Celebrity YFEs

A number of the celebrities donning the covers of today’s tabloid, fashion, and entertainment magazines are now also appearing in Entrepreneur, Inc. and Forbes as they leverage their fame for growing businesses. Here’s a look at YFE celebrities…

20+ Movies for Female Entrepreneurs

November 11, 2012

Ever so often a list will come out on the best movies featuring entrepreneurship, or movies that entrepreneurs should watch to get inspired. What’s often missing is the presence of women from these movies. Here is a list of movies that feature female entrepreneurs. While not every movie necessarily about entrepreneurship, we can still see what Hollywood thinks our lives look like. Can you relate to the stories within the movies?

What movies have you watched that feature female entrepreneurs? YFE kicks off the list with 20:

Each Amazon link is an affiliate link and an Instant Download link for your easy viewing pleasure ;)

  1. Sunshine Cleaning: Starring Amy Adams and Emily Blunt, this movie shows how a single mom fills a need in a market while partnering with family and attempting to date Available on Amazon
  2. Baby Boom: Diane Keaton’s character J.C. gets thrown off the corporate ladder when she adopts a baby and moves out to rural America where she discovers her passion for mompreneurship Available on Amazon
  3. Sliding Doors: What would happen if you made that train or done something differently? Gwyneth Paltrow’s character finds out giving her the courage to start her own business  Available on Amazon
  4. Chocolat: New in town, a single mom shares her love for chocolate with her neighbors in her chocolate shop. Available on Amazon
  5. P.S. I Love You: After losing her husband, Hilary Swank looks to find herself by following letters he’s left her when she discovers what she wants to do with her life without him Available on Amazon
  6. Mama Mia!: Sun, fun, and singing this movie follows a single mom and her daughter as they prepare for a wedding while running their small inn on a remote island in Greece Available on Amazon
  7. You’ve Got Mail: Meg Ryan runs a small book store that was left to her by her mother that is threatened by a large chain that moves into the area Available on Amazon
  8. Because I Said So: Mother and daughter both run bakeries and catering businesses in this movie about finding love and family Available on Amazon
  9. New in Town: Rennee Zellweger comes into town to take over a small factory where she begins to fall in love with the people in the town and the idea of creating something new Available on Amazon
  10. Sex and the City 1: Successful writer, Carrie Bradshaw is getting married where the wedding becomes a public affair, she hires an assistant, and Samantha Jones has issues with serving only one client in her PR firm Available on Amazon
  11. Sex and the City 2: Samantha Jones uses her PR connections to fly her girlfriends to Dubai where the cultural difference catch up to them  Available on Amazon
  12. My Big Fat Greek Wedding: Coming from a self-made family where her father owns the restaurant she works at, Toula Portokalos decides to go to school to work for her Aunt instead Available on Amazon
  13. Failure to Launch: Sarah Jessica Parker helps move single men out of their parents basements as a freelancer Available on Amazon
  14. Wanderlust: Jennifer Anniston’s character doesn’t know what she wants to do with her life, jumping from business to business as her husband supports her until he finds himself unemployed with a new mortgage Available on Amazon
  15. Bridesmaids: Shows what it’s like to have a business fail and the struggle of deciding how to move on with your life Available on Amazon
  16. Stranger Than Fiction: Will Ferrell brings the story to a young woman that loves to bake, but doesn’t necessarily love working on her business. It also features the narrator, who has writer’s block Available on Amazon
  17. What to Expect When You’re Expecting: Food truck wars, speaking fails, losing contracts, and viral videos this movie shows off different business models and pregnancy woes  Available on Amazon
  18. Katy Perry’s Part of Me 3D: Documents how Katy Perry never gave up on her dreams Available on Amazon
  19. The Holiday: Cameron Diaz’s character lets stress and her workaholic ways catch up to her culminating in a need to vacation abroad during her busiest time of year Available on Amazon
  20. Sweet Home Alabama: Reese Witherspoon’s character faked it to make it, but now she has to pick up the pieces Available on Amazon

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Watch and share the entire playlist:

What’s with the plus if YFE only listed 20? Fill in the blank for us in the comments to add to the list:

My favorite movie featuring a female entrepreneur is ___________________.

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Lauren Conrad on Larry King Now

October 21, 2012

Lauren Conrad

Lauren Conrad was recently on Larry King Now, his new show that launched in July and airs on Hulu. King’s new show follows a similar format and guest lineup to his long running CNN show with some social media mixed in. It was only a little awkward hearing Larry King introduce Tout to Lauren Conrad.

