← Life with Marianna
Life with Marianna
How Crown Affair is Building an Efficacious Brand: Founder Dianna Cohen on Lessons Learned, Balancing Growth with Creativity, and Cultivating Self-Care Rituals
00:37:22
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- [00:00]
A
The following podcast is a Dear Media Production. Hi, it's Mariana. I'm the co founder of Summer Fridays and host of the Life with Mariana podcast. In this episode I've got the founder of Crown Affair, Diana Cohen, and we are talking all about her amazing brand that I love. In this episode I'm gushing because I use so many of their products and I'm so impressed by how the brand visually looks and how the products work. I wanted to dive more in this episode and talk to a fellow Sephora founder about this brand on the lessons that she's learned, how she balances growth with creativity, her self care rituals, and how she's really building Crown Affair to this efficacious beautiful brand. If you guys want to learn from Diana, keep listening and don't forget to subscribe to my podcast because I've got new episodes every Tuesday. So I was doing my research and obviously just from like knowing you watching your tick tocks, I know that you had this long career prior to starting your own brand and I think sometimes people see founders and they're like, oh, you just magically popped up with like a company one day. But there was so much work that you did prior and I think the thoughtfulness of that shows in how beautiful your brand is. So can you give us a quick little backstory, people that don't know like what led you to Crown Affair?
- [01:10]
B
Yeah, absolutely. No. I was definitely in the trenches and very behind the scenes for like a decade before even launching Crown Affair. So I grew up in a small town in South Florida. My dream was to go to nyu. I got in, I went to nyu. When I started there, like the Internet wasn't what it is today. So my dream was to like go work at Vogue and have this like really traditional career. But by the time that I graduated, it was very clear that like the Internet was happening in the way that it is. So my last internship, which turned into a job, was at into the Gloss. I was doing editorial production. It was really tiny. It was. The Gloss was a one room office above the Crate and Barrel in soho. And you know, that was where I just became obsessed with beauty. But I was really, really lucky. I worked at a number of consumer brands through that decade. So after into the Gloss, I worked at a company called Spring, which was like early days of mobile shopping apps. It was an incredible experience, was there for about two and a half years. I was introduced to Tamar Mellon, who founded Jimmy Choo, and I worked with her on launching her direct to consumer shoe line. After That I was introduced to the girls at away, the luggage company was the eighth employee there. So that was like a crazy time building that early days of the D2C space. And then I launched my own brand agency called Lavitate, where I would do go to market strategies. And I worked with brands like Harry's to launch their women's line, Flamingo. I worked with Outdoor Voices, I worked with the wing. So I was very much behind the scenes as like, a marketer for a long time before finally deciding to go out and build Crown Affair.
- [02:36]
A
And at this time, when you're working at these places, are you thinking to yourself, I'm going to start my own brand one day?
- [02:42]
B
No. I think. I think for me, I've always been guided by the same mission, which is I just want to make things that change the way people feel about themselves. And it's kind of corny to say because I think all of us as entrepreneurs are, like, focused on the end goal. It's like, why you get excited to do it. But I actually genuinely, like, love the process. Like, I always say, I'm like, if everything ended tomorrow, like, I'd be like, wow, that was the most amazing part. Like, can't believe I got to do this every day. So I think I've always known that I've been, like, addicted to being in environments where you, like, have an impact and you see what you're doing. Like, I don't think I'd be a very good corporate employee, if I'm being totally honest with you. But that was before I knew I wanted to, like, start my own thing. I definitely knew when I was doing levitate and helping build other people's businesses and spending a decade doing that, you definitely get this gut feeling where you're like, I should probably, like, not keep giving away my special. It's probably time for me to do something. So that was when I knew there was, like, a very instinctive feeling where I was like, I'm ready to do this on my own.
- [03:38]
A
So from your lessons from having your agency to working at away, what were some of those things that you incorporated into your own brand when you thought about the branding and the brand that you wanted to create?
