How influencer Chriselle Lim started Phlur ($150+ million fragrance empire)

Let's face it, everyone's juggling long, busy days. That's why Icebreaker's gum is made for the go getters. With flavor crystals that deliver a bold cooling effect, Icebreakers keeps you refreshed and ready to take on whatever's next. And here's a bonus. The pack fits perfectly in your car, cupholder or bag, so it's within reach when you need it most. Grab Icebreakers gum online or at a store near you. Your home should show off who you are, telling your story in every detail, meeting you where you are. Ashley has styles that balance timeless appeal and modern trends to bring your personal look home. Pairing eye catching design with features like stain resistant performance fabric, Ashley offers well crafted, affordable pieces built to stand up to real life. Plus they provide fast, reliable white glove delivery right to your door. Visit your local Ashley store or head to Ashley.com to find your style.

Yeah, Chris out Lim has impeccable style. She is one of the most sought after fashion and beauty content creators.

You are more than just a creator, you're also a businesswoman.

But I want to better understand kind of what your journey looked like in the very beginning. I have very traditional immigrant Iranian parents who, when I told them that I was leaving Stanford to move to New York City with Phoebe to work on a fashion company, thought I had lost my mind. And so I think when I was reading your story, I saw so many parallels and I'd love to understand, like, how did you gather that courage and how did your parents react?

Well, I think my parents knew early on, just by my history in high school, that no one could stop me from doing anything. So although they were very disappointed that I decided not to to finish school, I actually transferred into a fashion school, which they were very concerned about. But they realized that I was going to find a way anyway. So they were supportive in the background, but in the forefront, they were quite disappointed. And my parents are immigrant parents as well. So they had a very, you know, a grand idea of how their oldest daughter would turn out, whether it be becoming a doctor or a lawyer or marrying someone very wealthy. And God bless my parents, right? Like, they are the most amazing, lovely humans and I'm so grateful for them. They're my best friends, but that's all they knew. Right. And they could only parent me the way that they thought how success looked like. And so the advice was valid for them at the time. But for me, I was like, I don't want that life. Like, I am a very passionate person. So I was like, I want to follow my passion and what I feel like I'm called for. So passion to them, they're like, what is that? Like, that makes no sense. Passion means you're not. You're gonna go broke. That's for them how they. They really took it out. So it was hard. But for me, I. I just had a deep down desire to do something that I love to do, and I've always been that person to not really listen to anyone else. And so I just went for it. Was it hard for you?

It was definitely hard. But I think very similarly, I did so many unconventional things as I was growing up that over time, my parents were like, she's just gonna be the O. And my sister now is like a pre med at Duke. She's doing like a very traditional path. So I think they were like, one of our kids can be a little crazy. I'm also the oldest daughter, but she's going to figure it out and our other daughter is going to take the traditional path. So at least one of them is on that more traditional route. What about you? Like, how did your parents react for your other siblings? What did they end up doing?

Well, my sister, she was in more of a traditional kind of career path, but then she's my younger sister, and I don't know if you guys have siblings.

Oh, yeah.

But she was like, oh, you're doing fashion. I want to do fashion.

Oh, wow.

Oh.

And so she actually dropped out and transferred as well. And so my parents were like, what you're going on? And then. So we actually lived together in la. She realized that she absolutely hated LA and then moved to New York. And now she. Well, she's in Connecticut now because she has a family and all of that. But, yeah, my parents, we put my parents through it, but now they're like, we retired them and they're just like, we are so proud of you. Thank you for all your hard work and everything that you've done. So I think just depending on your personality and how well you know yourself, like, for me, even though I had nothing at the time, I knew that I had to follow what I was called for, and I knew that I could make something happen. I didn't know exactly what that was going to be, but it was. It was a time where I was just exploring, and that was really in my 20s.

Take us back to, like, your early 20s. Like, what was that? Like, where did you grow up? What was your first job?

Oh, goodness. Okay, let's go all the way back. So I was born in Texas My.

Mom'S a Texas girl, Dallas. She will never not bring it up.

I mean, I always have to bring it up. People are like, what, you're an Asian girl from Texas? I'm like, yeah, fun fact.

So I was born there, only lived there for about a year. We moved to the Bay Area. My dad relocated for his job there, and I pretty much grew up in the Bay Area, California, my entire life. I moved to Korea for about three and a half years, but I went to an American school in Korea because my dad got transferred for a job there and then moved back to the Bay Area. And then once I graduated from high school, I moved to LA for college. And that's where it really began for me. I started a blog in college called the Criselle Factor. This was early blogger fashion blogger days. I think there was maybe handful of us, like Ami Song from Song of Style. Sincerely, Jules. Like, there was just only a handful of us fashion girlies showing our outfits, what we're wearing to school, school, and, you know, writing a little piece about it. And that was. That was bizarre back then. Like, people just did not do that because we were still in the era of glossy magazines, fashion shows that. I mean, nowadays being in fashion, it's an obvious. If you're an influencer, you go to fashion shows. Back then, you did not. You are not invited. In fact, you're not even invited to Fashion Week. Right. And so those are all things that developed as the industry grew. So it was just out of pure.

