207: Mastering Bootstrapping & Self-Funding in Business w/ Gina Woods

Monique:
Gina, welcome to the Black to Business podcast. A treat to have you on the show. So welcome.

Gina:
Happy to be here, Monique. Thank you for having me.

Monique:
Yes. So I am so excited to have you here, and I’m so excited to discuss our topic today about mastering self funding, the highs and lows of that. And before we dive in, I just want to talk about your background. So, can you tell me a little bit about your journey and how you started in the industry that you’re in, in beauty?

Gina:
Sure. So, I started back in 2009. I was a young wife and mom. I was in business to business sales, really making really great money. And it was just an opportunity for me as my young family, with my husband and my young child, we were traveling to different places, mainly due to his job and opportunity to bus through entrepreneurship. And I was like, the time is now, because it’s hard for me to keep on a job with traveling for him. So I actually started in the beauty space with natural hair extensions in 2009, and we were based in Chicago at the time, and that was a very unique time because there wasn’t a lot of options in the midwest at the time for hair extensions. So that’s where I got my first start with my first business venture, which is still in existence today.

Gina:
Rupee hair. And so I’ve just been in it ever since and loving it every step of the way.

Monique:
Love that. And so now let’s talk about what inspired you to co found Donna’s recipe, and what are some of those challenges that you faced in starting in the early days?

Gina:
Yeah. So the thing about entrepreneurship is, like, I ran track all through college, and I simulate entrepreneurship is being a hurdler. Like, you have a hurdle every few steps. So it really doesn’t matter where you are in your entrepreneurial journey. You’re going to have hurdles to step over. And it’s not that it gets, it’s not that it goes away, but it’s just you become more acclimated to it and ready for it going back. I came up with the idea that Donna’s recipe, like Tabitha Brown, she’s the co founder. And Tabitha and I, we knew each other because our boys played basketball together.

Gina:
So we had really great synergy together because I’m more of a. Not to label myself, but more on the side of introverted, and he’s a really great extrovert. And I am very business savvy. And so we would just have really great value exchange of, like, how do you jump? I was more on the side. How do you jump into this social media world and show up every day. And I was giving value as far as, like, Tabitha, you really should start your own business. And so we just really drew to each other in that way, and it just kept pressing on my heart, like, she named her hair Donna, and I said, donna needs a hair care line. I came to Tabitha with that idea, and she was like, oh, my God, that’s great.

Gina:
And the rest is history. We have a vegan beauty line where we focus on clean ingredients, vegan, natural, delicious smelling products. And so it’s been a whirlwind because we came out the gate, started with e commerce in 2021, January 1, 2021, and then we busted through the doors of retail, which is its own beast, right?

Monique:
Yeah. Yes.

Gina:
Towards the end of 2022. And it’s just been a phenomenal journey. Like, I completely love every challenge of it all. It’s odd to say, even though, you know, we get tired as entrepreneurs, you get rest, but you get back to it. So I really do love this journey with Donna’s recipe.

Monique:
That is such a beautiful story. And all the things are right in terms of, like, the roller coaster of entrepreneurship, and I know somebody listening. Mm hmm. So true.

Gina:
Right, right.

Monique:
And I’m so excited to talk about speaking of the whirlwind of entrepreneurship. For many people, they are self funding their businesses. So for you, how has self funding played a role in your entrepreneurial journey?

Gina:
Yeah, so all of my business ventures have been self funded, and I really, really love self funding. I just have an affinity to it. Just one. The independence to the creativity. And I feel that you have to be very creative when you’re self funded, which gets those creative juices going and thus making the business the brand better when you do the aspect of getting those creative juices going and not saying that other avenues definitely is a phenomenal way to have funding. But the avenue that I’ve chosen to start out with, all of my ventures have been self funding, and they’ve been all very successful. Great profits. And not saying that that’s something that we may explore in the future, but as of now, we’re not in the need of it, and we’re doing really great with the self funding method.

Monique:
Yeah, I love that. And I know that a lot of people are thinking some of the same things that you’re saying, like that independence, that control, and that creativity that comes out of that still. But you all have been able to be very successful in this realm. So what? The other thing I love is the fact that you focus on community reinvestment through your business ventures. And can you kind of talk about what motivated you to do that and have that a part of your mission?

Gina:
Yes. I think it’s so important because so many people have helped me and I didn’t come up just on my own. And, you know, people watered me and I was a seed and growing. And so it’s so important to give back in both ways. It’s important to give back to the people that are behind you and the people that help you up. So I look at, I’m in the sandwich, where I’m reaching back to the younger generation or that are starting their entrepreneur journey, whatever age, and then the people that also help me out, whether it’s personal or business related, it’s so important to do that because it’s a cycle, right? You have to keep that cycle going. So that’s so important. But I started, I went to Dartmouth, and, like, going back to my introvert, I always had different ideas.

Gina:
And as far as helping with the youth, because thinking as a young girl from Gary, Indiana, where I didn’t see a lot of entrepreneurship at the time, it was a lot of working class, which all of those people helped me along my entrepreneurial journey, but I didn’t have resources of understanding basic things such as taxes, what’s a profit and loss statement, cash flow, all these different things. And I’m like, I wish I would have known that when I was like eight, like I had right now. Like, confidence. And that’s where confidence comes from.

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
Being exposed in just that comfort level. And I know different cultures have that, you know? And so I was like, dang, where’s the opportunities for people like myself? So God downloaded into me like, it’s you. You do it. And so I started a kids entrepreneur camp. Wherever I help the youth with just being exposed to entrepreneurship, we bring entrepreneurs in different backgrounds. We have them work on websites. We have them crafting their pitch. Just all the things that are related to entrepreneurship and to give them that confidence.