- [03:49]
B
Yeah, I mean, first and foremost, I ended up working with the creative director that I worked with at away. So I say this all the time. I'm like, you have to start assembling your Avengers team. I think it's so great to have a career. And I really always give this advice. And same with you, right? Like, you worked with so many different brands that you knew exactly what you wanted by the time that you actually built your thing. So for me, it was like I had all these people from my career, like a really good social media person and a really great graphic designer and a really good product person. So that was one of the big takeaways, was like, I needed to work at these places to surround myself with the people I wanted to launch the thing with. Had I tried to launch Crown Affair on my own years ago before that, I wouldn't have had that group. So that was a really big one. Working with Sho on the creative direction, who shows the designer he's a Japanese artist, and building out the whole brand system and visual literacy. There was a lot that we referenced to the way. For example, a really important piece of the Crown Affair identity is our mark. It's this really beautiful little, like, squiggle labyrinth tendril. And I remember going back and forth for hours with show because when we were at away, we had the AWAY logo, which everyone knows. It's like the box logo, which was its own journey, by the way, because you'd send it and people wouldn't understand that the logo had like a. It was a box. People would just think it was the text. So you learn all these little things, but there was also this really amazing, like, airplane window with an A and then like a line down the plane. We ended up totally scrapping it. But like, these little elements of like, I think Loewe does a great job at this. It's like you have the Loewe text logo and then you also have the logo itself. So there were all these little things that, like, we really got to kind of work out together. When I was at away, that by the time we got to Crown Affair, it was like, what are our brand systems? What does our typeface look like? Color stories. I mean, you learn so much about what makes a brand work. And I think at a place like Away, for example, when the company went into market, there were two really big competitors. The company called Radon and a company called Blue Smart. And I love that you're like, I was shaking your head because they were big. Like, they were like, why would you go work at this tiny little new place that no one knows about? Both of those companies got totally taken by the knees by having too much inventory when the regulation changed at the airlines. You know how you go to the airport and they're like, excuse me, take your batteries out of your bag. That was not the case when all of these companies launched. So when the regulation changed with the lithium batteries, Steph and Jen, the CEO and founders of Away, like, had a ninja system of, like, the first thing in the. Or, like, last thing in, first thing out. Like, the way that we rolled that out. So there was just so much I learned, too, about, like, operations, inventory management, you know, being nimble. Like, someone could be the biggest company one day and then the next they're not even around. And I think that's such an important thing for a founder mindset too, because you cannot get distracted by what's around you. It's a weird duality of being like, I need to understand the landscape and connect the dots, but I also need to, like, really focus on what makes me me.
- [06:41]
A
Yeah, I think you do such a great job is that I think because we're both in Sephora, I'm always looking at Sephora brands. Like, I think that's, like, the world that we live in. Even though I look at outside things. And I think because I hear you talk a lot about art and film and you go to art shows and you go to Burning man and all these things, I think you have these external references that aren't just in this world where things can all sort of look the same. So how did you decide, okay, this is how I'm going to stand out in a Sephora world? And did you know you were launching at Sephora when you launched the brand? Or what came first?
- [07:08]
B
Great question. Also, I think it's so important. I always say, I studied art history in college. Art history in Italian. Much to my dad being like, why am I sending you to NYU for this? I'm like, I promise it will mean something one day. I need to be in those environments and spaces to come back and see it. I did not know we were going to launch in Sephora. Sephora Day one. And, you know, a little inside baseball. Like, you can tell based off our early packaging design. Like, I didn't have any Sephora experience. Once you're in these environments, you know what you need to do for visual merchandising for packaging. Like, our conditioner does not fit on shelves. Like, things like that, you know, where you're like, oh, if only I knew all of this stuff before. I knew in my gut that if there was ever a retailer we were going to go with, it was Sephora. Because I love Sephora and it really, I think, merges prestige, but makes it fun and an experience. But our first partners were Violet, Gray and Goop. So I was really building the brand that's Where I was shopping for hair care personally has been on Violet Gray for the last 10 years. So when it came to building out the brand, I was looking more at those businesses. And candidly, like, the brands that I admire, like a Chanel, for example, like, those are the brands that I had been referencing when designing it. And it's such a privilege and fun exercise to, like, bring that energy into a Sephora space. But I totally agree with you. Like, now that we're in Sephora, you know, we did two years D2C and, like, more strategic retail, and then year two, we launched in Sephora. And I have learned so much. And it's funny because I am looking at brands that, like, maybe I wasn't shopping personally before, but now that we're in this environment, as a founder, you really need to think about, like, how you stand out and compete. And it's something that I was not expecting to do, but it's a fun challenge.
- [08:45]
A
Something I noticed too. Maybe it was, like, sometime earlier this year, I felt like it was more of the same, but there was, like, a shift in the content where I felt like it was, like, more, like, organic. There was more, like, floral and other things. So when do you know that it's time to continue to evolve what the brand looks like? It's not a refresh, but it's like, okay, we want to, like, push ourselves a little bit more.
