Spirit of 608: Fashion, Entrepreneurship, Sustainability + Tech: Silicon Valley Vet Mauria Finley on Finding the Joy in Stress, Structured Living and Standing Out in a Crowded Market

Silicon Valley Vet Mauria Finley on Finding the Joy in Stress, Structured Living and Standing Out in a Crowded Market

Mar 20, 2018

What's it like to found your first startup in your late 30's after a successful Silicon Valley career where you've worked at someone of the biggest names in tech, then watch that company get acquired for $50M and next - instead of just kicking back and enjoying the fruits of your labor - going on to launch yet another startup in what is arguably a pretty crowded space? You'll get that story, plus a lot more in this conversation with the founder of Allume, an on-demand personal shopping service that matches women with experienced stylists who help them find clothing and accessories that fit their body, budget and style. Previously, the founder and CEO of Citrus Lane, a subscription box service for parents that was acquired by Care.com in 2014, this week's guest has held leadership roles at eBay, got her start at Netscape, holds two CS degrees from Stanford and currently serves on the boards of Fossil Group, The Tech Museum of Innovation and theBoardlist.

Meet this week's guest, Mauria Finley, Founder and CEO of Allume.

What you'll learn

The market is changing, and Allume is taking advantage of the shift. With declining foot traffic in malls and the consumer demand for new brands and unique finds, find out why Mauria decided to fill in the gap and grow a successful business connecting women with real stylists who hunt down ideal fashion finds online and serve them up in curated, shoppable lookbooks that improve over time.

How you'll be inspired

Is stress getting a bad rap? What about the joy that comes when you're really in a flow state with the hard work you're doing day-in, day-out? In this episode, Mauria breaks the mold and posits a new idea: that stress while building a new business isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially if it's part of what's making you happy and excited every single day.

What you'll tell your friends

By the way, you don't have to be in your 20s to launch a successful startup. As Mauria shares in this episode of the Spirit of 608 podcast, she launched her first startup at 38, and it was acquired for $50M. Now, she's onto her next venture and says you can feel just as confident and have success (cough, maybe more) when you're "Silicon Valley old" as you can when you're young.

Resource of the week

From Mauria, we get an IRL resource recommendation: a close circle of female entrepreneur friends. Listen to the show for how a trusted group of fellow entrepreneurs is the one thing Mauria says anyone building a business today needs to have on lock.