Gina:
Yeah, that’s my community. Part of my community give back and reinvesting in the community.

Monique:
That is so dope. And how old are the youth that are in these programs?

Gina:
So they start as young as. I’ve had several different ones. I have done one where it was as young as six, five, six. Like I would say about first grade all the way up to 14. And so, yeah, I’m looking at to do just really keeping the ball going with that and having specialized ones where it’s boys to more of a boys to men, where it’s only men. And they’re learning different aspects. And it’s just, you know, dedicated to the boys going into manhood and women. Girls going into womanhood, but just really want to because the youth, like, you know, we grow up so fast.

Monique:
Yeah, it’s like that.

Gina:
So it’s so important.

Monique:
Yeah, I love that. And so, Gina, on the blacks of business podcast, we like to break it down. So let’s get into understanding this concept of self funding a little bit more. So if somebody was listening, they’re like, okay, what exactly does self funding entails and what it means for entrepreneur, what would you say?

Gina:
I would say, going back to that word, creative, I would also say making sure that you are very mindful of every penny. And I sometimes people like, oh, yeah, yeah. Every. Every dollar. No, no. Every penny. It’s important because you want to have that mindset, because as you grow in your business, you won’t. You won’t change your mindset.

Gina:
Like when you have a month in your business and then you start to get $10 million a month in the business is. The mindset isn’t going to be different. So you want to train, because once your business grows that each penny counts. So I was just giving an example of, if you have a physical products and you have components that you need to buy from vendors, if you purchase it from for $1.05 versus $1, that’s $0.05, it looks. Seems like nothing, right? Just $0.05. But if you’re buying 100,000 units of that one component, that $0.05 is a lot of money. And so once you train yourself at the very beginning, that understanding that every penny counts, once you grow that, that stays with you. So you want to start now? You want to start at the.

Gina:
I’m only making a month, but every penny will still count. So I will say those are the biggest things, is just being creative, understanding every penny counts, and being resourceful and building great relationships is key, too.

Monique:
That’s so key. Yes. And so one of the things I love that you spoke about earlier is that you felt that this was the strategy for you. So being that a lot of people are just starting out, that are listening to the podcast or they’re in their early stages of business, why do you believe the approach of self funding is a viable option for those who are then in the early stage, and especially as black entrepreneurs?

Gina:
Right, right. Because we don’t get the opportunities for funding. And so that was, for me, it wasn’t an opportunity. It wasn’t a lot of people saying, hey, I want to invest in your hair extensions business. So. And that’s completely fine. And I think that’s how we always have had to go about it. Like, we make a way out of no way.

Gina:
But I would say that, well, one thing is you own it. You completely own it, right? And you should be the visionary, the pioneer of the ship. And so you want to prove to yourself that this works. You don’t want to be in a position where it’s a lot of money thrown out and you’re like, what do I do with this money, or will it work? You know, so you want to start off, like, building that confidence in yourself and your business, and then that can be an option should you choose to go that route. But I was always, even with people who had the opportunity, venture capitals, capitalists that say that have the money to dish out money. They’ve even said that stay self funded as long as possible because you dilute your ownership in the business in that fashion or take on debt. And debt is not always bad, but you just want to make sure, in my opinion, to get the ball rolling, right?

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
And then I, let me give an example. So, like, if you have, if you have a big pool and you have water in it and you’re like, somebody outside comes in and brings more water to it, it’s like a big splash, but a small pool, you know, you can’t, and people add to it and it just overflows, then it’s just, you’re not making a big splash. So create as big splash on your own as possible. And then you just have, if you want to have other people add to the water, but you’ve already have a really good, solid foundation and a pool that’s already splashing.

Monique:
Yeah, I love that. That is so true. And that reminds me, we just had Rodney Williams on the podcast, and he was talking about investing, and he was also saying, like, most times, it’s like, investors want to give you money when you don’t really need it, and it’s like, great to get to a space where you don’t really need need, and that’s where that control. And like you said, that confidence and things come from.

Gina:
Exactly.

Monique:
Yeah. So people are listening. And, of course, in your experience, I’m sure there, as we talked about, there is like, track the hurdles. What are some of the key benefits and potential drawbacks that you faced with going the self funding route?

Gina:
Some of the drawbacks would be sometimes things get tight. I’ve been in this so long where I don’t get nervous now. Sometimes my team is like, okay, now. But I am so confident and so sure of what I do. And I know that I’m led by God. And so I’m like, I know you got me. God, I know you got me. And so when he says to do stuff, I move.

Gina:
When he says don’t, I don’t. And so if there’s times where it could be potentially a cash flow issue, that’s where I feel that you can really turn on that creative juice and start to think about ways to increase the cash flow, whether it is making sure that you get paid sooner, making sure the agreements, like I said, we’re in retail. I built really great relationships with the retailers because we’re such a lean business and people are people, right?

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
I want to know who I’m doing business with. Like, we don’t have to be BFF’s. However, I want to know who you are. Like, are you, do you have little kids at home? What’s your birthday? What’s your favorite color? We have internally, we have a survey that all of our vendors and our customer relationships, like with our retailers, people that we interact with on a regular basis, we do a survey that’s asking those specific questions. What’s your favorite color? What’s your birthday? What are the things that you like? And so they can receive just on a random Tuesday, a gift basket from Donna’s recipe.

