Startups in Stilettos

Startups in Stilettos

Have you recently started a business, or are you considering taking the leap to start? Do you find yourself alone or overwhelmed in the whirlwind of early challenges in your Entreprenista journey? Well, you’re in the right place - Startups in Stilettos is for you. Learn what it takes to grow your startup, from your peers in the startup world, and those who are in your shoes (or stilettos, if you will) We’re meeting you where you are to get you through your biggest challenges and toward your biggest goals. From the team behind the Entreprenista podcast, tune in to Startups in Stilettos as you take steps to build your startup from the ground up. So what can you expect from Startups in Stilettos? Each week, we’ll interview a startup founder in our community to uncover their early challenges, learn from the solutions they’ve found, make new connections, and strategize for the future growth of their business. You’ll walk away with practical tips and resources to help you along your journey and a new community member to connect with through the Entreprenista League!

Episodes

KJ Blattenbauer Makes Female Founders Pitchworthy

January 13, 2026 • 38 mins
“No one can fund your business. No one can come to your store. No one can purchase your service. If they don't know you exist, if they don't know about it, if they don't know how it can help you, PR does all of those things.”‍What if visibility isn’t about being louder—but being more relevant? In this episode of Startups in Stilettos, hosts Ingrid Zapata-Read and Carlyn Bushman sit down with PR powerhouse KJ Blattenbauer, founder o...
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Tracy Beavers Helps Founders Get Visible without the Burnout

January 6, 2026 • 36 mins
“That's that visibility that I teach for that with that consistent content has to drive to your list or here again, it's just noise. It's just content. That's all it's doing. So visibility without strategy is just noise.”In this episode of Startups and Stilettos, hosts Carlyn Bushman and Ingrid Zapata-Read sit down with Tracy Beavers, CEO and Founder of Tracy Beavers Coaching and longtime visibility strategist, to unpack sustainabl...
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Dionne Ellison Builds an Eyewear Brand That Leads with Vision

December 30, 2025 • 32 mins
“I never really wanted to be in front of the camera with my brand because I wanted to be an eyewear brand, not a black -owned eyewear brand. I didn't want to be pigeonholed into something in people's mind.”In this episode of Startups in Stilettos, hosts Ingrid Zapata-Read and Carlyn Bushman sit down with Entreprenista League member Dionne Ellison, Founder and CEO of Vuliwear, an elevated eyewear brand redefining how we think about ...
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The Conversations We're Still Thinking About in 2025

December 23, 2025 • 18 mins
“You truly kept going. You learned along the way. And guess what? You asked for help. You figured things out. And I know we sound like a broken record here, but so many wins, so many plot twists. And once again, you're still here.”In this special year-end episode of Startups in Stilettos, Ingrid Zapata-Read and Carlyn Bushman look back on the moments that defined this year—not the polished highlight reels, but the raw, powerful con...
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Darcy Bennet Transforms How the World Sees Admins

December 16, 2025 • 33 mins
“...Now I feel so secure and confident in what I'm doing that, you know, it's completely different than what I originally set it out to be. But I'm really grateful that it is.” In this episode of Startups and Stilettos, host Ingrid Zapata-Read sits down with Darcy Bennet—founder of DB Executive Services and the powerhouse behind Elevating Administrative Professionals, a fast-growing global event series and community transforming...
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Nicole Leon Helps Founders Buy Back Their Time

December 9, 2025 • 31 mins
“...I have been able to scale multiple businesses off of organic social media reach alone. No email marketing, no paid ads. Literally just organic reach. And word of mouth. And I mean, I think that speaks volumes to it.”‍In this inspiring episode of Startups in Stilettos, we sit down with Entreprenista League member and Powerhouse Latina founder Nicole Leone—the dynamic force behind El Leone Virtual Assistance, a boutique executive...
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Jade Pruett Gets Women-Owned Brands Found Online

December 2, 2025 • 32 mins
"I think what really sets a lot of different agencies apart is how they acquire backlinks because there's so many. And that's another one of those terms, like, who even knows what that means. It's very important to get other websites to talk about your website.”In this episode of Startups in Stilettos, Carlyn and Ingrid sit down with SEO strategist and founder of HelloSEO, Jade Pruett, to explore what visibility really means in 202...
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Katya Eckert Crafts Sleepwear That Supports Hormonal Wellness

November 25, 2025 • 35 mins
“And we reached out to them. I was like, I really want to do this self -care giveaway. I really want to elevate this like process of self-care…”On this episode of Startups in Stilettos, host Carlyn Bushman sit down with Entreprenista League member Katya Eckert, founder and CEO of A DOMANI, the sleepwear brand redefining rest for women navigating postpartum, menopause, breast-cancer treatment, and beyond. Inspired by her own postpa...
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Sequoia Armstrong Inspires Women to Explore with Intention

November 18, 2025 • 34 mins
“I've been in a number of communities and I think that sharing your challenges and your, even fear, you know, fears and challenges and your wins, which I think as women can be very hard sometimes to do with others…” In this episode of Startups In Stilettos, host Ingrid Zapata-Read sit down with Sequoia Armstrong, conscious travel consultant, community builder, and founder of Puebla York, a boutique travel consultancy helping women...
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Allyse Cirillo Redefines Clean Beauty from the Inside Out

