The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast - Rebecca Minkoff - How To Build Your Brand, Advice For Aspiring Business Owners, RHONY, & How To Build Foundational Skills

Episode Date: November 20, 2024

#778: Join us as we sit down with Rebecca Minkoff – an industry leader behind a global brand known for its wide range of luxury handbags, apparel, footwear, jewelry & accessories. From her humble beginnings to becoming a fashion industry leader, Rebecca shares her journey as a young visionary with an entrepreneurial spirit. In this episode, Rebecca opens up about the realities of entrepreneurship, the value of building strong foundational skills, overcoming rejection with resilience, crafting realistic business models, & her personal path to becoming a renowned name in fashion!   To connect with Rebecca Minkoff click HERE and HERE   To connect with Lauryn Bosstick click HERE   To connect with Michael Bosstick click HERE   Read More on The Skinny Confidential HERE   To Watch the Show click HERE   For Detailed Show Notes visit TSCPODCAST.COM   To Call the Him & Her Hotline call: 1-833-SKINNYS (754-6697)   This episode is brought to you by The Skinny Confidential   Head to the HIM & HER Show ShopMy page HERE to find all of Michael and Lauryn’s favorite products mentioned on their latest episodes.   Visit rebeccaminkoff.com to learn more & use code SKINNY15 for 15% off your purchase.   Visit istandwithmypack.org to support I Stand With My Pack’s (ISWMP) mission by donating or adopting. Every contribution helps!   This episode is sponsored by Sono Bello   Schedule your free consultation now at sonobello.com/skinny.   This episode is sponsored by Good Ranchers    Subscribe to any box at goodranchers.com & use code SKINNY to get a free Thanksgiving ham with your first order plus free express shipping.   This episode is sponsored by    This episode is sponsored by Cotton - The Fabric of our Lives   Cotton is The Fabric of Now. Learn more at TheFabricOfOurLives.com.   This episode is sponsored by Farmacy Beauty   Visit farmacybeauty.com & use code SKINNY for 20% off your order.   This episode is sponsored by Cymbiotika    Head over to Cymbiotika.com right now for 25% off + Free Shipping sitewide during their Black Friday Sale.   Produced by Dear Media

The following podcast is a Dear Media production. This episode is brought to you by I Stand With My Pack. This is a charity that I am so passionate about, so much so that I reached out and asked them if I could feature a dog of the month on the show. A dog that is in need, that's looking to get rescued by someone who's hopefully listening. share this with your friends, your family. So meet Marlo. Marlo is a stunning, energetic four-year-old Australian shepherd who thrives in an active home with or without dogs. He is a loyal, adventure-ready companion. So if you're an active individual or a couple ready to give him the love he deserves, you have to fill out an adoption application. It's so amazing what

I Stand With My Pack does. They're a female-run nonprofit dedicated to saving animals and preventing cruelty locally and globally. I fell in love with them through a friend probably about four years ago, and I became really passionate about featuring these dogs that need a home on my Instagram or on the podcast. We had the founders on the show and we talked all about the need for people to adopt or rescue these dogs. So if you're into Marlo or looking for another dog, you have to check out Istandwithmypack.org. Or if you guys want to donate, it's the easiest thing ever. You can just do it through Venmo. It takes one second. So you could donate, you could foster or adopt. Go to I stand with my pack.org. Every contribution helps. That's I stand with my pack.org.

She's a lifestyle blogger extraordinaire. Fantastic. And he's a serial entrepreneur. A very smart cookie. And now Lauren Everts and Michael Bostic are bringing you along for the ride. Get ready for some major realness. Welcome to the Skinny Confidential, him and her. Mentorship is the person who was like, this bag isn't good enough. Come back to me in two weeks and change X, Y, and Z, and maybe I'll take you on. And again, that moment that she was so cutthroat and picked apart my prototype was what I needed. It didn't feel good, but I was like,

cool, I got to fix this and this is my only chance. And so as a woman like her, or again, the CEO who took a look at me and was like, ugh, another one of you, but she put me through the ringer and was like, you need to know all the aspects of what it takes to run a business because you can't just be siloed in one area. That seems like your dream area.

Today, we're sitting down with Rebecca Minkoff. Many of you guys may be familiar with Rebecca Minkoff. She is an industry leader behind a global brand known for its wide range of luxury handbags, apparel, footwear, jewelry, and accessories. What does she not do? From her humble beginnings to becoming the fashion industry leader, Rebecca shares her journey as a young visionary. She gives advice on how to build a business, advice for young entrepreneurs, what every founder needs to know, how to live an incredible life. And of course, we also talk about her appearing on The Real Housewives of New York, which is a new endeavor for her. We had an incredible time with Rebecca. I'm surprised it took this long to sit down with her. We could have gone on and on. With that, Rebecca Minkoff, welcome to the Skinny Confidential, him and her show.

This is the Skinny Confidential, him and her. I cannot believe you have four children and you are running your company and you're on television. Hold on. I'm not running my company. Okay. And we're going to get into that. Yes. But you still have four children and you're doing what you're doing, which is a lot.

It's a lot. I mean, a lot. Let's go back. Let's get into that. Yes. But you still have four children and you're doing what you're doing, which is a lot. It's a lot. I mean, a lot. Let's go back. Let's get your story. Okay. When you were a little girl, was there sort of a epiphany or eureka moment where you knew that you were into business, fashion, styling? So my mom used to sell cast covers.

Go with me here. It's the 80s. People wanted to cover their cast with like neon spandex looking stuff. Don't know why. And she would sell it at the flea market in San Diego. And I mom had a rule, like she wouldn't buy me stuff, but she'd buy me the materials to make things growing up. And so I would set up my little card table next to her. I sold nothing, by the way, because no one wanted like a little girl's like dumb stuff. But I just had this like, I want to sell too. I want to be in business too.

And my mom also sold Amway products. And so I watched her do that. And I think for me, I was like, I want to do that someday. I didn't know it was going to be fashion, but that was something that I was just, I liked that path. I mean, I think that's so good for a kid, even if you weren't selling anything to, to see the process of making the shirt or making the thing and then setting it up and then being at the event. I think that's important if they want to be a business owner.

I think it's good practice. It's great practice. And it's great to get rejection in front of you early on. Yeah. Because as we know, you're rejected like your whole life as an entrepreneur. Yeah. And I think the people that don't know that and experience it late in life, especially if they were raised by parents where everyone got an award, I think the people that don't know that and experience it late in life, especially

if they were raised by parents where everyone got an award, I think it's hard. Yeah. I mean, I think even like, this is kind of a strange, but even doing this show for as long as we have, we still get so many nos when we reach out to people. I'm shocked. They must be crazy. No, but it's, I mean, over time it's gotten, we've gotten more, and I think there's more people that are willing to come on these properties, but to this day like it it's not always a yes it's a lot of no's and we

still deal with that what are some rejections that you experienced really early on when you just were getting started maybe even before your brand so before the brand good rejections i was a dancer in high school um we i went to a performing arts high school. Did you grow up in San Diego? I grew up half in San Diego. Then we moved to Florida when I was nine. Okay. And there was a multi-division department of arts.

And so I got into dance, but I secretly liked other different departments that I didn't get into. And from day one, they're like, you're too tall. You ruin the symmetry. Your breasts are too big. Like you can never be in the front with the boys because they haven't hit puberty. So they can't get their arms, you know, over your head to like spin you and do pirouettes. And in the back, you just ruin the symmetry. So I was like, cool, where do I go from here? And I went to the costume department and that's where the costume teacher was like, oh, finally someone that gives a shit about this and really took me under a wing and taught me the craft of draping pattern making design and you know as hard as that was to

experience especially in your teenage years it was a blessing in disguise because that was the path I had up taking and loving so sort of like the foundation, it sounds like, has a lot to do with costume making. Costume making and rejection, yes. It sounds like, too, when you're doing costume making, you know sort of what flatters a body, I would think. Yes, yes. And what also brings out a character's essence, right?

