Ladies Who Launch

Colette Laxton co-founded The INKEY List in 2018 to make skincare less confusing and has since sold over 90 million products worldwide.

In this episode, she breaks down exactly how she split her first £300K starting budget between stock, marketing and running costs, including why most of her marketing spend went on one person: Caroline Hirons!

We all know the success of The INKEY List but the growth came at a cost. Colette opens up about nearly going bankrupt, the burnout that put her in bed for two weeks straight, and the unpredictability of virality including how a product she never planned to sell became the number one body product on TikTok Shop. It's an honest look at what building a brand from nothing actually takes, budget breakdown included.

In this episode, we cover:
Leaving a decade-long career at Boots to join a scrappy startup
Exactly how she split her first £300K investment
Why most of her marketing budget went on: Caroline Hirons
The Cult Beauty call on launch day that changed everything
Launching The INKEY List into Sephora across North America within six months
Nearly going bankrupt, and what it actually takes to get "retail ready"
The burnout that put her in bed for two weeks straight
How a product she never planned to sell became #1 on TikTok Shop

If you’re looking to launch in the skincare space, this one’s for you!

We Are Ladies Who Launch!

00:00 Cult Beauty Calls Day One
00:55 Introducing Colette Laxton
03:10 Learning the Corporate Ropes at Boots
10:21 Realising The Skincare Gap
18:41 Leveraging PR for Launch
21:44 Early Funding and Brand Blow Up
27:05 Launching in Sephora US
33:10 Figuring Out Stock and Logistics
37:10 Virality and TikTok Shop
39:09 Our 1 Million Unit Order
40:14 Why Micro Influencers Win
46:23 Leadership at 100 Staff
50:47 Founder Burnout Reality
55:32 Rocket Round
01:06:51 Staying in the Game

🔔 New episodes every Wednesday — subscribe so you never miss a launch.

FOLLOW COLETTE
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colette.theinkeylist/
The Inkey List: https://www.instagram.com/theinkeylist/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@colette.laxton

FOLLOW US
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weareladieswholaunch/
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@weareladieswholaunch
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@Weareladieswholaunch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everybody needs a life coach as their bestie, and in this week's episode of Ladies Who Launch, we’re welcoming back Dior Bediako to unpack the raw reality of running a business. We discuss the shocks of entrepreneurship, how to stop taking fails so personally, why being busy ≠ building, and why launching shouldn’t be your goal.

Dior shares her tips on success with tangible weekly goals, structure and accountability that actually create momentum, how to know when to admit something isn't working, and her top advice to beat imposter syndrome without ever using your goals against yourself.

Get Dior's design your future-self worksheet: https://pepperyourtalk.kit.com/736ece85c7

In this episode, we cover:

Why launching isn't the goal, and the real shocks of running a business
Busy vs building: why doing more ≠ more results
How to build structure that sticks: tangible weekly goals, accountability and results over process
The importance of knowing when to pivot
Mindset resets: stop comparing, stop using goals against yourself and beat imposter syndrome

If you’ve ever felt like your goals are bringing you down, this one’s for you!

We Are Ladies Who Launch!

CHAPTERS
00:00 Meet Dior Bediako
03:07 Using Business As Growth Tool
06:33 Why You're Busy Vs Building
14:29 Do Less, Get Better Results
18:42 When To Quit & Pivot
21:35 Find Your Bottom Left
25:00 Growth Needs Systems
32:17 Focussing On Being A Future Founder
36:30 How To Find Your Ideal Customer
41:03 Handling Being Copied
49:10 How To Make Decisions Under Pressure
51:28 When To Quit Your Job
57:01 Stop Feeling Behind
01:05:02 Ditch Imposter Syndrome
01:07:04 Final Thanks and Wrap

🔔 New episodes every Wednesday — subscribe so you never miss a launch.

FOLLOW DIOR
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diorbediako/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@diorbediako

FOLLOW US
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weareladieswholaunch/
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@weareladieswholaunch
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@Weareladieswholaunch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The cat's finally out of the bag! After months of hiding logos, dodging your questions, and biting my tongue every time you asked what "Roch Builds a Brand" was really about… I can finally tell you. Welcome to Eulah!

In this episode I'm telling you the full story: where the name came from, the Korean-inspired formulas the whole brand is built around, and how we've somehow managed to bring it to you for £8–£12 a product.

We're launching with 12 products including a gua sha companion that I am OBSESSED with. This is the biggest launch I have ever done and I’m so excited to share it with you.

