[00:00:00] Lekha: I wanted to create something that is a non stigma zone for our men to kind of help them look and feel their best.
[00:00:06] Lekha: 80 percent of the market is women, right? I think when it comes to men, to help them.
[00:00:10] Lekha: like it’s an emotional decision for them to purchase. You have to directly target them in a language that they understand and they can get convinced by.
[00:00:17] Courtney: Hi, my name is Courtney, and welcome to How They Scaled It, where scaling is done with both sides of the brain. On this show, we sit down with growth stage businesses and speak with founders and industry leaders from e commerce and SaaS sectors. We showcase their journeys, unpacking pivotal moments, marketing strategies, and key decisions that shaped their success.
[00:00:35] Courtney: Today, I’m bringing on Laika Vyas. Laika is the founder and CEO of LV Lab, a men’s skincare brand launched in 2022. With over 15 years of experience in the beauty industry, she has worked with prominent companies such as Procter Gamble, L’Oreal,
[00:00:50] Courtney: Chanel, and Estee Lauder. She was also part of the founding team at J.
[00:00:54] Courtney: Lo Beauty. Lekha, it is so great to see you, and welcome to How They Scaled It.
[00:00:59] Lekha: Thank you, Courtney. Thanks for having me. I’m excited to discuss everything about all the challenges in this world.
[00:01:06] Courtney: Yeah, there’s a lot to talk about. You’ve had, you have so much experience in the beauty industry, and then going from that to starting your own brand. I just want to hear more about that. Can you tell me how you got into the beauty industry in the first place?
[00:01:18] Lekha: Yeah. So, you know, I started my, obviously, you know, I think it all starts quite young. So like I would go back all the way to college because in school, like, you know, you do internships and that kind of pave your career almost. So I worked at Johnson and Johnson, which is also a consumer company. And, um, then I found myself at Whirlpool.
[00:01:37] Lekha: So kind of. So I joined P& G and I was on, um, Tide and like basically fabric enhancers. So again, laundry. And then I kind of worked cross category across all the brands and my second role. Um, so that was a really good experience. I feel like going to, you know, starting a career at companies like P& G and Oliva or Johnson Johnson, just like the consumer motherships, it really paves the way of, you know, Success, honestly, for your career in the beauty consumer space.
[00:02:11] Lekha: So after that, I transitioned over to L’Oreal and I always wanted to be like fashion lifestyle or something more interesting versus just, you know, your home goods. So I moved to L’Oreal and I got my first role in beauty in their luxury division. So if a lot of people don’t know between L’Oreal and Estee Lauder, they kind of own the entire beauty market.
[00:02:31] Lekha: So L’Oreal owns YSL Armani, um, Kiehl’s, SkinCeuticals. Um, God, I can’t even think of more brands. Blancome is theirs.
[00:02:42] Courtney: If you’re thinking of a brand, it’s probably owned by L’Oreal though.
[00:02:45] Lekha: Most likely, yeah. And they’re like their growth model mostly is dependent on M& A. So like more acquisitions and mergers. So that’s Estes and L’Oreal’s growth, um, structure. So that’s why I think they keep acquiring more companies.
[00:02:59] Lekha: Like Lauder owns, Mac Lauder owns, Clinique, um, La Mer, um. Basically, like all of the luxury beauty brands. So after L’Oreal, um, I kind of got myself into the M& A side of things. I’ve always been passionate about the entrepreneurial stuff. So M& A was very interesting. Cause like you’re working on new companies or acquiring them.
[00:03:21] Lekha: So that’s where the learning really began for me of like, okay, what does the startup world kind of look like? After that, I took break from M& A side and moved into a sales role, which was corporate inside sales, and that was a Chanel. So Chanel is every girl’s dream, and I’m kind of glad I did that. Very different than your typical beauty company though.
[00:03:41] Lekha: Um, because they’re private and very, you know, French structured. And then I moved over to Estée Lauder, so very much an M& A type of capacity again. And then, my last corporate role was with Guthie Ranker. So they’re kind of like a P. E. brand incubator. So they incubate celebrity beauty companies primarily.
[00:04:01] Lekha: And then they grow them and like at some point they will like divest them kind of sell it So that’s how I find myself found myself at JLo. So kind of started day one from scratch I worked on Ellen DeGeneres, Cindy Crawford’s line I had like 15 portfolio companies under me at the time and I will say out of all my experiences Of course, like, you know, L’Oreal, Estee Lauder, Chanel, like they were fantastic and like great learning grounds But in those larger companies, they’re kind of like siloed into like one role Although you see things horizontally, you’re not actively working on that.
[00:04:33] Lekha: But like on the paid side, when you’re incubating a brand, you’re literally touching everything. And I think that’s what really taught me how to build a brand because I was touching everything. You’re working super lean, very startup culture.
[00:04:45] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:04:47] Lekha: during that time, I, um, had to move home again. It was like kind of COVID post COVID.
[00:04:54] Lekha: And so I moved home. My mom actually got really sick. She got cancer. So I was.
