SET Active's Lindsey Carter Just Got Through Her Hardest Year in Business

Episode Transcript

[00:00:00] Hey, this is besties. Welcome back to the female founder world podcast.

I'm Jasmine. I'm the host of the show and the creator of the female founder world universe. Today I'm talking with the founder of set active, Lindsay Carter, Lindsay, welcome to female founder world.

You are now entering female founder world with your host, Jasmine Garnsworthy.

Thank you for having me. I'm so happy to be here. For people who don't know set, first of all, they clearly don't read our newsletter because I feel like we feature the brand in our marketing and news roundup pretty much every week.

But what are you building? I am building an athleisure brand that simplifies the way you get dressed. And you started the business in 2018. It launched in 2018, but I was working on it probably like 2000, early 2017. Okay. Yeah. And tell me like the origin story. What were you doing? How did the concept come to you?

Um, so I, I had my own social media agency. I was basically like helping brands like. like organic marketing, the whole nine yards. Um, I [00:01:00] was taking a different approach to like marketing that wasn't solely based on paid ads. Um, and I was like, I feel like I shouldn't be giving all these people my creative ideas and I should be doing it for myself.

Um, and I was sitting at a coffee shop on Melrose place and I was waiting for a meeting. I was about to sign a new client for my agency. And I was watching all these. Girls walk into the coffee shop and like they were wearing mismatched activewear or just like they didn't look quite put together Like clothes wise they were gorgeous girls, but just you know mismatched outfits and I was like there has to be Like matching sets, like just athleisure or just there's got to be better options out there.

Um, and so that day I literally, I took my social media manager who worked for me at my agency and I was like, change of plans. We're going to the Grove and she was like, what are we doing there? And I was like, I just [00:02:00] need to do some research. And I like went to the Grove. I went into Nordstrom's anywhere that basically.

Had active wear and I was like, no one's doing this. Mm. And so that was the day I decided I was gonna do it. Wow. How did you start like getting traction in the business? 'cause like you look at set now, I think like particularly among a certain group of women. It's like the only active wear brand that would like even consider buying, you know, you have this like really strong brand amongst this group of people.

What were some of those like early things you did to like get that traction going? I think I just like, I was transparent and authentic, honestly. Like back then I think brands were, um, Focusing so hard on these, like, like you didn't know who was behind the brand. You know, at the time the powerhouse was Lulu lemon and they're still a powerhouse and killing it, but they were very technical focused.

And it was almost like too large of a company that like, [00:03:00] you didn't really understand who was behind the brand or you didn't, there was like no community aspect to their social media. And then Aloe at the time was just yoga. Like I remember driving through the streets when like down Beverly Hills. There would be billboards for aloe yoga and it would be yoga poses.

And like, I definitely didn't resonate with that. Cause I'm definitely not a yoga girl. However, never say never, because I also said I would never work out and I work out now every single morning at 7 00 AM. But I was just like. Aloe was too focused on yoga and I was like, there's no everyday active wear out there.

And so I was like, I'm just going to start posting about it on my own social media. I had, I don't know, I think like anywhere between like a thousand to like 3, 500 followers. And I just started posting about what it was that I was building and like the steps I was taking and the meetings I was taking and the networking and the research and You know, I painted the whole back [00:04:00] wall of my dining room and my apartment whiteboard paint, and I would like start showing like what I was writing on there.

Like, what do you look for in activewear? And like all the common answers I would put on the whiteboard. And, um, I was documenting all of it and I still do that to this day. So I think that's really like how the organic part of our marketing started. Did it take off quickly? Yes and no. Um, I remember the excitement feeling so overwhelming that I was like, Oh my God, we have to launch pre orders and, and like, we have to get this going.

And I was saying it to Nikki, who now is our influencer specialist, but she was my intern at the time. We were sitting at night writing on my, my computer. Whiteboard. That was now my dining room wall. And, um, I was like, we just, we have to get this going. And she was like, okay, like what do we do? And I was like, we have to, while the momentum is there, like we have to, we just have to figure it out.