- [09:03]
B
Oh, no, it's a. You're right. It's not a brand refresh in the sense that, like, the brand system remains true. And the thing that I built with show. So, like, the typeface, the logo, the colors, all core brand system locked. And, like, that was my vision. I'd love for that to continue forever. I think it is so important to evolve as a brand, because when we launched Crown Affair a little less than five years ago, like, it felt really fresh. Like, the way that we shot our hair towel was inspired by Vermeer's Girl with the Pearl Earring. And I hired my friend Vanessa, who's an incredible photographer, and my friend Juliana Salazar, who's an amazing stylist. And, like, brought in, like, a very different crew at the time. Hair assets were, like, very traditional, very salon, very E commerce y almost feeling. And I was like, this needs to feel like a painting. And I remember actually our first meetings with Sephora. They were, like, excited, but also, like, hadn't really seen these type of visuals before. Flash forward, you know, four or five years later, a lot of stuff starts to look like Crown Affair, which is part of the game, by the way, for anyone out there listening, like, you just have to keep going. Like, don't put anyone else down. Like, if you're doing good work, you're gonna be copied. Just confirm and accept that that's part of it. Flatter. It's flattering. Anyway, things. I turn to the end of the aisle and see another end cap, and I'm like, that looks like our mom. I mean, the joke is there's this amazing girl we hired who is literally on four different hair care brands now and had never done hair care before. Crown of Fairy, like, found her in the depths of Instagram, and I'm like, good for her. I'd rather her get, you know, have that career. But all of this is to say I think it's really important to keep evolving. And Crown Affair is, like, very much me as a person. Like, it's all of my visual literacy and things that I love, like the Ed Ruscha paintings that I love and the Brancusi sculptures that I love. And, like, there's actually weird, like, Jim Henson, Fraggle Rock dark crystal references in the brand and very. Some Lord of the Rings type of stuff, too, which is just me being a weirdo in middle school, you know, and, like, the essence of me. So I think it's actually important to acknowledge that, like, not everyone's going to resonate with that, and that's not for everyone. So once your business hits a certain point, it's actually really important to bring in people who have fresh perspectives. So it's very observant of you. We did that this year for the first time, because the truth is, is, like, if I keep posting bonsai trees and labyrinths, like, the brand's not gonna grow. So we hired an amazing creative director named Dani, who we had dipped our toe with. We worked with her on a holiday campaign as a freelancer. She, like, didn't wanna do full time, and we were like, we think you're our girl. Hilariously. She actually grew up in Boca near me and went to a high school down the street. She's a little younger than me. She's like a younger redhead version of me. And she's funkier. Like, she's got more of, like a Baz Luhrmann kind of, like, bold energy, which, like, I wouldn't say is my core visual literacy. But she's able to take what she does and make it so much bolder. And it's honestly the results and the impact of the creative that she's doing. And I look at everything and I prove stuff. But I think being a great leader is also bringing in talent and just letting them do their thing. And the last 10 months that she's been with us, I feel like there's been such a shift, and it's so incredible to get the feedback and hear from, like, you being, like, it feels different. It feels more floral. It feels more this. Like, that's all her.
- [12:09]
A
I love it. It's so beautiful. And, like, I think as brand founders and owners, we want to have the best people around us who are, like, smarter than us. It's, like, fine. And I think with you, because the way you speak about what the brand looks like, it's so hard to find people that have the taste level of what you're looking for. So the fact that you've been able to find someone who you respect and love and you're like, okay, great. Like, they understand the brand and can, like, elevate it even further is amazing. So that you can spend your time doing the things you really need to do for the business. I am so excited that it's November, because for me, this is the holiday season. I am so excited for this time of year. I'm already thinking about the gifts that I want to buy. What am I getting, who am I gifting and, like, making my list? If you're not, like, me and you haven't got all your holiday shopping done as early as you hoped? Because Ouai is making it really easy to give way better gifts this holiday. Their hair and body products are specifically designed to customize a routine that works for you and personalize a gift for everyone on your list. I love their products because they really work for my hair. And if you want somebody to feel confident and love their hair and have something specifically for them, I know there's something you'll definitely be able to find for them. And once we get into, like, this fall winter weather, my hair just feels so dry and dull, and I really need something to add a bunch of moisture into my hair. So there's way better gifts. With their bestsellers, their leave in conditioner is a multitasking leave in conditioner that detangles, hydrates, and fights frizz. For every hair type on your list, there's also the Detox shampoo, which for me, I go to a lot of events and holiday parties this time of year, and it really helps to cleanse product buildup. They've also got their St. Bart's hair and body mist, and it's really here to take you away in just a spray They've also got their hair oil and I like to apply this on damp