[00:04:58] Courtney: No. Yeah. Mm
[00:05:00] Lekha: And then I found myself like, just, you know, sitting in the hospital room at night. I’m like, what do I do? It’s really boring. Let me start studying the market. And then I noticed that all, you know, throughout my 15 years, um, in the corporate world, that there was a massive gap in the men’s space.
[00:05:16] Lekha: Now, coming from PNG, I saw the disruption of Gillette, because Gillette was the monopoly in the market and the razor world. Then came Harry’s, then came Dollar Shave Club. And they kind of completely disrupted that space. So Gillette kind of went down and they ate market share away from them. And there was more companies that came in men’s grooming.
[00:05:37] Lekha: So knowing that I was like, all right, like, why is there a gap still? Why is the men’s personal care category not grown? Although like the numbers say the opposite. And when you look at East versus the West, like Korean beauty, Asian cultures, they’re already much ahead of. The game in their men’s market. So men have already, like, gravitated towards it, moved on to make up and the West matter.
[00:06:00] Lekha: So, I mean, European men are obviously more into taking care of themselves. But when you think about American men, it is slow, but it’s starting. So I was like, from a timing standpoint, it just makes sense. And I also had a personal reason, which I don’t really discuss too much because it gets very deep and sensitive for a lot of people.
[00:06:18] Lekha: What we don’t talk about is, uh, men’s suicide rate in America, it’s the highest compared to everybody’s else’s all over the world. And that’s something that’s been so overlooked for most of our lives. Like when we think about, I actually lost a friend and a cousin to suicide as well and never really talked about it.
[00:06:34] Lekha: Also didn’t really understand what caused it. It comes down to the point of like when kids are going through puberty in their teens, women Girls now have, like, all of Sephora, Ulta, everything on their fingertips. Boys, though, like, they’re also going through body changes. They have weird hair. They’re getting bullied.
[00:06:53] Lekha: They have acne. They have weight loss or weight gain. Height is an issue. So there’s a lot of bullying that happens with kids, and I feel like if those issues from a self care and confidence standpoint are not addressed, it does go into your adulthood, and we see that all the time. Um, so I wanted to create something that is a non stigma zone for our men to kind of help them look and look and feel their best.
[00:07:16] Lekha: Also like now we’re seeing a lot of people are coming out of either struggling to date or coming out of a marriage slash relationships and overall just finding a companion it’s just harder. And as women, like I just slapped on some makeup and I’m like, okay, I’m good to go. I’m not looking homeless anymore.
[00:07:32] Lekha: But I think for guys, it’s like, what do I do to at least like, You know, fix this interaction because it’s all digital and it’s all on zoom these days with the attentions on the face. So it’s just one step in the right direction. We’re starting with skin and the idea is to kind of build a full umbrella of men’s self care, personal care needs.
[00:07:50] Courtney: Yeah. No, I, I love that you, you, when you first, you were able to identify a need in the market just from all of your experience with M& As and how do I like identify valuable companies, but I also appreciate that you found something where there’s. Like a lot of good in the world can come from this in educating and you recognize that there is an education aspect to it um how has that been in like starting the education because I think with men you’re right like the Kind of in america.
[00:08:22] Courtney: We’re a little bit behind on men’s grooming, um and Kind of approaching it with a way that’s like really accessible for men and kind of they’re new to a lot of the stuff and there are small things that Everyone can do to make themselves just like a look a little bit more awake a little bit cleaner How has that education process been going?
[00:08:40] Lekha: So, you know, I think when I built the brand, um, I thought it would be so easy because it’s just so innate being a female and I’ve worked in female beauty my whole life that I’m like, Oh, it should come naturally. But God, that was like the hardest thing. And still is right? Because God forbid, I tell any of my guy friends, I’m like, Hey, like you should use eye cream.
[00:09:00] Lekha: They’re like, Oh my God, what are you saying? I need it. Like, I’m not saying you need Botox or fillers. I’m just saying like
[00:09:06] Courtney: everybody does Yeah
[00:09:09] Lekha: is I think what men also don’t realize that. Women like men that take care of themselves. Of course, like, you want to have, like, the rugged, masculine look to yourself, but at the same time, it boils down to hygiene.
[00:09:21] Lekha: Because the more women I talk to, the more females I interact with, for them, it goes back to the idea of, like, if you take care of yourself, I assume you can take care of another person in your life. And
[00:09:36] Courtney: like I think that having like good hygiene very naturally leads into just Just sleep boosts and confidence and just seeing yourself in the mirror and like knowing that you’re look clean And that’s how you want to present yourself to the
[00:09:48] Lekha: And, you know, Gen Z, like, I think there’s a difference, right? I think Millennials, like, I’m not sure if you’re a Millennial, you’re probably a Gen Z.
[00:09:54] Courtney: I Know I’m a millennial Yeah,
[00:10:00] Lekha: and pretty much everything, honestly. So we are a little bit confused as to, like, we have been tapped into, like, every single thing.
[00:10:08] Lekha: Every test market, everything has been tested on us. So we are a little bit confused and a little bit slower to adapt now. But I think when you talk to Gen Z I sometimes just read interviews, right? To like just test the waters and like ask consumers what’s happening, what they feel. Gents are very open about self care and personal hygiene and confidence.