Monique:
Oh, that’s nice.

Gina:
Yeah. Who is doing that? Nobody. So you stand out and people want to look out for people that look out for them. And so we’re not just doing it for even exchange of something at that given time. We’re just being good people. However, when it’s time to have the conversations to say, hey, we are self funded and instead of net 90 days, we need to be paid in 30 days, that cash flow going, because we need to replenish, purchase more inventory. We need to do net ten days. If we start this relationship and you purchase a half a million a product, can you pay half of it now? Can you pay, if you’re going to put an order in and you need a half a million units, can you pay half of it now?

Monique:
Big company, big budget.

Gina:
And so it’s just having those. And sometimes it’s yes, sometimes it’s no. It’s like, okay, what’s going to work with both of us? Right? Because we’re, we’re in this together. It’s like, I want you to be a star in what you do buyer. And we need to be a star in what we do. Because another thing is that we don’t just represent Donna’s recipe. When I have these meetings, I understand that I’m. I’m being a representative for businesses, black women, self funded businesses.

Gina:
So if there are situations like this is how we’ve always done it, all right, it’s not just me talking. I’m being a representative for other black women to come to be in your spaces that we gotta figure out a different way to do this, because we’re not the PNG and we’re not unilever. Right? So how can we make this work for people that look like me and that are self funded and we all win? They love it. They love it because sometimes we are scared to have those conversations because happy to be in the door. Right. Like, we’re just in this mass retail. And even at the sake of not making any margins.

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
Like, we’re in there drowning. But who wins with that? The retailer doesn’t win because we gotta. Now we gotta take you right back off the shelves because your business is about to tank. And then the business, the black woman owned business, you know, fails because we wasn’t making any money. We didn’t have money to apply for marketing. Just all these different things. And so I’m very intentional when I’m in front of people that it’s not just Gina, it’s not just Donna’s recipe I am creating for others. I’m creating a conversation for us to dig deeper in how we can all win in this space.

Monique:
Yes. Love that. And that’s so true. Like, speaking up and advocating for ourselves. And in those moments where you received those no’s or didn’t get the yes, how did you deal?

Gina:
So, Monique, I have been, prior to, I was very young, but, like, soon as I got out of college, I went straight to. I went through business school. And so when you get out of college and business school, you’re like, all right, let me go sell some. And that is the. To me, that is like one of the greatest gifts because you. Are you hearing no, you’re here, get the heck out of here. The business sales. And, you know, you’re just hearing.

Gina:
You’re dealing with a lot of personalities.

Monique:
Yes.

Gina:
And you’re dealing with a lot of yes nos, maybe so’s. And so I. When I hear no, I really don’t hear no. I just hear, like, God is redirecting me or just not yet. And God is also saving me because I could probably drown in a situation, you know, in a pool that’s probably too big for me right now. We have to up first so that no is not really a no from them. That’s a God saying no or not right now. So I’m actually relieved.

Gina:
Like, okay, I have so much on my plate that if there’s a no, it’s like, that’s fine. All this stuff, all this opportunity out here, right? Let’s keep it moving. So, yeah, I’m not fazed by it at all. And that just comes from repetitive, just that of experience.

Monique:
Yeah. And so let’s talk about preparing to be in this space and preparing for this journey of self funding, bootstrapping. So if somebody is listening, they’re like, I have this idea and I know I can’t wait on someone else to fund it for me. I’m going to go about this on my own. What are some of those first steps that they should take or prepare when they are considering going this route?

Gina:
Really great question. First thing I would say is get a mentor in the area that you want to go in. You know, if it’s service based, consumer product goods, if you’re, whoever is your, like, rock star, like, this is the epitome or even similar, if that makes sense, because I have mentors that’s like, I don’t do consumer product goods, but they’re great. They, they help me with different aspects, but you at least want one that’s in the space that you want to be in, like that. They’re your north star. A mentor will take you places. Like, they will help you skip years off your life because, and I say to people that I mentor, I’m like, you don’t have to. You don’t have to make that mistake because I’ve already made it for you.

Gina:
And I would say that would be the number one thing is do not go at it alone. So many times we go at it alone or we have, we have friends that aren’t in the space and we complain to them and you’re just, you’re just feeding more of that negativity like this. I’m frustrated because I can’t get this. I don’t have enough money for this. And then that just keeps, that just keeps compounding like, okay, not enough money. More. Not have enough money. Here we go.

Gina:
You want to get a mentor because a mentor, a successful mentor, is not going to have time to sit around and complain with you because they’re successful. You happen to be your mentor for a reason. They’re not your therapist. They are someone who is going to help elevate your, your business and they’re not going to waste time with you. Why? Because they’re successful.

Monique:
Right.

Gina:
So if you are, if I give you a game plan, Monique, and say, okay, we’ll follow up in four weeks, and we come and talk in four weeks, and I’m like, okay, did you do XYZ? Oh, no. Because the problem is I forgot and then this happened. Okay, so maybe a good mentor will give you another opportunity. Okay. So instead of doing X, y, Z, I just want you to do X. Let’s follow up in two weeks. And in two weeks and you say, oh, yeah, I couldn’t because the money’s still funny. A good mentor.

Gina:
Okay, you’re not. Because I. We don’t have the time.