Like, I don't, there's momentum right now. People [00:05:00] are asking questions, they're DMing, they want to try it because I sold our fit samples on my Instagram. And so people, had samples, not that they were the right color or fit, but they had samples that they started to post about. So people started coming in saying like, where can I buy this?

Where like, where is their website? Like different things like that. So no, it's just me and my whiteboard that I painted on my dining room table, uh, or my dining room wall. And. That's it. So we basically were just like, let's, let's get this going. We ordered a shipping like printer off of Amazon. I had no idea like that you had, someone was like, well, you have to like put the weight in your Shopify because like, that's like how you mail stuff.

I was like, huh? Yeah. Like what? I had no idea what I was doing. Um, but that's where you ask questions. Like everyone's like, where did you start? And like, You just have to ask around, like, Hey, like, do you know, do you know anyone who like knows how to do Shopify? And they'd [00:06:00] be like, actually I do. And they would send me that person and be like, Hey, like, I can't pay you right now, but I'd love to give you product.

If you can help me with these couple of things on Shopify. And they'd be like, yeah, I'm happy to help. And like, you'd be so surprised who's willing to lend a helping hand, especially when you're building something, um, or just in general. And so. Yeah. I mean, we got preorders going and I think that also helped with the hype because everyone's like, what is this?

What's a pre, like no one was really doing that then. Um, and then we had our drop day and it was just, I think the trick is whenever you're starting a business is you have to follow the momentum because if you don't, or you don't hop up, hop on the momentum, it'll be, it'll be really hard to climb out of that hole.

I think that's what helped. That's such good advice. I think it's so important as well for folks to hear from someone like you who has a business that I think like a lot of people aspire to build something like, like set that has that real like community resonance and amazing product and all of those things.

But to hear the [00:07:00] beginning and to hear you say like, yeah, I didn't know, I had to ask questions. There's nothing wrong with not knowing. I had no idea. Like literally I still to this day, I'm like, how did I like, who was the person that told me that I had to put like shipweights or yeah, I would. I had no idea.

I wish I'd kept note of all those people. , I need to go back through like my Instagram DMs about the people that have just helped me. Yeah. Female founder as well. Cause they deserve some swag or a thank you note or something at this point.

Okay. So talk to me through, funding and how you've been able, you afforded to start the business and, , maybe some of your lessons through that.

Ooh, this is a big one. Um, So I own a hundred percent of my company right now. And, , it all started because when I told my dad at the time that I wanted to do this, and I was like, I need an, I need an investor. He was like, well, why? Like, he's like, I'm not giving you any money. And so there's like, people are so quick to judge, especially [00:08:00] when they get to hide behind a screen that like either, Oh, she grew up in Beverly Hills.

Her daddy gave her money. Absolutely not. First of all, I drove that on the record. I drove like a 1991 Volvo in high school. Like very, it was in the shop every other week. Like my dad did not. I think I had 20 a week for allowance, like to eat out with my friends. And if I blew through that on like a Monday or Tuesday, I was shit out of luck.

Yeah. Like, That I did not have my parents money. , well, my dad, um, and when I started it, he was like, you need an investor. And I was like, or I said, I need an investor. And he was like, okay, great. I'll, I'll, I'll get you on the phone with someone, make sure you have a plan. Like if I connect you, like, you know, basically be prepared.

Um, and so I was like, okay, I'll never forget. It was in my Tiny apartment bedroom and I was so excited to take this call. I was so confident I was gonna pitch them on my whole plan for set [00:09:00] active and my like social media plan and I think we added it up of like impressions or just like the amount of followers that All of the relationships that I had was like well over 20 million and I was like, I, how are they going to say no to that?

Like I was, I was way overconfident and I got on the phone with him and he was asking me all these questions of things. I didn't know, like, what's your CAC and what, like, are, when are you going to be profitable? And like, I was just like, Oh my God. I don't know if I could do this. And I was like, okay. And I got off the phone and I started crying and I was like, you know, you would think that I would have been like, okay, that's it.