[00:10:29] Lekha: Like they prioritize self care. And the things that I hear from men is that, you know, Jim was great. Changing my fashion was great. But when it comes to like skincare and smelling good, Game changer when it comes to dating. Game changer when it comes to like, finding a partner. And it’s just so good to see that it has built a level of confidence that, you know, typically you wouldn’t think as a guy that skin care can mean so much.
[00:10:56] Lekha: I think just having clean skin, clean canvas just exudes confidence because it’s like, clean, it’s hygienic, and you just feel good about yourself. So it’s
[00:11:05] Courtney: You don’t have to like change your personality. You just have to wash your face. That’s so straightforward
[00:11:10] Lekha: Speaking of simple, I think that was the idea behind the brand like altogether because when we launched, I didn’t just get into this company.
[00:11:17] Lekha: I was like, Oh, you know, I can’t. I wasn’t like, let me just get into it and launch something. I actually vetted the market. I did some consumer research to identify what do men want? Is there an appetite for this product? And why are men struggling to use skin care or just anything? Um, and it all. Boiled down to the fact that men don’t know there’s lack of education.
[00:11:40] Lekha: It’s too confusing There was a stigma around using skincare because they think it’s makeup and it’s not and there’s confusion And they’re like, where do I even begin? I don’t know and it’s too many options sometimes especially when you use female products and Then it doesn’t work. So for them, it’s like unless I see instant results like I don’t want to use it So that’s why we actually created these This system.
[00:12:04] Lekha: It’s kind of like a regimen
[00:12:06] Lekha: So we wanted to make sure we create something. So science was at the forefront of LV Lab I wanted to make sure things actually work. Sorry, I dropped a bottle So we curated this line with Dermatologists and two scientists and of course my experience they know it’s like the best in the industry So we kept it so simple.
[00:12:26] Lekha: We actually numbered the products So the guys are not standing there reading like the bottle. What do I do? Where do I begin? It’s almost like wash, put in the shower, anti age, tighten your skin. This was like my holy grail. Actually, I’ll talk about it more and then hydrate your skin and then fix the raccoon eyes.
[00:12:45] Lekha: It’s just that simple. So men really want it. It’s like they echoed effectiveness and simplicity in their survey. So that’s how we actually created the brand. We put the consumer insight right at the forefront and You know, in the industry, the feedback I got from my counterparts was like, oh my God, why did you create anything with numbers?
[00:13:05] Lekha: It is just so impossible to sell. Consumers don’t like it,
[00:13:08] Courtney: Oh,
[00:13:09] Lekha: I have to, yeah,
[00:13:10] Courtney: I know tons of brands that use numbers. Like, when you pull that out, it’s like, oh, it’s like the old proactive system,
[00:13:17] Lekha: no active,
[00:13:17] Courtney: when you’re teaching teenagers how to do stuff or even like Olaplex, like they use numbers.
[00:13:23] Lekha: And to be honest, Olaplex is so many that I’m like, even sometimes I’m
[00:13:26] Courtney: Yeah. Because it’s like also, you don’t use all of the numbers.
[00:13:30] Courtney: For this, it’s like, it’s one, two, three. That’s
[00:13:32] Lekha: Yeah, exactly. So I think it’s like you sometimes just have to stick to your gut and be like, you know what? It just makes sense, like, as like a layman, like, it just makes sense to somebody that does not know where to begin. So
[00:13:44] Courtney: So when you, because you kind of moved, like you said, from women’s products to men’s, and you said that was kind of the hardest thing was to shift that mindset. What, was there any, was there ever a moment where you’re like, oh, I get it now, like it started clicking as to like, what you needed to do to serve this market?
[00:14:01] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:14:04] Lekha: quite a bit later because I think what happens is like when you launch a brand, um, you launch with X strategy. You’re like, this is it. This is my good market plan. This is what I’m going to stick to. And then you launch and everything changes. Um, so you kind of have to constantly like re strategize and make sure you’re taking live knowledge and live information and then readapting to that change.
[00:14:28] Lekha: So I think at one point it did click to me. I’m like, okay, well, people that keep buying our product are certain demographics. I’m going to now change our branding to fit that. So you’re constantly making updates, but at the same time you’re constantly learning as well. So I think now we know what to do, but again, it is forever changing because sometimes depending on what happens in the media or social media is a great driver of change.
[00:14:51] Lekha: So then you have to quickly pivot and adapt and be like, okay, let me jump on this. But at the same time, I think the core of the brand has to stay. So for us, the core of the brand is simplicity and effectiveness.
[00:15:02] Courtney: Yeah. Is you, sorry, when you’re, um, thinking about your marketing strategy and how you’re advertising, is it changing, is it very different from the way that you were advertising to women in the past? Um, so it sounds like you’re much more about like simplicity and effectiveness, but are there other things that change like
[00:15:19] Lekha: So
[00:15:20] Courtney: consumer behavior wise, and are you like sending as many emails?
[00:15:23] Courtney: How has that
[00:15:24] Lekha: it is very, very different. I think, um, so for women, I just feel like 80 percent of the market is women, right? So I think we, we spend all our paycheck in beauty on products. Like we don’t mind, we’ll try anything that’s new. I think when it comes to men, it is. You have to kind of make it an emotional decision to help them.