hair before blow drying and it's really nutrient packed and helps revive damaged hair easily. Tis the season to get away and save. Whether the person on your list has fine, medium or thick hair or multiple hair concerns, Ouai's got you. Save 15% off site wide when you give the gift away. Get on your way to save for the holiday. Go to the ouai.com for 15% off site wide and enter promo code MARIANA15. That's T-E-O uai.com for 15% off off with code MARIANA15. This episode is brought to you by Saks. I'm so excited for holiday gift giving and finding inspiration because there are so many things that I'm looking for and so many different kinds of people I need to shop for on my Christmas list. Saks.com is making it really easy for me to gift the people that are really difficult and the pickiest on my list, including myself. I love looking by curated lists, especially when I'm a little bit stumped on what to buy. On Saks.com you can shop by Gifts for Her, Beauty Gifts, Gifts for Him, Stocking stuffers and more. And I want to share with you guys a few of my favorite things that I found on the site. I think one of the best gifts to give somebody, especially somebody who has it all, is a fragrance. I know that that's something that I really love to give other people because it just evokes this feeling of nostalgia as something so special and there's just so many memories tied to scent. One of my favorites that they have available here is Baccarat Rouge. You guys probably remember when this went viral and I love this scent, especially this time of year. Another one I love is Parfums de Marly and they have the Lena available here and it smells so delicious. It's got this fruity trio of lychee, rhubarb and bergamot. A top gift that I love and I love this one myself because I use this every time I style. My hair is my Dyson Airwrap and they have the special edition color here and it's so cute in like this baby pink and copper. So if you're looking for a gift for the hard to buy person, there are so many gifts on Saks.com guaranteed to bring joy for everyone on your list. Saks.com can also help you find your own holiday vibe. You can upgrade your party looks with a Chloe bag or Gucci loafers That work for any holiday get together. Find gifts guaranteed to bring joy to every heart. To shop for person this season@saks.com we've talked a lot about what the brand looks like visuals, but let's talk about the actual products. So what was your philosophy behind the products that you launched? And if somebody's trying the brand for the first time, where should they start?
- [15:49]
B
Yes. So it's so funny because people come to me and be like, wait, the product's even better than the packaging. And I feel like that's the biggest compliment of all time. So for me, I just always thought hair care was very overwhelming. Sku count is not the issue in this category. There are tons of options. I think it's actually understanding how to use products and when to use them. So for me, so much of the vision of Crown Affair is formulating and also innovating on components, thinking about how hair care actually fits into our lives as busy people. Knowing, like, I honestly formulate and think about products being like, when's my next wash day? Like, how is this going to get me to the next wash day? So whether that's with a dry shampoo that's not greasy and adds that buildup and it's just light and fluffy and you can travel with it. And I can go, I mean, I'll probably go seven days right now because of this dry shampoo, which I could not do with like an aerosol dry shampoo or a hair gel that you're like, I can use this hair gel and I'm gonna get home from that dinner I just went to and I don't have to wash my hair right now. The fact that I can brush it out so formula wise I needed it to be at the same level as the brands that I was shopping, like the luxury salon brands. But I wanted it to be so much better for you. And I don't blame those brands for not innovating. Like, some of those brands have been in the market for 20 years. They have, you know, massive businesses on individual skus alone. Like, if I were them, I probably wouldn't be like, hey guys, new formula. We've seen what happens when that happens, you know, when people reformulate to be cleaner and better and there's just so much innovation. And I think it's our responsibility as younger, more innovative brands to like present to the customer something totally new. But I wanted it to be that caliber. And I found that when I was trying clean hair care, it didn't always work. So I would try something and I'D go back to what I was using. So for me, the priority is performance and efficacy. And then the challenge is like, how do you make it better for you and make your hair healthier? Right. And clean Makeup has done this really well where it's like makeup with skincare benefits. And that's very much what I wanted to do.
- [17:42]
A
I love your products. I think I use probably something from you every day. So I always use my hair towel. I even have an extra one that I travel with because I don't wanna, like, use other towels when I'm elsewhere. And I always like to travel with, like, my mini shampoo and conditioner. I love my hair gel because I want my hair to be, like, when I put it up, I wanna still have, like, texture, and I don't want it to be, like, so wet and hard. So I want, like, movement, so, like, as natural as, like, a gel can look. So I love that for, like, my slick back. So it's like a textured slick back.
- [18:08]
B
Yeah.
- [18:09]
A
The dry shampoo smells so amazing. I love it. It's like this very, very fine powder. And I love, like, the application of putting it on. And then the hair clips I love too, because I'm an air dry girl. So in between when I have to my hair for work, on any other day, I'm just air drying my hair because I really want to take care of my hair health.
- [18:26]
B
Yes.