The short show covered how Lauren Conrad, made celebrity first by appearing in the reality show Laguna Beach, now 26 has leveraged the fame into authoring numerous books, owning a popular beauty website, and designing a handful of fashion lines among other ventures. Her appearance was to promote her newest book, Beauty.

[quote style="1"]The former star of MTV’s “Laguna Beach” and “The Hills” visits Larry to dish about branching out beyond reality television, idolizing Martha Stewart and building a fashion empire.[/quote]

Were you a fan of the MTV reality shows back in the day? Are you already a fan of thebeautydepartment.com, have you read her books, or wear her line? Did you have any idea of how far her brand has gone? Watch the show below to find out more about where Lauren Conrad is today…

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About YFE
Young Female Entrepreneurs is an online platform that helps entrepreneurial women in their 20s and 30s to discover new people, brands, and headlines that will help them start and grow their businesses.

Register to attend #YFEcon, streaming live online Thursday, November 15th.
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Marie Forleo on Advice for Young Professionals

August 4, 2012

Marie Forleo, creator of Rich, Happy & Hot was recently featured on Fastcompany.com interviewed by Shatterbox on the story behind the work that went into building her brand. In the video she gave advice to young professionals…

“Be honest with yourself about what you’re interested in and to dive in head first”

Watch for more:

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Does this Show Mirror Your Life or is it Far From it?

March 18, 2012

2 broke girls

Would you watch a show what makes light of raising funds to start your business as a broke, young woman in an expensive city? CBS thought you would, which is why you can find the new comedy 2 Broke Girls on every Monday night. YFE admittedy had no idea what this show was about until a post on The Grindstone highlighted a CBS story of a real life “broke girl.”

The show follows “two young women waitressing at a greasy spoon diner who strike up an unlikely friendship in the hopes of launching a successful business – if only they can raise the cash.” Check out the contrast between the real deal and the fictional characters in this short video of a woman who transitioned out of being a waitress to growing her cupcake business out of Brooklyn.

Check out this clip from the show where the broke girls Max and Caroline attend a cupcake baking class to hone in on their skills. Do you think the cattiness of the two businesses interacting is true to life, or in your experience have your competitors been more willing to help and collaborate on projects with you?

Have you tuned into 2 Broke Girls?

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Who Do YFEs Look Up To in Business?

August 10, 2011

young female entrepreneurs role models

Who do you look up to, admire, and/or learn from as a young, female entrepreneur? Tomorrow’s #YFEchat is focusing on heroes and mentors (find out more about the chat here) and to get the ball rolling, let’s start sharing who it is we look up to and get advice from in business.

Comment below with who you look up to and who, if you have one, is your mentor in building your business. Here are what two of YFEs Facebook Page likers had to say about who they look up to in business and why…

“As a young female Entrepreneur, it may sound cheesy but I’ve always looked up to my mom and grandmother. Both were very strong and independent women. My grandmother spent 40 or so years in a male driven business (construction) making a name for herself as a leader and salesperson. My mom has followed in her footsteps in a largely male dominated business. Now I look back at both of their sucesses and toast them for inspiring me to be a strong, empowered woman in business.”

- Marni Gold, The Busy Girls (Social Media/Marketing/Public Relations/Branding Consultants and Educators)
Marni Gold MA Ed. is Owner and Designer of Creative Custom Card Boxes, and also is a trained singer, experienced voice teacher and social media aficionado. Marni serves as the CEO of Northern New Jersey Wedding and Event Professionals, Incoming Director of Communications for ISES NJ North, Marketing Associate for ABC NJ and Marketing Director for Wish upon a Wedding New Jersey. Marni has her Masters’ degree in Education.

“A person that I admire is Stacie Ivers Francombe-Inspire Smart Success. http://www.inspiresmartsuccess.com . I admire her because at one point in her life she was a single parent (likewise) and she did not let being a single parent hinder her from her dreams. She previously owned Get Married Magazine (very popular) sold it and is currently focusing on her company ISS. Inspire Smart Success is a company that focuses on small business branding, marketing, and development etc. in the wedding industry. She travels all over the world conducting seminars to educate entrepreneurs on how to get noticed and grow your business. I came across her company through Google. I was looking for a mentor to assist me with branding, marketing, and development. She has helped me shape my business, because after speaking with her and reading her life story, I am motivated. I no longer feel that because I am a parent of two my dreams have to be on hold. I no longer feel that all the long hours won’t pay off. She is a very humble person. Very positive. As an entrepreneur you need someone that embodies those qualities as a mentor in order to keep your spirits up.”