[00:15:45] Lekha: Like it’s an emotional decision for them to purchase. Either it comes from their female counterpart or it’s like you have to directly target them in a language that they understand and they can get convinced by. So it is tougher to acquire that consumer. But I think once they’re acquired, you don’t you just, you don’t have to do as much to retain
[00:16:03] Courtney: Right. No, that makes sense, because women, they’re trying all these different products, and they find one that works, and they stick with it, but then it’s like, once you get them hooked, they don’t want to do that research again.
[00:16:14] Lekha: we’re like, God, who’s going to start all over again? And women, we’re not really loyal about our products. We’re like, oh yeah, I’m on this, like, Laneige cream, but then you make me try something new at Sephora. I’d be like, oh my God, I love this one. Let me just drop Laneige, because it’s more expensive, and I’ll, like, use this one.
[00:16:29] Lekha: So we are, like, constantly testing and trying, and I don’t think that works for men.
[00:16:33] Courtney: No, and also when you think about the amount of money going into research around like women’s skin issues, I’m sure that’s much higher than men’s skin issues. So there’s not nearly as much competition
[00:16:45] Lekha: Exactly. And I think one thing that I do want to say is that women’s skin issues are so different than men because I think like women start with like you start with acne, everybody does hormonal, then you have PCOS, then you have other issues, then you had menopause, and then everything completely changes.
[00:17:01] Lekha: And skin for females is thinner because we are hormonal. But for men, it is thicker. So again, like when people, you know, create different skin things for men, where I’m just like, at least start with Key specific men’s issues, which is dark circles, razor bumps, some acne from like constantly shaving and oil production.
[00:17:23] Lekha: I think those are like the basic fundamentals that all men, whatever their race could be, they struggle with the same kind of issues because their skin is pretty consistent. They’re not hormonal. It’s not forever changing.
[00:17:34] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:17:35] Lekha: So I think that’s also something like you have to educate men on. But outside of all of this, I will say our marketing strategy does change quite a bit.
[00:17:46] Lekha: Um, Amazon is one channel that does well for men, right? Because they are, they love their multi brand experience. They love the ease, they love the laziness of like the prime thing that comes into play. Um, also they don’t have to go to stores and that’s again going back to the stigma.
[00:18:02] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:18:03] Lekha: And then meta ad rates and their algorithm changes also impact us.
[00:18:07] Courtney: I
[00:18:08] Lekha: Promoting something in holidays is like killing your bank account. You don’t see conversion. And again, for men, the acquisition cost is rather high
[00:18:15] Courtney: Yeah, it’s
[00:18:16] Lekha: compared to females.
[00:18:18] Courtney: Do you still advertise across, like, multi channels? So you’re on Amazon, you’re on Meta, on Instagram. Are you, have you tried anything with TikTok?
[00:18:26] Lekha: You know, we try TikTok. Um, I shouldn’t even say this, but sometimes I wish TikTok would get banned.
[00:18:34] Courtney: I don’t know. It is such a hard platform to master, and it’s yeah, it’s a constant challenge.
[00:18:42] Lekha: think it works with affiliates, but I think for men’s like, it has been a little bit challenging for us to crack the code on TikTok. Um, We do use meta, but we are restrategizing right now. So for meta, I think once we have the strategy done that we’re going to like really do like a full launch again. Um, but TikTok has, we tried it for a few months.
[00:19:01] Lekha: We got some okay average results, but at the time I just couldn’t justify the spending on it. And it’s also very erratic. Sometimes it’s great. And sometimes you’re like, what the hell? We can’t even, there’s no science to it.
[00:19:13] Courtney: Right. And you have to be constantly putting out new content, like, all the time. You have to be constantly posting organically, putting in new ads, and that’s just, that’s a lot for a growing brand like yours.
[00:19:24] Courtney: Um, and you have such limited resources, I’m sure, that you, like, you have to decide what is the best place to put those resources.
[00:19:33] Lekha: Exactly. So I think you just have to put your money where your mouth is, at least in the short term. And then once you have started to monetize and you’re like, okay, you know what? Here’s the budget. Run TikTok if it goes down the drain, like whatever we tried. But I think we’re just not playing like that right now.
[00:19:49] Courtney: Yeah, yeah. No, that, that makes sense. I cannot blame you for that. And honestly, you just have to, you have to try all the platforms and give them enough time to work. Um, and then if they don’t work, then you can, at least you say you tried and you can always come
[00:20:02] Lekha: for sure. For sure.
[00:20:04] Courtney: I want to talk a little bit more about how you kind of came from these like really big brands to a startup.
[00:20:11] Courtney: I feel like that must have been such a huge transition to have these like Massive teams with all these resources to starting your own brand where you’re kind of being really scrappy. How is that transition for you? Yeah,
[00:20:29] Lekha: take salary from my business. So, you know, it’s just like, I’m living very much of a founder life. Um, so I think besides that, um, I think when I was at Jalen beauty, cause like that kind of became its own company and like, you know, like the original team people that were there, we kind of transitioned over.