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
And so when you get with someone like that, that’s serious. You’re either right with them and you’re going to be forced to be successful or you’re going to fall off and you’re just not ready to start a business. So that’s what I would say to, is, number one, say I find a mentor. It can be one or it can be multiple ways. It could be a value exchange where you’re saying, hey, I noticed, I noticed that you’re really successful in this area, but you aren’t keeping up with your social media. Can I manage your social media page? And I’ve actually did four posts right here that I want to share with you. Who else, Monique? Who else is doing that? No one that’s going to catch someone’s attention right then and there. No one is like, I voluntarily are going to give you this, and I would like just once a month to get on your calendar for 30 minutes.

Gina:
Wow. Even if they don’t need the social media, you’ve already, above all the mediocrity in just so it’s one, the value exchange or two. Just pay them. Pay them for their time.

Monique:
Yes. Power of networking. And I love one of the things you said, like, maybe you’re not ready. So speaking of being ready, that is real advice for those who are looking. Okay, I’m going this route. How can they assess if they are financially ready to fund their business?

Gina:
Well, I would say it does depend on the industry that you go in and. But when I first started, I am such a radical that I’m like, I don’t need any money. I don’t need a $1 because there’s money is just, when you get to this level, money is paper. Just pretend like money is tissue paper or leaves on the tree. Let’s say, leaves on the tree. It’s everywhere. Money is everywhere. I don’t need it in my hand, right.

Gina:
Like, I can just reach up and give me some whenever I want, or I don’t need to have the money. I just need to know people with money, or I don’t need to have the money. I just need to offer a value. Because all money is. Is value exchange, right? It’s only value exchange. So if we can get rid of this idea of money and I don’t have enough, like, is when everything is inflation, we have more than enough money, you know, we don’t need it in our hand. And I think that once we remove this idea of not enough because it’s more, is overflowing, is what they say right now in our economic time, too much, then you’re good. You just need the mindset to say, I’m doing this.

Monique:
Mm hmm.

Gina:
And you just be surprised what happens. When I started rupee hair 2009, I was a. I still call myself a little girl. I was little. And people kind of look like, you know, how old are you? You know, like, what are you doing? And I started with a credit cardinal at the time. Sometimes people like, uh oh, credit card shaking. But I started with a credit card. It was a 24 month 0% interest, and I thought that it went away, but I actually receive it all the time.

Gina:
We’re still, like, 0% interest. 15 months, 21 months, 24 months. I’m really good with the idea of, if I take something and I owe it back, I pay what I owe.

Monique:
Right.

Gina:
So if that’s a mind, if credit cards scare you, then you need to, like, do some work around that before. I’m just saying, like, one of many ways. But I didn’t have a lot of money. I think I used, like, $150 of my own money. And I reached out to suppliers in India, and I said, can we work it where it’s, like, half? I give half, and I give half in 60 days? They said, no, I had to pay in full. And I used part of the credit card with that. But I knew with that credit card in mind that I think it. I can’t remember the amount that it came up to, but it’s like, I paid it, like, well before it was due.

Gina:
But I used that to leverage, like, kind of starting, but. But again, I just go back, monique, to the idea, like, you don’t need money. It’s a million and one ways to get what you need done, and money is just one vehicle. Yeah.

Monique:
And it seems like, so you had those great habits. So for somebody else, they’re like, okay, I got to get there. Some of those habits that they need to start to take on when they’re preparing for this journey. Like, what are some of those things that you would say, people start to practice discipline.

Gina:
I was start. One of the thing, one of the biggest things that has a stronghold on us in America is food. So I was, because I have this philosophy, like, if you give, no, I have the philosophy because it happened to me. I was trying to fast, and then somebody had like, pringles or something. I was like, I need that pringle. I was like, I can’t. And then God said to me, if you can’t say no to a pringle pringle, you can’t. You can’t do nothing with your life.

Gina:
You have no control over your life. And I said, now, that is the truth. If I can’t say no to something and it’s still, food kind of still has a stronghold on me now. And I eat a lot healthier. But certain things in front of me, especially at something like a party, and I haven’t eaten, I’m like, lord, I agree.

Monique:
I feel that right.

Gina:
But I would say start with discipline. And the biggest struggle, that would probably be talking to 99.9% of the people that listen to this, whether you are in shape or not, you know, food has a stronghold because there’s so much junk out here. And we have, we have a palate for it just because we, most of us have probably experienced it, unless we were just raised where it’s just new nuts and berries, right? But that’s the number one thing. If you can just start disciplining yourself and you take control of your body, mind, you can do anything. You can do anything. Like, it’s our really, it’s already. Life is already done. You have.

Gina:
I tell my kids, I said, visualize what you want your day to look like, command what your day is going to look like. And all when you go outside of these doors, all it is is a replay. It’s almost like you’ve seen a movie. But then a lot of times we’re just like, well, we’ll just let the day take control of us. Like, we’ll just, whatever the day comes. No, no, no. We have control. And we say, what the day is going to be.

Gina:
Like. Somebody cut you off on the road. Somebody cussed you out. No, my day. My day is good. You’re having a bad day, and I hope you get better. But I’ve already said what my day was going to look like at 07:00 a.m. in the morning.

Gina:
So I’m good. Mister cussed me out. So that’s, that’s what I would say. Discipline. And the way to start that is food it day by day. And then you can start increasing. You can just say, today I am only going to eat fruits and vegetables just today. Let tomorrow worry about tomorrow.

Gina:
And you just be surprised like how hard that is and say, these three days I am going to, this is structure. And then when you build that, that carries in other areas of your life. It has to carry into business that discipline, it has to carry in your personal life where you get up and you start working out, even when you’re tired, even when you don’t want to. It’s like, no, but I control, I control me, not circumstances, you know? So that’s what I would say, number.