I mean, I don't need to apply that to that degree today. You know, we're making contemporary clothing and bags and shoes, but it definitely gives you a deeper framework for how to make a person look, what makes them feel good. It was a lot of work, but it was fun. I mean, in four hours a day, I was in that department just making costumes, designing things. And I feel like getting what you would get as a first or second year student in college, I got during those four years in school. So what was sort of the next step in the journey towards your brand? So my brother knew that I wanted to move to New York for Hanukkah every year. We would be given a subscription to one magazine of our choice, and it was either W or Vogue. And he would steal the magazines and I would wait for him to give them to me and I just was like I have to get to New York that is where fashion is happening it's where it's everything is going on my brother came home one night from

a party with just like a strip of paper with a designer's number said hey this guy said maybe you can intern for him give him a call so I called that number the guy it was a very informal process he's like cool when can you be here? Like we pay three bucks an hour for interns. Was he just a random guy or did you know who the designer was? I didn't know of him because he was making high-end men's shirts for women,

which was definitely not what I was into. High-end men's shirt for women. Yeah, it was before the boyfriend shirt. Okay. And so what was that like working for him? Did he sort of throw you into it? So I showed up on day one expecting to like be like whisked away to the design atelier and and instead the ceo looked at me and she's still to this day a great friend and mentor but at first

she's like she looked at me she's like oh another one of you and she put me in the shipping department and i was pissed i was like like, I just moved here. I'm sleeping on my cousin's kid's playroom floor, and I moved here for this? This is not my dream. And then she put me in every department, cutting swatches, making sales calls, assembling sales packets, every area of the company. Sometimes I had to pick up her kid, which I was really pissed about, but she just put me to task. And then she saw that I could work hard and nothing was beneath me. Nothing was beneath me. And then was like, all right, I see you. Like, let's go from here.

And where do you what where do you want to end up? And I told her, I said, I want to be a designer. So at what point do you start to realize that you can do this on your own? So pre-internet, I would get my work done with probably two or three hours to spare. And she said to me, if you go around and you ask everybody else what they need and they don't need anything, then you can work on your own line on the side. And so I figured out that model real quick. So I had two or three hours and it was beginning of, I would say, 2001 that I was just like, if I'm going to work this hard, like I want it to be my name. I want

it to be me calling the shots. And so that's when I started a line on the side. And what's the first design? The first design, although I'm known for the I Love New York shirt, was this like suit. Like if you took this suit and twisted it and had this part be over the shoulder and kind of be that way, it was like this tuxedo kind of, but on its side. So that was the first design. Would you ever bring that back?

Yeah. I mean, people have brought it back since and it's not like I was so original, but I still have it. I feel like, what did you say the other day, Michael? Everything old is new. No, I was saying. What did you say? We day michael everything old is new no i was saying what did you say we i was we were talking about like the way people consume it was funny a lot of people now you know like when videos went from horizontal to vertical now it's like they're going back to

horizontal and people are actually using their televisions again to watch the stuff that's produced something it's just like i was just basically saying like it's all coming it's all circular yeah it's all exactly we should bring it back well i'll go dig in storage and get it out for you maybe i'll do a trial the archives that's like cute the rebecca archives yeah hang it up but then people share this show sometimes now they'll share that they're like watching it on their television and that's always trippy to me right because they're just you know they're better for your eyes though right it is better for your eyes. So what point does you start to feel momentum like a tumbleweed? Is it really slow?

Is this been something that there has been no aha moment? When do you feel that traction? I think there's like small moments of traction that you feel like is wind, but it's nothing compared to like later on with social media, with certain TV shows. So I would say first bit of traction was an actress wearing my shirt on Jay Leno. She said my name on national TV. Who's the actress?

Jenna Elfman. So cool. Yeah. So that had its moment because it was September 11th, 2001. I sent her the t-shirt on the 9th. She wore it on the show. So like it was an I Love New York shirt.

Like that had momentum because of its own, what it symbolized. I would say what that did was it opened the door that I could call a store and they didn't hang up on me, right? Or I could go walk into a store and say my name. They're like, I think I've heard of you. I'm not sure why.

At the time that felt like a lot of momentum. i launched the bag and daily candy do you remember daily candy of course yeah you're like not so much well so i was joking some of these topics that come up on the show like it would be alarming if i was like i loved daily we would be alarmed yeah i just like lost my shit you know this is a little it's a little bit of a red flag um so that was huge when they wrote up i mean that put me on the map it's like oprah daily candy did you create the i love new york shirt because of 9-11 or did you just create it and then that happened i created it i was already starting to sell it and And then obviously 9-11 happened. And then that shirt was perfect. And I was donating the proceeds, you know, to rescue efforts, Red Cross. So like it had its own like nine month life of just that's all I did.

Were you in the city when that happened? I was. Yeah, I was in Soho. Well, when it happened, I was at a cotton seminar, believe it or not, learning all about cotton. And, you know, a woman came in and she had this thick Southern accent. She's like, a plane has hit a building. And I was like, what are you talking? Like, obviously no one knew what she was talking about.

And then like the world stopped. What did you do when that happened? What I did was I went to a pay phone to call my parents because they had just visited me. I had my first fashion show the night before and I knew they were on their way to the airport. So I was like, I hope that they're okay. And they were in a cab rerouted. They were like, we're going to drive home. You need to get in the car with us. We'll come pick you up. Like we're leaving. Like, let's go. And I was like, I'm sticking around like I'm not leaving the city. And so I ended up staying around. And for the first week, I would say with the recovery efforts,

anyone who said they were a volunteer, they would kind of let through. And so I was able to help. And then after that, it got more strict. But that's what I did. I just went down and I was like, what do you need? You need trash shoveled. You need like water. Where can I be most useful? What was that like? It felt like the world had ended.

I mean, it was gray and dark and you couldn't see more than a couple feet past you in the daytime. And it was intense. And you were just with all these people that were digging bodies out and trying to find people it was it was like the world had ended i remember what we were i think freshmen in high school that happened and obviously we were on the other side of the country that was like if you weren't alive at that time or that was a like the whole everything came to a stand so and it's it's we're staying down in that area now like then we stay down there a lot like downtown when we come here.

And obviously we weren't there, but I can't even fathom thinking about what it would be like in this city with that. I don't think people can even imagine. You walk around and you see these massive buildings. It's insane. It's insane. There's not a New Yorker that would not want that shirt too at that time. No, everyone wanted it and this is online sales were happening one website called raven styles uh she you remember that so she she would say like i need you know 20 more 30 more i'm like all right i need to come

down give me some cash up front i'll bike to green street i'll go to the vendor get it then i'll cut them bedazzle them and then i'll ship them back you. But like it was a very lo-fi operation. And so but when that happened, I bet it was like more than 20. I mean, no, no, it was like nine months of my life. That's all I did. That's all you did. That's all I did. It was like nine to five was making those shirts.