[00:20:47] Lekha: So it did work like a startup. Um, I still had more resources than I have do I have now, but also when it’s your own company, it’s like you don’t mind working kind of like around the clock. I think what’s been a challenge for me is to find a balance. And I’m a type of a person that doesn’t understand that they’re going through a burnout until like,
[00:21:07] Lekha: It
[00:21:07] Lekha: gets really bad.
[00:21:09] Lekha: And then I’m like, I’m like practicing this thing where I’m like, okay, if I just don’t feel up to it today, I’m not going to force myself like maybe. Take it slow for like one day, but I think that has been a challenge. However, like, I don’t think I would trade this for anything else. I
[00:21:25] Lekha: just
[00:21:25] Lekha: love being a founder.
[00:21:27] Lekha: It’s, it’s so much more rewarding because I use, I have worked banker hours in my corporate jobs and I think for me to do this now, even without making the same level of, you know, money, I’m much happier
[00:21:42] Courtney: Yeah, well,
[00:21:43] Lekha: and
[00:21:43] Courtney: I think part of it is like, you get to make all the decisions and you get to run it the way you want it to run, and it is a lot of hours, and there is a lot of burnout, and you’re always pushing yourself, but ultimately, you’re growing, you’re building something, and I think, especially because you’re kind of more of a mission based brand, I think there is something that, to that, versus these like, huge corporate, corporate brands, which are probably fun because you have all the money in the world, but
[00:22:10] Lekha: Yeah, you
[00:22:10] Lekha: can pass whatever you want, right? And I think right now you’re just hands are tied. But I think for me, it’s like, I’ve always been the person that I’m like, if I’m not growing in any capacity, I just get really bored with my own self. So I think and then I go through this like, low phase of like, Oh, questioning life.
[00:22:26] Lekha: What am I doing? I think with like being a founder, of course, you go through those moments when it’s just like, you’re not hearing anything positive. Like you go through like this slump of like, what did I do with my life? Am I ever going to be able to like, You know, do what I used to do. So you’d go through those psychological challenges, but at the same time, I think there’s so much learning happening every single day.
[00:22:46] Lekha: And then you see, like, little, like, joys and rewards that, like, kick in. And you’re just like, wow, this is all worth it. So you just have to kind of keep looking for those small wins. Otherwise, it becomes really, really hard.
[00:22:58] Courtney: Yeah, and like, looking back, I think that’s like, a really important thing for founders, is to say like, okay, like, maybe I’m not hearing a ton of good news, but if I look at myself a year ago, I’ve actually come so far. We’ve actually done so much, and we’re so much
[00:23:11] Lekha: Yeah.
[00:23:11] Courtney: than we were.
[00:23:13] Lekha: you know, it’s just so hard to do that yourself, especially, I think, like, I’m an Asian, so I’ve had very much of an Asian upbringing. So I’m never, I’m like not even, it’s not in my DNA to be like, oh wow, let me just like reward myself. I think that’s like sometimes my friends or like peers that don’t even know me from the optics of things, what people see and the perception you hear from them.
[00:23:35] Lekha: And you’re like, wow, actually you’re so right. And then I write that down and I like read it until I digest it. I’m like, okay, well I think I have done, you know, at least I’ve grown a lot.
[00:23:45] Courtney: Yeah. I mean, honestly, looking at your resume, like, it’s incredibly impressive and
[00:23:49] Lekha: Thank you.
[00:23:49] Courtney: to start your own skincare brand, um, in a untested market, for the most part, is,
[00:23:54] Courtney: that’s pretty impressive.
[00:23:55] Lekha: Thank you.
[00:23:58] Courtney: Um, when you think about, uh, cause you, you have all this experience with, like, M& A, so you’ve looked at a ton of businesses and you’ve, you really have it in your training to, like, know what will make it successful. Business versus not. Do you have any advice for founders out there who are, like, building their brand?
[00:24:16] Courtney: Like, what are the things that they should be focusing on these, like, consumer focused brands?
[00:24:20] Lekha: You know, I always tell people, um, Like for myself, I’m like sure I’ve worked in these amazing companies and I think that experience is so, so, so vital. However, I will say, and this is never something I’ve accepted outright in public. You know, after leaving like Chanel and Estee Lauder and going to kind of like a private equity type of business.
[00:24:42] Lekha: Um, there were times that I was like, wow, why, why did I join this company? It’s not glamorous. It’s not like a billion dollar company. And probably it is when you combine the entire portfolios. But there were times when I questioned myself. I’m like, God, God, why would you make me like get this job? And it’s just like not as fulfilling as I was in.
[00:25:04] Lekha: It was in New York or whatever. Like I did question myself and I said those things to myself. And now looking back, I think. If I had not worked in that company, I would never be a founder cause
[00:25:16] Courtney: Mm
[00:25:17] Lekha: experience in the field that you’re trying to get into because this is all I have. I think I just had beauty experience.
[00:25:26] Lekha: I would not. And sure, I think some people do find success in things that, you know, they will go launch like a shoe company and they’ve never experienced anything in lifestyle or shoes or whatever. And they still make it big. But at the same time, I think majority of us, if you don’t, don’t come from any experience or going in blind, I think that’s a massive risk and have a lot of mentors support system that will give you the real, real, because you need that, like anytime, like your founder, your friends will always be like, wow, you’re doing so great.
