Carolyn Rodz, founder of Hello Alice

About this episode Hello Alice is an online step-by-step resource for you in your entrepreneurial journey. Regardless of the stage of your business, Hello Alice can be a resource for you. This week I am joined by Carolyn Rodz, founder of Hello Alice. What I love about Carolyn's story is the narrative is so incredibly similar to why I started The Startup Story platform. To provide you, the entrepreneur and founder, with direct access to founders of companies so that you can learn from their journey. The entrepreneurial journey is such a unique storyline, and not a single one is the same. Yet, when we strip it all back and start at the beginning, we can begin to see some commonalities. One of them is that entrepreneurship was foundational in our upbringing, and for some, it was nowhere on the horizon. For Carolyn, it was very much the part of her world. This is Carolyn Rodz's startup story. In this episode, you'll hear. The term entrepreneur was never part of Carolyn's early vocabulary, but entrepreneurs surrounded her during her childhood. She shares her first exposure to entrepreneurship, her grandparents' Bolivian bread, cookie, and pasta factory. She shares some of her early aspirations, including her desire to climb the corporate ladder. She started as an investment banker, and all she wanted to be a corner office at a high rise in Manhattan. Her breaking point, when she realized the corporate lifestyle was no longer for her and how she broke away from that work-life. After leaving her job at JP Morgan, she decided she wanted to create something new, starting with a stationery business. And she won Best New Product at the first stationery show she attended. Carolyn shares what happens following her success at the trade show, including the story arc and her ultimate exit from the company. Even with the closing of her first venture, she knew she was capable of being an entrepreneur. Carolyn explains how she pushed forward to understand what steps she missed and how she could improve. About her next venture, a branding, and design company with two team members. How Carolyn transitioned into what it is known today as Hello Alice - a company that matches entrepreneurs with opportunities, locally and online, to help them start and grow a business. “Entrepreneurship is not a solo sport.” Carolyn Rodz Resources from this episode Hello Alice: https://helloalice.com/ Carolyn Rodz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolynrodz Hello Alice COVID-19 Business for All Emergency Grant: https://helloalice.com/resources/funding/hello-alice-covid-19-business-for-all-emergency-grant The Startup Story Inner Circle: https://www.thestartupstory.co/vip The Startup Story on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thestartupstory The Startup Story is now on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/jamesmckinney The Startup Story on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thestartupstory Share the podcast The Startup Story community has been so incredible sharing our podcast with others, and we thank you! We do have more stories to tell and more people to reach. There are three ways you can help. First, the most powerful way you can support this podcast is by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Second, follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and be sure to share your favorite Startup Story episodes with your friends and on social media. Tag or mention @thestartupstory.co so we can give you a virtual high five and a thank you! Lastly, share the podcast on LinkedIn. The Startup Story podcast is for entrepreneurs. Don’t underestimate the power of sharing on LinkedIn so other entrepreneurs can discover us. With your support, we hope to further our reach in encouraging and inspiring the founders of today and tomorrow. Thank you! EPISODE CREDITS If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Danny Ozment. He helps thought leaders, influencers, executives, HR professionals, recruiters, lawyers, realtors, bloggers, and authors create, launch, and produce podcasts that grow their business and impact the world. Contact him today at https://emeraldcitypro.com/startupstory