How many roughly do you think were actually bought and sold? Oh, my gosh. I don't know. Tens of thousands. Wow. were actually bought and sold at that oh my gosh i don't know tens of thousands wow did that sort of give you also ability to sort of move how you wanted to move within the business moving forward because not at all why because again it it was a blip that like stores recognized your name but they didn't know or care if you did anything else i'd be like i have this really cool blazer

jacket that's turned on its side or whatever. It was still rough in terms of getting, I was like, I have more that I do. I'm not just the I love New York shirt girl. Well, and it sounds like that would be obviously a strange moment too to like capitalize on from like a- She didn't though. She gave-

No, I know that's what I'm saying. I gave all the money away. I'm the person that you, it would just be like a weird way to kind of promote. It's almost like, well, you gave the proceeds away away but it's like what i'm saying is you can't be like i'm the person that did this and now i need a career off of something that was kind of you know it's more of like a mission especially because you're so multifaceted with your design so how do you how do you pivot out of that into your next design what was the next moment after

that moment i basically said what else could I do in the t-shirt space that would mirror that? So I came up with this off the shoulder with this overly bedazzled like patch that I would put on and I had beading and embellishment. I actually got it right around the corner at Daytona Trimmings. And what I also did is I had a friend who was a publicist and he would call me and he'd say, Teen Vogue just called. They're looking for terrycloth jumpers. Go. And I literally would go home, make a terrycloth jumper that day. We would submit it to the magazine or he'd be like, belts, brown, fringe. And I was like, great, got it. So he would every day he would call me with

a new potential story. So we ended up getting a lot of press and sales because he would just tell me what they were looking for. And I knew how to make it. At this time, who are the it girls that are wearing your clothes? So we can really understand the like the era. Okay. So I need to give you more of the bag ish era. Cause I don't know if my memory can go far back to the clothing era, but like Heidi Klum wore the clothes I styled the first season of Project Runway and the commercial so that she was where Padma Lakshmi but then as we get into the bag era it's Lindsay Lohan it's Kristen Cavallari it's Jessica Alba Reese Witherspoon Hayden Panettiere like all those OG 2005 girlies and some of them are having a great resurgence. They are. How does that make you feel when you see these huge celebrities wearing your bag? Like, were you freaking out?

These are the Us Weekly days, I'm assuming. Oh, Us Weekly, In Touch. Okay. All of them. So what is that like when you start to see that? And there's no social media, right? No. Okay. Just to go in reverse my daughter who's 10 she likes the magazine she's like mom it's like instagram but in a magazine form and i was like this is so funny to me that she you know likes to turn the page so yeah no social media it's all going back she's like not scrolling she's not scrolling she's just reading last night at the airport she's like dad got me an. I'm so excited. I don't even know if she knows who's in them, but it's very exciting for her. So no, no social media. So if you were on the pages of any of these

magazines or the InStyles, it meant sales and it meant eyeballs. And so getting in those magazines when that celebrity would wear it. I mean, the Lindsay Lohan experience was like a drug deal. Like I was at this booth. It was like a celebrity, like you show up. The celebrity is like, we'll come through. It's like a gifting suite. It was kind of the beginning of gifting suites.

And I went to the bathroom. My friend, Delaria, who's a really big stylist in Hollywood now, was helping me. And she was like, oh, my God, Lindsay was just here. I had the bag. She didn't stop by our booth. So I ran out as she was leaving the Pierre Hotel and put it in her hands. And that's all the paparazzi shots. And so like that, that shot and that bag ran over and over again. And then the sales just come. And it's it's it's beautiful it's a beautiful thing lindsey lohan michael at this point in time wearing this bag without social media like i was in high school i think i remember flipping through those pages and you would see him outside kitson does that kind of response happen anymore like in terms of that swell yeah i think it

probably happens with certain celebrities but you can't get like someone as famous as Lindsay then wouldn't necessarily do that now. I think you have to get even bigger. Like if Kim's wearing something or Khloe or, you know, like those huge megawatts, I think do that. I also think there's a bit of a difference where when I post a purse that I'm wearing and I tag the brand, it's different than being caught out in the wild by the paparazzi in an effortless moment when it looks like it's not staged. There's something different. And they weren't being paid then. Right. And so it's a very organic thing. Does that make sense?

It doesn't feel so contrived or curated, whereas social media does sometimes. Well, maybe you didn't have as many visuals of as many options. Well, yeah. And you also had less, it was more precious, I think. Now it's like people know they're being paid. They know they're probably like wearing it once, throwing it away. And if this woman was out with the bag it's because she liked it when you were sort of growing what would the celebrities were they nice behind the scenes did you have horror stories was everyone lovely like what was your experience as you were growing the

brand i only had one horror story and i will not not say who it is what does it rhyme with no she doesn't have to say who it is give us some attributes she's very famous tell us some things she's done she's a multi-hyphenate she can dance sing and act that's a good that's a good clue is it lauren i can't i can't i can't sing don't mean to brag I had a friend who called me in a pinch and was like, hey, we need you to be an assistant stylist for this celeb. And I was like, cool. I've never been an assistant stylist. I'm only the stylist. I'll do it if you get her to wear the bags. She's like, done. And so I send her the bag. I arrive to be the luggage carrier and luggage unpacker and the bag i see is smushed at the bottom of like a plexiglas you know box and i was like yeah she's never wearing this and i'm

gonna be her like i'm gonna wipe her ass all week this is gonna be great and this is what i'll say the woman never looked me in the eye never thanked me never acknowledged my presence and i unpacked her and packed it up and did the like lowest tier of stylist work for a week in the hopes that she would just wear the bag once. And so that sucked, but it's okay. But as you've grown in your career, I feel like that moment probably made something resonate for you. I would think where you now you as who you are, I bet you always acknowledge everyone now. For the most part, unless something really terrible has just happened and I go completely like, you black out. I really am conscious of it. You've seen all the different jobs. I think

that's what's so cool about your story so far is like it sounds like you've really worked your way up. And so you've seen every different tier. And I think that's important because some people now are going viral and getting this sort of like astronaut syndrome where they get so famous overnight and there's no sort of bricks or building blocks to get them there. So it's almost like an entitlement. Yeah. We have had so many celebrities and influencers come on this show and open up about lipo. And I'm so happy that people have opened up because it's been sort of like a hush secret. There's a lot of people that don't actually tell the truth about it. And there's this new lipo. It's laser assisted li, and it's by Sono Bello. Basically, it's at the forefront. So they use an LAL technology, and they showed me the outcomes.

I got to see the before and afters, and it was actually wild. I think that I want to interview someone on this. Lipo used to be such a bad word. It was so taboo. And people were doing it secretly. And now people are being really open about it, which I think is great. It's gone in one comfortable visit. And I have to say, like I said, the results look very good. I'm looking at these before and afters. Save big during Sonobello's friends and family fall savings event. Schedule your free consultation now at sonobello.com slash skinny. That's sono, B-E-L-L-O dot com slash skinny.

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extra special and get that free Thanksgiving ham. I am all about breathable, natural, long-lasting cotton. So we're teaming up with cotton, the fabric of our lives. I am really trying to be so intentional and mindful about what I'm wearing when I'm home, relaxing with my kids, being present. So when cotton reached out, I was so excited. I'm sure all you guys know that going natural with cotton is the move. Cotton comes from the earth, unlike synthetic and man-made fibers. I am trying to be more mindful and present in every area of my life. I want to stay grounded, especially when I'm home. You guys all know cotton. Who doesn't like cotton? It's breathable, natural, long-lasting cotton. It's amazing. And cotton is natural. Cotton comes from the earth. So there's

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I don't wish like virality or instant success for anyone because I think the fall from that is brutal. Yeah. Right. Like, and I, you know, I think people that are looking for that viral moment or that quick cash or that quick success, if you can't sustain it, then it's, it's really hard on the way down, you know? And I, and so I think people that are listening and looking for that, it's maybe people say easy for you to say, but it's like, I think the slow build with gratitude over a long period of time,

one, you can sustain it longer. And two, like a few bumps don't take you out as hard as, you know, the drastic drop from when you, you know, you know, a lot of people that go viral and then all the next thing, you know, it's like, what happened to them? Like that's very difficult. It's like winning the lottery. You see them like win the most money that someone could ever have, and then it's gone. Who have been the people that have helped shape your career along the way? Do you have mentors that you've looked up to, people that you've talked to in New York? Are there anyone that you can think of that has given you really great advice? Yes. My view of mentorship is a little different because I think nowadays people are like, hey, can you mentor me? Can I have coffee with you?