- [18:26]
A
Today I'm also using the hair oil. This is me being, like, sort of being like, oh, my God, these are all the products that I use. And then. Oh, and then lately I've been seeing the hair perfume going viral on TikTok. So I saw a video the other day and a girl, and she had three fragrances, and she was like, this is the fragrance combination. If, like, people, like, stop me down the street use these three things. And it was a hair perfume. So why hair perfume? Because I think, like, we're seeing this, like, fragrance boom happening where people are so excited for it, but I think they're newly dipping their toes into this kind of hybrid category.
- [18:58]
B
Yes. By the way, I love that those are all the products you use. Thank you. It's like, I can't even tell you, like, the feelings I'm feeling inside right now because you are such an amazing, like, you know beauty so well, and I think when you see someone doing great work, you're like, I get the product. So thank you. Also a good place to start. I feel like the towel, the gel, the oil, like, all easy things. So if anyone's out there, and they're like, I don't know where to start. I feel like those are really good gateway products. Okay. So when I started working on the brand, I was like, the thing that people keep saying is, like, they love the way things smell. Or I remember being excited to try a new product, and I would order it online and then I would put it in, and I'm like, it kind of gives me a headache. There's something weird with hair. It's not weird, it's science. Honestly, the way that scent lives in your hair is so different than the way that it lives on your body, the way that it lives in home. Like, thinking about a candle and developing scent for that. So I reached out. I literally did a cold email to our fragrance house that it was like my dream fragrance house and was like, would love to work with you. You know, here's my career. But, like, I'm starting this brand. Let me know if you want to take a meeting. And I just knew because of brands like or B2, it's like, fragrance is everything in this category. So that was really important to us. And people would ask to make a hair fragrance because they're like, I want something that, like, I want to always have to use a formula. Like, I just want something light. So took us a really long time because a lot of fragrance has a lot of alcohol in it. So you want to create something that has a carrier but isn't going to dry out your hair. So what I love about our fragrance is that it's also really hydrating, but ultimately, from a scent perspective and mixing it like, it's a really universal and honestly, unisex scent. Like, and our products are packaging is actually quite unisex as well, which is intentional. And I developed that fragrance with mixing in mind, because I knew if it was a hair fragrance first and it was in your shampoo or your hair oil, it needed to match with whatever you're putting on your body, whatever your scent is, whether you're more gourmand or anything. Like, it needs to go well. So I think that's why in that TikTok, she's like, the crown affair signature scent goes so well. It's because we formulated it knowing that people were going to also use another fragrance on their body.
- [20:56]
A
I think we formulate and we bring products to market that we love, and we never really know how people are going to respond to it. Like, you might be like, this is the most amazing product. Like, why are people not buying this? Or something is like a runaway hit that you're so kind of surprised about. Has there been any surprise bestseller where you're like, I loved it, but it got way bigger than we were anticipating?
- [21:14]
B
Yes. And I feel like you have this story as well, maybe even a few times. No. It's so funny. We always joke in the office where, like, we have like the underrated Crown Affair products, like, the things that for some reason just haven't hit right, but we know are amazing. Like the scalp scrub, for example. Like, it's not like this bestseller, but when I say it's like, probably one of the best formulas we make and the people who love it are like, can't get away from it. But for some reason it just hasn't organically had this like, pop off moment. Which is fine. We're never going to change it. It's. It's amazing. The Dry Shampoo, we, when I launched it, first of all, we were so tiny. It was like five of us. And like, I didn't even think about it. We weren't at Sephora yet. But I remember meeting with Priya, one of the heads at Sephora, and she was, she called it. She called it. She was like, this is going to be it. And I'm like, really? I'm pretty sure, like, hair oil is like the main thing, you know, you just don't know. And she was right. Within, like months. That was. Once we launched, that was the product that took off and has just been. Has had a life of its own, which is, which is really special. The air dry moves too. It's harder to make a call because we launched her this summer. So I try not to make like big calls on things until they've been in the world for a year. Because I'm sure you've seen too, like, you launched something and then like, the gel is a good example. We launched it. It did well in the beginning. It kind of got quiet and then it's that word of mouth that builds the business. So I always say, I mean, I'm really happy the Dry Shampoo and the Leave in are our two best sellers. But I know, and I'm sure you feel the same way. Like there's products you haven't even launched yet. That will be the thing that takes the business to the even next level. You know, it is so crazy to.
- [22:45]
A
Think about because we formulate so far in advance to where I'm like, the things that I'm using in my daily routine. There's something that Lauren and I are both using right now and she keeps getting Compliments on her skin every day. And it's really the only thing that she's changed. And we. It's not coming out for so long, and we're, like, dying to get it out into the world. And then it's, like, so painful, too, when you know something's launching and then another brand launches it first, and you're like, ours is coming. But people don't realize how far in advance we really work on things.