I give up. I'm not going to do this. Like, this is way out of my world, but instead I was like, okay, if I'm going to do this, I'm going to have to do it on my own and, um, without people scaring me or like, You know, making me feel less than not that he intended to do that. But that's just how I felt after the phone [00:10:00] call.

And I was like, I just got to do this on my own. [00:11:00]

There's a whole side to, you know, a brand, especially in clothing where there's production and I knew nothing about production. So I ended up like, I was calling people left and right. I told my, My CPA at the time who was my accountant for my social media agency was like, I think I want to like shift gears and start this company.

And he's like, Oh, talk to my son in law. He's in the production world. I'm sure he can like help you with samples. So I was like, great. I was like, that was easy. And I started working with him and I'd be like, okay, like, when do you think I can expect samples? And [00:12:00] he would be like, I'm working on it. And I'm like, okay, a couple of weeks go by.

Hey, just checking in. Like, when do you think I can expect samples? He's like, Oh, I'm still working on it. We're now six months in, and I'm like, I might not know anything about production, but I don't think it should be taking this long. And, , I decided to just like take matters into my own hands. I went on Google.

I called around to like different factories in LA. I was like, hi, my name is Lindsay and I want to start this company. And this is my plan. Some of these, some people were like, Okay, they hung up on me. Some people were like, cool, I can't help you. And then there was one like factory that I can't name that was like, Oh, I'll put your name on so and so's desk.

And if he calls you back, he calls you back. I can't promise anything. And I was like, okay. And so I had nothing to lose. He ends up calling me back. We meet for coffee for like three hours and I was so excited. And he like just knew exactly what I wanted to do. And he was like, I can help you, but I want [00:13:00] equity.

And I was like, sure. Like not knowing. anything about how important equity is and all of those things. And I was like, great, here's 25 percent of my company. And at the time, you know, I feel like it was worth it because without him, I don't think I would have been able to start. I mean, Let me rephrase that.

I would have been able to start. It just probably would have taken longer until I figured it out. , and he was like, I have a factory overseas. , if this is really what you think you can do with this brand, let me talk to them. Let's see if they can up front the product and we'll pay them back. If the drop doesn't go well, though, like you're going to have to find the money to pay them for the for the production order.

I was like, got it. Cool. And in my head, I was like, you know what, if I have to sit on the sidewalk at a farmer's market to sell this product, like I will, I'll do whatever it takes. So the factory agreed. They loved like our pitch that I came up [00:14:00] with and the deck that I made and all of that stuff. And we were literally off to the races.

Like it was, We had product, we went through sampling. It was like going so fast. I was so excited. But in the back of my head, I was like, Oh, did I make a mistake? Giving this guy 25 percent of the company? And the answer is yes, I did. , I'm very grateful for him. because he helped me start the company for sure.

However, I just wish I would have been a little bit more knowledgeable on like how, what equity means and like how important it is. , the good news is I was, I think I bought him out at the right time because set is growing. It's only getting bigger and I bought him out of his equity. He wasn't able to leave his like full time position to like come be our full time production person.

And I was like, I can't justify giving you 25 percent of my company. If you can't come make the switch, it makes me feel like you don't believe in what I'm building. And I mean, there are so many reasons. So we amicably, [00:15:00] I bought him out and it was a large amount of money. Um, but not nearly as much as what he would get if I were to sell the company.

So I'm, it was very stressful. I was also, um, eight months pregnant during the buyout. Yeah. So it, it just was. It was a lot. The last two and a half years were really heavy for me, like, in the work world. It must have been such a relief when that was Signed and done. Yes. It, it, it was, it was just like, what, like a wow moment.

Like I own a hundred percent of this multi million dollar company. It was, it's, I still think about it and it's wild. And yeah, I just did a whole sub stack post on owning a hundred percent of my company. And then once I get about the sub stack, you mentioned early on, one of the ways that you're growing the brand is you're being really open to it.