And you tell me how you did it. And you're like, no, I don't have time for that. It's time to listen to the podcast. Right? Yeah. Now you've. Well, I mean, I'm like, here, you can you can listen to all the things I've talked about this with. But I think it's like that's not mentorship.

Mentorship is the person like my first sales showroom who was like Cynthia O'Connor who was like this bag isn't good enough come back to me in two weeks and change x y and z and maybe I'll take you on and again there was no direct to consumer sales so she was the gateway to selling to the department stores and specialty stores. And so that moment that she was so cutthroat and picked apart my prototype was what I needed. It didn't feel good, but I was like, cool, I got to fix this. And this is my only chance.

And so as a woman like her, or again, the CEO who took a look at me and was like, ugh, another one of you, but she put me through the ringer and was like, you need to know all the aspects of what it takes to run a business because you can't just be siloed in one area. That seems like your dream area. So I think there's been a lot of those women.

And then today now it's like other female founders. Doesn't necessarily matter if it's the industry that I'm in. It's just like I had a friend going through like having the biggest, most sexy company to then bankruptcy to then it being re-bought and revived and then her moving on. Like all the lessons she learned in that have, you know, are like what kind of stimulates me and helps me. Besides the picking the brain for coffee, which I personally don't think anyone should do.

No. Because a lot of these people- Like they shouldn't do the coffee or they shouldn't reach out that way. There shouldn't be a pick your brain for coffee. If you, I think if you, if they have access to their Instagram account or their podcast, I think there's ways to consume the content without having to pick the brain for coffee. And I do believe the pick the brain for coffee kind of people are not executing because they're scared.

And so they're using all these things that they have to do before they actually execute. There's just a lack of self-awareness because it's like the value exchange is mismatched. Meaning like what's in it for the other person that has to do that. I don't mind that as much as it's, I feel like it's forever student-y. It's like, you're trying to be a forever student because you're not actually executing. You have to go and do. You have to go do. And the coffee thing is like, listen to a podcast or an audible. I read some dumb tweet the other day, I guess's called x now where it was like would you take half a million dollars in cash or a dinner with jay-z and everyone's like dinner with jay-z because you would learn and get all

this access and network i'm like take the fucking half a million dollars exactly he'd buy you the steak dinner and then you'd never hear from him again because he's a busy guy i'm like you dummies like take the half a million dollars go do something else put it in like that lunch is not you know dinner whatever it's not worth it no what do you think young entrepreneurs are doing wrong in this moment that you see a couple things and again this is a very wide generalization i think everyone is expecting virality they're not looking at building a long-term successful business that takes 10, 15, 20 fucking years to build. Like come the fuck on. You think in a year you're going to be a millionaire? Like, no, they haven't figured out how to handle rejection and no, and they give up too early.

You know, I say in my book, sometimes I'm still here just because I got back up the next day and I showed up. Like I had every reason to go home and every reason to be like, let's close up shop. But I was like, well, let's try it again. And so it's that getting back up. And I think that we're in this, we're in this like, you know, Amazon prime, like let's prime our success. And you just don't get that. And not everyone has to raise money and be like a big billion dollar brand. Like that's a sickness that's going around that a lot of people, their businesses aren't meant for that. They might not even be meant for private equity. What happened to the idea of like Main Street USA where you had a successful, profitable business that funds your

lifestyle? And I think this sexiness of like, I raised a billion dollars is short-sighted i i was on that i was in that mindset it's a delusional too sometimes in certain areas it's like there's a delusion happening well it's just so easy to just go you know what i mean there's a lot that goes into that a lot of those not to go on a super like you know economy and capital conversation but a lot of those people that did that and raised those huge dollars and then couldn't sustain those valuations or those sales, their companies are gone. And the people don't realize some of these investors are quick to discard things that are on the downward trend. They're not coming back in for more money. It's like,

hey, this one didn't pop. I got to go focus on the one that is. And they just kind of throw you out. Yeah. There's a lot of, I could go on a tangent about that, but there's a lot of dark side about raising capital and from who and with whom and all of that. And I think there's a trade-off, right? You might get capital, but now you are owned by other people. You have no say in the trajectory of your business. And the sickness of like, we don't need to make money.

We'll figure that out later. We did that. And then when it was like investors were like, no, you need to make money. We're like, oh, okay. That's going to take a while to figure out. And like, people don't have that time these days for that. What kind of pivots have you made when it comes to your brands? Like it sounds like you sort of bootstrapped it is what you call it that to begin with. We bootstrapped it for the first seven years. My co-founder, my brother and I, Ori Minkoff, and he mortgaged his house. He maxed out his Amex. That was how we were funding the business and its growth. Finally, we got to a size where we could afford a factor, which is a purchase order financing company that fashion industry people will often

use. And then we waited till 2012 to take in some private equity, a very small part of the company. And that's how we grew it. At this moment right now with where you are, what are some really important lessons you've learned about operating? Because I think, and I get into this too, is like, I'm so creative and I want to do all these creative things. But to run a really successful business, there has to be logistics and operation. And Michael's a little bit better than me at that. How do you think about that? So for the longest time, my brother was the CEO and operator.

And I was like, I'm the designer and that is all I do. And many a time he would have conversation with me like you need to learn the language of business you will be a different and better designer if you understand that and I really resented that but he was right he also was like you need to be in front of the camera when when that age started dawning and I was like no that's for influencers that's not for designers and he was like you're wrong and embracing that first like selfie, I wanted to puke. And it's, you know, now we're a media company in a little bit and I'm a designer, but it's like, that's another pillar that you had to add. So I think him pushing me was really, you know, turned that for me. But I would say find the people that are what you are the worst at.

Like, don't trust me with a financial spreadsheet ever. You know, like hire for your weakness, I think is the best advice I could say. What does your team look like today? So we have about 30, 35 people today. COVID, it was 60, just to give you like the scale of size-wise that we shrunk. We have PR, we have marketing, we have e-com,

we have design, we have an in-house photo team, but it's still a very tiny team for the size of our company. What's the process of creation? Like if I say I want to create a coin purse tomorrow, how quickly does this actually happen for you? Well, it depends on who you ask. If you ask my CEO, she'll be like, we need a year for it to hit shelves. And then sometimes I'm like, we don't have a year. This is a big deal. She wants a coin purse. Let's make it happen quicker.

So sometimes we can compress the timelines depending on what it is. Like I have a collaboration coming out in February of next year where my CEO was like not doing it. And I was like, okay, I will. I'm doing it. And so I'm running that project outside of what she's doing. It sounds like the COO keeps you in line.

She does. But I also think that sometimes you have to break things and we're still a small enough company to break things. We're not so corporate and big that we always have to follow the rules. When did you decide to bring on a, is it a COO or CEO? CEO. So we sold the business two years ago, almost three. My brother was the CEO. We had a president. And so when that transaction happened, we said to the new owners, she needs to be the CEO. Was she functioning as like a COO before? I would say president, which is more forward-facing sales, merchandising. And my brother was kind of CEO, COO. Okay.