November 11, 2025 • 33 mins
“We all feel that way. We all feel like where do we start? You know, you can't do everything every day all the time. So just creating those little habits and little changes.”On this episode of Startups and Stilettos, host Ingrid Zapata-Read sits down with Allyse Cirillo, Founder and CEO of St. Joe, a clean wellness brand reshaping the beauty industry from the inside out.After over a decade in corporate product development and a per...
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Nina Sarin Arias Grows a Global Luxury Brand from the Ground Up

November 4, 2025 • 32 mins
“I'm happy to be growing organically and, you know, taking my time with it. I'm not in a rush. So I think that's what I've learned in the past kind of eight, nine, eight years since I've had the brand. It's just, it's going to take time.”What does it take to trade a corporate career at Burberry and Cartier for life as a fashion founder in New York City? For Nina Sarin, Founder & Creative Director of Arias New York, it all started w...
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Kelly Gushue Simplifies Money Management for Busy Entreprenistas

October 28, 2025 • 37 mins
“...there is a money mindset that we are continuously addressing. And this is why it's an ongoing learning process. And it's great to be part of a community associated with money because there are different dimensions associated with money.” Money isn’t just about numbers — it’s about choices, confidence, and freedom. In this empowering episode of Startups in Stilettos, hosts Carlyn Bushman and Ingrid Zapata-Read sit down with Kel...
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Jamie Keane Builds Creator Websites in 20 minutes

October 21, 2025 • 35 mins
“They're like, well, I don't know if I have the money to do marketing.I'm like, if your marketing is garbage, you're not going to make money. You have to have good marketing.” In this episode of Startups and Stilettos, hosts Ingrid Zapata-Read and Carlyn Bushman sit down with Jamie Keane, founder of Julip — the innovative “website-in-bio” platform helping creators and solopreneurs build stunning, functional websites in just 20 min...
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Lauren Capwell & Lauren Shaw on How They Doubled Close Rates with AI

October 14, 2025 • 39 mins
“...so I had this conversation with the GPT And within like 10 minutes, there were tears streaming down my face because it reflected back to me like what I already knew to be true, which was that I wasn't weaving my spirituality into the work that we were doing. And that's a huge part of who I am as a person.” In this episode of Startups in Stilettos, host Carlyn Bushman sits down with Lauren Capwell and Lauren Shaw, founders of...
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Gloria Govan on Thriving in Male-Dominated Industries

October 7, 2025 • 49 mins
“I’ve had to prove myself ten times harder just to be taken seriously, but I never let that stop me. If anything, it pushed me to build something that speaks for itself.” In this episode of Startups and Stilettos, host Ingrid Zapata-Read sits down with entrepreneur and community builder Gloria Govan. From navigating male-dominated industries to balancing life as a mom of five and founder of multiple ventures, Gloria shares her unf...
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How to 'Pass the Mic' and Pay it Forward to Fellow Founders

September 30, 2025 • 9 mins
“Remember, passing the mic isn't a one time thing. It's something you do on purpose over and over. It's how you grow and how you can help others grow too.” In this episode of Startups in Stilettos, host Ingrid Zapata-Read unpacks what it really means to “pass the mic.” More than a buzzword, it’s a practice of creating opportunities, amplifying voices, and building trust within your network. Whether you’re just starting out or grow...
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Gabriela Fiorentino Turns 2am Mom Guilt into a Thriving Eco Community

September 23, 2025 • 36 mins
“I was like, I am racing the future while I'm polluting your future. Like I was so, like that just started ringing in my mind and it just became louder and louder until I was like, "I need to figure out how to do this.” On this episode of Startups in Stilettos, hosts Carlyn Bushman and Ingrid Zapata Read sit down with Gabriela Fiorentino, founder of Nest Earth, a membership community helping parents create healthier, non-toxic hom...
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3 Things I'd Do Differently if I Started My Business Today

September 16, 2025 • 10 mins
“You already know what you're building. You already know how you want people to feel when they experience your work or buy your product. You just have to get quiet enough to hear it and brave enough to follow it.” In this episode of Startups and Stilettos, host Ingrid Zapata Read gets personal about the lessons she wishes someone had told her at the start of her entrepreneurial journey. From the power of building your email ...
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Sharon Ringier on Building Your Own Table

September 9, 2025 • 36 mins
“I sat there and I'm like, how do I, how do I manage this? Because it's like, I'm raising a generation of two men. This is not what he needs to see. This is what women do. And that was so, and it was just powerful for me to take it in. Again, things don't happen to us, they happen for us.” On this episode of Startups in Stilettos, we sit down with Sharon Ringier, founder of The Possible Woman Collective and publisher of Possible...
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Jessie Jaskulsky on How Personal Loss Sparked a Surrogacy Revolution

September 2, 2025 • 30 mins
“I really had to think about this and decide what I could offer that would be unique and really help have me stand out in the crowd. And I think one of the things is, is not that many people come forward with their story.” In this episode of Startups and Stilettos, hosts Ingrid Zapata-Read and Carlyn Bushman sit down with Jessie Jaskulsky, founder of Surrogacy Simplified, a concierge and consulting firm guiding intended parents ...
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