Founder of Consumerhaus, Claire Spackman, on Creating an Online Marketplace for “the Internet’s Favorite Brands”

Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business:

My name is Claire and I’m the founder of Consumerhaus. Consumerhaus is a curated online marketplace for “the Internet’s favorite brands”, featuring 100+ modern and digitally-native consumer brands across food, beverage, wellness, personal care, and pet. Consumerhaus aims to cut through the clutter and highlight the most loved online brands, sharing each brand’s origin story in addition to exclusive founder interviews. Each brand and product is carefully vetted and selected by the Consumerhaus team to ensure a best-in-class shopping experience.

What excites you about being an Entreprenista League member?

Being able to support and uplift other female founders who are building incredible things.

What made you take the leap to start your own business?

I founded Consumerhaus out of a personal need, and after speaking with hundreds of brand founders, it became evident that they also wanted and needed a platform like Consumerhaus. The idea for Consumerhaus had actually been sitting in the back of my mind for years – I had been waiting for someone to build it, but later realized I should just build it myself.

What was your background prior to starting your own business?

I spent a little bit of time in growth equity investing (focusing primarily on the consumer space), and most recently worked as a product manager at a food-technology startup.

Did you always know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?

I always knew I wanted to start my own company in the consumer space as I’ve always had a huge passion for tangible, consumer goods. I didn’t know exactly what type of company I wanted to start, but I’ve always loved the idea of creating something from nothing.

Take us back to when you first launched your business, what was your marketing strategy to get the word out and did it go as planned?

We dipped our toes in a few different strategies, from influencer gifting to PR outreach to paid ads. We were actually also surprised to see a significant amount of organic traffic, inbound messages, and general interest in Consumerhaus pre-launch. It’s still a bit early to tell, but fingers crossed that we’ll see a decent return on investment!

What is the biggest challenge you have encountered along the way and what did you learn from it?

As a solo founder, I wear a lot of different hats and keep a pulse on every single aspect of the business, so managing my time has definitely been a challenge. I’ve learned the importance of prioritizing certain tasks and giving myself time to unwind each day, which is crucial to avoiding burnout.

What is the accomplishment you are the most proud of to date?

Launching! Launching anything – especially a company – is so unbelievably difficult, and it’s taken a lot to get here.

Do you believe in work/life balance? What are some of your best tips?

100%. While I still have days where I work pretty much nonstop from morning to night, I know when I need to step away from my desk and take my mind off work. Over time, I’ve realized more and more how important it is to maintain a healthy work/life balance. I really enjoy playing sports (tennis, golf, etc.) to unwind as I’ve found physical activity to be the best way to relieve stress and distract from work.

What’s a piece of advice you can share that you wish you’d known when you first started your Entreprenista journey?

It might sound a little pessimistic, but expect things to go wrong. I’ve actually heard this from many different founders. When starting a business, a lot of things will inevitably go wrong, and a lot of the time it’ll be things that are out of your control. By accepting that not everything will go your way, you’ll be better mentally prepared to tackle these issues.

What have you achieved recently that you’d like to celebrate with our community?

We just launched! Check us out at www.consumer.haus or @consumerhaus on Instagram 🙂

What’s next for your business? What can we expect to see over the next few years?

There’s a lot in the works. We plan to expand Consumerhaus to more than just a marketplace (can’t disclose too much yet!) and want to provide resources for our brands to help them grow. Of course, we’ll be continuously onboarding new brands and sharing their stories with the world!

Learn more about the Entreprenista League and join today!