So she took on CEO. Her name's Daniela Bokrassian, shout out. And she's still the CEO. What is your day-to-day look like now? So different. There is no set routine. Some days I'm filming content all day. Other days I have the podcast that I try and batch.

I would say that twice a month I'm meeting with my studio director who's been with me for 18 years. So she runs the design team now. And so I just kind of download and dump to her all my ideas, inspiration. And so then she can take it and run. And then sometimes we're reviewing the designs. Other days it's a touch base with Daniela, my CEO. It's like every day is different. And that's what I love about it.

How does one decide to do Real Housewives? Tell me the real process behind the scenes. Does Aaron throw something out? Tell me what tweaked in me that I was like, er? And were you like, right away, let's do it? Or were you like, eh, I don't want to do this? And then how did you get convinced? Tell me way before you even started filming what that looks like I watched the first season and

I was like okay I like that no one is a housewife uh-huh and I like that it's showcasing for the most part except for maybe two like entrepreneurs self-started women with businesses. Yeah. And I liked that the drama was pretty tame because there was no way you'd ever get me on like a Miami or a Salt Lake. Some of it is like, like the Jersey is like, they're just going for, they're hurting people's reputation. Yeah. This is different. I'm not here for that. It's fresh. Yeah. Just like, like I'm a girl's that. It's fresh. Yeah. Just like, like I'm a girl's girl and I'm very supportive of women. So it was a risk to like, even do, even to do the little light drama that we have. But I actually, a friend was like,

hey, check your DMS. Someone's trying to reach you from Bravo. And I was like, oh, I didn't know that. So I checked the DM. I had many interviews and I just I was very upfront I said I'm gonna be me I'm not gonna throw these people under the bus I'm not gonna stir up drama that like just because like that's just not who I am so I might I might not be what you want but I can't be something else and I guess they felt like they needed it or wanted that to the mix I had gotten to know Erin actually a year ago today and I thought she was great. She's cool. Yeah. I've never met her, but she seems cool. Yeah, she's very cool. And I knew Jenna from the fashion industry and I knew Cy. So I felt like, okay, I know three out of the seven. Like, let's, let's just, I said to Daniela, I was like,

I'll go on the journey of the interviews and the meeting and all the thing and we'll just see how far I get it'll be like survivor and then I got to the end and I was like oh shit I have an offer to be to join and when you got the offer were you like fuck yeah or were you like let me think about it I was trepidatious about it because it's one thing to be known as a designer and to have dealt with what I've dealt with for 20 years with that perspective and awareness. It's another to put yourself on national television and now be up for, you know, people to just be like, oh, you're what is it like a you're just a person that I can hate. Yeah. And housewives though, this, the particular season, it's,

I feel there's, it's elegant, it's fresh. It's, it's different. I feel like they rebranded. But it is like, I get what you, we've had different people that come on reality TV on this platform and it's like, you know, Lauren and I will catch flack or shit on the internet, whatever. But the type of commenting that goes on when people enter the world you're in now is, it's a whole different ballgame. It is wild. They feel like they have kind of like ownership. Yes.

Don't read the comments ever. Oh, no, I don't. Don't worry. My friend said, don't touch the stove. Why would you touch the stove if it's hot? I'm sure you don't have to worry, but like I just wouldn't read the comments. No, that was the first thing Sai actually told me. She's like, what you're going to do is you're going to not read the comments.

And I was like, great. Taylor's reading the comments now. Yeah. Yeah. Because the problem is there's 500 nice ones and then you get one mean one and that's all you get.

We stick on that one. Yeah. So it's just like, just don't even touch the stove. That's my advice. Do you have to go on the girls' sleepovers? Because this intrigues me.

That's the deal breaker for you. No, I can't. I can't. I just am not a, I'm a girl's girl. Love it. But I'm not a girl's sleepover kind of gal. Oh yes. I was on all the sleepovers.

Did you want to do that? And if so, or if no, is it fun? Was it surprising? Did you like it? Was it a nightmare? It was just exhausting is what it was. That's why I'm like, I'm good. I was told like, get ready, like cameras are up at seven and they don't go down until midnight.

And when you're filming and you got a mic on you and there's cameras, like there is no relaxing. Like at one point I remember I was on my computer at a moment where something was happening. I didn't need to like be a part of that conversation and a camera swoops in I was like can you give me a minute I'm answering emails like and they won't well they did and they're very respectful but it just was like I hadn't been used to four days of being like oh my god anything I say anything I do do you forget at all like do you forget that you're being filmed at any point in time? I did not. It was just always You probably will

by your third season. I was like highly like, right, the only safe zone is the bathroom and then your bedroom. What if you stay in the bathroom for a couple hours?

When I get mic'd up, I forget and I go to the bathroom and I'm just like in there and it's not great. That's disgusting. You gotta figure that out. I just forget what's going on. I'm like, oh,

you gotta go, you gotta go. Oh my God. No, I would always oh like you know you gotta go you gotta go oh my god no I would always be like can you turn my mic off I gotta go to the bathroom I feel like I would just go in the bathroom

and lay with the barefoot dreams for a little bit do a sheet mask relax in there do a habit stack yeah I'd be like oh sorry I'm so constipated I gotta be in here

for a couple hours yeah I would need the girls trips intrigued me to no other I'm like this is it's a lot of work yeah you are performing.

You're probably worried about your posture. I was very worried about my posture. Yeah. Because I tend to slouch anyways. I know. Geez. I feel like I was. Yeah.

And you, and on camera you can like see every detail. I think in half the episodes I'm like this. Cause I was just like, I forget. I didn't notice that. I watched it. Didn't notice it once.

Well, I was erect for the first one. You were erect. That was like my big reveal. She was erect. I didn't notice that. I watched it. Didn't notice it once. Well, I was erect for the first one. You were erect. That was like my big reveal. She was erect. I'm like, I can't remember your posture not being erect. It was erect. I'm not going to say that.

What has the experience been like upon reflection? Meaning, is it more drama, less drama? Is it surprising you? Like, what are the things that you've pulled out of it in retrospect? I'll say this. We've always taken big risks company-wise, business-wise. Yeah, smart. Whether it was using influencers, going on social media, talking to our customers, all things that are very normal today, no one was doing. You know,

the store of the future that my brother conceived with the touchscreens that now like every store has it so i think for us i like to take risks and i like to do scary things it's now how i might get my adrenaline so this was a big risk and very scary i think the thing that i've learned is that it it's a it's a it's you know jenna lions summed it up she's like it's the best and the worst thing and i was like huh i don't understand what she's saying and now that we're done filming i'm like you know, Jenna Lyons summed it up. She's like, it's the best and the worst thing. And I was like, huh, I don't understand what she's saying. And now that we're done filming, I'm like, it was the best and the worst thing because it's emotional rollercoaster, right? You have these friendships, you have this fun interactions, you have pranks you're playing, and then there's a big fight and I'm, you know, and I'm not like that. So like,

that was a lot to like be around sometimes. I can it's that's right I mean it's I see what she's saying it's the best and the worst I bet it's also amazing for business yes it's amazing for business it's a great and anyone pretending that it's not is lying like people are pretending it's not like some people don't go out and say like yeah partially why I wanted to do this is it's good for business and some people don't go out and say like, yeah, partially why I wanted to do this is it's good for business. And apparently people don't like that. Like, oh, that's not real. Like, well, why else would you expose your entire life? You know, like just for fun, just because you felt like you needed to give yourself

to humanity. I don't know. Who are we talking to? There's like, you know, someone that went on and I always ask people why they, I think it's very honest for you to say that, but sometimes you'll talk to people that have done what you're doing. It's like, well, I don't know. Like maybe you thought I could be like, I'm like, do you, I think it's very honest for you to say that, but sometimes you'll talk to people that have done what you're doing. It's like, well, I don't know. Like maybe you thought I could be like, I'm like, dude, maybe did you want to just get

famous or do you want your business to blow up? Just say like, it's cool. Either one, right? Either one. What are the other two things that you thought would happen? Four children. Yes. How old?

