The Power of ‘No’ with Sam Rudolph of Babyation

Sam Rudolph is the CEO and Co-Founder of Babyation – a venture-backed startup with a mission of “creating game-changing products and judgment-free conversations to build a community that supports, elevates, and unites women through all the roles they juggle – including being a mom”. Sam graduated from The Wharton School with a Bachelor of Economics before starting her career where virtually “every job [she] had didn’t exist before she had it”. It was this entrepreneurial spirit that guided her into starting her own business.

On this episode, we talk to Sam about the inspiration behind Babyation, how she was able to turn an idea into a business, and what valuable lessons she’s learned on her entrepreneurial journey. 

  “I don’t let the ‘no’ define me. I know what I’m doing. I know that not everybody’s gonna like me. I know that not everybody’s gonna like my business. I’m 100% okay with that. You have to know that you’re going to be told no, but you have to prepare for how you’re going to handle the no.” – Samantha Rudolph

This week on Startups in Stilettos:

• What inspired Sam to start Babyation (1:16)
• What Sam’s career looked like before starting Babyation (3:41)
• Sam’s foray into entrepreneurship (5:01)
• How Sam was able to juggle work and starting a business (6:18)
• The steps that Sam took when starting to build her business (7:36)
• Sam’s grant application process (8:58)
• How moving in with her parents helped drive the success of her business (10:11)
• The approach Sam took towards her first investors’ pitch (11:19)
• Why Sam’s Kickstarter Campaign experience was the most stressful 30 days of her life (13:16)
• Sam’s advice on crowdfunding (16:35)
• Why Sam loves fundraising (19:40)
• Our advice for Sam on how to build a social media strategy (24:33)
• Our non-traditional PR advice for Sam (26:46)
• Sam’s advice for fellow entrepreneurs (28:17)

Resources Mentioned:

• Kickstarter

Our Favorite Quotes:

• “Every job I had didn’t exist before I had it. And I loved that. And I quickly realized that at some point, I wanted to start my own company.” – Sam Rudolph
• “I get so many people saying I want to start my own business, because I can control my schedule. Newsflash, it’s the other way, right, when you’re not working on your business, your business doesn’t get worked on.” – Sam Rudolph
• “If someone is not telling you, no, you’re not asking enough people, like it’s just it’s that simple. “ – Sam Rudolph

Connect with Diana Arango:

• Babyation
• Babyation on Instagram
• Babyation on Facebook
• Sam Rudolph on LinkedIn
• Sam Rudolph website

Connect with your Startups in Stilettos hosts:

• Stephanie Cartin on Instagram
• Stephanie Cartin on LinkedIn
• Jessica Abo on Instagram
• Jessica Abo on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Jessica Abo here

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