DEAR DIARY, I HAD THE BEST WEEK EVER!

"Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life." - Amy Poehler.

This quote pretty much sums up the incredible week I had! It was life changing in so many ways.?

From the engaging dinners, prestigious awards, events, warm hugs and the goodies, the defining moments were truly all made possible by my incredible team, our community of founders, my dear friends and all of those who continue to inspire me.?

As I reflect on this week, I wanted to highlight a few things that made it special and the people who brought each experience to life in the most meaningful ways!?

Dear Diary,?

WOW, did I have a week!

Monday, October 23, 2023?        

Dear Diary, on Monday I announced the pre-order for my first book The Beauty of Success: Start, Grow and Accelerate Your Brand . It was scary and exciting to share my personal journey through the pages of the book. At the same time it was a journey full of love leaning on my mom, sharing stories with my life long friends and tapping into my incredible podcasts guests to intertwine their own stories into the narrative. As Sir John wrote in his forward The Beauty of Success truly is an “ultra-modern blueprint for navigating the wilderness of entrepreneurship.”

Tuesday, October 24, 2023?        

Dear Diary, I flew to LA just in time for lashes at Tussanee's Integrity Lash , hair at Fatima’s and glam with Brittany Scott ! All glammed up and ready to go, I headed to Nyakio Grieco & Nicole Richie's Cocktails and Dinner to Celebrate the Launch of Relevant: Your Skin Seen ! I am a long time fan girl of Nyakio’s and we are so proud that BrainTrust Fund I is an investor in thirteen lune !

?Wednesday, October 25, 2023        

Dear Diary, it was the best morning ever! I love my friends and I love makeup - I started the day bright and early at Sir John’s studio in preparation for Founders House! My favorite things all rolled up in one.?

At last, I arrived at our final Founders House pop-up of the year! From our captivating Black Beauty Bazaar to the enlightening discussions across the three remarkable panels, and the meticulously curated costume exhibition by Starz , it was truly an unforgettable moment!?

Founders House marked a joyous occasion, commemorating both the second anniversary of BrainTrust Founders Studio and the successful closing of BrainTrust Fund I .

We spotlighted our signature Black Beauty Bazaar, a showcase of 20 incredible founders, all of whom are members of Braintrust Founders Studio! It was a remarkable display of their innovative products and entrepreneurial spirit.

Black Beauty Bazaar Participants:

• Ashunta Sheriff-Kendricks , Ashunta Sheriff Beauty
• Sam Walker , Auda B Beauty
• Orion Johnson, BlackTravelBox?

• Wendy Rose Berry , ConditionHER

• Kimberly Lewis , CurlMix
• Dionne Phillips , D’Lashes
• Lindsay K., House of Linnic
• Brittany Golden , IGL Nails

• Nikia Londy , Intriguing Hair
• Jennifer P. Archie , Junie Bees Butta
• Shemika Jackson , Kafune Hair
• Tiffany Asamoah , BOLD Swim
• Omonye Phillips, PharmD , Omosilk
• Ezinne Iroanya , SKNMUSE
• Diann Valentine, SLAYYY Hair
• Chris and Fay Breedlove, TERMINAL B
• Tamerri Ater, MBA , The Gift of the Nile

• Saraa Green, MBA , TheBraidReleaser

• Jazz Smollett , Dreaming of Juniper

Beauty Spotlight?

• Roxy Homeidan and Kili Anderson , Skin and Senses

Each of our panels brought to life our pillars of mentorship and education:

• Sir John and I kicked off with a conversation around The Beauty of Success diving deep into the forward he penned for the book and the journey of being an entrepreneur

• Lisa Stone , Co-Founder and BrainTrust Fund CIO led a conversation: New Builders of the Club: How 2023 changed beauty, wellness, and CPG investing forever with Kimberly Lewis , Founder of CurlMix and Todd Boren , Founder of MacArthur Fund

• Brandon Carter joined Tsigi White Robinson, Costume Designer - Power Book III: Raising Kanan for a discussion around The Beauty of Self-Expression: Storytelling Through Iconic Fashion Moments hosted by Starz

Special Thank You to our sponsors, Rayni Romito Williams and our valued partners at The Beverly Hills Estates for graciously offering one of their extraordinary estates as our event venue, STARZ for orchestrating a fantastic collaboration that showcased the costumes from Power Book III: Raising Kanan, and our extended partners Villon, SAINT CLOUD , and heywell for providing a delightful array of beverages. Your support truly made our event special.

#FoundersHouse is a special time for our community to come together in person. Each Founders House brings a different energy, vibe, and gathering of founders, executives, influencers, media, investors and luminaries together. We are gearing up for our 2024 Founders House across 5 cities!

After Founders House, I joined The BeautyMatter team and guests at the Visionaries Dinner in celebration of the NEXT Awards!?

Thursday, October 26, 2023        

Dear Diary, another exciting morning of glam with Brittany Scott preparing for my panel discussion at BeautyMatter Next Summit 2023: “Identifying the White Space: Where Investors Are Looking For The Next Beauty Unicorns” with Deborah Benton , Founder and Managing Partner of Willow Growth Partners and Jorge Cosano , Founder and Managing Partner of Synchronicity Ventures . We dropped gems on the beauty investor landscape, what we are seeing in the market and what advice we give to founders looking to raise.?

It was a big WIN for BrainTrust Agency who won the BeautyMatter Next “Best Influencer Partnership” award, which celebrated our collaboration with Cantu Beauty and the Emmy award-winning hairstylist, Angela C. Stevens . This acknowledgment serves as a testament to the dedication and collaboration of our team and our clients.?

After accepting our award on behalf of our team, and our client, I ran over to CreatorIQ for our BrainTrust hosted panel featuring Brandon Carter, Partner and Chief Creative Officer and Gigi Vega , Account Director alongside Evan Marshall , COO of BMW Digital for their workshop “Culture, Identity, and Your Brand: Leveraging Diverse Creators to Drive ROI (Return to Influence). BrainTrust was all over town!

Thank you to Igor Vaks , the Founder and CEO of CreatorIQ, for extending an invitation to us to participate in this year's conference.?

Friday, October 27, 2023?        

Dear Diary, We made it to Friday! I had great meetings and finally sat down to reflect on what made this week so magical, yes the events, the glam, and the celebration– but it was all due to the “group of people who challenge and inspire me.”?

I hope you take the time to celebrate your week and all of the opportunities that made it special. Every day is a new day to be proud of ourselves and to acknowledge our accomplishments.?

What are you writing in your diary this week??

And That’s a Wrap!?

Carpe Diem!?