13, 10, seven, and almost two. Wow. Yeah. How the hell are you doing what you do? You're back in diapers now. Give me some tips. Back in diapers. Like, we just had to leave our kids at the hotel room to come do these interviews.

They're dragging on the leg. You know how, yeah. And they want to be held. They want to be, and you feel guilty. How do you do that? How do you manage all that? Well, I you feel guilty. How do you do that? How do you manage all that? Well, I definitely feel guilty. Like when I left this morning,

for whatever reason, the last 48 hours, I have a Klingon, like stage four Klingon, my two-year-old. So last night I couldn't even change into my pajamas without him freaking out. So I feel you and that guilt does not go away. What I will say is you can't do this without a great team inside the home

and outside the home. My husband is a team player nothing you know these women that i meet that their husband doesn't share in the duties blows my mind like he 100 shares the duties divorce sorry for me yes it's own for me divorce say you didn't help me that would i would not like that yes right like it's not there is no line that that's a woman's job and it's a man's job and in the household for us agreed but by the way that sometimes works for other people yes works very well doesn't work for me does not work for me either so like we got our helper we got our empathetic men yeah i like to help yeah you do you do i think that this is what i've realized

about michael and maybe this is how your husband is, is my Michael doesn't look at helping as even he's helping me. He looks at it. He like, he's helping his kids. Of course. And that's how it should be looked at. We had a guy come on here and I liked the guy a lot. And he was like,

when I have a boy, like I will never change a diaper. That is like my wife's job. And I was like, dude, you're going to, when you have a kid, you're just not going to,

hopefully you're not going to think that way. But some men do. Yeah. I mean, maybe it's like a, it's just the way maybe some of them were raised right but yeah i can't imagine like if my kid needs something i'm gonna i don't even look at it as like i'm doing it for lauren right i mean that's a byproduct but i look at it like i'm just helping my kid just being a dad you know yeah i mean it's kind of like on the airplane

i'm sure like when he's holding a kid walking up and down the aisles they're like oh that's so sweet they're throwing flowers at me right and we do it they're just like yeah that's your job bitch or they're like do you have a nanny right no one says that to him i'm like we literally work on the same show at the same time i'm not an octopus like what do you yes we have nannies it's and you know i have two right now nannies are amazing they're amazing and they allow you to be able to do work be independent they allow you to do so many things i think they should be celebrated in the forefront a little bit more 100 it doesn't need to be like this hush hush taboo thing we shouldn't be ashamed about it i call my my nanny that's been with us for 12 years i'm like

your mommy and i mama yeah because she's my teammate she's there with my two-year-old right now so that the other nanny can take the other ones who are not in school today like around the city and it was just easier to divide and conquer and that's not normal we don't have two nannies all the time we actually don't have we have like a babysitter that picks them up from school and that's it but like on the days where i have crazy city stuff or my husband's working too, there's the village. I am someone that is pretty specific about the ingredients that I use on my skin. I'm always looking in to what I'm putting on my skin. I want something that's hydrating and cleansing and nourishing, but I also want something with really great ingredients.

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Quick break to talk about Symbiotica. We are in the era of health, or at least we should be guys. We have been talking about Symbiotica on this show for years now. We have had the founders of Symbiotica on this show, I think four or five times, a bunch of times, because they have such a wide array of topics when it comes to health and wellness that we can cover with them. And we love the topic. We also love their brand so much. They have so many incredible products, so many supplements that we take regularly. I think they have one of the best vitamin D3K2s on the market. That combo is critical. They also have one of the best methylated B vitamin combos.

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for gut health and overall health optimization. They have really everything for everyone, sleep products, you name it. So check them out. You guys need to get your hands on these products while their Black Friday sale lasts for a limited time. Head over to Symbiotica.com right now for 25% off plus free shipping site-wide. Again, that's Symbiotica.com right now for 25% off plus free shipping site-wide. This episode is brought to you by the Skinny Confidential, the newest launch brow peptide. Oh, I'm so excited about this one. I have been using castor oil, as you know, on my brows and eyelashes and sometimes even on like little spots on my hairline forever. And the Egyptians used to use it in ancient times to grow their hair. So it makes

sense that we would use it now. But I couldn't find one with a little extra oomph. So I wanted to create my own. I added a peptide, two organic, clean, cold-pressed castor oil. So it's kind of like castor oil on steroids. The peptide that we added nourishes your hair follicle and really helps you grow hair. So the castor oil already grows the hair, and you add the peptide, and it's amazing. So how I use this product is I use it morning and night right when I'm done with my skincare routine. So I've sort of like habit stacked it. What I do is I ice roll, do my skincare routine, put on my caffeinated sunscreen, and then immediately in the morning, I brush my brows with the brow peptide. And I also add it to my lashes, even sometimes my hairline.

At night, I do the same exact thing without the sunscreen, obviously, and then I'll go to bed and I'll reap all the beauty benefits while I sleep. It's obviously non-toxic. It comes in a beautiful pink tube and it has a unique custom wand where you can apply it on your brows or your lashes. You're going to be obsessed with this one. It's kind of like my baby. I'm very excited for it. You can go to shop skinny confidential.com. I would get on subscription because we're probably going to sell out. We do sell out a lot. Go shop our brow peptide at shop skinny confidential.com. I know people will say like having a nanny or help is a position of privilege, which it is, but I look at it as like, if you're going to be building a company or doing any kind

of work and you have it at some point, it's just like, you can't do it without it. Yeah. It's like Lauren and I could not be sitting here with you doing this right now. It's not even the, like, do we want it? It's like, it's impossible to not have it in our position. We need in order to be able to do what we're doing professionally, which then enables us to make a living and, you know, provide for the family and all that. So I don't know. I think people that, I think in that context, it's different than just saying like,

hey, we're just gallivanting around and someone's watching our kid. Right, you're not going out all day and like shopping and getting manicure pedicures. Right, I mean, like there's times where obviously we like enjoy ourselves. But the primary function of the nanny that we have is that she helps us and enables us

to be able to do what we do professionally. Yeah. So what are your sort of, I don't know, pillars of motherhood, your tips to get it all done? Do you have a schedule? Like, is it on your calendar with your kids? Do you wake up? Do you go to bed with them? Do you have anything that you sort of live by when it comes to your home life. Yeah. We kind of chat every Sunday and we're like, what do you have this week? And we each sort of tell each other what's going on. And then we know who's going to be staying late, waking up early.

Actually, my husband is the only one that wakes up early because this kid wakes up at six and I'm still breastfeeding him. So he's in the bed with me because I co-sleep with all my children when they're little. And so I'm like, if I'm up a lot in the night, he's like, I'm cool to take the morning shift. So he's usually up because he's up. I wake up around 745 and then we divide and conquer on the school lunches. He's usually making breakfast. And then we also alternate drop off depending on who has what. So it's really that Sunday meeting that sets us breakfast. And then we also alternate drop off depending on who has what.

