The Foundr Podcast with Nathan Chan

Episode 595: She Turned $900 Into a $10M Accessories Brand in 3 Years | Pia Mance

Guest: Pia Mance (Founder, Heaven Mayhem)
Date: October 10, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Nathan Chan interviews Pia Mance, founder of the bold, fashion-forward accessories label Heaven Mayhem. Pia details her journey from launching her business in 2022 with just $900 to surpassing $10 million in revenue in three years. The show explores her scrappy startup methods, product development strategies, branding philosophy, and the foundational role of community in her rapid growth. It's filled with actionable insights for founders seeking to bootstrap and build meaningful brands.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. From Modeling to Founder—Origins of Heaven Mayhem

• Pia’s background in modeling/influencing exposed her to founders and creative directors, gradually planting the idea of building something of her own.
  • “My whole life, I’ve been modeling since I was like 12...I just wanted to create something and have something of my own, but I had no idea what it was.” (02:12)
• No single ‘pivot’ moment, rather, consistent exposure to entrepreneurship shaped her ambitions.

2. Launching with $900—How She Allocated Every Dollar

• On moving to LA, felt pressure to do something for herself; started Heaven Mayhem from scratch.
  • Spent initial funds on: vintage pendants from flea markets/eBay, cord from Amazon, $30 Shopify plan, Canva subscription, label printer, and padded mailers.
  • “I didn't even set up a company, didn’t even set up my LLC, didn’t have a business plan...That is literally all I spent my money on in the first month.” (03:38)
• Emphasized she wasn’t living in poverty—had basic security—important context for aspiring founders.

3. Scrappy, Grassroots Growth Tactics

• Handmade every piece; personally sold, modeled, and shot content, DM’d every potential customer (“...going after every single customer.” 06:41)
• Made the brand seem bigger with clever, inexpensive guerrilla marketing:
  • London pop-up: spent $85k on pop-up assets (which now provide ongoing value)
  • “On Instagram it’s like, oh my God, they got a custom taxi...But actually, no, I just spent $300 and made it look like I spent probably 50 grand.” (10:52)

4. Early Inventory and First Breakthroughs

• Started with tiny, handmade drops; first scalable product was the “Black Maxi/Black Mini” necklaces.
• “No stock, no sales”—learned how critical holding some inventory is for growth.
  • This allowed her to reinvest sales into larger, factory-made orders (“That was really what grew the business to be able to move to factories.” 13:14)

5. Bootstrapping to Growth—Learning Ads and Marketing

• Transitioned from hand production to leveraging Facebook Ads, self-taught both Facebook and Klaviyo for email marketing.
  • “Anyone listening who has a brand, don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it. It’s honestly so easy. Taught myself that.” (15:43)
• Kept overheads near zero by doing everything herself.
• First six months: ~$50k revenue; year two: $2.5M.

6. Design, Branding, and Aesthetic

• Built all visual branding in Canva; strong brand identity without agency cost.
  • “Creatives and aesthetics...is my bread and butter. I can do it with my eyes closed.” (16:20)
  • Vintage cameras, hand-drawn overlays, cost-effective creative hacks.
• For non-designers: “Take a Sunday off and spend the day on Canva and YouTube and you will know Canva back to front...We use it every single day.” (18:54)

7. The “Done Is Better Than Perfect” Mindset

• Iteration over perfection catalyzed rapid expansion.
  • Example: Early Canva graphics were “ugly,” but drove growth (“If you don’t look back and kind of hate what it was, you started too late.” 19:56)
  • Encourages founders to push through fear of imperfection. “Just post the picture, just release the product and just get it out there.” (51:43)

8. Celebrity Endorsement: Hailey Bieber Moment

• Hailey Bieber’s organic wear drove immense credibility and some immediate sellouts, but wasn’t a “silver bullet.”
  • “We sold out of those [earrings] in, like, two or three days, but we only had 100 units in stock...It does sound amazing...but at the same time, that was only 100 units.” (24:27)
  • Authentic, unscripted interactions (approaching a friend in a cafe) led to big break.

