“Hey! I’m Reva, a teenage girl based in the SF Bay Area. By cold emailing and direct messaging on LinkedIn, I interviewed over 100 trailblazers to share their insight and inspire the next generation of female leaders. ”
Empowering Our World through Conversations with Powerful Women
As a young adult, Heidi had the aspiration to be a broadcaster. She looked up to Katie Couric, who invested in her company later on. Heidi’s mission is to change the statistic that 80% of women wear the incorrect bra size. Her story demonstrates that widespread, yet trivial problems can be solved by grit and dedication. She is the Co-founder and Co-CEO of ThirdLove. Boasting a valuation of over 750 million, ThirdLove’s goal is for every woman to feel comfortable and confident and they have donated over 20 million dollars worth of bras to women in need.
When was a time you wanted to give up, and what made you persevere through it?
To be very truthful, I don't really give up very easily; it is just part of who I am. I would describe myself as determined. It is ingrained in me, that if at any time I feel like I am not doing my best and things are not working out, I will want to prove to other people, the world, and myself that I can do it. I do not think that giving up is something that happens a lot to me.
Who do you look up to?
I really look up to women who are in large managing positions and who have children. For me, as a mom who has two little children that is always what I look at. Kristin Lemkau, who is the CEO of US Wealth Management at JP Morgan, has kids as well and I really look up to her. I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to meet her. All of the things that she has focused on and accomplished are amazing.
When was a time you failed, and what did you learn from the experience?
We were trying to minimize inventory risk, and it was a miserable experience as we had bras with different wires and different cups. They were bad quality, and we lost hundreds of thousands of dollars all within the first year of starting our company. It was definitely a failure in terms of the product that was produced. I learned that you should not really complicate things, especially when starting a business and I think that I should not overcomplicate manufacturing. I often ask my team, what is the easiest way to achieve this? You should not have to recreate the wheel for everything you do at a startup, there are a lot of things you can learn from others.
What advice would you give others who aspire to be entrepreneurs like you?
There will never be a perfect moment, if you are going to wait for the perfect moment to do something or start something, there will always be something to tell you it's not a good time. You have to realize there will never be a perfect moment. Yes, do your research and make an educated decision, but do not wait because that time will truly never come.
What advice would you give your younger self?
In my early 20’s, I would want to tell my younger self, that everything will work out. I was really concerned about how I appeared to others rather than what was more important to me as a person. And that is an unlock that will happen when you are in your 30’s. Just the idea of being comfortable in your own skin, and doing what you want to do and focusing on things that will make you happy and make you a better person. Everything else will just fall into place. Everything else will work itself out, life is really long and there is no need to be impatient.
How do you define the word, success?
I define success as impact. At ThirdLove, it is shedding light on what a woman looks like and the idea that beauty is every age and every size. Those things help create a good impact on the world and that is how I define success.
If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
For everyone to have access to a level of education. With education, we could solve many issues. It is such an essential part as you only know what you know. You always need to be informed about the world around you and ask questions to gain more insight!
What is the greatest factor that has helped you get to where you are today?
Determination is the greatest factor. I truly believe there is nothing in life that you cannot achieve if you work hard enough and are dedicated enough to something. Of course, some people are genetically pre-dispositioned to be amazing, especially in sports, But the best athletes have gotten there through hard work and repetition. Hard work and repetition do create those outcomes. All CEO’s can tell you that they are not the smartest people at their companies, but they have worked really, really hard. Hard work and determination truly are the key to success.