So it's really that Sunday meeting that sets us up. And then I knew where to fill in the hole. So like when it comes to filling in the holes, like I'm the one that schedules the babysitter or their school activities. But then I don't know. We just sort of have this dance. Like I know he's going to handle this one's birthday and I'm going to handle the next ones. We have a flow and a rhythm to it that it's kind of like we each know the areas that each other are in. Like he'll plan the vacations.

What does he do for a living? And is he like, do you guys have like a date night schedule? How do you guys water your relationship? We talked about watering our relationship the other day. He's a director of commercials for the most part yeah does he direct anything for your brand no he fired me as a client right he said i treat him rudely when he works with me but he gets the best out of me that's the irony is i'm like ugh he's making me do this again he's like you're so mean to me like i don't want to work with you he

fired you he fired me maybe he'll rehire you after housewives because you could do like another commercial with all the girls just start a podcast podcast with him and see how that goes. Oh my God. Oh my God. That'd be fun. So how do you guys prioritize? I don't think we do the best job of watering our relationship. Like date nights are probably once a month because the guilt that I feel because I am traveling a lot or sometimes I do work late. I'm just like, I can't do another night out where it's just you and me I get it and to really just you know make us seem so boring our date night that

we had last week we're actually going over our housing insurance policy for this hurricane to see because I was like honey I know we have insurance sounds like a date night but I didn't read the fine print so I actually don't know what's covered what's fine print that's what i have you for right fine so then he's like not my area i was saying if i was like a bigger scumbag i could all of our money could be siphoned out and you have no get a husband to read the fine print well he was like i thought you read the fine print because you handled the insurance and i was like i just signed it it looked good i got hurricane but not flood insurance but i don't know if wind is covered he's like so wild she leaves the house with no credit card no id no gas in the car you are free balling runs out of gas on the freeway it takes away from my capacity to put other gas on the freeway has no way to identify herself has no way to pay for

anyone to help i do like running out of gas did i get arrested we're not having a license no i have a couple tricks that i do um when i get pulled over yeah i have actual real over and these guys they always let she's like oh they always let me go and i'm like listen they pull me over they never let me know it's not about my boobs or anything like that i have some tricks yeah i'm sure that the guy looks at you he's like oh he lets you go for me he's like we're throwing the book at you, buddy. I like running out of gas, though, because I can pull over on the side of the road. And then I almost feel a little helpless, like someone's coming to get me. And I can just work on my phone. Let me tell you something.

There is not a man listening to this or in this room that would ever venture out into the world with no credit card ID and think it's going to work out for them. I have wallet on my phone, but it's on 3%. It's insane to me that this happens. You're sitting happens on the edge and there's no pay phones now so like you really can't call for help if you're a man you're like listen sir i don't have any id or any money i like the adrenaline rush like you said maybe a little bit someone's gonna smack you away everyone in this studio raise your hand if you read the fine print i read the fine no okay he reads the fine print what's your name michael the two michaels read the fine print no one else reads it there's a lot of people in here i just was like wind sure or at least have somebody help

you read the fine print i do you that's the point yeah you know same in my marriage i'm like you gotta read the fine print babe what does your husband think of you joining roni uh his exact words were this is your decision i'll do whatever which way you want and i was like went to say to him i was like okay today's the day i gotta like yay or nay and i think i'm gonna do it he's like you're fucking crazy but here we go and i was like to participate no he did not does he want it. He's like, you're fucking crazy, but here we go. Does he have to participate? No, he did not.

Does he want to be on it? Because I'm a friend of. You're a friend of. Yeah, but I bet next season you'll be. I was going to say because the husbands,

I think the biggest liability for that show or the franchise and again, like I viewed, it's the husbands. A lot of those husbands get taken out.

Big housewife watcher. Really? Yeah, I'll watch her. So do you like Hobbit or Abe? Who do you like? Who's your favorite? No, I don't have. So do you like Hobbit or Abe? Who do you like? Who's your favorite?

No, I don't have a favorite, but I just watch what happens to some of these guys and it just doesn't end well for a lot of them. I think that's fine that your husband's not on it. He will not go on. After seeing the husbands, he's like, nope, not going to do it. Also, I feel like there's something with the husbands

where they do want to stay out of it, but they get dragged into it and then they regret getting dragged into it yeah he just doesn't want to be on it yeah he's just not interested so who knows that might be a deal breaker what do you do with your children how do you think about putting them on tv I'm conflicted my daughter is in one episode if it if it gets edited in but i am i am i'm i'm really not sure about how i feel about it at the moment i can i would relate to that if i was on reality television i would feel the same it's it's almost there is a confliction there it's like many layers which i hadn't anticipated like oh i don't want weird people knowing who like like, what she looks like or, right? But then there's the flip side, Raquel, who's a full cast member, her daughter and son are

on the show and they're in high school. So everyone has a phone. So anything that happens on the show, these kids know and the bullying that can happen and that, like, that isn't something I had considered because I don't have teenage kids with phones. And what does she say about that? She just said it's really difficult because anything that happens on the show, like they could get made fun of or get flack for it. And I was like, I hadn't even thought about that.

Who's been your most interesting connection about with the whole show? Who have you like been like, wow, I really like this person? Uba. She's cool, huh? Yeah. really like this person uba she's cool huh yeah so i obviously didn't know her and only saw the first episode and the reunion and i was like this is a very angry woman that i'm going to stay away from i do not want to get on her bad side and she's the exact opposite she only gets angry if you poke her and you keep poking her and you do unfair things and then rightfully so she gets angry what do you do with alcohol

what's your vibe with alcohol like if you decided like do you have a rule or do you just do kind of what you want on the show yeah so i don't drink very much in general again because i have a child that wakes me up and we get it yes so i if i am gonna drink it has to be like i'm away from the kids and it's a fucking celebration okay but it was my first season and so i really chose up until like the last few days i just said i'm not gonna drink i don't know what i'm getting myself into and i want to be in control and are you glad with that decision looking back hell fucking yeah what's your drink of choice i love a negroni but i get a really hangover. So I'm like a skinny margarita girl. Okay.

Negronis are so good. Aren't they delicious? I had too many skinny margaritas last night. The weird thing about New York, you guys, is that you don't really get too hung over here. Really? Yeah, there's something in the energy where you like wake up and you want to just keep hitting it oh i think the city gives you a little bit of an adrenaline kick especially maybe if you don't live here yeah yeah i could see that yeah when i get here i'm not as like hung over as i would be this is so weird in austin like i'm like ready to go do you think that no

that doesn't i ventured out i was kind of hung over today i ventured out and had an uncommon drink for me yeah you i don't know what was going on with you today michael what did you guys do that you were like partying and where was i not partying we just we need to get a drink we'll have to get a drink we went out to dinner last night with some friends some friends of ours just two two people and they order what it's like a it's a vodka martini with the dirty ingredients on the side so like the juice and i don't know if that's your drink choice i was gonna break that okay i'll venture out into these waters that's the one for you i don't know i was hiccuping all night it was a whole mess he's

like hiccuping he's like trying to hook up i'm like get away from me i just put all my silk pajamas she denied me she's like normally i don't deny i'm just like okay that's so nice like one for the team i tried to deny the other night and then he I'm just like, okay. That's so nice of you. Take one for the team. I tried to deny the other night and then he was, I was like, okay, okay. And he was like, what is up with you? Sometimes, listen,

my stepmom told me the key to marriage is you rally. Yep. So I've lived by that. But when I have put on my 50 step skincare situation and my mouth tape is like literally on and I have my silk pajamas on and my head is about to hit the pillow and I have my Kindle in my hand. I can't. Normally

I'd be more like I'd be pursuing more, but I realized I'm like, okay, I've been podcasting all day. My eyes are bloodshot. I'm like hiccuping. I'm like, he doesn't drink vodka. So I'm like, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I was like, this is not good did catch a glimpse i saw you look at yourself i was a shame i was a shame i was disgusting and you realized i was just like uh not today kids are sleeping in the crib yeah it's enough it's hard with four kids what do you do oh my god you gotta sneak it sneak it like sometimes in our house in the hamons, like we just go outside. Honestly. That's a good idea.

