How do Female Entrepreneurs Stand Out in the Pack?

Needless to say, before the risk is taken, you must be sure to carry out the proper research and try to seek out enough guidance. In addition, set out a good financial plan to make sure enough capital is being invested.

The important message to take away from these findings is that you need to get use to the idea of taking risks as an entrepreneur. Especially, if you find yourself in a market that does not have any pre-existing guidelines to fall back on.

In order to gain a better understanding of what it is like to take risks, Arbitrage took the initiative to interview Katie Grennan. Katie is the founder of Alma Natural Quick Spa. According to Katie, the spa’s vision is to “enhance the natural beauty of women inside and out, thereby improving their overall health and well-being, increasing their self-confidence, and empowering them to make healthier decisions for themselves and their families.” (Alma Quick Spa) If you have the chance to visit the spa, or perhaps navigate through their website, you will find that they emphasize on the use of natural products. Furthermore, they take the time to create a relationship with their customers, so that every time you go in, it feels like home. The time and care that their staff takes with each client is another reason why they are able to make it such a unique experience.

Katie has a bachelor of science in Chemical Engineering from Iowa State University. In addition, while in the work field, she took the time to complete an MBA from New York University at the Leonard School of Business. Her professional background is also impressive, having worked for top pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer and Cima Labs. Grennan also had the opportunity to work for L’oreal for a year and four months, where she admits to really enjoy many aspects of this corporate position.

However, deep down inside Katie have always longed for a more passionate and meaningful career where she could have a bigger impact on big decisions. The idea of working on projects for L’oreal and half way through having someone come say to stop working on it all together because the project was not going to launch anymore, was very disappointing for her. As her husband accepted a position in Toronto, Katie decided it was time to take the risk and quit her job and start her journey as an entrepreneur. The bigger risk at stake here is that her business is totally self-funded. Katie opted out to have investors  in order to avoid making decisions based on owing someone else money.

By enforcing natural products and truly emphasizing on customer relationships, Katie was able to carve out a niche in this market. The spa has been opened for two years now, and Katie was happy to tell us that her business is slowly growing. Katie perfectly embodies the idea of leaving a comfort zone and taking a risk. She could have easily started working for another corporation upon her move to Canada, but instead she decided to follow her passion, researched her options, and took a calculated risk.

A comment worth mentioning while on this topic, is Heather Payne’s advice to future female entrepreneur’s looking to stand out. Payne nicely outlines why it is important to take risks, and the possible advantages that one could gain by doing so. Question: What would you say to current and future female entrepreneurs in order to succeed in the future?

I’d like to see more women taking on risks, challenges, and deciding that they actually do want to build a business environment.