- [23:10]
B
Oh, my gosh, like, two and a half years. I was literally at our lab yesterday. We have a lab here in la, and I was like, when does this launch again? They're like, I think maybe 20, 27. I'm like, oh, my goodness. Like, and we've already been working on it, you know, for so long. Yeah, I feel that way. I felt that way about our hairspray. But I do think it's funny, like, and as a consumer, you just don't know, like, these things take so long. It's really important to look into, I think, the founders and the integrity of the brand, because there's so many different ways to formulate. And I think for you guys as well, it's like, we don't just, like, wake up one day being like, we want a hairspray. Like, and you can't just, like, go to a contract manufacturer. If you ask some of these people for a hairspray, they're going to give you what exists today. It really takes a long time to, like, come up with formulations that are innovative, do something different, live differently, and, like, all those little elements, from, like, how it feels in your hand to how it smells, to what it feels like in hair when it's wet or it's dry. What does it look like on day one? What does it look like on day four? What does it look like with all these different products? So it really does take time and I think too, of other people launch. I mean, people are constantly, again, like, excited. They see what you're doing, they launch their version. Or maybe someone launches something a couple, a quarter ahead of you. The end of the day. I think what's so beautiful about your brand as well is, like, there's such a strong brand lens that even if you're creating the same product, like, everything, someone can have the same idea. It's all in the execution, you know?
- [24:26]
A
Absolutely. So I think formulating skin and hair and all these categories, they all have their own challenges. And I don't even know where to begin with hair. What was something surprising when you started working and formulating on the brand that you just didn't know was so challenging.
- [24:40]
B
With hair specifically, I feel like surfactant systems are a tricky one. So making a moisturizing product like a leave in or a hair mask, I don't want to say it's easy, but they're definitely more universal. Like, depending, you could have so many different hair types, different hair lengths, you can pretty much use a moisturizing or hydrating product in the same way. Surfactant systems are a universe of their own. And, you know, we use naturally derived surfactant systems, so we don't use sulfates. Sulfates people know, like, aren't good for you. They're not. They're actually really not good. They overstrip your hair. But brands will replace them with pegs, which also aren't that great. So getting the surfactant systems right is like, has been a journey, but it's amazing. And I've learned so much about the science of hair and your scalp and thinking about hair as a fiber. Like, it is really different than skin, but it's also really similar in a lot of ways, too. For example, I can't say too much, but we're coming out with an innovation in, like, the conditioner space. Like, there's truly no other conditioner like this that I've ever seen. And a lot of the parallels come from skincare and honestly, Korean skincare and how they think about texture. So that's really cool. I feel so lucky to just have an education because I've learned things that I never thought I'd be learning.
- [25:53]
A
For me, I really think that my hair routine starts in the shower, and I think a lot of people will, like, skip on the shampoo and conditioner. They're fine buying from, like, mass or drugstore. And then they wonder why the products that they're using after the shower aren't working as well for, like, the style that they want. So why is it important that somebody can invest in good shampoo and conditioner? Like, I'm always like, yeah, guy that starts in the shower. Because if you don't use great things here, like, the end result's not going to be as good as you want it to be.
- [26:16]
B
Preach. I mean your words. Like, I. I feel like it's so funny. I talk to people and I am like a very. Like, there's no shade, there's no shame. Like, use whatever you want. People are like, I use whatever's in the shower or, I want to finish this thing that I have. But I'm like, it is so important to look at the ingredients in your products and find out what works for you. And it does start in the shower. Like if you are using a shampoo that is over stripping your scalp, think of it like a cleanser. You know when you use a cleanser and it's like over stripping, you end up over producing more oil. So people are like why is my hair getting greasy on day one? Or why isn't this holding? And it's like it really does start with the foundational products, a cleanser and a moisturizer. So like your other products are. It's the same with your skin, you know, like it's not going to work as well if you're not using products that foundationally set you up for success.
- [27:00]
A
So I don't have a lot of stuff in my kitchen, but there's one thing I have and it's my Our Place pan. I absolutely love this pan. I have it in two different sizes and I love that it actually just looks good enough to leave out. And on top of that it's actually just great for me to cook with because it's non toxic, healthy and a sustainable choice. Did you know that most of our cookware and appliances are made with Forever chemicals? Our Place is a mission driven and female founded brand that makes beautiful kitchen products that are healthy and sustainable. It really feels like beautiful art that you can just leave in your kitchen and it really elevates any home and makes you feel creative in the kitchen. Even when I'm just making my scrambled eggs in the morning. Find out why Our place has over 75,000 five star reviews on their award winning products and they've been mentioned in the New York Times, Bon appetit and more. And if you're looking for a air fryer toaster oven in one they have their Our Place wonder oven that's also free from Forever chemicals found in many air fryers. Upgrade to Our Place today and say goodbye to Forever Chemicals in your kitchen. Go to from Our Place.com and enter my code MARIANA at checkout to receive 10% off site wide. That's from Our Place.com code M A R I A N N A. Our place offers a 100 day trial with free shipping and returns. We've talked a lot about product. I want to talk a little bit more about like you and your self care and your routines because I love that you're being super active on social so I get a peek into your life. I love seeing like what you're shopping, what you're doing, how you Organize like your office at home. I liked your like office closet, clean out that you had recently. So what is balance like for you from working? Because you're working from home. Yes. I mean you have offices also, but I see you work from home a lot.