[00:25:57] Lekha: You’re blah, blah, blah. Like, it’s just all fluff.
[00:26:00] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:26:01] Lekha: You need somebody to give you kind of a reality check and sometimes it’s good and bad and you will get a lot of advice that thrown at you, which is because advice is free, but learn to filter who to take advice from. That took me a long time. I think it took me a year and a half actually to figure out who not to take advice from and I still get unsolicited advice and sometimes when you’re low points, you just take it and you’re like, okay, I guess.
[00:26:25] Courtney: Right. Yeah,
[00:26:29] Lekha: you just always have to kind of believe in the mission and why you started it.
[00:26:34] Courtney: yeah. Finding those trusted advisors can be really difficult, mostly because, like you said, advice is free. Everybody has an opinion about your business, I’m sure. Um, but knowing who to trust and Sometimes you have to trust the wrong people and make some mistakes, um, for a while, but, but having people who tell you the truth is, is huge.
[00:26:54] Courtney: Because it is really also easy to be like, you’re doing great, just keep doing what you’re doing. And that’s not always super helpful.
[00:27:00] Lekha: helpful. And by the way, you will get burned badly. Not once, but many times. Um, I mean, it’s already happened to me, I think three times now where I’m just like, I don’t want to trust anyone, but then you also can’t live like that.
[00:27:14] Lekha: So you just have to learn from each mistake of why you got burnt and just kind of fix it for the future.
[00:27:20] Lekha: And sometimes you won’t be able to read people because you have to trust somebody. And those some people sometimes push you down the wrong path. So you just have to kind of figure out how to come out of it.
[00:27:31] Courtney: yeah. And that, I mean, we’re always problem solving. That’s pretty much the entire job is just problem solving, so.
[00:27:38] Lekha: Yeah, for sure.
[00:27:39] Courtney: Um, when you think about LV for the next five years, what do you envision? I know you’ve got a lot of stuff planned, um, so you don’t have to get too specific, but generally speaking, where do you want to see the brand in five years?
[00:27:54] Lekha: Should I give you the real answer?
[00:27:56] Courtney: Yeah, I would like the real answer.
[00:27:58] Lekha: actually want to exit in five years. Um, like since I started the company, I’ve, I’ve been very clear about the goals I want to scale it to a certain point and then I want to exit out of it because, um, you know, you should always leave a party in a business at its peak when people get too greedy, things tend to go down the drain.
[00:28:16] Lekha: But anyways, I think for me, it’s like I’ve always had a vision. I’m like, I want to build a company and just coming from M and a, I think maybe that’s how it’s just ingrained in me. That that’s the right way to like, I’m not the type to go to IPO. Like, I don’t want to do all of that. I just want to build a solid company that makes sense and that has a mission behind it and just get acquired and
[00:28:35] Courtney: Yeah. A true entrepreneur. I think that’s great. And also, coming from M& A, you’ve seen how the process works, and you’ve seen how wonderful that’s been for those founders who have gotten acquired, that I think it makes sense to build something that’s really meaningful to you, and get it to be to a point where it’s very successful, be able to sell it.
[00:28:56] Courtney: That’s, I mean, that’s the dream.
[00:28:58] Lekha: Yeah. That’s a dream. I think, I think, and also, I think when I give this advice to other people, I’m like, be very clear because I think when people try to put money into you. When advisors come on board, like everybody wants to know the end goal and be honest, right? I think a lot of times like Investors would be like I’m pitching and they’re like, what do you want to do?
[00:29:17] Lekha: I’m like to be honest. I have a five year plan and I kind of want to just exit at that point Yeah, five years could turn into eight years. Maybe it could turn into 10 years. I want to I have a number in mind And if that happens like fantastic, but I think investors also want to know when they will get their ROI Right.
[00:29:36] Lekha: So I think it’s good to be candid and good to be honest, because I thought I was scared when I was like, Oh, should I tell them that I want to exit? Why would they put money into it? And most people were like, perfect. We love this, figuring out how you’re
[00:29:48] Courtney: well, because you, you know exactly like it, it’s so much better than just saying, I just want to keep growing it forever. Like that’s,
[00:29:54] Lekha: Yeah, there’s no end in
[00:29:55] Courtney: to it, which is helpful, I think.
[00:29:58] Lekha: Yeah.
[00:29:59] Courtney: Yeah. Do you, um, do you feel like you, after you exit, you want to start another business or do you just want to see kind of where the
[00:30:05] Lekha: Honestly, I want to sleep after I exit.
[00:30:08] Courtney: Yes. Yes.
[00:30:12] Lekha: just go to the spa and travel a little bit. Just probably reset myself. And it is really hard to be a founder. I will say, like, you just never have a work life balance. And I think once you get to a certain scale, you do. But that’s still a journey for most of us.
[00:30:28] Lekha: Um, Yeah, I think after I said, I don’t know, I’ll figure out what I want to do.
[00:30:33] Courtney: That totally makes sense. Right now, um, I imagine to, for that five year plan, you’ve set some goals. You said you have a number in mind, which you don’t have to tell us, but how do you set those goals? Like, what, what’s kind of driving that? Like, what elements are you looking at to, to set your end goals?