Authentic, you were showing up as the founder, showing your story, how you're building it. And, uh, a lot of brands, I think , lose that. Maybe like it's coming back now [00:16:00] that there's TikTok and people are doing a little bit more of founder TikTok stuff. But I do think as brands grow, like you just lose that as you kind of like, the CEO role becomes different.

What it is when you're, it's just you yourself but then you've also introduced a sub stack and I feel like you've been someone who has still kept that, , Small business feel, even though you're a big business now and the Substack, I think is part of that. Talk me through what your thoughts were about writing this newsletter and, and, , and doing that.

Externally, we might be a big business, but we're still really small. I mean, the amount that my team is able to do, and I'll get to the Substack part, but I have to say this because. It takes so much hard work to, like, be able to do what we do and there's so many processes and, like, I feel like not enough people are educated on, like, it's not that simple.

A lot of people are like, oh, they probably, you know, looked at a Pantone and they were like, okay, let's do red, orange, and blue. And, like, that is not how [00:17:00] things happen. There's processes and it's, like, it's a lot of work. And that is, Very fast paced, like, kind of feels like a dog eat dog world because if you're good at your job and you can execute and you do well, You're going to love your job if you can't keep up and if you're not executing, you're not going to like what you're doing.

And I just have to say set is a small but mighty team. , However, sub stack, I've tried all the which ways to do community. I tried doing Geneva last year, which was almost too close of a touch point to the consumer. Also just acquired by Bumble and like who knows what's happening. Yeah. We just moved off Geneva.

Yeah, it was, it was hard. Like I started to see like some of the like hardcore fans of set would like be one way in one shot. And then another person would be like, Hey, I just want to anonymous anonymously send you a chat on Geneva of these girls who are saying one thing in the main chat, but then they're like ripping you apart in the other chat.

And I'm [00:18:00] like, ah, like I am too much of an, like an empath and I'm so sensitive despite like how, you know, people think. They're like, you're so strong and you're so confident. But like, I'm insecure when I, like, I put so much of my heart into what I do that, like, it hurts when I see like these digs and I was just like, I don't know if I can do this Geneva thing, but.

I get asked literally daily. Do you mentor? Do you do this? And I'm like, I feel it is my duty to like give back in the way that people gave to me when I was first starting set. However, I was lucky enough where like my inner circle were able to connect me. I feel like not everyone has that inner circle that's able to connect you to like help you build what you want to build.

And so I was like, I want to be that person. , But I want it to still feel like, I mean, my sub stock is growing at a rapid rate, which is something I was not expecting, but [00:19:00] I put a lot of valuable information in their business information, just everyday, like life stuff, clothes, this, it's like, it's a, it's an outlet for me.

And it's an outlet to feel like I'm It makes me feel good. Like I'm writing about the things that have helped set. And if someone can, if one person can use that and apply that to their business and it takes off, it's, that's everything to me. So Substack is like a way for me to still keep that tight knit community and you have to pay for it.

So. If someone's paying their hard earned dollars to like read my substack, then they probably genuinely are a fan of me or the brand. And they're probably not going and being an internet troll behind the scenes. And if they are, I don't, then thank you for spending your money on me. I don't know what else to say.

I had Maggie Sellers in yesterday and we, I was interviewing her. , and for people who don't know Maggie, she's like very, public on Tik TOK, doing startup advice and investor advice. And one of the things she said is, , [00:20:00] that like that she repeats to herself is the haters don't pay my bills, but like if they subscribe to you, they're paying my bills.

Like they are, they are paying my bills. I have dealt with my fair share of internet hate and it's just, You know what? It's because they are jealous and that's all I have to say. It's hard. I mean, I've texted some friends, like famous friends. I'm like, ah, like this comment came up. Like, what do I do? I'm like getting in my head.

And they're like, you cannot, like, If you don't have haters, you're not popping. But like, why do people do that? I don't understand. And like, why, why is there like such a visceral reaction to just like, you're building this amazing business and like living your life and contributing to the community. And why do people have this visceral reaction to that?

