo.
[12:08]
A
Bingo.
[12:09]
B
I was like, they're nine feet tall.
[12:11]
A
I don't. I don't remember. I think I said nine foot, cuz I just bought that nine foot nutcracker. No, I think they're. No, I'm sorry. I think they're taller. They walk around on stilts.
[12:19]
B
Wait, they like as in, oh, I got two.
[12:22]
A
So I told them my budget. First of all, these things are outrageous. Okay? Let me tell you. At first I was like, you know, I want to put a couple grand in there. Like, I want it to be a big. Like, this is. I love them. This is my. The only. Like, this is the most important wedding of the year for me. And she told me that for like. I mean, I think it was for like two. It was for two robots. It was me, like six grand or something.
[12:46]
B
Wait, can you guys up? Yeah, I have to see these.
[12:49]
A
So I got the discounted version. I got the tissue.
[12:54]
B
It's from like, Alibaba. They like explode and it becomes a fire hazard.
[12:59]
A
They like, glue those little glow sticks on them.
[13:01]
B
Like, wait, so I'm just so confused. These are robots.
[13:06]
A
But here's the thing. I haven't told them yet. And the thing I told that. And I'm really trusting the wedding planet planner here because I was like, listen, like, what if Olivia didn't want these? Yeah, like, what if this was like. Like, Landon thought it was cool. And Olivia was like, no, that's tacky. And she was like, no, no, no. Like, Olivia thought it was cool too. And I was like, okay, well, I'm trusting you because we're gonna have nine foot LED robots on the dance floor.
[13:32]
B
So is the moment that they are gonna find this out the moment these, like, come out from the smoke machine, like, onto the dance floor. And everyone's just like. Everyone's just like, what is this?
[13:42]
A
So I. I don't know. I haven't planned it out yet how. How it's gonna happen. Maybe I just won't say anything. And I'll be like, I don't know. And if it goes over a ball, I'll be like, it was me.
[13:55]
B
Oh, my gosh. I mean, Landon will for sure freak out. Everyone else is going to be in a state of utter confusion.
[14:02]
A
Let's see.
[14:03]
B
But it will get the party started. 100. So you're telling me those are robots or that's a costume that someone gets?
[14:13]
A
Oh, yeah, I'm Sorry. It's a costume that somebody gets in.
[14:15]
B
Okay. That's what I was confused about, Danny.
[14:17]
A
Oh, I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
[14:18]
B
I was like. You bought nine foot robots?
[14:20]
A
Like, no, but look how cool they look. You don't like it?
[14:25]
B
No, it's. It's.
[14:26]
A
Your face is not.
[14:27]
B
No, it's incredible. It's incredible.
[14:29]
A
Look at it dance.
[14:31]
B
So you both had to hire someone to be on the stilts?
[14:35]
A
Yeah, that's why they were so expensive.
[14:37]
B
So.
[14:37]
A
And this is a good market if anybody's looking for a job. There's so many ways to make money these days. Oh, my God.
[14:41]
B
You know how, like, Jake Paul walks out with that robot when he boxes?
[14:45]
A
Yes.
[14:46]
B
That's what it reminded me of. And that's what it looks like. Like, that's crazy.
[14:50]
A
Yeah, so that'll be me. I guess if they need a third one, I could suit up.
[14:55]
B
Babe, you can't do that. You. You got a bunch of hate for being on a ladder.
[14:58]
A
People are so upset about my ladder content, and I'm like, don't tell me what to do. Like, I'm a woman still. I'm not, like, gonna be a bedridden. It's just. You know what's so crazy? I was looking back at Stratton's. What?
[15:13]
B
Nothing.
[15:13]
A
What?
[15:14]
B
It's just most of the time you are better.
[15:16]
A
No, I know. It's true.