Monique:
One is, yeah, that’s all the rest. Because I think oftentimes even we don’t tell ourselves no, our, we’re like, okay, because I want that thing, I have to have it. And it’s like, no having that discipline to say no because it will help you be more healthier or all the things. And like you said, spill over to other areas in your life.

Gina:
Oh, yes, definitely.

Monique:
And so I want to get into some of the strategies. So we talked about how your self funding, and one of the things you mentioned is like for your first business, it was like the 150 and you were able to pay it back. And I want to talk about the role of generating revenue and why it’s so crucial for those who are on this bootstrap, self funded journey to focus on generating that revenue early on. So why would you say this is crucial?

Gina:
I don’t think you have any choice if you’re going self funded. Right? Like, yeah, like I said, that is the cash is one way, but cash is king as far as like within the business. But if you don’t generate the money as quickly as possible, again, there’s so many different ways that, you know, if you’re accumulating customers, that has value, customers has value, repeat customers. So it’s like you’re generating the revenue. But I think that in the beginning, profits matter, but not as much depending on which angle you’re going. But let me give an example. So I have another business venture. It’s like a women’s undergarment.

Gina:
And it is. I focus. I was so fascinated with Amazon and my hair extensions. Like, the average price point is someone would spend like about $250. So I was like, I can’t start. Have that venture be on Amazon. Because Amazon was more like a. Amazon is like an impulse buy.

Gina:
Like, oh, I like it. Like, buy now. So that the sweet spot, I did research, and the sweet spot was about 25 to maybe $35 where people don’t think about it. Like, yep, by now. By now, right? And so I started a whole new venture where it was women’s undergarments, and my quote unquote leader was reviews. Like, that was my currency. I didn’t care about it was making sales. But my number one thing is I want reviews.

Gina:
I don’t care if I, like, discount it where it’s one cents. Reviews was king. Because think about it, people want social proof on Amazon. Amazon is not a. Amazon is more, it’s less averse. Like, you don’t care about the brand as much on Amazon. Like, if you want to buy a sweatshirt, you’re not like, wait, is this Louis Vuitton or is this Gucci? You know, that’s not the. Amazon is not that platform.

Gina:
You’re just like, I just want a cute sweatshirt or I want to sync. And I’m not caring as much as Kohler or the different high name brands, if that makes sense. So what is, what goes, what rises to the top, right. What rises to the top? And what you see the most is the reviews that catches your eye the most. Like, how many reviews this has? Oh, this has 500. Oh, this has a thousand. Wait, this has 13,000. That’s the number one key that people look at.

Gina:
So it just depends on the strategy of your business, what platform that you’re launching on. Like, again with that business. I started with Amazon, so it was important for me to, obviously, the money itself was important, but more that I got, the most important at that beginning stages was the reviews, because the more reviews I got, it correlated to the sales.

Monique:
Mm hmm.

Gina:
What I’m saying. So sometimes we kind of put the, what’s that phrase? You put the horse before the cart?

Monique:
Yeah, yeah.

Gina:
Yes, yes. And you need to, like, be very strategic. Sometimes people like, hey, let me just go ahead and get sales. But should that be the number one goal? And that in that scenario of that business, the number one goal starting out was the reviews, and the sales will come. Money always chases. Like, that’s the thing. You don’t have to chase money. It will always chase success.

Gina:
And I knew that to be successful on the platform of Amazon, especially at that time, because I started in 2015, is reviews. It’s so many other things with Amazon now, but one of the things still is king is the reviews. And then what happens? Then the money comes. So I don’t want to just say like sales, sale sales is like number one.

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
Because it just depends on so many different factors. And that’s why I gave the analogy of Amazon. Number one for me was reviews.

Monique:
Yeah. And I definitely am a person. That’s, that’s the first thing I’m going to do is look at a review.

Gina:
You know, I’m not, if it doesn’t.

Monique:
Have any reviews, I will not, I likely won’t be the first one. Right.

Gina:
We are not trying to be guinea pigs and that’s, no, I’m not trying to be nobody’s guinea pig and pay for it. So, so yeah, that’s what you see first. And even if something was $10 more than another item, I’m going to go ahead with the one that has like 1000 reviews. I’m going to buy that $35.01 over the $20.01 that has three reviews. I’m not messing with that three review. So let me go ahead and buy this $35 thing that potentially could be the same thing, you know?

Monique:
Yeah, that’s definitely true. And Gina, I’m so glad that you talked about that because for so many people, if, especially if you’re in this journey of like funding your business, sometimes you can model the personal finances with your business, what your business needs. Or you might say, okay, I can hold off on this. So how, when you get to this stage where you are generating revenue and things are needing to be done in your personal life, how can entrepreneurs bounce their personal financial needs with their business requirements?

Gina:
Your business is your business. Whatever your startup fund is. If I say, hey, my startup funds is 150, that’s business has, if my startup funds is 10 00, 10,000, it has to be its own thing. I have never reinvested back into like my business for my person once it started, it’s like my personal is my personal. My business is my business. And you want to operate that also for the IR’s too. You know, you don’t want to blur those lines. But it’s so many, it’s so many things that before starting a business that you would pay for your personal.

Gina:
Now that can be applied to your business. Right. So like when you buy your laptop.

Monique:
Mm hmm.

Gina:
Doing business on my laptop. So the business finances that. Different things. Like if I have a car for business, there’s so many different things that you can like have you want to just make sure, it’s its own entity, and I’ve always operated that way just because, one, I’m not trying to mess with the IR’s, but then what, we’re blurring the two lines. But then also it’s just so that way it can be its own baby growing, you know, and you can just be able to see what’s going on versus, like, you know, the personal. And bring some money over here. And then bring some money over. No, stop.