Because people have. Their own way of doing things, how they want to do it. You know, like we've had disgruntled employees like say not nice things. And I'm just like, anyone can rewrite the story at, you know, I was watching this [00:21:00] tech talk. It was, like a couple of months ago. And it was a business tech talk.

I forget which one it was. And it was this girl. And she was like, when you're growing up and you're watching Cinderella, you're not like, Oh my God, I don't know. I wish I was like the stepmom or the evil stepsister or the evil stepmom or the stepsisters. You're looking, you're watching Cinderella. No one told you, gave you a rule book on who you want to be like, but everyone wants to be Cinderella.

And her point was that like everyone is their life's main character. And so they're not thinking about like, well, most people I'm always thinking I'm putting others before myself, but Like those people that are being mean or saying mean things or not putting themselves in other people's shoes or seeing it from a different side, it's because they're, they're so focused on being the main character of their lives that they can't even see the other side.

What advice do you have for people who see like the hate that. Honestly, like female founders get both from trolls, but also there seems to be this trajectory of build them up and tear them down in the [00:22:00] media as well. And I think that stops a lot of people like that is an issue. That's something that I have to wrap my head around, even when with my tiny little business showing up on the internet all the time, it's in the back of my head.

How do you, how do you overcome that? And like keep Alright. So what do you do when you're creating stuff, um, publicly in the world? And what advice do you have for people who is like really letting that get in their head? I mean, it's easier said than done. There's definitely days that I, I let it get to me.

The thing that helped me that I received from friends is , they're not going to be talking about this next week. Like it'll last five seconds. Also Uh, for me personally, what's helped is like I've built a multimillion dollar company and you have it. You don't get to speak on what I'm doing and you don't get to pass judgment on what I'm doing because you haven't done what I've done.

And I just kind of repeat that mantra in my head when I'm feeling the way that I am, because I was writing your paycheck for a couple months or you were buying my product for as long as you were, you were spending your money on my stuff. Like you don't [00:23:00] get to sit there and judge until you've built a multi million dollar company.

Then let's have a conversation and you can tell me everything that I've done wrong. Oof. Okay. I love this. Another thing I want to ask you about, social media and your TikTok and like, I dunno, you guys are just always, I think one step ahead. And, I think you're like the account that a lot of people use for their inspiration.

First of all, talk me through the decision. You appointed like an influencer as your social media manager. Talk me through how that idea came to you or the team. And also how you, how you do that. What does that involve? Social media is forever changing. Like social media was once such a very specific term and it's now a very generic term because Instagram and of itself requires its own strategy.

Pinterest requires its own strategy. TikTok requires its own strategy. You cannot take your strategy and apply it to all three or beyond what other platform, Twitter, be real, all of the ones that are like out, [00:24:00] we only really use TikTok and Instagram. , and so I think it was at some point last year, I made the decision.

I was like, look, our social media manager. Sure. They can oversee TikTok, but. I need them to focus on Instagram because that is like our main touch point to the consumer. I want to talk to have its own content producer. I want it to be a TikTok content creator. And so when we were hiring for this position, we were looking for people who like knew how to create content.

I didn't care if they had followers or not. And I still don't care if they have followers or not. I just want someone who knows how to be creative on that app. And so when Sam applied, I, Was like a little hesitant at first because he was so famous and like the tick tock world and I was like, well, what if he leaves, which he did?

I can speak to that. But Sam revels. I mean, I give him full credit. Like he he revolutionized it. Our brand on Tik TOK tenfold. I hadn't, I mean, [00:25:00] I might've given him tips here and there and like, Oh, make sure you're in the product or like, it's fun to tease it this way. Or let's do a funny Tik TOK and sprinkle that in.

But like I not, that was 1 percent of me giving him like 99 percent was him and I will forever be grateful to him for doing what he did. And I think that brand should take note. , the question is, you know, What are you doing now that he's gone? We haven't been posting, we're hiring another content creator, but this time, I mean, we haven't made our decision, so we're still in the interview process, but we opened it up to submissions on Tik TOK.

