Suited Up

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by Business Partners' of Eve's Crackers: Eve Laird and Sarah Cartwright. 

In 2016, Eve was suffering from eczema. Instead of using over-the-counter creams, she was determined to heal her skin through the power of food choices. Although Eve managed to clear her eczema over time, she was left with a problem: There were no indulgent, yet healthy snacks she could eat! So, she decided to take snack matters into her own hands and started experimenting at home using wholesome, real ingredients found in the pantry. After countless hours spent baking and recipe tweaking, she finally created a snack she felt good about eating. This little snack she now proudly calls Eve’s Crackers—which you can purchase online through their website. From their launch in farmers markets to local grocery stores, to becoming a family run business with her sister, Sarah —it’s been a rewarding (and insane) adventure.

A little bit about this sister duo: Eve is a foodie turned food entrepreneur. She lives in beautiful Vancouver BC, enjoys the outdoors on weekends and creating delicious things in her kitchen (like, the original cracker recipe!). Eve manages the marketing and product development side of things at Eve's Crackers.

Sarah is an environmental engineer turned cracker enthusiast. She is an avid runner, excellent cook and lives in Vancouver with her husband and new baby boy. Sarah is the numbers and operations gal at Eve's Crackers. She is one part logistical whiz and one part operations manager.

In this episode we discuss how Eve realized there was a market for her product, appearing on Dragon's Den, how they balance their work/family time, figuring out the packaging process and so much more.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by Anna Bennett.

Anna has been recognized as a Pinterest marketing expert by Pinterest themselves. In fact, she was part of their Elite Business Program designed to help businesses leverage the power of Pinterest marketing. Since 2012, she's been helping businesses and bloggers get more traffic from Pinterest to their website and blog. Her specialty niches include; hair and beauty, health and fitness, home decor, fashion, kids and parenting, travel, food and drink, art, DIY, and weddings. Anna offers four Pinterest Marketing online courses and her agency offers lots of services to support your social media growth and the development of your marketing strategy.

In this episode we discuss what social media to choose to use for your business, how to avoid entrepreneurial burnout, the importance of obtaining business awards and more.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by Chelsea Goodman.

Chelsea is a writer, director and producer from Vancouver, Canada. She founded her production company, Water Flower Studios, in 2014 and made her directorial debut with her short pirate comedic film, The Curse of Maggie Boon. In 2018 she wrote, directed and co-produced the fantasy video game themed comedy, Epic Quest, which has gone on to win 8 awards, earn 11 nominations and is now streaming on The Fantasy Network. Chelsea has her Bachelor in Motion Picture Arts from Capilano University and enjoys graphic designing, travelling and watching cult classic films.

In this episode we discuss Chelsea's transition from graphic design to film, her first post-grad job working for Steven Spielberg on The BFG, and founding her production company with co-owner and creative partner David Pfrimmer.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by Emily Mittelstaedt.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by STIR Cooking School Co-founder and Co-owner Jennifer Leslie. Jennifer is a kinesiologist by trade with additional training in Nutrition and Business. Her career was based on managing a business that specialized in Corporate Health Promotion in Toronto and Vancouver. Jennifer's experience includes volunteer work with the Heart and Stroke Foundation and Canadian Cancer Society in their healthy Workplace initiatives. She teaches Nutrition Education to high school students and offers specialty nutrition education programs for athletes. Her present business STIR COOKING offers healthy cooking classes, products, educational seminars, special events and training initiatives.

Our conversation covered everything from finding a business partner whose skill set compliments your own to creating a business model with no overhead costs (and so much more)!

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by Nicole Smith.

Nicole is the founder and CEO of Flytographer, the first global marketplace that connects travelers with hand-picked local photographers for fun, vacation photo shoots. She grew Flytographer from idea to a multi-million dollar business that operates in 300+ cities across six continents, and was ranked as one of the fastest-growing startups in Canada in 2017 & 2018 by Canadian Business Magazine. Flytographer has been called “The Future of Travel Photography” by Conde Nast Traveler and “An Ingenious Travel Hack” by Oprah.com. Nicole was also selected as an E&Y “Winning Women Class of 2018” and featured in Mashable’s “Eight Women Shattering the Travel Industry’s Glass Ceiling.” In 2015, she pitched on Dragons’ Den (two offers, which she turned down!), and in 2018 won the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (FWE) “Pitch for the Purse”. She is now a board member at FWE, and loves advising new entrepreneurs.

Our conversation covered everything from taking the leap of faith to create a startup, challenges women entrepreneurs are facing today, and how to foster a close-knit team and positive work environment when your employees are scattered around the globe.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by Vancouver Fashion Stylist Michelle Addison. Few possess the talent to fuse eclectic runway pieces from Bottega Venetta and Céline with wallet-friendly favourites like Topshop and Zara. Her down-to-earth sartorial approach is exactly why so many women—from stay-at-home moms to celebrities—flock to Michelle for her style expertise and advice.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by PR Consultant and Influencer Kristina Matisic. Kristina has been working in the media for over two decades; first as a news reporter and anchor; then as an award-winning TV host and producer; and now as a public relations expert and social media consultant with extensive experience on all sides of the PR equation. Some of the clients she has worked with include Alair Homes, IDS Vancouver, Coast Appliances, Virtuous Pie Restaurants, Bauhaus Restaurant, Shop West 4th Avenue, and the BCSPCA. In her spare time, Kristina explores her creative side on her popular fashion-focused Instagram page where she shares fashion, beauty, and lifestyle tips and recommendations for women of all ages.

In this episode, we discuss how she got the idea for her first tv show, reinventing one's career, the benefits of her influencer perspective to her PR business, and lots, lots more!

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by photographer Krystal Kenney. Krystal was born in a small suburb outside of Baltimore, Maryland but packed her bags at the age of 26 to start out on an adventure in Paris, France. She never expected to still call Paris home over 8 years later where she now resides with her Italian husband and her adorable pup, Coco. When she's not whizzing around the city photographing events she also teaches online courses in photography and will be publishing her first book, a memoir, about her time in Paris called "Paris, A Life Less Ordinary." She also hosts a popular podcast where she records weekly interviews with creatives in Paris called "La Vie Creative" available on iTunes. 

We had a delightful conversation about the vibrant community of artists in Paris, the fascinating events she has photographed in The City of Lights and around the world, and challenging herself to take on a new creative endeavour during the pandemic.

In this episode of Suited Up, I am joined by watercolour artist Sandy Mair. Those who adore and follow Sandy's art journey on social media may even recognize a particular mouse who finds himself in many of her paintings—Wiston the mouse, that is. In addition to her marvellous artwork, Sandy was a nurse for 35 years and found ways of showcasing and selling her art around her busy work schedule and raising three kids. 

We had a wonderful conversation about the example her parents set of supporting each others' careers, bravely changing careers and pursuing their artistic passions (writing and fashion). We also discussed a big sale Sandy made in Paris and the inspiration for Wiston and his unique name.