Recently, Chelsea Glaser (Co-Founder of two organizations, Fredi and Launch It Girl) was interviewed by Women On Topp Magazine. We’ve selected a couple of Chelsea’s insights into business launching and other tips for our online magazine readers below.
Chelsea Glaser has always followed her interests and passions, carving out new paths when she couldn’t find one that suited her in that stage of her life. As Chelsea Glaser has grown passionate about innovation and entrepreneurship, she has leaned into her strongest skill sets of strategic business development and wordsmithing to help other starters get started. Everything she has done over the last 3 years has been to help innovative women build their ideas into reality. Whether their barrier is not knowing the first step for how to start their business, they feel too busy to add more to their plate, or they have self-doubt or fears in their way,
‘’I want to help them push through the barriers and embrace their entrepreneurial spirit. There are few things more empowering and liberating than having a great idea, creating a plan, and realizing “I am capable of making this happen.” Every innovative, ambitious woman deserves this feeling!’’ Chelsea Glaser
What motivated you to start a company in the first place? How did you get inspired to shape your career within the brand, design, and consulting?
My motivation for everything I’ve done is to create a life that I enjoy and feel excited about every day. I really struggle in rigid environments, so having to spend every day on someone else’s schedule and waiting for the approval of others before I could advance in my career was truly draining for me. I’ve felt very far from my best self in every “normal” job I’ve ever had.
The simple answer to how I found my career path is that I followed my intuition. I said “yes” to trying a lot of things that sounded interesting, and if I started to feel burnt out on something, I pivoted to the next thing. I remained optimistic that there was a career out there for me that was energizing and exciting.
As I explored different paths, I noticed my knack for high-level communications and for finding simple ways to articulate complex concepts. As a lifelong writer, I decided to lean into these skills and start freelance copywriting, and it just felt like such a natural fit. With my very first clients, I watched their confidence in their own ideas soar once they had a way of explaining them clearly. This filled me with purpose and I knew in my gut I was on the right path. Once I met my business partner, Lauren DeLoach, I found the web design yin to my copywriting yan, giving me a platform and clear structure for my work. Things just all came together from there, and we started Launch It Girl!
Then you recently launched Fredi, what was the inspiration behind this one?
Fredi is all about redefining what productivity looks like for ambitious women who are balancing a lot. We just launched our first product, Focused by Fredi, which helps to support focus, mental clarity, stress management, memory, and energy!
I cofounded Fredi with my brother, Mitch, who started taking supplements like this years ago when he was working a high-pressure job on Wall Street. He found them so effective and shared with me all the benefits he was experiencing as a result of nootropics. With his recommendation, I starting taking them, too, and also found them extremely effective. We decided to create the first blend that felt safe and approachable for women to take every day— one that’s all-natural, made from quality ingredients that are well-known in the holistic wellness space, and that supports calm energy rather than being overstimulating.
Which challenges did you face during your journey? How did you overcome them?
The biggest challenges I’ve faced in my career have come as a result of not trusting my gut. As soon as I second-guessed myself, let self-doubt take over, or any time I made a fear-based decision rather than an optimistic one, that’s when I ran into roadblocks and setbacks, or when my anxiety flared up. Between my two businesses, the breadth of these challenges ranges greatly, but every time I face one, I consider it a reminder to trust my gut, an affirmation that my intuition is leading me in the right direction, and an opportunity to learn and grow. With that mindset, you just keep moving forward, a little wiser each time.
What are the mistakes people make when they want to launch a brand? Can you give us some tips?
The most common branding mistake I see is jumping straight to having a logo designed. A logo is nowhere close to the first step, and it’s not even all that important these days! My number one tip is to start with a brand strategy. No matter how clear you feel in your idea, you will struggle to translate it into a compelling and engaging brand without a brand strategy in place.
Another mistake I often see is people skipping the step of website copywriting and jumping straight to hiring a web designer. The thing is, a custom website will do very little for your business if you don’t first know what you want it to say! So my second tip is to work with a website/brand copywriter either before or as a part of your website team.