- [28:27]
B
Yes, I mostly work from home. So I'm based in Miami and have an office in my apartment. And then we have shared offices in New York and la, so my team can go in. But I really do empower people to work from home and find balance in their life. I think it's mostly because I came from cultures where that wasn't an option. So for me it's really important to create space, particularly in the morning. I'm like a morning rituals person. My husband makes so much fun of me. He's like, rituals are just your life, like every single point of your day. So for me, like waking up, having like an hour and a half at least to like stretch, journal, move my body in some way, meditate. Like I'm really. I. This year I finally committed to meditating and honestly the only way I really did it was doing a little practice pod with friends where every morning we'd send each other an emoji and we did 40 days in a row. And that just kept me going. So all of these things are really important to me. The artist's way is a really big part of my life. I try to do it once a year. For those who don't know, it's like a 12 week program that just kind of unlocks your creative potential. So honestly, these things keep me together as a human and I'm grateful to be in a season. You know, coming from companies that were very like much led by masculine energy, where it's like doing, doing, doing. Go build fast, break things. I'm just in a season of my life and honestly, it's one of, I think the positives of the pandemic was us learning like to be and kind of come from a place of feminine energy and rewire your brain to be like, oh, taking care of myself or resting or like doing these things actually makes the doing part better. So for me it's like knowing that I actually perform better and show up as my best self because I do these things. But it definitely. I didn't like come out of the womb like that and it's taken me a long time to get there.
- [30:07]
A
I love my morning routine too. So journaling, are you doing like morning pages? Are you gratitude journal? Like what's your journaling in the morning?
- [30:13]
B
So when I don't have as much time. I do the five minute journal. Cause it's just like a really accountable thing and actually takes five minutes. My dream day is doing a full morning pages. So when I'm actually like practicing the artist's way, I do do morning pages. I'm like a 5 out of 7 girl. I rarely make it a 7 out of 7 a week, but sometimes it's just like 15 minutes kind of stream of consciousness. So I admire people who are like creative journalers and like write in really clever ways. For me, I'm kind of just like word vomiting on the page because I find that it like gets it out and then I can kind of start my day and then.
- [30:45]
A
What kind of meditation are you doing?
- [30:47]
B
So I'm part of this group called Forma. My friend Court started it. They do these like 40 day practices throughout the year. And they have a practitioner there named Serge who does these really beautiful guided meditations. I think he's got an Instagram and stuff, but I literally just saved them down in my notes. And this is so crazy. And such a good lesson. Like, I literally just do the same two meditations and I alternate between both days. I'm definitely curious to like, learn more though. I'd love to go to a meditation retreat or like learn about. I know people do tm. Do you meditate or.
- [31:15]
A
I meditate every day for like maybe like coming up on five years. Wow. And it's not a magic thing. It's not like you meditate one day and then all of a sudden you feel better. It was not like that for me. And there's so many forms of meditation. I think people have to find the right thing for them. So in the morning I do something like visualization or affirmations to start my day. Even if I don't have a lot of time, I'll always do at least like five minutes.
- [31:38]
B
Yeah.
- [31:38]
A
@ night, I do breath work before I go to bed and that really helps me. It's honestly like counting sheep because I do like four breaths in, eight breaths out. So by doing that, it just slows my heart rate. I can calm down, but then I'm thinking about counting instead of thinking about my day or thinking about things. So that's really important to me. So I like the combination of doing both. But meditation alone doesn't relax me. It's honestly just starting my day thinking of something positive, which is why I like it. But I love my morning routine.
- [32:06]
B
Yeah.
- [32:06]
A
So I'm totally with you there.
- [32:07]
B
Yeah.
- [32:08]
A
Okay. So after your morning routine, you go throughout your day, you're working from home, Are you like a big meeting person? Are you on zooms all day? Do you prefer creative time?