Boredom, to be honest, to have a blog because I needed a creative outlet during college. I was. My first major was accounting, and I was like, I am so bored. I need some.

I love the dichotomy of the different sides of your mind too. Like, you have such a creative side and such a business side too.

So I was like, I'm really bored. Like, I'm crunching numbers all day in class, all day. Let's start a fashion blog. And that was kind of the start of it all for me. That was when.

There was Facebook. Instagram didn't exist yet, and we just started uploading content. Then I started YouTube. And then I was just sharing with my audience who were all in college, like, how to dress expensive on a budget. And there weren't that many girls doing it back then. It's an obvious now, but back then there was really no one doing it. And so it was my creative outlet. And to. To imagine that I had built a life creating content is still kind of crazy to me because it wasn't Part of the plan, because the industry, the word influencer didn't exist. Brands didn't pay people to create content. And so we evolved. I evolved as a creator as the industry was growing as well, too, to what it is today. And so that. That was how it all started. And I've been creating content, still creating content, for over 20 years.

When did you realize that your passion and your blog could actually become, like, legitimate business? What pushed you over the edge to be like, no, I don't need to be an accountant. Like, I can actually make money doing this?

Yeah. I needed to be in fashion. Like, I was like, I cannot see myself crunching numbers for the rest of my life. And so that's when I decided to drop out of college and then take a year break to figure out what it was I want to do. Then I found a fashion school where I was like, okay, this seems like this is the right path. And to be honest, I was really not a great student. Even in fashion school. I was really about the tangible being in the field and actually learning and working. So as I joked before, I was the intern queen because I literally was always working. Ever since I was in high school, I was the working girl. My parents always gave me enough to survive, but they never gave me anything extra. So I always had an obsession with fashion. So I was like, okay, I need to work. I need to work so I can get some money so I could buy those cute, juicy couture tracksuits.

Oh, my God, not the juicy couture tracksuits. There's some very, very dangerous photos of me and those from when I was a child.

Yeah, I have a ton of those. So I was always a working girl, but it really came down to the industry just starting and evolving and to what it is today. It's crazy to me that being an influencer is actually a huge industry now, which is pretty cool. But also I'm like, wow, a lot of people now are becoming influencers because they want to make a lot of money.

Yeah.

Which is fine. To each their own. But I think it loses kind of the essence of the depth of the content, because back then it was, like, all about the content. That's all we want to do, is to share our creativity and the content. And so those were the early days. And obviously from there, Instagram happened and changed the game for so many of us. And then from there, TikTok happened. I was rich mom on TikTok. That was a Covid thing. I think when I got on TikTok, a lot of people were like, who is this? This lady that was in Parasite, the movie Parasite was like popping off and they're like, oh, my God, it's that rich mom from Parasite. And I was like, okay, I'm going to play with that. I'm like, hi, guys, I'm your rich mom. And so I just. And people were bored. They're all stuck in their home, right? And so I was like, I'm just going to act as rich mom throughout Covid. And it worked. But rich mom died, like, shortly after.

Why?

I.

It was not me. It was just me being acting, essentially. And I'm not an actor, so I was like, I'm tired of acting. I just want to be myself, so.

Which is a businesswoman.

Yeah.

Hell yeah.

It was fun while it lasted.

Let's face it, everyone's struggling. Long, busy days. That's why Icebreaker scum is made for the go getters. With flavor crystals that deliver a bold cooling effect, Icebreakers keeps you refreshed and ready to take on whatever's next. And here's a bonus. The pack fits perfectly in your car, cupholder or bag. So it's within reach when you need it most. Grab Icebreakers gum online or at a store near you. Before all the algorithm fed blah and the endless sea of dupes, shopping used to feel more fun. But here's a confession, Fashionistas. You can find that fun feeling again on ebay. It's not mindless scrolling. It's a fashion pursuit. And when you score that rare Adidas collab or the Dior saddlebag you've been manifesting, it's a rush. Ebay has millions of pre loved finds from hundreds of brands backed by ebay. Authenticity guarantee. Ebay things people love.

Whether you're gifting, decorating, or treating yourself, Lowe's December deal drops are here to help you save more. All month long, get up to 50% off select holiday decor. Plus get up to 45% off select tools and accessories. Shop new December deal drops every week this month. And get so much more out of your holidays. Lowes. We help you save. Selection varies by location while supplies last.

Let's talk about motherhood.