9. Product Expansion & Category Innovation

• Strategy: Stay “the go-to for accessories,” expand into watches, sunglasses, laptop cases, book boxes.
  • Book boxes and laptop cases were conceived as innovative brand touchpoints—both became bestsellers.
  • “Your laptop is kind of an accessory, too...This is going to get our logo out in so many new places.” (31:33)
• Used trade show exhibitor lists to find suppliers, prioritized trust/quality.

10. Team Building & Hiring for Growth

• Started by hiring to offload admin, now seeking experts to teach her as the company scales.
  • “I want them to be showing me new things if that makes sense...I hire super slow. We always do test projects.” (38:23)

11. Founder-Led Content & Community Engagement

• Leveraging personal & brand storytelling to attract talent and customers (“Just putting out content, sharing stories, building a relationship with your core community...it is so powerful.” 42:39)
• Found key hires via social media posts and TikTok.
• “Everyone’s watching your Instagram stories because they’re interested...by the time you’re like, hey, I’m looking for this, they’re like, well, I’m kind of invested.” (43:14)

12. Personal Routine & Work Philosophy

• Flexible, joy-driven work life: “I love my life...Like my office is so fun. We have so much fun every day...” (44:57)
• Sprinkles non-negotiables (fitness, sauna, walks) but no rigid routine; prioritizes work that feels meaningful.

13. Community-First Brand Building

• Actively seeks to know and celebrate her customers.
  • “Who is the actual, actual person buying it?...We do a ton of stuff with community activations and events.” (46:28)
• For new founders: DM every early follower and customer, ask open-ended questions, build personal relationships (“That’s how you build the community.” 47:45)

14. Current Status & Vision

• 2024 revenue: $10M+, no investment, focused on becoming the accessories brand—not interested in physical retail stores.
  • “I want Heaven Mayhem to continue to be something that inspires other people and makes me and everyone who works there proud. We don’t want to be a sellout brand.” (49:53)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

“If you don’t look back and kind of hate what it was, you started too late.”
—Pia Mance (19:56)

“I want to become the go-to brand for accessories...I don't want retail stores. Maybe we'll do some pop ups, that's all I know so far.”
—Pia Mance (49:53)

“Just keep me in your head saying ‘done is better than perfect’. Just post the picture, just release the product and just get it out there.”
—Pia Mance (51:43)

“Honestly, take a Sunday off and spend the day on Canva and YouTube...We use it every single day.”
—Pia Mance (18:54)

“On Instagram it’s like, oh my God, they got a custom taxi...But actually, no, I just spent $300 and made it look like I spent probably 50 grand.”
—Pia Mance (10:52)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:12] Pia’s journey from modeling/influencing to founder
• [03:38] Breaking down the first $900 for Heaven Mayhem's launch
• [06:41] Scrappy early sales, handmaking, and DMing customers
• [09:02] Guerrilla marketing tactics—pop-up in London
• [13:14] Early inventory breakthroughs and lessons
• [15:43] Learning Facebook ads, Klaviyo, and bootstrapping growth
• [16:20] Building brand identity and aesthetics with Canva
• [19:56] “Done is better than perfect”—philosophy and examples
• [23:22] The Hailey Bieber “moment” and celebrity impact
• [31:33] Expanding categories—introduction of watches, laptop cases, book boxes
• [38:23] Hiring challenges and the ‘buy back your time’ method
• [42:39] Power of founder-led personal content for hiring and brand building
• [46:28] Community building—going beyond metrics
• [49:53] Vision for scale, rejection of retail stores, pride in independent growth
• [51:43] Pia’s #1 advice: “Done is better than perfect”

Summary for Founders

Pia Mance’s story is a blueprint for founders looking to build a brand with minimal capital. Her key themes: start with what you have, go all in on grassroots tactics, don’t wait for perfection, and build genuine relationships with every customer. Heaven Mayhem’s rapid growth is a testament to authentic branding, creative hustle, and relentless community-building—a must-listen for anyone looking to bootstrap a modern E-commerce brand.