About this episode

Monique Rodriguez shares her journey of building Mielle Organics from a basement to a billion-dollar brand, highlighting the challenges and lessons learned along the way.

Monique Rodriguez built Mielle Organics from her basement into a billion-dollar brand and did it without a blueprint. In this episode of Aspire, Monique shares the real story behind building one of the fastest-growing beauty brands in the world–from bootstrapping with her husband’s paycheck to risking their home, navigating criticism, and ultimately selling to Procter & Gamble while remaining CEO. But this isn't just a business story. It started with loss, a leap of faith, and a decision to bet on herself before she felt ready. This is a conversation about what it really takes to build something meaningful… and what happens when you finally reach the other side. In this episode, Monique shares: Why you don’t need to feel ready before making a life-changing decision How personal adversity can reshape your ambition and clarity What founders get wrong about scaling too early How to know when it’s time to bring in experienced operators Why building with the end in mind changes how you run your company The real risks founders take behind the scenes How to navigate criticism as your company grows What it actually means to lead after a major acquisition How to protect your vision while…

People in this episode

Host: Emma Grede

Guest: Monique Rodriguez

Topics covered

• entrepreneurship
• founder story
• business growth
• personal adversity
• leadership
• scaling a business

Keywords

• Mielle Organics
• Monique Rodriguez
• entrepreneurship
• business growth
• leadership
• scaling
• personal adversity
• Procter & Gamble

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Mielle Organics, Procter & Gamble

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