[15:18]
B
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[18:30]
A
I agree, but there's been some really cool, encouraging moments like getting an all doors Ulta. That was a huge moment in 2020. 2023 because I can't say 2023 because we were in Ulta. We were first online and then we got into like their Sparked category which was kind of like their new beauty. And then now we're in basically all doors Ulta on the shelf. Top shelf. People text me, send me pictures, you know, was there the other day. My friend Brianna was there all day. Every single hair vitamin, sold out. The shampoo, completely sold out. Like scalp serum, totally sold out. And like, people send me screenshots of that all the time. And that is so cool. It's so crazy. I just never thought that such a big retailer would ever notice us like that. And it's just very humbling. And so all doors. Ulta was probably, I mean, top five like work moment ever in my career. Divi launched in Ulta at Target.
[19:33]
B
Crazy.
[19:34]
A
Crazy. Because that was when I. When Divi had one skew. My goal was to get it at Ulta by Target.
[19:44]
B
Does it feel like we're in Target? I feel like you and I both have been stressed about so many other things that it, like the Target, the fact that we're in Target kind of just like happened and we haven't really like high fived or celebrated about it.
[19:56]
A
Well, you know, these things take so long. Like, we knew this was happening months ago, but.
[20:00]
B
Right.
[20:01]
A
It's just now actually happening. So it doesn't feel like it happened because we've been working on it for like four or five months.
[20:06]
B
That's true.
[20:07]
A
You know, it's true. It's not like a moment. Like, it's like this has been like a process.
[20:11]
B
I think we should go to Cabo to kind of just like celebrate all these.
[20:14]
A
I think we should go to Target and look at it.
[20:16]
B
Okay.
[20:16]
A
And then go to Cabo.
[20:18]
B
Okay. I. I can, I can agree to that plan. But all stores, all Ulta by Targets. That's a big deal, babe.
[20:28]
A
When I'm telling you, it's just wild.
[20:30]
B
It's wild.
[20:31]
A
You know, it was the craziest thing to me though, to be honest.
[20:34]
B
How Divi was number four on Prime Day.
[20:36]
A
That too.
[20:37]
B
Yeah. WWD article. That was big.
[20:41]
A
That one. Ulta by Target and wwd, like were bucket list for me and they all.
[20:48]
B
Happen in one week.
[20:49]
A
I know. I feel nothing.
[20:52]
B
No, I mean, like, Divi has like some of the best researchers, innovators, product development people, marketers, like, talent at the company. It's just been a. It's been a hard thing just keeping that together. Keeping a team together just requires so much leadership and leadership requires so much time. And time is what we have the least of. And so it's just been like identifying that gap and that, you know, weakness and then figuring out how to fill it. Whether that means like, hey, like, I don't Know if I should be in this, like, CEO role anymore. Like, should I hire someone else? And so, yeah, that's just been tough.
[21:29]
A
Yeah. Okay, so basically, let me just give you a background. We launched Divi in 2021.
[21:34]
B
Self funded.
[21:35]
A
Self funded. We worked out of Stratton's. He wasn't born yet, but we worked out of his nursery. That's where we hired our first two employees, and we launched with just our Hero Skew, which was our scalp serum that I created with a chemist, essentially, and launched that and really had no idea where this thing could go. And it grew really fast. The first year, we did 40 million in sales of just that one skew. And that was mainly because that was even outside of me. It was like, mainly because of the. Just, like, the word of mouth, the before and after pictures, people like, the testimonies.
[22:16]
B
We've sold a million bottles of that serum now.
[22:18]
A
Over a million.
[22:19]
B
Over a million.
[22:19]
A
I think it's like 1.2 million of those. Yeah.
[22:23]
B
And so did not expect that.
[22:25]
A
Yeah. And so, honestly, ever since then, every product that we've come out with since has just been, like, listening to y'all and, like, hearing kind of what your concerns are, what your hair problems are, and coming out with solutions for that. So now we have eight SKUs, which is still, like, really small, you know?
[22:40]
B
Yeah, it's.
[22:41]
A
But, you know, we got into Ulta Ulta by Target on Amazon. And I have a lot of. I still have a lot of dreams for Divi. I want to go international. I also want to go more domestic because we actually did this. This, like, survey, and Divi has actually pretty low brand awareness. Like, if you took. I think. How many people did they take? A thousand?