Sign up at eulahskin.com to be the first to hear more, get early access to products, and find out how to meet Rochelle at launch.

We Are Ladies Who Launch!

CHAPTERS
00:00 Introducing Eulah
01:43 Eulah Brand Vision and Pricing
03:39 Where To Shop Eulah
06:14 The Meaning Behind The Brand Name
07:37 Join the Eulah Community
08:38 12 Products Sneak Peek
09:56 Road to Launch Plans
10:50 Expert Doctor Partnership

🔔 New episodes every Wednesday — subscribe so you never miss a launch.

FOLLOW EULAH SKIN
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eulahskin/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@eulahskin
Website: www.eulahskin.com

FOLLOW US
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weareladieswholaunch/
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@weareladieswholaunch
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@Weareladieswholaunch
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Ladies Who Launch, we’re taking a break from regular scheduled programming to revisit some of the most iconic moments of honesty, vulnerability, and advice from previous powerhouse founders, including Emma Grede, Ella Mills, Sabrina Elba, Sam Faiers, Mona Kattan, Amy Liu, Perrie Sian, Conna Walker, Frankie James, Vivien Wong, Aimee Smale, Penelope Cheshire, Ama Hill, Jessica Sepel and Jo Malone.

This mastermind compilation is your spark and start to finding your idea and taking the first leap to building the business of your dreams. It includes all of those golden nuggets of advice from our Ladies who’ve Launched; from how to take the first leap, and turn personal problems and passion into purpose-led businesses, to building resilience through startup struggles, influencer growth and unwavering self-belief.

In this episode, we cover:
Taking the leap & founding from a personal problem
Turning your passion into a career
Navigating early startup struggles
The moment you truly ‘launch’
Embracing failure and backing yourself through it
If you’re in need of a reminder of why you started and why you shouldn’t give up, this one’s for you.
We Are Ladies Who Launch!

Chapters
00:00 From Fear to First Leap
00:31 Why Founders Start
01:05 How Personal Experience Sparks Ideas
03:05 Believing in Your Product Vision
04:20 Quitting and Going All In
06:18 Starting Small Operations
06:50 Bootstrapping, Solo Hustle and Managing It All
08:34 Launch Breakthrough Moment
09:11 Advice for New Founders
11:03 Why Not Me

🔔 New episodes every Wednesday — subscribe so you never miss a launch.

FOLLOW US
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weareladieswholaunch/
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@weareladieswholaunch
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@Weareladieswholaunch

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you ever experienced having to mix 3 different foundations just to find your shade? Well your problems have been sold because DCYPHER Beauty is the World’s first beauty tech brand creating formulations from scratch, one at a time, personalised in minutes.

In this week's episode, Rochelle sits down with Ruth De Leo, skincare founder of DCYPHER and mentee of Charlotte Tilbury, to share how AI-powered shade-matching is solving the personalisation problem no beauty giant could crack.

We discuss the real expectations vs reality of launching a brand, learning from the best brands in the industry, and the non-negotiables that keep DCYPHER running. Ruth gets honest about founder life, unexpected customer feedback, and the advice she wishes she never listened to.

In this episode, we cover:
Ruth’s beauty-industry background and discovering the gap in the market that sparked the brand.
Charlotte Tilbury mentorship that impacted her career.
How AI and personalisation formulas solved the universal shade-match struggle.
The expectations vs reality of starting up, and how she switches off.
Business non-negotiables, the advice she ignores, and Ruth’s top tip.

If you’ve ever wanted to learn how technology can benefit skincare, this one’s for you.

We Are Ladies Who Launch!

Chapters
00:00 Industry Meets Problem
01:59 Pain Points & Waste In Makeup And Waste
06:33 Scaling Brands And Building Confidence
07:44 Charlotte Tilbury Lessons On Trust
17:49 DCYPHER Tech Explained
26:08 Launching In John Lewis
34:55 Data Driven Foundation Formulas
36:49 Fast Track Personalised Lip Products
41:02 Switching Off As A Founder
43:31 Learning To Let Go
48:35 John Lewis Launch Moment
51:45 Advice Regrets And Lessons
57:30 Why Its Important To Obsess Over The Problem

🔔 New episodes every Wednesday — subscribe so you never miss a launch.

FOLLOW RUTH
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ruthxdcypher/
DCYPHER: https://www.instagram.com/dcypherbeauty/

FOLLOW US
Instagram: www.instagram.com/weareladieswholaunch/
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@weareladieswholaunch
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@Weareladieswholaunch

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.