Like tell us why you want to be our Tik TOK content creator. At the end of the day, like people, it's their own life. So like, I have to just like erase the mindset that they might not be at set for forever. And I just have to roll with it. Like, I can't just like be so stuck. You know, there's so many videos coming out of like, Oh, well, what are they going to do?

If Sam leaves? , we're going to figure it out. We always do. , that's just what life [00:26:00] is. And so having that mindset has helped kind of in like all the lanes of the business because yeah, Sam left, we're really proud of him. He's pursuing whatever he's pursuing. He definitely made an impact at set.

I think he's incredible. I still follow what he does and I love him so much and wish him the best, but we will figure it out. A hundred percent. What does your team look like now? , we have, so it's kind of broken out. , we have our marketing team, but under the marketing team, we have our social media manager and she just has an intern.

She's a team of one. Wow. We have our marketing manager and our marketing coordinator who report all the way up to our CBO, who we just hired. And we have a content like production team and they're responsible for, for, um, you Executing and producing the content that we come up with. , Julia, who's on our team, she is incredible.

Hands down the best content producer we've had at the company. She just gets it. And that's what I was trying to [00:27:00] explain earlier. Like when you find an employee who gets it and they're able to execute, they are going to love their job. I called her last week because, you know, The spicy restock. We just had a restock today.

It sold out and she's the, she executed it. Like she took my vision and ran with it and did it better than my vision. And I called her on Friday just to like, you know, I think she's only two months into the, into the role. And I was like, look, I know I've given you compliments in team meetings and pulled you aside in the office, but I wanted to catch you outside of the office so that you could really hear me and really hear what I'm about It's so fast paced in the office and I just want to let you know, I'm really proud of you.

And she was like, I, I feel so valued here. I love my job. I love what I'm doing. And it's because she's killer at it. Um, and I think that more brands should have like a, a content team, like where the it's the team focused to do your social content, your campaign content to help with Tik [00:28:00] TOK content. Like I think a content producer is so important.

How is that different to a social media manager? They're not like, In the nitty gritty of social, they're not, you know, play it like going over the analytics and impressions and engagement and coming up with strategy and content buckets. Like they're just they're executing things. Um, at set, we kind of like pull people in all directions to help out.

But like, you know, we have a huge collaboration coming in May next year, and I was feeling a little lost. Like from the mood board that they sent over. So I like tap Julia and I was like, I know this isn't really your job, but like, I know you're creative because of what I've seen you're able to do. Like, do you want to kind of brainstorm with me on like how we can bring this to life?

Because she's going to end up having to shoot it. Yeah. And so she's a part of that process from the start, then it'll be easier for her to like execute that vision. And I totally just lost my train of thought or what the question was. But, [00:29:00] um, the difference between a social media and content producer. So she like, it's just, she's not, she's not in the nitty gritty of it all.

I mean, our social media manager is coming, you know, I don't know if you saw her Instagram, but she was so cute. She came up with this concept that it was like a blurred, you know, when you see something sensitive on, , Instagram and it like is. It's like an eyeball and like you have to like tap the thing and it says like to see this content press here.

Yeah. And she used that as an example and I mean, as a like grid post and then you'd have to swipe to see the sensitive content and it was a picture that spicy was restocking. And so like she comes up with really clever things like that. , and I, that doesn't really answer it, but really we're all collaborative at the, at the office.

Like I think set, everyone always asks, can Can I work for you guys remote? And the answer honestly is no, because we are so collaborative that it's why we're able to make the magic happen because we're in person and we're [00:30:00] talking about it. We do work from home Fridays. I'm like, I, I cannot function for work from, I get a lot done personally.

And like, I'm able to see my kids and like work through emails and like the boring stuff. But like, I hate work from home Fridays. My team loves it because they're able to focus because the rest of the week, the rest of the week, we're just. , I love that. Yeah.