Gina:
And then pay. And then pay yourself. Like, on your. Your statements, there should be a line item of what. What your value is. Even if you defer it, even if you, like, I’m not going to pay myself right now. You. You, as an operator of your business, has a value.

Gina:
So, like, say something happens to you who would come in and do your same job that doesn’t own your business. Like, how much does that cost? You know what I’m saying? So I think that’s also important in that way that your business takes care of your personal because you’re paying yourself. And I know in the beginning, sometimes that’s hard to do, but you better put that on that line, Ida, that definitely, you know, Gina is. Should be getting such and such, and Gina is not getting it right now because this is Gina’s first month of business. But this is the value of Gina doing this business. Mm hmm. By x amount of time, Gina started getting this so Gina can pay back into her family.

Monique:
Like, yeah. And how did you maintain that strict budget in the beginning of your journey?

Gina:
Again, going back to IR’s? I’m not trying to. I don’t. Girl, I was. I remember, so off topic, but I remember I got an IR’s later letter shaking in my boots, because it was a Saturday and I was almost passed out. I wasn’t gonna make it to Monday. And all it was, was a notice. Like, it was just something simple, like, just to let you know you. You have to file something online.

Gina:
But I don’t play with. With that in case they ever come back and, like, want to check. Yeah, I just, like, there’s no question mark because I really don’t have the time. So that’s, like, one thing. But then also, I just always, I think with my. I. The education that I received a lot with within my entrepreneurial journey was self education is, like, you don’t confuse the two. Play with.

Gina:
And so again, like I said earlier, that you always want to start out early the way you should be. Like, I can’t start off in the beginning messy. And then when I get to 10 million, think that I’m just going to be clean and old, straighten up. No, you got to be clean in the beginning so you can be clean when you’re seven, eight, nine figures. Right. And that’s where you want to also, like you want to, in your business, declare it. This is a $10 million business. Now, the month one, month two, it doesn’t reflect that it’s $10 million, but it is.

Gina:
It’s in the making. And so think about if you’re running a $10 million business, you can’t be messy like that. Like, you’re going to get caught up. And so when I had $150 in the bank account for the business in month one, I operated the same as I would, as if I had $10 million in the bank account. It’s just as important because I am going to get to the 10 million. Just. Just don’t see it yet because I’m in month one, but it’s going to be there because I’ve already declared it’s already done. I’m just, I’m just on the journey, you know?

Monique:
Yeah, that’s true.

Gina:
Yeah.

Monique:
And one of the things that you said, you were radical in the beginning, and of course, for you, you said, like, God. And those are the things that faith that kept you going when you face those financial and stable moments. And so for somebody who might be had, who might have a fear of that, dealing with financial instability during this process, like, what advice would you give them?

Gina:
Start to self educate and start studying that, because you may want to focus on that before you start a business. Like, that’s huge. So get that in check. Do some self care, some education. And that can be self education or it can be through formal education, but it’s no rush. A lot of times people are like, I just need to go. And I am such a go person. Like, just do it.

Gina:
Just do it. Like, I’m the type of person, like, push you in the pool, like, in the deep end, like, you got this. Yeah, I told you you can swim. And then everyone like, girl, you crazy. But at the same time, it’s like, I’m still. I am like, the time is now, but at the same time, what is the time is now of, like, the time is now. It could be going back to school to start getting that financial structure. The time is now could be you focusing on getting a mentor and me spending six months dedicated to understanding or shadowing or going into an industry and, like, having that mindset.

Gina:
Like, I’m here to learn how to do this going. Working for a startup and being transparent. Like, I eventually want to start my business, but you have me for a year, and I learn XYZ, but I’m gonna give you 150% because you’re not gonna have me pass a year because my plan is to. To leave. But for this year, I’m about to do it. If I can shadow you. You get what I’m saying?

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
So that’s kind of, like hurrying up. Hurry up. And so if you’re, like, really bad with financial structure instability, like, hurry up and figure that out, you know, it doesn’t necessarily mean hurry up and start a business and then take it, because you don’t have the resources and the skills to be able to maintain it. Like, hurry up and figure out the most important things you need to figure out. And that’s, like, think about a year. A year goes by so fast.

Monique:
It does. Truly does. And how has. How important, has having a support system, both personally and professionally, during this process helped you and maybe speak into how important it is for someone who’s listening?

Gina:
A support system is everything, and part of that support system is going back to that mentorship. That’s one part of your support system. You need a personal support system. Like we said, this entrepreneurial journey is like a series of hurdles. It doesn’t go away, and it’s like, okay, now, easy peasy, lemon squeezy. You want to have people along your journey. I myself, my husband, we met when we were freshmen in college, and he’s been on the journey with this whole time. We have four kids now, so it’s a lot of work when you have the business and the person.

Gina:
So you need that. You need girlfriends. I remember when I was so focused, my first business venture, that I didn’t talk to people. I didn’t. My friends was like, I’m like, I don’t have the time. You know, I was like, I’m out here. And even, to a certain extent, my. My family, like my husband and my child, I’m like, I don’t have a lot of time for you guys right now because this business is my baby.

Gina:
But at the same time, while I was, like, head down with that, I was, like, losing connection with my husband and what with my kids, with my friendships, with my girls. And what happened to Gina, who’s operating this business personal? Gina, she starts to get down.