[00:30:48] Lekha: I think for a bot, you obviously have to have like a new product launch strategy.
[00:30:52] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:30:53] Lekha: You have to focus on what markets you’re going to, you know, go into. And sometimes obviously things change. You can have a really nice plan and obviously work towards it. You have to have a plan. So you’re working towards something.
[00:31:06] Lekha: So I think the biggest way to like. If I was like, oh, I’m just going to build a skin care company and it’s going to be X millions of dollars, like, it’s a little unrealistic. Like, you have to have multiple categories. You have to have a full consumer company or personal care brand. Multiple categories, multiple markets, and then try to scale it.
[00:31:25] Lekha: I think Niterium is actually a very good example. I got acquired by, uh, Elf Cosmetics. 350 million acquisition, three years of launch, and that’s it.
[00:31:35] Courtney: Beautiful.
[00:31:37] Lekha: I mean, ASAP is a phenomenal story. 3 billion acquisition acquired by L’Oreal, but it’s an Australian company, but they’ve been around for a while. So I think it’s like taking these test cases.
[00:31:48] Lekha: And of course, I think it was also really important to look at the winners, but also the brands that didn’t make it. And I think. Learning from them because I think it can happen to anybody, right? Like a few, couple of bad decisions, bad luck. I think luck also plays a really big role. Like you can be the smartest, you can always work the hardest.
[00:32:07] Lekha: You can be the kindest founder. If you don’t have luck on your side, then you can keep trying and then keep failing.
[00:32:14] Courtney: Sometimes it’s just right place, right time. Like, I mean, even you look at like the pandemic and just some people really succeeded out of that. A lot of e com brands really did well during that. And then a lot of retail brands really struggled. And that’s just where you are at the time. So there’s not a lot
[00:32:31] Courtney: you can do about that.
[00:32:32] Lekha: And then you have brands like us that chose to launch post pandemic. And we’re like, why are ads so expensive now?
[00:32:38] Courtney: it’s like a whole different world.
[00:32:40] Lekha: It is hard to navigate, I think, because I think coming out of that, like I would say from a challenge standpoint, that has been our biggest challenge because I think investors also are so used to, at least in that time, we’re so used to looking at COVID brands and they all did so well
[00:32:56] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:32:57] Lekha: and coming out of the pandemic, now they have their brand equity.
[00:33:01] Lekha: And they’re maintaining that. And while acquiring new customers for new brands that are built, they’re not only competing against the covid brands that had free ads, basically, now you have to build a new strategy, new ways of acquiring those customers, building a full brand equity from scratch. So I think that is definitely a challenge at the market has changed.
[00:33:21] Lekha: So I think for investors to learn that for brand founders to learn that for consumers to adapt to a new way of consuming now, It’s also been a challenge and I think everybody’s kind of like in between that hybrid retail and retail model and I think we’re still I think all of us are still learning how to Acquire that customer and
[00:33:42] Courtney: Well, and also we, we have Two new genera like, Gen Z and now Gen Alpha are starting
[00:33:48] Courtney: to, like, purchase, so, like, figuring out how they purchase and how they use online, what kind of ads they want to see, that’s a whole other challenge that just people five years ago just didn’t have to worry about nearly
[00:34:01] Lekha: Yeah, they did it I mean it’s like kids now watch just YouTube shorts like they spend time their leisure time watching shorts And so I’m like, how’s that fun? And that’s a new way of selling and consuming. So you always have to be like on top of technology to be like, okay, I have to play into this. I have to play into that.
[00:34:20] Lekha: So you’re just testing a whole bunch of crap sometimes. And it’s just like, I always say, go back to basics. Know who your demo is. Focus on that and then like worry about acquiring new customers from a different demographic because it may or may not convert. That’s why TikTok was like challenging for us because
[00:34:37] Courtney: Right, right. That
[00:34:39] Courtney: is a totally different, totally different people on TikTok and the way they, they act versus Facebook and Meta. Um, and I like that you did like a decent amount of research before launching the brand to help you with your messaging. And it sounds like you’ve learned a lot over the last two years.
[00:34:55] Lekha: Yeah.
[00:34:56] Courtney: Are you guys in retail and e com or are you just on e com?
[00:34:59] Lekha: We’re in very limited specialty retail, but we are trying to get into big box retailers. That would be really nice. But I think, you know, I always tell people and investors as well, like, sure, like what in theory, it just sounds really good to be in a retailer.
[00:35:16] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:35:17] Lekha: And you think that once you’re in, like you’ve made it, but no, the reality is far from it.
[00:35:22] Lekha: I think what a lot of brand founders that have not worked, you know, with retail before they don’t realize is that the entire merchandising costs and advertising costs falls on you as a brand. And for most retailers, if you’re not bringing in turn, you’re out, and then you kind of become blacklisted. So you’re not doing yourself a service by getting into retail.
[00:35:42] Lekha: If you cannot support the turn. Which again goes back to like, you have to drive so much advertising on the digital side to drive traffic into the stores. Like, you have to be prepared for that financially, staffing wise, time wise, strategically, all of it.