[23:05]
B
No, I don't know how they ran the survey, but our overall awareness score is 6%.
[23:10]
A
So that means if you take 100 people, only six people. So like, a random people.
[23:13]
B
A neutrophil is, like, 80%.
[23:15]
A
Yeah. So if you take, like, a hundred random people all over the country and you ask them, do you know about divi? Out of 100, only six people knew, which is really exciting for us because that means that there's so much more growth that we could, you know, have. And there's some, like, major cities that I really want to hit, like Chicago and some of the west coast and east coast, because we're really, like, heavy in the middle, but not so much in, like, the coast. The coast. So anyway, there's just. We have a lot of dreams. We hired our first CEO this year, January In January. And that's why Jordan and I have a marriage again. It was really hard. He was CEO for a couple years and never again.
[24:00]
B
Guys, I think hardest job in the world.
[24:01]
A
Well, I think what we like to do together is we like to, to start companies and to like, grow them from zero to something, but not like, run the company.
[24:10]
B
Yeah. The way I, the way I characterized it is like, you know, when you're the CEO, you're responsible for everything. And I'm glad I had that experience for two years. But I like where I'm at now. Technically, my role is chairman.
[24:22]
A
Yeah.
[24:23]
B
And I'm like, fun uncle.
[24:24]
A
You get to come in.
[24:25]
B
I like to come in. I don't have to deal with any of the drama. And I can be like, hey, guys, like, we should do this idea. Like TikTok shop is popping off. We should work on it. And then like, you know, there's smart people that like, actually execute actually the work.
[24:39]
A
Yeah. Which is so great. And so anyway, we. In June you said.
[24:45]
B
Yeah, in June, we started a process to find a. They typically call them like growth partners or private equity partners.
[24:53]
A
Can I actually, like, go back a little bit?
[24:55]
B
Yeah.
[24:56]
A
To be honest, we didn't really start it. I feel like we were approached a lot. Like, my email every single day was like, 10 PE firms being like, we want to work with you, we want to partner with divvy. Do you want to sell one day? And I was like, no, I don't want to sell. I like, no, we're self funded. We don't need you. Da, da, da, da. And then like these emails just kept coming in, kept coming in, and we started having like, more conversations and we were like, wait, these people really know what they're talking about.
[25:22]
B
Well, so here's what I would say is like the reason. And I don't know how much people care about this, but we'll put it in the podcast. So, like, basically, I think that companies that are bootstrapped, you know, you typically have what I think are like, very founder led companies. That's when the magic happens. Right. You have these like, really cool stories of companies popping off because it has a extremely passionate founder behind it. Right. So usually the challenge is when you bring in like other partners or other money, you kind of lose some of the magic. Right. And so we had always been like, hey, we don't, we don't really need other people to like, run our company. Like, we're well capitalized. It's a successful company.
[25:58]
A
Well, we were trying to like, you know, they say, walk before you run. We weren't trying to grow really fast. I was like, I don't want more stress.
[26:04]
B
So we would have a lot of these investment groups reaching out. And, you know, usually they want to get in early enough. And typically what happens is they'll say, hey, like, let us invest. We'll help you do this, we'll help you do that. We'll help you grow. And we just kind of ignored their emails. Like, I remember snoozing a lot of them. Because I was just like, I don't.
[26:21]
A
Now I look back at, like, who are snoozing? I'm like, no, I know, it's horrible.
[26:25]
B
No, it's so funny. Like, I will say this and we'll. We'll finish this story. The group that we ended up going with, I'm there. I'm really close with them now. Like, I've never asked this question. I think that they showed up in Dallas, like, three times just being like, hey, we're in Dallas. And I literally snooze the email.
[26:44]
A
We're like, sorry, we're watching the football game.
[26:46]
B
But no, I never would even respond because I never wanted to give anyone hope or because if you get.
[26:51]
A
And I didn't know who they were.
[26:52]
B
No, yeah. I knew who all the groups were. They're very prestigious. Like, there's a group. Blackstone is like a big, huge. They did goop. Like, all of them were like, world class premium, built the largest beauty brands type of companies. But I just didn't want to entertain anything and give anyone false hope. So I would snooze.