Oh, gosh. Motherhood has changed me in ways I could not have ever imagined. I was always one of those girls. I was so career driven. And I was like, I'm never gonna have kids and I'll be totally happy and fine. And even amongst my friend group, they're like, criselle is the one that will not have kids. And I ended up becoming the first, literally, Sophia.

Sophia's like, I'm never having kids. I feel like you're gonna. I feel like low key. You're gonna deny it, but you're gonna have like one or two kids.

Watch out. The people that say that the first are always the first ones that have kids.

Well, I mean, I think you should definitely never say never, but I think it'. Hard.

You say never all the time.

I definitely say never.

I say never every day. But I think it's because of what you said. I think we're so career driven. I think about my timeline and what I want to do with my life. And the number one thing on my mind is, of course, like, the company and what we want to do with that. And so I'm curious, like, how did that change for you? Because it seems very similar to the mindset that I had where I was like, company first, and then I'll figure the rest of my child.

And I always tell people, you do you. If you feel like you don't want kids, that's totally fine, right? But you will know when.

The timing feels right. And yes, the fact is that there really is no good time to have kids. That's just the truth of it all. But you will know deep down inside when you feel that shift of like, okay, I'm craving for something new. I feel like I'm entering my new era, right? Kind of like you guys right now with this business. You guys just entered this new chapter in your life. You can't even fathom or think about the next thing, right? Whether it be kids, family, whether it be another career, whatever that is. Because you're so focused on what's in front of you, rightfully so. And you should focus on that as much as you can and be super laser focused. But you'll have this burning desire inside when you're like, okay, I'm ready for that change. And so I think my biggest, really kind of learning through my 20s is getting to know yourself and knowing that voice. Because your voice, your body will tell you when you're like, okay, like, it's time to move on. Whether it be in business, whether it be in a relationship, whether it's entering motherhood, whatever that is.

So do you have any examples of.

Times where you didn't listen to the voice inside you and then you were like, oh, fuck.

And then so many, so many. I mean, gosh, where do I start? My last relationship, right? I knew that I. It was just not it, right? But I was like, okay, no, we're gonna fight It. We're gonna. We're gonna make it happen. That is who I am. That's. That's criselle. We don't give up on things. We're. We're. We're gonna keep going until it works. And that's a lesson that I've learned in the very hard way, personally, but also on the business side. Sometimes you just can't force things.

Yep.

And I think I'm an Aries, and I'm very stubborn, and, like, I'm gonna make things happen no matter what. And although that is a great bullish attitude, it also can hurt you sometimes. When you know the universe, the spirits, everything is telling you otherwise, and you're like, God, like, help me. And. And whether you believe in God or the universe or spirits, whatever it is, they're like, I sent you a sign, but you decide not to take that sign. So for me now, I think in. I was gonna say late 30s, but I'm 40 now.

It's really being so attuned to my gut feeling. And we all have that. And so, again, it's just stories of personal relationships, business. It's like, you just know when to move on. And. But sometimes we're too stubborn to listen to that.

And I think that's such a good point, because I also think, like, your personal life does impact your professional life. Like, when you're off kilter in your personal life and you're not listening to your feelings, like, it also impacts the way that you show up at work. Like, what was it like for you? Navigating a divorce in the public eye while also starting your business?

I had to step away. And, you know, given that I have an audience that's kind of watching my life and my lifestyle, they saw a shift. They're like, christelle, like, what's going on? I was looking at people being like, oh, my God, they have, like, the perfect family, you know, the perfect life. And I was like, I can't do that. Like, I can. I have to check out of Social and be like, I'm starting over at. In my late 30s. It's so scary. But I cannot see what other people my age are doing online because I just feel like I'm way behind. And so the biggest thing for me was I had to kind of step away from social media. And I think that's really advice for anyone, whether they're going through, you know, personal things or relational things, Sometimes just step away.

I mean, comparison is also the thief of joy, I think. Even when it's like, you're building a business or something like that. I think that's something we struggled with of our friends are all at college having fun.

Yeah.

They're, like, partying every weekend, and then it's like we're in the office sweating it out.

Yeah.

And obviously, like, there's pros to each side, but I do think, like, when do you think that you started to realize you needed to just focus on your own journey?

I mean, there's so much, especially with social, it's like, you see what everyone is posting, and of course, they're posting the best things, and naturally, you just are like, oh, wow, that's nice. Like, I wonder when I'm gonna get there or when we're gonna get there. But the fact is that there's this saying. Do you guys know about the Chinese bamboo tree?

Yes.

