In commemoration of International Women’s Day I want to borrow the quote from Isaac Newton, “If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants”. nbsp;I’m constantly inspired by women who have braved new frontiers in politics, engineering, fashion, education…every industry. It’s their example and brazen courage that I channel to blaze my own trail. nbsp;

To celebrate International Women’s Day this year, I have pulled together some of my favorite products from brands that were all founded by women! From skincare, to office supplies, to spiralized veggies...these female entrepreneurs have created products that deserve a round of applause!

CAKE BEAUTY

Cake Beauty was founded by Heather Reier in her kitchen in Ontario. 15 years ago she spent what felt like forever looking for high performing and natural formulations. She still wanted her products to have a playful indulgence to them. She was able to perfect her hair care products all while using the purest ingredients she could. All of Cake Beauty products are vegan and cruelty free...I also love their beautiful packaging! https://www.cakebeautyusa.com/

THE BETTER SKIN CO.

Over 10 years ago, esthetician Natalya Rachkova and her family came to the U.S. from Uzbekistan. They had a dream to bring her famous “miracle cream” to the U.S. Rachkova did just that and more, her company The Better Skin Co. was able to make the perfect “Mirakle Cream” as well as create numerous beauty products. On March 8th, the Better Skin Co will be donating 100% of sales from their Mirakle Cream to the ACLU to help ensure economic opportunities, educational equity, and to end gender-based violence. https://thebetterskinco.com/collections/all/products/better-skin-mirakle-cream

ME AND THE BEES LEMONADE

This lemonade is one of my favorite products I’m featuring. The founder of this brand has an extremely entrepreneurial mindset which I could not respect more. Mikaila Ulmer, from South Carolina, went on Shark Tank at only 9 years old with the idea for her flaxseed lemonade. Now, at the age of 13, her product is sold in hundreds of stores across the country, having partnerships with huge retailers like Whole Foods and Wegmans. This really hits home for me since I have a young daughter, and I can only hope that stories like this will inspire her to follow her dreams. https://www.meandthebees.com/pages/about-us

OUTDOOR VOICES

When Ty Haney started Outdoor Voices in 2013, she had just graduated from Parsons Design school in NYC. When starting her athleisure brand, she wanted products that were going to be “good with sweat, long-lasting, and comfortable in motion.” Outdoor Voices has now become more of a movement than a brand, with their upbeat sayings “Endorphins make me happy” and their push to inspire their customers to constantly be “doing things”. https://www.outdoorvoices.com/

SMEAD

Ebba Hoffman and Sharon Avent, are a mother daughter duo that paved the way for women in business. In 1955, Hoffman took Smead from a small, family- owned business to a huge industry leader in the office supplies segment. When this company was started, men dominated the manufacturing industry. It is amazing to see true hard work come to life through this mother/daughter journey. Sharon Avent has continued this legacy by leading Smead into the international arena, navigating significant growth and extending the company's philanthropic vision even further. The mother-daughter legacy created during the last 50+ years has earned Smead a unique place in history. https://www.smead.com/

INSPIRALIZER

I’m sure all of you have heard of zoodles, the healthy alternative to pasta noodles. I honestly love them and so do my kids. Now what I bet you didn’t know is who the lovely face behind the zoodles craze is. It’s Ali Maffucci, who in 2013 quit her job in corporate America to pursue her dream. “As soon as I discovered spiralizing, I knew I wanted to build a community around it.” So, Ali started Inspiralized and the community she had wished for took off with bounds of success! https://inspiralized.com/the-inspiralizer/

YES WAY ROSE

When these two friends, Erica Blumenthal and Nikki Huganir, set out to start a business together they were met with the same critique over and over. “People told us it would never work,” Blumenthal remembers. “But we feel like what we’ve been able to accomplish as a team is unbelievable.” The girls started their Instagram account, @yeswayrose, in 2013. They primarily used the account as a creative outlet. Soon after, they started to create beach towels, tank tops, candles, and even picked up a celebrity superfan -- Drew Barrymore. Now, the girls are selling their own bottles of wine at Target. I think we can all say Yes Way to some Rose! https://yeswayrose.com/

S’WELL

Sarah Kauss, founder and CEO of the S’well water bottle (which doubles as an accessory nowadays) had parents who both owned businesses, so it was only a matter of time before she did, too. Detours in real estate and accounting brought her here: to being the founder and CEO of S’well. You have no doubt seen the eco-friendly, insulated water bottles everywhere. I personally love taking mine to my yoga classes, it’s the only bottle that keeps my water ice cold! https://www.swellbottle.com/

SIMPLE MILLS

Kaitlin Smith had always had sensitivities to certain foods. Some people would see food sensitivities as a problem, but for Smith they were her next challenge to take on! Smith ended up developing Simple Mills, a line of gluten-free packaged goods — cookies, baking mixes, crackers — made with only whole, healthful ingredients. “There were skeptics — because of my gender, my age, my geographical location, whether consumers would want the product,” she says. “But entrepreneurship is a resilience game. The longer you stick in there, the further you’ll make it.” https://www.simplemills.com/