Tell us more about Focused by Fredi!
Focused by Fredi is a daily nootropic that’s designed to help you boost productivity! (A “nootropic” is a broad statement for any supplements/ingredients that help to improve your mental performance).
Our product is 100% all-natural and is full of brain-healthy herbs, mushrooms, and amino acids that work together to clear brain fog, help you feel sharp and focused, adapt to stress, and give you a calm, non-jittery energy that lasts all day. Additionally, we only added 50mg of caffeine (about 1/4 of a cup of coffee’s worth), so Focused by Fredi is the perfect compliment to your morning coffee that helps to keep you feeling great all day, without the midday crash.
What is important in having the right business partners? What do you have to look for?
One of the main things I value in my business partners is the support I feel from them. Both Mitch and Lauren understand my goals, they understand me and how I work, and they also understand what I need in my day to maintain my energy and keep me feeling my best! Being able to express what I want and need, and to be heard and supported makes all the difference in helping me balance both businesses without getting overwhelmed.
Giant shoutout to Lauren, who fearlessly supported me through launching Fredi while we were running Launch It Girl— it’s a scary thing to have your business partner’s energy suddenly spread thin, but she trusted me and my commitment to what we’ve started, and it’s actually made our partnership even stronger and we’ve been making huge strides in the last months, as a result, our mutual support and commitment.
In other words, supportive partners help you, and therefore your business, grow.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?
Don’t let “I don’t know where to start” be the thing that stops you! If you’re feeling stuck or aren’t sure how to take your first step, just start asking questions. Get resourceful. Who do you have in your network that you could reach out to, even if it’s just to tell them your idea and ask if they know anyone who can help? You’ll be surprised at how willing people are to help, offer their advice, and make introductions for you that can open doors you never knew existed.
And remember, nobody knows what they’re doing when they’re just starting out. Just one step at a time is how you climb the mountain!
Busy startup entrepreneurs have lots of demands on their time and are often pulled in lots of different directions, do you have any tips for effective time management and what to focus on first?
The first priority of your day should be whatever is the most important for your big-picture goals. So many entrepreneurs get so caught up in the administrative demands that they forget to continue to work on the business. Rather, start your day working on the most important thing for your business’ growth. Those smaller tasks, like getting caught up on emails and bookkeeping, should be the second priority of your day after you’ve taken another step toward accomplishing those bigger goals.
However, the single most important factor in managing your time and staying focused is to have a great attitude. Learning how to manage stress and overwhelm is the first step to shifting your mindset to a more positive one! If you start to resent your work, procrastinate, or let stress consume you and block your output, you’re heading toward burnout, which is the least productive thing you can do. Make sure you’re making enough time for your individual needs— exercise, proper nutrition, sufficient sleep, hydration, meditation— so that you can stay ahead of stress and keep your mind clear.
And, of course, for that boost to help you keep your focus sharp and stress levels low throughout the day, take your Focused by Fredi! 🙂
How do you stay motivated?
This is simple: I LOVE my work, and I chose this path because it energizes and excites me every day. My clients at Launch It Girl are so innovative and are starting exciting things— every meeting is one big girl power party and it’s so much fun. I sincerely want these amazing women to succeed, to love their brand, and to feel confident stepping into their new role as entrepreneurs, so it feels easy and natural for me to pour my heart into it every day.
With Fredi, I really believe in our product and how much it can help women along their path to achieving their goals, so I keep our mission close to my heart no matter what the task at hand is. Plus, it’s fun working with my big brother!
Share us some tips for women who are in doubt of leaving their secure job and starting their own business.
My main advice is this: don’t have a safety net, just be prepared to get scrappy.
If you have that safety net or a “plan b” in mind, then as soon as the road gets rough, as soon as you get scared and the protective voice in your head starts shouting at you that this isn’t going to work, you’ll give up. If you’re serious about making this work, you need to be 100% committed to finding a way. This means pivoting around the roadblocks, building bridges over the trenches— even if you have to reroute on the way to your destination, you need to remain committed and keep your main goal as the ONLY plan, and your main priority.