[27:11]
A
Oh, false hope. I just didn't know who they were. I was like, can you leave me alone?
[27:15]
B
Yeah. Yeah. What's so funny?
[27:18]
A
And then they would get my phone number and call me.
[27:20]
B
Yes.
[27:21]
A
They would call randomly and I would, like, answer, and they're like, hi, this is so and so. And I would just be like, okay, can you call my husband? Yeah, I'm like, I don't know. I'm doing my makeup right now. Can you please call my husband? No.
[27:32]
B
What's hilarious. This is what's so funny is that, like, you know, we have an email for Danny that's like her divi email. But, like, it was really set up just for, like, like, insurance purposes because.
[27:44]
A
Like, I use it.
[27:46]
B
You do?
[27:46]
A
I mean, like, probably once every two weeks.
[27:48]
B
Well, what's so funny is, like, they would get my email and they would never get a response. And they would just email you, but it's forwarded to me. So I would just be like, hey, it's still me again. We're not looking for capital right now. But anyway, so, yeah, we would. We kind of just tried to, like, leapfrog the whole bringing in investors. But I think that what really changed our tune was, like, Divi grew so fast, and we were so tired as founders that, like, we really just kind of, like, needed help knowing, like, okay, if we want this to be a global brand, you know, there's like, kind of a mental toll that that would take on us by doing it alone. Yeah, for sure that we're.
[28:25]
A
And there's a lot of. There's a lot bringing in people that have kind of done this before. But also it. It came when, like, I just knew we were ready. I felt like we had. We had accomplished the goals that I wanted Divi to accomplish. And the next set of goals was over my head. Yeah, like, it was. It was over my head. I didn't know how to do it. And there was too much on the line. There's too many people's jobs at risks. At risk. There's too many. There's like. It's just. You can't make a wrong step. Like, maybe you kind of can, but, like, I wanted someone to kind of hold our hands and. And help us going globally if we ever went into other retailers or just, like, building our relationship with. With Ulta. There's a lot of, like, politics that go into the beauty space too. Like, that you just don't know how to navigate unless you've done it before. And so once I knew we were ready, I was like, okay, we can start having the conversation, but we're gonna, like, still maintain majority of our company. It's gonna be a minority partner that comes in that has a ton of experience and can just help us get from point A to point B. And so we did, like, tons of interviews and talked to so many firms, and we found a firm that I personally love because it was an all female team. Not only were they all female, but do you remember the first time that we, like, hung out with them? I was like, babe, I love them. I could have a sleepover with them. And I'm so sick of, like, it's. It's. It can be really hard working with men in the beauty space. Like, I remember one of the scientists that we almost worked with was completely bald. Yes. And now we have an all. And like, you live and learn, right? And. And he was a. He was a male, and he was not our demo. He had no idea what like, influencing was. And it was just so hard to create products with him because I want someone I can, like, text at, like, 7pm and be like, hey, girl, how's it going? What's the smell like? Should it smell more fruity? Should it smell, you know, whatever? And that's why we brought in, like, a female team of scientists. Because, like, I want. Not only that, but I want these girls to be the ones that, like, they're creating it for people like themselves too, you know? And so when I met with this team, I was like, not only are they all female, they're also, like, kind of around my age. Well, not. Not Sonya, but, like, some of the other girls on the team. And they're. They're like, our demo. Like, they get it. And they were young, and they were so smart. Like, one of them went to Harvard, right?
[30:57]
B
No, they pretty much all went to Harvard.
[30:59]
A
They all went to Harvard. No, they all went to Cal. Cal Poly.
[31:02]
B
They're all really smart.
[31:03]
A
They're also. They're just smart people. Smart gals. And so I just felt. I was like, we have some synergy here. Like, I can tell. Not only do they care, but they're the demo. And, like. And here's the thing. Like, it's so fun to work on growing a brand and growing products that you actually love. Thank you guys for listening. We will see you guys in 2024. We love our D influence community. Please note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.