[00:35:58] Courtney: Yeah, yeah, we’ve worked with a few brands that have gotten, like, these big retail, um, deals and then all of a sudden, they’re like, we have to fill this, like, 10, 000 unit order and we don’t even know how to do that, it, it’s really stre I mean, it’s, it’s great, it’s good movement, but it is so stressful and so overwhelming, um,
[00:36:19] Lekha: chain for me is like those, those problems for me are like easier ones. I think for me, it’s like the cost of advertising is just so huge, but I think I come from a supply chain background. So it’s been rather easy for me to be like. Okay. You want to feel fine. Like we’ll figure it out. I mean, so any founders that are listening to this, you need supply chain health.
[00:36:38] Lekha: I can help you.
[00:36:39] Courtney: Yes,
[00:36:39] Courtney: amazing, yeah. Awesome, well, um, again, thank you so much for, for joining. I do have one more question, um, that I ask everybody. If you could give yourself one piece of advice when you were just starting out, um, with LV, what would it be? I know it’s only two years ago that you started it, but
[00:36:58] Lekha: there’s so much advice. I mean, I’m still trying to fix this one. This is like a big hole. Um, I, I would say there’s two things for me. So one is that I wish I had a co founder from the get go. And a CMO slash co founder. So I’m still looking if anybody’s listening and you think you want to do this. Hit me up on LinkedIn.
[00:37:17] Lekha: Um, secondly, I would say is, you know, I come from the space. So theoretically I could have talked about my brand in a capacity that was more educational, like six months pre launch. And I wish I did that, but I was given the wrong advice. That’s why I said earlier. Figure out who you’re taking advice from.
[00:37:38] Lekha: And this was from my agency and other people that they were like, you’re a female, like, don’t put your name on the brand. Nobody should know that you’re the founder.
[00:37:46] Courtney: Okay.
[00:37:46] Lekha: And I’m like, but I have authority in this space. Like I know what works and I can talk about it, but it was like a no, no. And I didn’t do that until like much later, like, you know, six, seven months ago, no, actually I started this year.
[00:38:00] Lekha: So I was a little bit late to the game from a founder story standpoint, but obviously go with your gut and if it’s your brand, you have to represent it because you’re a biggest salesman.
[00:38:09] Courtney: Yeah. And, you know, you are the founder, so, like, if that was the advice, the advice should have been, start a different type of brand,
[00:38:17] Courtney: because you’re,
[00:38:18] Lekha: I get the whole like it’s men’s and you need a guy to talk about it to resonate with the consumer. I get it. But at the same time, men look to their wives and girlfriends to seek advice on skin care.
[00:38:28] Courtney: Yeah, yeah.
[00:38:30] Courtney: And women clearly know more about skin care than men do right now, so,
[00:38:34] Lekha: it’s like I can see your skin and tell you what’s wrong with it.
[00:38:36] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:38:38] Lekha: Yeah.
[00:38:38] Courtney: Um, amazing. Well, those are great pieces of advice. Um, having a co founder is just having a friend, a buddy, someone who you can talk to about, like, the high level stuff, um, is so nice. So, I hope you get, get someone to come in and be that level with you.
[00:38:54] Lekha: I think what founders sometimes make the mistake of is the ego where they’re like, Oh, it’s my company. I’m going to do it all, but you can’t do it all. Like, I know what I’m really good at and I know what I’m not good at. And I think those are the holes you need to fill to have a successful company.
[00:39:09] Lekha: Because when you start filling the hole of something that you don’t really have expertise in, you’re going to blow money.
[00:39:15] Courtney: Yeah.
[00:39:15] Lekha: And you’re going to waste a lot of time and
[00:39:18] Courtney: And you’re not gonna have fun. Like, it’s not fun doing things that you’re not good at.
[00:39:23] Lekha: exactly. So like know your shortcomings and be very honest about it.
[00:39:26] Courtney: Yeah. Um, thank you again for joining. Do you want to tell everybody where they can find you, um, online?
[00:39:33] Lekha: Oh yeah, guys. So you can find me on LinkedIn, just type my name, lake of eyes or LV lab. I’ll pop up on that. I’m also open on Instagram, so please follow my brand. I’ll be underscore a lab and. You can also search my name on Instagram. So connect with me and I’m always happy to help. I always give a lot of advice to people that need it.
[00:39:54] Lekha: And it’s just, you know, exchange of karma sometimes. So that’s what I believe in. And if anybody needs any help, hit me up.
[00:40:01] Courtney: I love it. Yeah, I mean, you really do have a wealth of knowledge, like, in this industry. So, I highly encourage anyone who’s starting up a, beauty brand to, to reach out.
[00:40:10] Lekha: All right. Thank you, Courtney.
[00:40:12] Courtney: And, uh, thank you to everyone at home for listening. Um, and if you enjoyed today’s episode, please make sure to subscribe, share it with a friend, leave us a review.
[00:40:20] Courtney: If there’s anything you want to hear on an upcoming episode, just let us know. For more insights, uh, follow us on LinkedIn or visit rightleftagency. com and we will be back next time with more stories of success, innovation, and marketing strategies to help you grow. Thank you.