Get creative, get resourceful, get ready to move through the fear instead of running from it. It’s going to be uncomfortable, you’re going to have moments when you wonder if you’re cut out for this or not. You are, as long as you’re willing to stay committed to it.
![From Music to Perfume: How did your background as a music teacher influence your transition into perfumery, and how do you incorporate your musical sensibilities into creating fragrances? I’ve always thought in terms of metaphors, and music has many that can be related to perfumery! Beyond just thinking in terms of top, middle and base notes [soprano/alto/tenor in choir], I approach each fragrant idea as a composition. When documenting my ideas, song structures often come to mind. As the scent brief is visited, I meditate on what the fragrance should convey - do I want to create an accord or a “chord” of fragrance note combinations? Do I want an a capella soloist (a particular ingredient to stand out more than others?) Many of my thoughts regarding song composition transfers to my scent formulation process, with me treating each note as an intentional soliloquy at some point.
Brand Origin: What inspired you to start Pink MahogHany in 2005, and how has your vision for the brand evolved since its inception?
An avid lover of all things pleasantly scented (with slight modesty), looking back in retrospect, it’s no huge surprise that I’ve created an indie perfume house with just an idea to provide unique options for those who may be sensitive to unnecessary pungency. Initially, I just wanted to evaluate various blends to note their aroma profiles when “played” together…it wasn’t until I had friends and family asking if I knew of brands that catered to those who may be on the more olfactory sensitive side, that I really began to take my research more seriously. In the almost 20 years that Pink MahogHany has been in existence, our micro visions for the brand have evolved to larger territory. Where Pink MahogHany used to only be a personal brand, we are now also a bespoke formulation service provider to other indie brands seeking unique fragrance offerings for their products. These products range from (but are not limited to) perfumes, candles, body butters and lip balms. Ingredient Transparency: You emphasize transparency and the use of desirable ingredients in your products. How do you select your ingredients, and what challenges have you faced in maintaining this standard?
Being an indie brand often comes with a set of assumptions and misconceptions - one of them being more negative than positive as it relates to ingredients used. There is a lot of “fluff” in the industry with labeling falsification. Because fragrance formulas are a trade secret, not every molecular breakdown of a material has to be noted on the ingredient label (it would be incredibly long), but we at Pink MahogHany™️ adhere strongly to the IFRA [International Fragrance Regulatory Association] regulations that state for common and potential allergens to be listed on our ingredient label. We’ve taken this a step further to also include these ingredients listed on our website to promote further transparency, all while protecting our intellectual property. Unfortunately, we’ve had companies to unethically sell lesser expensive “dupes” of our artisan perfumes, so as a way to create a better authenticity stamp, we make it our duty to be honest about our claims. If our perfume says “Rose Bulgaria”, it is in fact just that and not a component of rose being passed off as the source material. Collaborations and Custom Scents: Can you share more about your work with private label clients? What excites you most about creating custom scent solutions for other indie brands? I could easily sum this up in one word and say “Funding.” True, there is money out there, but I’m always thinking outside the box. Having a program that has an “Each One Fund One” mentality doesn’t exist (that I’ve been made aware of). Bootstrapping can be quite the challenge, even when you’ve reached the 6-figure mark annually. Competition to be seen and set apart is extremely high, so having quality packaging and branding is a must. There are lots of factors to consider, though when desiring to make upgrades. If there were a unique, tier-geared funding operation available, it would help perfume brands offset packaging and bulk material costs in the beginning stages.