- Shanika, FleurGirl (Floral Design Service)
Shanika is the owner of FleurGirl. She has always loved flowers, what woman doesn’t… As a small child she fell in love with weddings and flowers. Her career started in the Real Estate industry, while designing flowers as a hobby. After realizing that her passion was not being fulfilled, she decided to attend The Ohio State University-ATI to pursue her floral design dreams which lead her to launch my business in 2011.  

Images courtesy of AshleyCooper andrewwtodd Ali Brown jurvetson

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Ivanka Trump Has Her Baby

July 18, 2011

ivanka trump announces baby over twitter

Young female entrepreneur Ivanka Trump (29) announces via Twitter the welcoming of her baby girl who was born Sunday morning in New York City. Trump is married to Jared Kushner (real estate and the New York Observer publisher) and is daughter to “the Donald” Trump; this is her first child. Trump also announced her pregnancy back in January over Twitter, while posting baby bump photos in the time between.

Apart from her role as the Executive Vice President of Development and Acquisitions at the Trump Organization, Ivanka Trump grew up as a model, appears on the Apprentice with her siblings and father, and has her own line of jewelry footwear and handbags under her name.

How does she plan on parenting around this busy and demanding lifestyle? If you have watched her and her family on Oprah last season or read her book, The Trump Card: Playing to Win in Work and Life, you know that her own parents were both always present in her childhood, despite their non traditional schedule. She has commented that she and her brothers would often be present during site inspections and other meetings while her father worked.

This has been said by many other mogul parents; their children played at their feet while they were working out deals. Can the same be said for the less “Trump like” of us movers and shakers. Can you build a business while being present for your children?

iVillage recently quoted Ivanka on this topic during her pregnancy…

With all of her research, one thing seemed to surprise Ivanka the most — and that is how much babies have to eat. “I was in total shock. I work so close (to home) that I figured I’d return to work and the baby nurse would bring the baby to me, and I’d run home periodically, and I’d make it work,” she says. “But every two hours? That’s a whole other level.” (Read more.)

What are your thoughts on motherhood and being a young, female entrepreneur? Does the vision you have for your business include you being a mom, or is that something that will come later, or maybe never?

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Gift Yourself: Accessorize!

May 11, 2011

To begin our “Gift Yourself” series, we are starting off small with accessories. Small touches to an ensemble that carry over to how you feel about yourself and how you represent your business. Keeping it simple, we are talking jewelry and shoes today and moving on elsewhere later this week. Read more about the “Gift Yourself” series in the post Gift Yourself: Comfort through Your Environment.

Are you an expert when it comes to interior design, gadgets, and other fun items that help ? Contact YFE to get featured- we’ve still got room! Send a quote, link to a product, or even a recent blog post to contribute to the community.

And now on to accessories (said in my best Oprah voice)!!!


Jewelry //

Jewelry that converts is a YFE’s best friend… sorry diamonds. Busy bees like us need to polish off an outfit whether it is our home office yoga pants or cocktail, networking event heals.

Stylist with Stella and Dot and YFE, Katie Hiccox, recommends checking out the Claire Necklace. “Wear it long or short, dressed up or down – this piece can add style to almost everything in your closet and won’t break the bank…. Wear it longer with jeans, your favorite tee and cardigan for your perfect weekend shopping wear. Or try it shorter to dress up your favorite cocktaildress.Finish the look with the Soiree Earrings in silver.”

Looking for something to symbolize your business, or your wee ones? Using your jewelry as a conversation starter is a great idea. For this, Hiccox suggests the customizable Charm Collection, “always a huge hit for sisters, grandmas, moms, aunties, and you’re BFF!”

Shoes //

The season’s hottest trends are being fulfilled by celebrity, young, female entrepreneurs like Jessica Simpson and Ivanka Trump. Living in your Nikes and Uggs is okay when you are full into a launch or beginning a new project, but making a habit of leaving the house in grunge mode can get old. Try on a pair of these, and get inspired by the women behind the look.

This black peep toe by Jessica Simpson has a trendy platform, slim heal, and nice height. At 30 years old, Jessica Simpson has spread her brand well into fashion with her collection encompassing not only shoes, but dresses, jeans, swimwear, fragrances, and even luggage to name a few. Do you remember what started it all after her singing career peaked? Dessert by Jessica Simpson launched in 2004 as her first try at a product line.

Along with black peep toe pumps, you can find numerous shoes that fall into the nude trend as well. Check out this nude platform that might fit your bill.

