Courtney Claghorn, co-founder of SUGARED + BRONZED, joins Lara Schmoisman on Coffee Nº5 to share how she bootstrapped a beauty service out of her apartment into a nationwide brand. From $1,000 in startup capital to 10 stores before raising funding, Courtney reveals the lessons of growth, customer loyalty, franchising, memberships, and creating a product line—all while keeping customer service at the core.
We'll talk about:
- How Courtney turned $1,000 in savings into Sugared + Bronzed
- The leap from apartment spray tans to opening a first brick-and-mortar in Santa Monica
- Bootstrapping growth for 9 years before raising outside capital
- Building a team you can actually trust—and learning when to take back control
- Creating a product line without losing focus on services
- Customer service as the foundation of brand loyalty
- Why raising capital with the right partners changed everything
For more information, visit Courtney Claghorn's LinkedIn.
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Instagram: @laraschmoisman
Facebook: @LaraSchmoisman
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