Industry Challenges: What are some of the biggest challenges you've faced as an independent fragrance house, and how have you overcome them to grow your brand? As the brand continues on the path of organic growth, I would like to expand our reach into schools, offering perfumery as an arts elective for middle and high school. I’d love to partner with botanists, farmers and horticulturists directly to grow and source raw materials for the students to work with in the creation of tinctures. My passion is getting back to nature as best as possible, as nature was my first “scent experience” as a child. We would also love to witness our fragrance creations being used to scent model homes, our focus diffuser blends being used in automobile dealerships as well as partner with Air Bnb and boutique hotels that specialize in highlighting minority, indie brands. Personal Journey: How has your personal experience, particularly as a divorced mother and someone who has experienced the loss of a child, shaped your approach to life and your work in perfumery?
Because I homeschool my twin sons, we are together a lot more than most, so one thing we all do is have moments of sharing where a neutral “floor” is laid to converse about anything. Though they are quite communicative by nature, I realize that sometimes I can be in work mode so much that it spills over into what should be our quality time. My sons see the authentic me and learn how to communicate through seeing authenticity. I’ve learned not to feel as if I have to be the epitome of perfection but allow them to see my imperfections vulnerably but with discernment. Having had two traumatic experiences pretty close together has taught me how to truly slow down and enjoy the simplicities of life - igniting a spiritual aspect that I’ve always carried but never fully explored…until Kenji’s sudden passing (2018.) Grief has a way of catapulting us into a quest for more meaningfulness in both life and business. After Kenji’s passing and my processing through the initial stages of grief, I was able to incorporate our spiritual bond into Pink MahogHany by way of essential oil diffuser blends for both focus and sleep and most recently aromatic perfume elixirs. It’s been quite the process channeling the void of his physical presence, but I also have peace knowing he can be honored in a great way through scent. I noticed once I began to be more open and receptive to spiritual signs, synchs and “winks”, more ideas began to flow. It’s been this way since his transition. Emotional Expression: Fragrance is often tied to memories and emotions. How does your personal life influence the fragrances you create, and do you have a particular scent that holds special meaning to you? My creative process is much more alchemic now, and I include Kenji by talking out loud to him, believe it or not. I’m a firm believer that when our loved ones transition from the physical plane, they are still present - just in another form. I choose to keep his memory alive by not pretending he never existed (even if for a brief period of time). I am working (slowly) on a book and accompanying fragrance, but I know it will require me to revisit some memories I’m not quite ready for, so until then, his big brothers will launch their debut fragrance, The Peaceful Tiger (they chose the name.) I’ve learned that even in what we consider “small things”, our transitioned loved ones want to be recognized and acknowledged. When the twins and I designed their fragrance label (with a designer out of the country that didn’t know anything about me personally), we had issues with the graphic - so much so that the designer asked if they could rework the design. When they sent the proof for approval, the Tiger was not only younger but sleeping, with an uncanny, angelic resemblance to baby Kenji! Becoming more aware and being more sensitive to my intention for launching a fragrance has definitely made room for more divine situations like these to occur. Healing Through Scent: In what ways has creating fragrances been a form of healing or expression for you, especially after the loss of your son, Kenji Mwamba? I know my sons may not necessarily want to be perfumers, but they definitely have an entrepreneurial heart. My desire is that whatever they decide to pursue (acting, script-writing, music or architecture), they know that anything is possible with the right amount of determination, grit, belief and immersion. One reason I chose to homeschool is so they could enjoy learning without restraint and have ample time to devote to their own separate passions and it still be fun. They know Pink MahogHany is theirs if they want it (many, many years from now - lol), and we are already discussing business structures for whatever they choose their role to be once I retire. Work-Life Balance: How do you find balance between your professional responsibilities and personal well-being, and what self-care practices do you prioritize? I’m not just a perfumer; I’m also a consumer, and self-care is huge for me. I often take salt baths to reset my energy and clear my mind after being around large groups of people or free a long day. I’m a habitual perfume sampler, and I have so many to choose from to wear as my “nightcap.” Even if just for 10-15 minutes, I cherish each moment I’m able to have some “me-time.” When time and co-parenting schedules permit, I’m definitely on a flight somewhere to indulge in some delicious food and mouth-watering mocktails!](https://www.womenontopp.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IMG_3812-1200x720.jpeg)
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