, I was on Slack with our team before this conversation and asked them like, what questions do you have for Lindsay? Yeah. And, uh, Paige, who people will know who are listening, you guys will know Paige because she's been on the show a few times, but she. It's building a, , a beverage company, an energy drink company.

And, , they're amazing. Like she's got amazing advisors, like lots of traction. It's very cool. And her question was, how do you build or how do you organically build a brand that is cool in 2024? Like, how do you create that? Honestly, like, I don't know if you guys are going to like this answer, but it's staying authentic to who you are because the [00:31:00] more that you're yourself, the cooler you are.

And so if you try to be someone that you're not through, personally or through your brand, it's not going to resonate. So true. Like, that's really what it is. , there's no secret sauce to like, how do you know what's cool? , it's not that I have like some secret handbook that I like just open up when I'm like, what's cool?

Yeah. Like, it's really just like staying authentic to who I am and staying true to who I am and have that. Like, and resonate through everything that I'm doing that I think is what makes it cool in, I think it was 2022. You opened a space in LA, like a physical space. Was that a pop up or a permanent spot?

, it's a long term pop up, so it actually is. It's still going, but it's only for two years. Okay. Same with New York. Okay. Yeah. Amazing. I'd love to know, like, first of all, why bricks and mortar and your learnings about. Going into a physical space. I think having a physical space is especially when you're a community first brand.

[00:32:00] It's just like a touch point to the brand. , and also like sensory, everyone wants to touch and feel. And when you touch. You can't do that. D to C. And so when you're able to like, really understand, yes, form cloud is buttery soft and then you can go touch it and feel it. They're like, Oh, wait, it is. Then, you know, they're more inclined to convert to be a customer.

And also it's just like, A fun space when you're building a community first brand, you make a lot of friends like virtually. And like, we've had so many people meet up at the stores to like meet each other in real life. And I feel like it's just nice that like they were able to do that at our store.

It's also a place where we can like just host fun events. We have, , Something that we dropped on Seth's birthday was called the Lenny set. It sold out. , we're dropping it again in pink soon, but then we're also dropping it again in yellow. It called Lemonade. And so we're going to do like a whole lemonade stand at the store in L.

A. , and I'm really, it's like just an easy way to do stuff like that. And [00:33:00] then we have a collab coming in October and I can't say with who, but, , we're I know, we had a really hard year last year and so to like come off of that and dive into like a 180 this year and beyond is such a wild feeling. Hard how?

Um, I mean, hard in every aspect, like hired the wrong employees. , I felt a little gas lit. Like I was like, is it me? Am I the problem? But like our content wasn't hitting our product. Wasn't it hitting our, like, it was just, it was a lot. Like we were. In a world where the economic landscape was shifting into a recession, and we were coming out with very specific product tailored to these campaigns and.

Expansion of [00:34:00] categories was not the right marriage. You can't do that in a doubt in a down economy. You can't like no one's going to like spend their money on, on taking a chance on trying something new. And that was a huge mistake, but we planned so far out. Like we couldn't have been like, you know what it, we couldn't have planned for that.

For example, all 2025 is planned out down to the, it's campaigns and colors and styles and everything like that. So, it was hard in that aspect. I think I also just like lost a little bit of sense of self, like who I was, you know, I was. I, I just had my daughter. , I was postpartum. I I know you probably understand this Yeah.

But you're, you're in a alternate universe. Yeah. When you're postpartum and you don't realize it until you're out of the bubble. Oh my gosh. This is so true that like you were deep in it. Yeah. And I think I only just feel like myself now. Yeah. I didn't know that during the last year. And it's not about feeling like yourself weight wise or your figure or how you look.

It's, [00:35:00] it's a, it's mental. Yeah. I definitely had postpartum depression and suffering through postpartum depression while also having just a hard year was not a great recipe. I mean, don't get me wrong. We still made millions of dollars, but it, it just wasn't what we were expecting. And so at the end of last year, like we basically had to have like a 9 1 1 meeting.