- [32:16]
B
I try to really block my schedule so I work with a coach to do calendar mapping because I, I'm also I have add. So like I, it's for me I think it's a superpower and it allows you to be really creative. But if I don't block those times for like myself it all just gets eaten up by like being in the inbox, being on social media, like I love social. It's such an amazing way to connect with people. But it is easy to just be like I've been scrolling for 45 minutes. So I do calendar block my day. I try to map meetings to specific days. Honestly where the business is now I'm not in every meeting anymore which is wonderful. So I'm in more executive meetings, kind of getting top line. But I try to be creative in the morning. I have little like email check ins. So a new thing I've been doing is I actually just don't have my email on my like I X out of it and I open it when I need to look at it. Something's really urgent. I'll probably get like a text or a call from someone. So not having that like ticker, I don't know why it is but email just gets me and I feel like productive even though I'm not actually doing productive work. So yeah, I try to have creative time. I love working from home. Miami is a very seasonal town so usually like November, December, January. I'm actually out and about a lot because a lot of people are here, which is great. And then I'm traveling a lot too. So my days when I'm traveling like being in LA right now are booked and I'm with the team and I'm at Sephora's and I'm doing stuff. So I know everyone says this but no two days are the same. But when I'm home I really try to create that space and the last thing I'll say is like I can tend to procrastinate so I really need like three hours of blocked creative time because I really don't start getting in a flow until like hour one and a half.
- [33:50]
A
I hate having to be creative on demand. Like the other day someone asked me for something, they're like, we need inspo for this thing like right now. And I'm like right now? And they're like, can you get it to us in like an hour? And I'm like, well, I can, can. It's just not ideal. So if I could have more time. So it's not, like, scheduled into my day, but I like to leave my Fridays open. Like, no calls, no meetings, like, no events. And Friday is my day where if I need to have more creative time or if I want to really spend time on something, I'm not jumping on a zoom and jumping on a call and then responding to this thing.
- [34:19]
B
So hard to switch between all of it. Or if you like an investor call or an external meeting and you're like, wait, how am I supposed to, like, put together a mood board right now? Yeah, it's really hard.
- [34:26]
A
It's really hard. And that's one thing I've learned from the podcast of, like, interviewing so many founders that I admire is they very much have, like, this is my press day, this is my office day. And I'm like, okay, so as best as we can.
- [34:36]
B
As best as we can. And things are going to come up and something's going to be important and you have to do it. It's. That's part of the job, too.
- [34:42]
A
Well, I want to end with maybe a little bit of advice you could give people. So you have had a really great career of working from brands that are like dream brands, like, away for people. Then you went on to create your own agency and started your own brand. If you had advice for somebody who maybe wanted to start their own company or work towards their dream job, was there any practices that you did or manifestations or anything that could help people maybe get their own dream life?
- [35:06]
B
I'm a huge visualizer, and I also have a lot of mantras. So I do spend a lot of time kind of closing my eyes and just visualizing and saying the things that I've said to myself for years, because I do think they're really powerful. I think obviously we're all really hard on ourselves, but you need to have those practices because it's what keeps you going and like, giving belief in yourself. Something I would say too is just like, just start, even if it's a small little thing. Like, I didn't actually have a huge audience or platform or anything. I obviously had my relationships from, like, working in the industry. But, you know, it wasn't that many people when I started the brand. And for me, it was like having the Google document, getting a little bit of momentum, having email groups. I would gather people together to talk about hair. Like, you don't have to have the final product or the perfect thing. Like you just have to start because people actually want to support what they're a part of creating. So it's about kind of letting go and being like, hey, I'm going to tell you about this thing I'm working on. And that's when you finally launch, and it's real and it's final that you have a community of people who have been, you know, supporting you. So I know it's silly, but, like, start an Instagram, start a TikTok, start a substack. Like, just start. Because the real secret, and you probably know this better than most people, is it's consistency. That's the name of the game. So. And honestly, it's like being around is how you win. So it's like, get up, put on the metaphorical gym clothes, even when you don't want to, and just do it, you know?
- [36:33]
A
Well, congratulations. I love the brand. If anyone wanted to follow you and find you, can you tell us where to find you?
- [36:39]
B
Yeah. So Dianna Cohen on Instagram, Diana with two Ns, and then Crown Affair on all the channels as well.
- [36:44]
A
Amazing. Thanks so much.
- [36:46]
B
Thank you.
- [36:48]
A
Thanks so much for listening. And be sure to subscribe to my podcast and rate and review because it would mean so much to me. And follow me on Instagram at marianahewitt to see what episodes are coming up next.
- [37:10]
B
Please note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a.
- [37:17]
A
Direct or indirect financial interest in products.
- [37:20]
B
Or services referred to in this episode.