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
Like, it just doesn’t work. So you need to be aware that, yes, the business is going to take so much time of you, but you got to always allocate time to the support system and to lean on them and for them to be able to lean on you, too, because you need that reciprocity.

Monique:
Right.

Gina:
So it’s just super important to make sure to feed into that support system at all times and just continue to feed into it.

Monique:
Mm hmm. Yeah, I agree. Yeah, we can. I can definitely agree with that because, yeah, just being in your own world under rock, I like to say, like, I rock. Like, then I come out, especially in the wintertime, and then summertime, I’ll come out. But it’s true. It’s like, nurturing those relationships and having those. Prioritizing that support system.

Monique:
It’s true.

Gina:
Why do you go in? Are you just using that as a. Or you literally do kind of, like, go.

Monique:
I do, I do. My friends are like, first I’m in New York, and it’s just I am a girl in the cold, and I am like, wintertime, I go under rock hibernation. And then they’re like, summertime, monique is out and about, but I kind of, like, prep for that. However, I do now prioritize, still trying to figure out how to build and nurture those relationships during those times, because it can get easy to be, like, just inside working. Working.

Gina:
Oh, yes. Oh, I love that.

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
Of it.

Monique:
Yeah, I’m very aware. My family is as well. And kind of like you. I’m. I’m kind of, like an introvert, but business has forced me to kind of be like that ambivert.

Gina:
So, yeah, yeah, I enjoy people, but then also, it’s like, I enjoy people, but I also enjoy being by myself.

Monique:
Endosis.

Gina:
Oh, great. Right?

Monique:
Yes. And Gina, I want to talk about, like, that, just more about you and how people can connect with you. But before I do that, I want to talk about also, what do you foresee? Like, we talked about how this is the blacks of business podcast. A lot of people are black entrepreneurs. We’re not receiving vc funding or outside funding. So what do you see the trend when it comes to us self funding as black entrepreneurs and some of the ways that we can kind of continue to excel?

Gina:
Yeah. Like I said, money will always chase you and chase success. So just keep working on your different goals. And that if you do need funding, it’s going to come chase. Like, they’re going to be hounding, like, can I please be part of this? Right, that, and it’s like we said earlier, like, it’s funny. Now you. Now you want me. Now I’m hot.

Gina:
Now you want me. But that’s just the, that is just the nature. And just like how we said we Amazon, with buying on Amazon, we didn’t want to buy the two reviews that probably even had five stars. We wanted the one that had 13,000 reviews. Right. So understanding that and being okay with that, because sometimes we can get caught up, like, nobody cares. My friends won’t even buy my product. And I went through that.

Gina:
I was like, why are my friends buying hair extensions from other people in their net? And I went through a very hard, like, that was my support system helping me with that. Like, my husband would be like, why do you care? You cannot sustain off of. Even if all of your friends bought. Yeah, it’s not going to be sustainable business. So, like, stop focusing on that. So I would just say, really go after your metrics. You will see the money will chase you. If you do need money, trust me.

Gina:
True. I’ll be there. Like, I want to invest in your business, you know, so just underst, I would say just understanding that and just keep going forward being, create all the points that we said, being creative, having fun, doing it. People love good energy. Just attracts more and more. Being positive, those are the keys to success. I mean, you’d be surprised. Even people with just bubbly personalities, like, how are you so successful and gravitate to that? Like, people want that, especially in this day and age with so much going on.

Monique:
Yeah, I agree. That is true. We talked about on the podcast, too, about that. It’s like, you have to. A part of business is also, you have to be likable.

Gina:
Oh.

Monique:
Get you far as well. So I love that you brought that up. It’s so true. And so, Gina, this has been so amazing. So I want to talk about some of the resources that you offer. You kind of touched on them in the beginning, but I. People are listening. They’re like, okay, how can I get into Gina’s world? So I want you, if you could talk more about your business mastermind program and how this works and also how people can become a part of this.

Gina:
Yeah. So you can find me on LinkedIn, or I’m on Instagram Ginalos Angeles. And right now, I have. We’re in the midst of, like, expansion and some new exciting things going on with Donna’s recipe. So my mastermind is. Is paused at the moment, but you can always reach out, even if you have questions. I have always, I am here for, especially our people. And so if you have specific questions, like ask the questions.

Gina:
If there’s opportunities for value add, you can reach out. I most comment on Instagram at my, the Gina Los Angeles page. And then if you forget the Gina Los Angeles, you can just go to Donna’s recipe and I’m there as well where it says where it’s founded by Tabitha and I, my link. But yeah, just reaching out. And there are times where I do either mentorship or coaching opportunities if people are like, hey, I just need an hour of your time. Kind of stuck here. I’m also a resource as well.

Monique:
And what advice would you give to somebody who’s in there early? Maybe first year of business.

Gina:
Okay, first year of business. So many points that I can say, but I would say stay excited. Stay excited because you have different phases in a startup. You have like the pre, the pre launch. There’s so, so many different. But like, pre, let’s just take the pre launch because even before the pre launch is the research and all that. And it’s so many steps until you get to the launch. But launch is so exciting.

Gina:
And for some people, sometimes launch is exciting. Like, yeah, you know, I’ve launched, whether it be on Amazon or my website or Instagram, and it’s like, I got four sales, I’m so excited. Or you can say I got nothing and I got nothing a week later, you know, but stay excited because you did. You did something that a lot of people are afraid to do because I think that we’re all creators and we, a lot of times we just don’t act on it and we let life get in the way. But you have found a way as a new entrepreneur to like, break through and make it happen. Whether you got no sales yet. Now at the end of the day, you need to start getting some feedback. Like, hey, why is, why aren’t people buying? Is it my price point? Is it the material? Is it, you know, so you need to be getting out in these streets, like understanding what’s going on, whether it’s good or bad, whether people like buying like crazy or people not buying at all.