It's actually great. Like out into the bushes? No, we're not in the bushes, but we lay down a blanket. It's like you're camp counselors again. You could do that. And you're under the stars. It's kind of romantic. Yeah, that's cute.

Let's get in the bushes. I'm down for that. Put a little blanket out. Do a little setup. It's cute. Sweet. I like it. There's no one around us. It's not like I'm worried it's cute sweet i like it there's no one around us it's not like i'm worried on the neighbors let's hope there's not producers

behind the fucking bush that'd be bad they'll catch it look what they did to tamara and eddie they'll catch it so your brand yes what a transition i know on that note well that's the podcast is kind of like a bag of Chex Mix. Your brand. What is the one piece that if you were to sort of tell our audience, this is the piece. What is it? Well, I would say it starts like we're obviously known for our leather accessories. Yeah. So a bag.

Okay. Which bag? I mean, I would never tell a woman what bag she should get. There's not like for one woman who is running around the city. It's very different. You know, she needs a tote or another woman who, you know, has a car could have a crossbody. So another woman who doesn't bring a credit card or a license needs maybe just a tiny one. Yeah, exactly.

Our wallet on the chain. What the hell's even in your tiny wallet? Now that I think about it. Well, maybe we're going to do a collaboration, this coin purse that like is her ID and a credit card. But I just had my mind blown because I thought like, okay, she actually- And it charges your phone. You don't carry cash. You don't carry an ID.

You don't carry a credit card, but you have these little wallets. What the hell's in them? Women like to collect pouches. It's like a little thing. I also like a little flat lay. Yeah. Like a little pitcher. Yep.

I carry her ID and credit card. Isn't that insane? Yes. It's in my wallet. It is. You can't pitcher. Yep. I carry her ID and credit card. Isn't that insane? Yes. It's in my wallet. It is. You can't get over it. I'm an enabler. I mean.

So you really don't have a purse. Should have read the fine print. Do you have a purse? Yeah. I have a purse. But what's in it? Lipstick. It's kind of Mary Poppins-y.

Yeah. I get it. Snacks. Sometimes a vibrator. Sometimes some liver sticks. Sometimes some mouth tape. He had my mouth tape stuck to his shoe today. It was better than toilet paper, better than toilet paper. You probably got it stuck to

your shoe last night when you were hiccuping from the vodka martinis. It was a lot. Okay, so they should get the purse, a purse, whichever purse fits. But is there something in your collection that is is also something that is really affordable that you just think everyone needs, that everyone who's listening could go check out. Yeah, I mean, I think anything in our Darren crossbody collection, that's like a family of bags, but it has studs, but it can be a purse,

it can be a satchel, it can be a crossbody. I think that's good. Or a Megan tote. Again, totes are big. You need one always. You can throw everything in it. Yes. What is going to happen with your brand and with Real Housewives in the future?

Where are you headed? What's the big picture for you? I think the big picture is it's wild to say we've been around for 20 years. It feels like we're just getting started. I think, you know, the opportunity to be on The Real Housewives and the exposure is not only about business, but it's also about we've been in touch with our customers since day one, even though that was taboo. And this is just another facet of who I am. So cool. You get to see and it allows me to have a bigger platform for my podcast, for my book. Like there's other things

that I do and create and it allows for that to have more life. So are we going to see obviously more from your collection, more from you on your podcast? I think you're going to be a main. This is my prediction. Okay. On the next season, I'm putting it out there in the ether. Well, truth be told, I was a main. Okay.

But because some people didn't want to be on TV, we had to scale me back to a friend. Yeah. Well, I think it's fine. If I were going to do it, I'd dip my toe in it. Yeah. You dip your toe first. I got a taste. Yeah, you got a taste.

But here's what's crazy. I mean, what these women, like, I think I filmed a lot as a friend of, but as a full cast, I mean, they were giving their whole lives like you know and it's just it's a lot and it's an incredible commitment a gnarly commitment yeah where can everyone find you follow you skinny 15 what's the website where can we shop get the bag all the things you can shop at rebecca minkoff.com you can follow me at rebecca minkoff if you want to see more of my personal life and a lot of bts at Minkoff. You can listen to my podcast, Superwomen with Rebecca Minkoff. I'd love to have you on. No offense. It's only women. I would love to come on. We're talking about business and all

the messed up shit and how women got there and found their success. And then I have a book, Fearless, The New Rules for Unlocking Creativity, Courage and Success. And it comes out in paperback next June. I am so excited for that. What is in Rebecca's bag? Should we just do it together? Everything. Show us. Great.

Regular sunglasses. My phone. The bag, you got to tell us what the kind is. Everything. Well, this is a cute little bag that's coming soon for holiday. Little hearts. So cute. Right?

Reading glasses because I'm at that age. Really upset about that. Mimethylene blue tablets in case you don't want to take it. NeuroPro. But doesn't turn your tongue blue with those. Well, if you suck on it, it will. Okay. But you could if you wanted like rubbing up and down your tongue to get that proximate blue that you're looking for and then swallow it.

So do you take it daily? Yeah. If you suck on it, huh? What happens if you suck on something else after you sucked on it i don't know i'm not trying to get a blue tongue maybe i'll have a blue dick oh my god that could happen if you have a blue tongue and you rally we'll report back oh um i use these because i've read too much about what these phones do to your heads. Agreed. I have gum because I feel like I need it. Who do I have in here?

I have nude sticks and Violette FR, just depending on the mood. Gloss and a lipstick. I really fit a lot in here. I have vitamin B1. I love taking B1. Why? It's really, really, really good for your nerves. And so anyone that feels like slightly anxious sometimes,

just pop one of these. Also, when you drink alcohol, this is the first thing it burns in your brain. Oh. So I'll always, if I am going to drink, I have a couple of these. Not saying you won't get a hangover, but less. I think I, what did I say to you the other day?

I said, I think I'm having issues absorbing B vitamins. That's what I said to her. I don't need to hear every single. You might. I think I do. You could do it. I need to I said to her that. I don't need to hear every single. You might. I think I do. I need to talk to Gary Brekka. He needs to come on in. You have your keys?

I have my car keys. I have this little thingy, you know, you pop it on the... What's it called? Octobuddy? This is from Flaunt. But I'm sure it's whatever that... And then I have my wallet. That's it.

Love it. So cute. I have a lot more than you carry, miss. Yeah, that's right. But you know what? Maybe I have a lot more than you carry, miss. Yeah, that's right. But you know what? Maybe I'll get a wild hair and do a purse and put my stuff in it. We just gave you one. So you better put nothing in it and walk out of here.

That's I mean, should I open it? Let me open it. But if you don't like it, I want you to tell me that you. Well, now I'm like for her to like a purse. That's a high bar. No, she likes the purses. She just doesn't like carrying the wallet. Okay.

It's a good color and it's like puffy and squishy. It could also double as a pillow when you take your nap on the side of the road, waiting for your gas to get refilled. Rebecca, thank you for doing the show. Thank you for having me.