7. Who are your biggest female influences and why?
Cecil: I’ve had the pleasure of many female influences in my lifetime; I would say if we are relating to right now my sister has been the biggest influence, during a conversation we were having whilst on vacation together was when the whole idea came about that we wanted to share with other women. Her knowledge and understanding having been a gynaecologist for 30 years and seeing women and wellness primarily, she has so much information she can share, not just medically but also as a woman. That has been a huge influence on me and has helped me not just in business but in life, so I’d say she’s my biggest influence right now.
Becca: I have many female influences in an all-female practice, with all female partners and administrator staff and of course my patients which are all female. Through the years I have to say my patients have inspired me, I’ve seen them go through so many stages and even now I take care of young women that I myself delivered and I’m in awe of the way they have become so independent and so strong, and many of my patients who’ve aged gracefully and beautifully have inspired me. But I am also inspired by our mother, Cecil and I of course share the same mother and our grandmother, our grandmother was one of the most hardworking women I’ve ever known, and I think about her out on the farm and how she worked so hard to support her family. As well as our mother who was determined to raise independent children, especially the women. It’ really remarkable how many women in my life have kept me motivated and as far as the aesthetic goes, I always like to say the Hepburn women, Audrey and Catherine both inspired me and their aesthetics are both very different but both highly inspiring, t’s wonderful to have so many women that are heroines for us and for our brand.
8. If you had one solid piece of advice for current and upcoming female entrepreneurs, what would it be?
Cecil: My biggest advice for any women entering or starting a new business is be prepared to get knocked down a few times and just pick yourself up, dust yourself off and learn from that experience. I think this is true for any entrepreneur, male or female but I do think women have a little bit more to overcome as there are fewer of us in the leadership roles of the companies, we are more than half the population, we have so much to share, so much to give and I would say tenacity is the number one piece of advice.
Becca: Some of the best advice I was given during our endeavour was that if a business fails it’s usually because they don’t have enough money or don’t have enough time. Truly I would say that time is money, while you can’t buy time my best further advice would be build a team who can help augment your time and find different talents within the team that help create a synergy that will extend your talents beyond your own specific interests and help accomplish more rapidly the goals that you have. As far as the money, just keep working on it.
9. What has been your pinch me moment throughout your brand journey?
Cecil: There have been many moments where I wanted to pinch myself. I think about what we have been able to accomplish with VENeffect and one of those moments was when I first saw it in a store, this is something we had worked on for many years and I’m a woman shopper myself so to actually see the fruits of your labour sitting there in a store, with knowledgeable sales staff willing to explain to a customer why she should understand and feel the need for this type of product was definitely one of the first pinch me moments.
Becca: My true pinch me moment with our brand journey was when I had received a big cardboard box, I decided to go ahead and open it thinking I knew what it was, but it was actually several copies of the book that we had launched to launch the idea behind the products. I had worked so hard with so many late nights, so it gave me chills to see the book and at that moment I thought if nothing else happens this moment is worth it, all alone in my kitchen with that box.
9a. Rebecca, tell us a little bit about what motivated you to write a book and why that was really needed in the world?
Becca: When Cecil and I were talking at the beginning of the project I realised that there was so much information that I wanted to tell her, and I again realised I have very little time to explain my patients what I’ve learned and many OGBYN have learned about the effects of hormones on the mind, body and spirit and certainly the aesthetic. She encouraged me to write a book and I was excited to do it, and once we put together the proposal the idea was really well received in New York City amongst the publishing houses, so we knew we were onto something. The idea was to explain what I call the Venus week which is a metaphor for the height of hormonal optimisation for women, it corresponds with the fertile window and that’s by no accident, mother nature designs to manipulate the feminine aesthetic a bit. But it goes beyond that because it effects mind, body and spirit, good metabolism and health so to be able to put that together and then see it launched was really a great gift for us as a team.
