Kelly Kussman: A Six-Figure Business Bootstrapped on Corporate Bonuses

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What’s your why? You know… The thing that pushes you to keep pressing on through early morning inbox sessions and late night working hours. The thing that inspired you to leave your 9-5 for the wild and beautiful world of entrepreneurship. 

Today’s guest discovered her why through the story of tragic personal losses. Kelly Kussman is the Founder & CEO of Cayla Gray Fine Fragrance. With over 25 years in corporate retail under her belt, Kelly launched Cayla Gray in 2020 on a mission to bring luxurious non-toxic fragrance collections to those looking to enrich their self care and beauty routines. 

In this interview Kelly opens up about the heart and mission behind Cayla Gray, bootstrapping her luxury brand on corporate bonuses, and navigating the money mindset shifts in transitioning from the corporate world to entrepreneurship.

I hope our honest, raw conversation inspires you to remember why you started your journey in entrepreneurship. Press play for the full interview or keep reading below!

In this Episode:

• A seed planted. 🌱 After walking through multiple tragic pregnancy losses, Kelly felt the nudge to launch Cayla Gray Fine Fragrances. The name Cayla Gray was picked by what would’ve been her first daughter’s name. [4:38]
• Kissing the corporate world goodbye. 💋 How Kelly bootstrapped her luxury brand on corporate bonuses and created a financial runway to make the leap into full time entrepreneurship. [6:41]   
• Proud alum of Youtube University. 📺  How grit and determination helped Kelly lean in and learn the ropes of building a non-toxic fragrance company. [13:39]
• Asking for honest feedback. 💭 Early on in the company, Kelly reached out to retailers, investors, and mentors for honest feedback on the company. Hear how her hustle paid off and what she learned along the way. [20:30]
• How to build a business with intention. ✨ After years in the (cold) corporate world, Kelly was ready to build a business with community at the center… Prioritizing touch points of connection and memories with customers.  [22:39]
• Establishing roles in the company. 👩‍💼 How Kelly has developed a team at Cayla Gray and evolved her own role as the company has grown.  [24:25]
• From abundance mindset ➡️ to scarcity mindset. Leaving a steady paycheck in the corporate world required planning and mindset shifts as Kelly put on her CEO hat. Listen for how her family prepared for the transition and how shifts in her money mindset changed the way she made decisions. [26:48]
• Turning on the direct deposit.  💸 Kelly opens up about when she first felt comfortable consistently paying herself in the business. [28:51]
• Money saving business tip 🤑 Hint: It’s simpler than you think. [32:07]
• CEO Mondays 💼 Simple rhythms that help Kelly navigate the ebb and flow of work and family life. [34:41]
• Do this before making your next decision ⌚ Tried & true advice from Kelly’s dad that’s shaped her life and career. [42:36]

Put’em on a Bumper Sticker. These Quotes are Pure Gold.

“It became very clear to me that the thing I valued the most was freedom of my time to spend with the ones that I loved. That was what was more important to me, than the money and the accolades and the titles.” [6:41]

“There were so many days when I was working a corporate job that I was going through the motions. I was living for the weekend and then getting the Sunday Scaries because I was so anxious about the Monday morning reporting that me and my team were having to do. I was missing all of the beautiful moments that were right in front of me” [6:41]

“When I decided I wanted to start a fragrance company, it was me at Google University, Tik Tok University, YouTube University, trying to figure out.” [13:39]

“We would literally take our products to the retailers and ask them, what do you think about this packaging? Would you put this on your shelves? Why or why not? What adjustments would you make? We spent a lot of time, asking for feedback, asking for mentors, asking for advisors to come on board and help us out- without taking any equity or getting any payments. You’d be surprised that a lot of people are willing to pay it forward if you just make the ask. So for us, it was hustling, getting our name out there, and having as much communication as possible with both retailers and our customers.” [20:30]

“The mission for me is to continue to grow the brand authentically. A lot of brands grow so quickly, they’re just trying to scale, to hit a certain acquisition, a certain exit. I really want to grow the brand with the intention of creating direct memories with our customers, for creating little moments with them.” [22:39] 

“I’ve implemented CEO Mondays. So Mondays, I completely block my days off. I dive into emails. I dive into catch up things. Sometimes I go out and take a walk in nature for a few hours. I block those days to make sure I am able to give myself a little bit of balance. I can slow down and go inward when I need to, so I’m fully prepared to go hard in my business or in my personal life when it’s required of me.” [34:41]

“My dad gave me this advice that I’ve literally lived and died by for the last decade of my life. And his advice was to wait 48 to 72 hours before you make any big decision, whether it’s financial, whether it’s personal, whether it’s business. It could be purchasing a house or buying a car or ending a relationship or accepting a job. A lot of times, your initial reaction to a decision is emotional, and so allowing yourself 48 to 72 hours to allow the emotion to soften a little bit and the logic to shine through.” [42:36]

More from this Episode

To hear the full story and more about Kelly, press play on the player above for the full interview or click here to download the transcript.

Resources Mentioned:

Cayla Gray Fine Fragrances

A 3-Step Plan to Replace Your Corporate Salary with Your Business Income

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Kelly Kussman

Kelly Kussman is the Founder & CEO of Cayla Gray Fine Fragrance. She is a 25+ year retail veteran whose love of fragrance paired with a story of tragic personal loss inspired her to create Cayla Gray in 2020. In addition to Cayla Gray, Kelly runs a consulting and coaching business for retail strategy, focusing on helping small businesses optimize backend operations to set them up to scale.

CONNECT WITH KELLY:

Website | Instagram

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