Gina:
You want to get out in these streets. That could be the Internet streets. Whether it’s a survey or getting on your social like, hey, why do you love it? Or what is it? Why, what made you not purchase? But whatever the outcome is, be excited because that’s what’s going to keep you going when you’re tired, when you’re discouraged. Because whether your business out the first gate makes a million dollars, which we, it’s so funny. Like, I’ve, I’ve had so many different instances with my different business ventures where I’ve had businesses, where it started out in, like, the first week is a million dollars. So it’s great. And it’s so funny when you see, because it’s a phrase that says success does not feel like success. If my 22 year old self saw me get, like, a million dollars in a week, they’re like, what? I’m retired.

Gina:
Yeah, but getting a million dollars in the first week and then you thinking about, oh, shoot, we got to go back into production. Oh, my. The ingredients take eight to ten weeks. Oh, my. Components need to be shipped from China, and that’s going to take twelve weeks. Oh, my. They’re on chinese new year. Oh, my such.

Gina:
Seems like they’re stealing from my company. Oh, my. Such and such needs to take a vacation. Like, oh, my kid just fell on something. I got to take on the emergency. You know what I’m saying? It’s so many happen, and so even the person that’s looking like, you got it all good. You made a million dollars in today. Like, it’s not that, you know, it.

Gina:
It’s still work, but you have to be happy in it, and you have to be happy. When you just launched on launch day and no sales came in, I did it. I’m on Amazon. Do you know how, like, much of a process that takes that you’ve done something that’s like, you need to have a graduation ceremony almost, like every week?

Monique:
Yeah.

Gina:
You’re doing things that a lot of people are either afraid to do, say they can’t do, won’t do. Yeah. So I’ll just summon in that, just say, excite, stay excited and happy, feel blessed, and it’s just contagious. It just keeps attracting to you. Like, I don’t know if you. For the listeners, everyone seen Naomi Asaka. Asaki did a tennis tournament against Serena Williams. And I was rooting for Serena, and she was frustrated because she was losing.

Gina:
And then she was like, that face, like, ooh, I’m so frustrated. And then all of a sudden, she smiled, and it was awkward, like, you’re losing and you smile. But it was something that she was trying to do, like, wait, smile. And she smiled, and I said, oh, lord, serena’s gonna lose this thing. And my husband’s like, why you say that? She’s like, she’s losing. I said, no, Serena’s gonna lose. Because when you change that energy, it just keeps more and more, just keeps attracting. So, like, on your worst days, just smile and be happy.

Gina:
Like, wow, this is. I’m really doing it.

Monique:
Mm hmm.

Gina:
More and more, that keeps coming to you.

Monique:
Did Serena win? Lose?

Gina:
She lost.

Monique:
Oh, look at that. I mean, we root for both, but.

Gina:
I know. And I cried, too. I was like, serena fan.

Monique:
Yes. Yes. Yeah. That’s so powerful. And I think it’s a beautiful reminder of why people just remembering why you started and that why. Yeah, it’s true.

Gina:
Yeah.

Monique:
And any favorite tools or resources that you’ve used that have really helped you, maybe some books, resources in your entrepreneurial journey.

Gina:
I would go all the way back to the first book that I read that really changed my mindset. It was by Robert Kiyosaki. Rich dad, poor dad. It’s a very common book read. I even had my son reading when he was, like, seven, but it just. It was those pivotal books. I like. I’m like, oh, yeah, everybody would have read that because it’s such a bestseller, and it’s.

Gina:
It’s an old book now. So I thought, oh, yeah, everybody read that. But then people like, no, I haven’t read it. I’m like, oh. So I would say that is a book. A must book read. It is very practical and easy read. Like, a seven year old can read it and understand, and it really can help change your mind of, like, how you view life.

Monique:
Yeah, definitely put that one.

Gina:
Have you read that book?

Monique:
Yeah. Yeah, I have it. I have that one in who’s the other version? But, yes, I have read that book, and it is true. It’s so practical, and it’s, like, put things in perspective.

Gina:
Yeah. Yeah.

Monique:
I love a good read. And my final question is, what does it mean to you to be black in business?

Gina:
Oh, great question. It means so much because I actually. I just think about the shoulders that we’re standing on, even my own mom. And there were certain things that she felt like she was denied from where it was a time when she wanted to go into full entrepreneurship, and it was like, just be realistic black woman. Like, just stop. And she wanted to, but didn’t. And I feel like I am an example to her and her mother and just our ancestors that were oppressed to live in their wildest dreams. And so I just want really high shoulders for my daughter, my black daughter, and my black sons to step on and just really be, as Paul Mooney says, as confident as a 21 year old white man.

Monique:
That’s true. That is beautiful. I always like. That’s my favorite question. Well, one of my favorite. I love asking questions. Yeah, I love that question. Great question, Jenna.

Monique:
This has been a beautiful conversation. And also, like, thank you for being an example of what it looks like, what success in this route looks like, and just pouring into my audience. Thank you so much. And we appreciate the work that you are doing.

Gina:
Oh, thank you so much, Monique. And really proud of you. This is God work that you’re doing.

Monique:
Thank you. Taking it in. Thank you so much.