The last trend for this season that a YFE can get excited about is espadrilles. Ivanka Trump’s polka dot espadrille platforms are a mixture of cute and sophisticated that works for any young, female entrepreneur. Before joining the Trump family business Ivanka Trump loaned her name and know how to another company. Now at 29, Ivanka Trump is no longer known as the daughter of Donald Trump. She is married and expecting a baby, working with her father, but is also designing for her own line of handbags, jewelry, and shoes.

Do you use jewelry and shoes in your daily routine to boost your confidence or add some bling to your name?

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The Kardashians

May 3, 2011

Kardashians in Redbook

Whether you like it or not, the Kardashians are a brand that are extending their 15 minutes in every way possible. Young, female entrepreneurs Kourtney (30), Kim (29), and Khloé (25) are coowners of Dash. This is a role they have played as their mother explains in the May issue of Redbook, long before the E! shows aired.  Now, as Redbook mentions, the Kardashians have 4 shows, two fragrances, three stores, and products like Silly Bandz that make up their 65 million dollar empire.

Mother to the three Kardashian sisters, Kris tells Redbook what the biggest misconceptions about the Kardashians is…

KRIS: It’s annoying when I hear, “What do your girls do?” Well, first of all, all of my daughters have jobs. They are fashion stylists and designers; they own a chain of stores. They had the stores before they had the show. And my kids worked from the time they were 13 years old. So to me, that’s a huge misconception – that the girls don’t work. They work 25 hours a day. And that they don’t have any talent? They might not be singers or dancers, but they certainly know how to produce a television show. Whether you want to call it talent or not, they have multiple shows on the air. [I want to say,] How many shows do you have? Read the rest of the story in Redbook…

When doing my research for this post I searched for Dash, or D-A-S-H (now open in three cities across the US: New York, Miami, and Calabasas), or even the Kardashians for that matter and was dissappointed to find a less than ideal place online to find out more or even purchase anything. If you were to watch any of their E! shows you will see the stores and their employees make cameos in between family, boyfriend, and sister rivalry drama. Employees of Dash are hired via casting calls. The first store opened in 2006 in the area the sisters lived, in 2009 they expanded to Miami (as seen on “Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami”), and as of the end of 2010 in New York.

One of the most impressive (impressive might not be the right word- more surprising) is that Kim Kardashian is a cofounder of an online shoe shopping site shoedazzle.com. ShoeDazzle is a membership site for shoes. You build up a profile of preferences, and are charged roughly $40 per pair. Read this TechCrunch article to find out all about it.

I told my mother (who is also my business partner) about the many areas of business the Kardashian sisters are present in and my mother was not surprised, stating “if enough people cared enough to talk about you, you can do almost anything.” This is true for this family. Do you remember why the Kardashian family is famous? They took that scandal, flipped it and made it work for them. They remind us each day that they are still around. Each sister keeps their fans up to date on their own blogs, they are constantly present in magazines and talk shows, and they are on Twitter communicating with their fans.

At the end of last year Kim Kardashian was quoted in the New York Times as saying “Twitter is the most amazing focus group there is.” Stating that “We give answers to the questions our customers are asking. I think that’s why we’ve been successful.” Read the Kim Kardashian, Inc. article for some insight into why and how the family was able to build their brand so quickly. Simply put, they ask their fans what they want and then deliver it, packaging it in their personal brand.

The Redbook cover story also talked about having babies, raising babies, and appreciating your mom. What can we take away from this and the many, many other articles and television segments out there today about this family?

Here is what I came up with (please share your own takeaways in the comments):

  1. Make yourself known: While most can argue that the method for which the Kardashians rose to stardom was less than ideal, the family is now on the cover of most women and fashion magazines on newstands giving beauty and fashion tips, and talking about their family.
  2. Be present: Know the right people that will help you extend your initial concept into something much bigger and then constantly communicate with your fans to not only extend your own reach, but to find out what they are interested in when it comes to your brand.
  3. Be pleasant: Those that interview the Kardashian sisters almost always comment on how surprised they are at their level of professionalism and how nice they are to work with, which I’m sure will go a long way.
  4. Choose a market and then work to make them happy. The sisters, since opening up their first boutique have ventured into other areas within the fashion industry by either designing for a brand or creating a product that, as Kim Kardashian has mentioned, were developed specifically to fulfill the wants of their fans.
  5. Be family minded: sometimes the easiest way to get you to where you want to go is to partner with people you trust. Kris Kardashian acts as her daughter’s manager while the sisters partner with each other in many of their ventures.

What is your take on the Kardashian sisters and their entrepreneurial endeavors? Comment below…

Photo Credits: Ruven Afanador for Redbook and Faye✩ Mous

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