“She’s bat-shit crazy.”
Jill Wenger borrowed $20,000 from her grandparents to start Impulse, a designer clothing boutique that started in Seattle and turned into Totokaelo. Jill grew the brand into a global, $20M+ per year ecommerce operation with a cult following. She sold Totokaelo to Herschel Supply Company in 2015.
I’ve heard from a couple of people who worked for Jill that she’s wackadoo. Hell yes she is. Because she has to be.
We have to be.
There's a lot that happens in between starting and selling a business. Those are the stories I want to tell. There's more to be learned from the middle than the beginning or end. Profiles of women, resources and advice—necessary support for running businesses our way.
Most Recent Articles
Our report on the continued white-male bias in investing, with new data on the likelihood of female and Black founders to build companies that benefit society.
No, this is not an article featuring blockbuster animated Nordic characters. But it is a good metaphor for what’s happening to Underwire in the short term.
In honor of Veteran’s Day, I share polaroids from my father’s service in Vietnam. This was his “office” during two prime years of his life. These years made him the role model and leader that he is today.
Get your description in order by following the example of Stride Funding, Aviatrix Systems and ROYBI. How does the one-liner fit into an integrated messaging framework? That’s in here, too.
It’s time to plan for 2020. Strap on the biggest of the baller tactics and plan for growth the way the greats do—flywheels, baby.
Kristen Miller, CEO and Co-Founder of Stylyze on pregnancy, taking leave, taking care and why you should stop waiting to have a baby (or whatever it is you’re waiting for).
Five questions to ensure you never make small talk again. A link to excellent insurance for small businesses. And $212 million raised with funds coming from the Dept. of Labor to support women affected by the opioid crises.
Mattel’s new Creatable World product launch owes a lot to Margaret Woodbury Strong, founder of the world’s only museum devoted to the history of play.
A epic week: $1.1. billion in funding for women-led companies and the passing of Cokie Roberts.
Surbhi Rathore, CEO of Rammer.ai answers questions about her Seed round. And while we’re on the topic, what exactly is a Seed round?
The YTD public spreadsheet is new and improved with data pulled from Crunchbase, Fortune Term Sheet and readers like you. Do play along and keep us posted on announcements.
Megan Rapinoe’s rally cry, the FFA Female Founder Challenge, the University of Washington’s Compassionate Leadership Summit, the best email signature ever, and a book and yoga retreat to cope with Fall anxiety.
Fresh from vacation come two key takeaways: think epically big and don’t waste time re-inventing your business model. Here are 16 proven business models that will live up to your vision.
I’ll be updating this page over the coming week to reflect all investments for the past 7 weeks. Meanwhile, Series A raises for Figure8 and Herbivore Botanicals. Series B for Hipcamp. Seed round for Genneve.
Megan Rapinoe, E. Jean Carroll, the Center for Humane Technology, Keita Williams, and a $50 discount on our Fall yoga retreat. This article has it all for summertime perspective!