We had to complete. Like we had to basically discuss, like, how are we going to stabilize? We need to stabilize and go back up. , the good news is, is like every single mentor person advisor that I've spoken to, they're like, you need a down year because it helps you figure out your mistakes and what not to make, like the mistakes that you shouldn't make.

And we did it so early on, like, We're only six years of a business. They say the first five to seven are infancy and business. And so we're still technically an infant. And I'm glad we had, you know, looking back in the thick of it. I was ready to give up. Like I almost [00:36:00] was like, is this worth it? Like my mental health is taking a toll.

I would like ideate about dark thoughts, like really dark thoughts because it was not because sales weren't coming in. We, as I said, we were still making money. It was just like the internet trolls, the postpartum depression, the gaslighting employees that we had are like X employees, I guess. And, um, It was just all a recipe for disaster.

How did you, like, how, you know, you had that 9 1 1 meeting, like, how do you then make that shift to then having this, like, what looks like it's going to be an amazing year? , it's a lot of hard conversations, you know, I had to cut back my salary, I had to cut back, , company spending, we couldn't do extra perks, I had to cut back my travel, like, I, I mean, things, I had to cut back everywhere.

Like, I In every aspect, we had to cut employees like we that was the first step because, you know, you have to operate at less than [00:37:00] what is coming in so that you can stay profitable. And so we had to cut a lot of like expenses. , and obviously it's my company. I'm happy to do. I'm happy to cut my salary, but, um, it's it's it's.

It was that it was like, then going in and diving into all the data, like hours and hours of meetings of like, this is what's working. This is what's not working. This is what kind of worked, but maybe it didn't work because of this. It was like a puzzle of like, it was I'm telling you, like a whole conference room table, like all the high level people at the office and they're like, Combing through it all of like, okay, let's take this, let's take this, let's get scrappy here, let's do this.

And we'll pivot as we need to based off of the first job and the second job and the third job. And like it's. It's working. I mean, we are profitable this year. Amazing. So clearly like, you know, what we've decided to do is working. We've hired excellent, excellent [00:38:00] employees that like are able to do what I would do, but 10 times better.

, and I'm just, honestly, I'm proud of every single job that's coming. Last, the signifier should have been that I wasn't excited last year. Like I just wasn't feeling it and I wasn't excited about the drops. And this year, like I get goosebumps every time. Like, I'm like, I want this in my closet now.

That's amazing. The last thing I want to ask you, when you look at set in 10, 15, 20 years, like what does success look like to you? Um, I feel like that's a hard question to answer only because success. to me is always changing. Um, in terms of like what I find successful, it could be anything from like, you know, we were able to tap into a new category and it sold well, and we're really proud of it to, , hitting the half a million followers [00:39:00] on Instagram to, it's, it's just this awesome.

It's always changing. And I, I would like to think, you know, in the next 10 years, I want it to be so big that I sell it for, you know, half a billion dollars. , or I keep it and I, my, my like daughter can take it over and run it. I don't know, but I don't need to like, put that decision on it right now, because.

My definition of success is changing every day. But I just hope to continue to do what we're doing and leaning into what's working and changing people's lives. I mean, the amount of DMS that I get or messages or emails, like I put on set and for the first time, like I feel ready to leave my house and go outside.

And I've been in my bed for the last three weeks because I'm depressed. And I'm like, I cannot believe my outfit. That I made got you to do that, but it's like, it's crazy to me. , the, like I, the amount of messages I just got one yesterday, it was [00:40:00] like three paragraphs long about how set has changed her life.

And it's just like wild. Yeah. Um, so I, I don't know. That's a ambiguous question. That was a great answer to it though. Lindsay, thank you so much. And congratulations on everything that you're building at set. Like we're massive fans and I love to see, Such a like community led brand. It's very cool.

Thank you for having me. We're going to have a part two with Lindsay later this week where she shares all of her resource recommendations about different things that are helping her to show up as the founder and the human in general that she wants to in her life. So watch out for that in your feed.

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