Yes. I love. I love, love this story of a Chinese bamboo tree. It takes five years for a Chinese bamboo tree to even get above the ground. Right. But once it hits the ground, within, like, three months, it grows, like, 90ft. So the question is, did it take three months to grow or did it take five years? And the answer is five years. But people only see what. What hits the surface, and they're like, oh, my God, they did that in three months. I have to work faster. I'm so behind. But they don't see what was going on behind the scenes, especially for you guys, too, right? Like, all the late nights, like, the years of work that you were doing, even within college and. But people are just seeing now on social. Oh, my God. They had this amazing podcast. They had Kris Jenner on their podcast. They had all these fancy people, you know, and this incredible business. Everyone's talking about it, but you guys are probably feeling like, oh, my God, I'm so tired. I put in so much work. But so it's like, we can't compare ourselves to other people because we just don't know the amount of work that went on before you actually saw it, see it surface. Oh, yeah.

Like, they didn't see all the tears. There's a lot of tears. A lot of late nights of me and Sophia just, like, exhausted, even with each other, figuring that we had so many things we tried, too, before this to, like, get this to work. I feel like I think my ego died for Fleur, the rebrand. Like, can we talk about the importance of branding and how you, like, change the branding, how you rebranded it and what the effects have been now because you guys are taking off.

Oh, thank you. Well, Fleur is my Baby. And I'm just so proud of how far it's come. I was so proud of the work that was put into Flor before we actually even launched it. Think during that time, I think it was post Covid, everyone was kind of coming out of their shell and they were feeling that too. That feeling of like kind of anxiety and loneliness. And I think that story resonated with so many people. And so when we launched Missing Person, I was like, I don't know how this is going to work because one, we're not at any retailers, we're not at Sephora, we're not. People can't go to a counter to smell the scent before they actually purchase it. And back then, blind buying fragrance was unheard of. And that was only what, like three and a half years ago, right? Blind buying now for fragrance is a hot thing, but back then it really wasn't. And so I was like, if we could sell maybe 10, I'll be happy on launch day.

And now you guys are doing 100 million in revenue annually. You guys are in the UK and America. Can you talk me through what did the marketing plan look like?

It was through that storytelling of what I was going through, that vulnerability, that rawness that people were like, huh, I see her. I feel that way too. I don't know how this smells. It sounds intriguing. So let's give it a try. And so we garnered a 250,000 personal wait list on Missing Person on launch week, which was absolutely insane. I couldn't, I thought the system was broken. I was like, clearly this, like the website's crashing, like something is wrong. As a small business, we didn't have massive amounts of budget. And so we're like, okay, we can do a nice, like little gifting moment for people that we love and influencers that have supported us along the way and hope that it'll hit at some point. And that's really, that was really. Our strategy was just building relationships with people that we respected online. And we didn't have a big marketing budget at all. And it was through just genuine excitement, specifically on TikTok, where people were like, oh my God, what am I smelling? And I was always afraid that something could be a one hit wonder, right? We were so lucky that our very first scent that we launched, Missing Person, was a massive hit. But it was also something that was so scary for me, it just shows you the power of being vulnerable, authenticity, showing up as your real self and just sharing stories. And I think that's what you guys are really great at, too, of just sharing your founder's story of what made you come to this point of starting your business.

What do you do when, like, shit is hitting the fan, like, you know, like, sales are down, et cetera? Do you have any, like, routine hacks for, like, how you recover from burnout or when you're just feeling exhausted or you're feeling down about something?

I see what you did there with the burnout. I. I love that conversation, by the way. Burnouts. And I love that your podcast is called the Burnout, because I think the whole goal is to not get to that point.

The joke is like, will we burn out? We're. Cause in your 20s, you're expected to do everything. Have relationships, be an adult, like, figure out how to, like, you know, live alone for the first time, not be surrounded by your friends in college, like, you have your first job. Like, so the kind of joke is like, how the hell do you not burn out in your 20s with such expectations, too?

Yeah. And I think burnout is.

Natural. Like, you learn about yourself as you burn out. You learn about your boundaries, that you have to make what you can handle, what you can't handle, what you're good at, what you're not good at. So I think right now, it's in your 20s. Like, you can't really avoid them. I think, if anything, you want to burn out in your 20s so you don't burn out later on in your life. I burnt out a lot in my 20s, where I was go, go, go, go, go. And I was all about getting as much as I can done and. And trying everything and anything, and I would burn out. And I will. How I would burn. I'm kind of embarrassed to say, but I would just disappear. Like, I just wouldn't. I would just sleep, and I, like, would not pick up anyone's call. That's what I. How I dealt with it in my 20s. You guys are a lot smarter. We do, really.

We literally, like, one of us will face time. We're both in bed. We'll be, like, awol, off the phone, just asleep, like, all day Saturday.

Sometimes all you need to do is, like, not talk to anyone, not get dressed and just, like, have breakfast, lunch, dinner in your bed and be like, don't want to talk to anybody. That's how I dealt with burnout in my 20s. Nowadays, it's a little different because I'm. I have kids and all that, and I don't burn out anymore because I know my limits. So I think in your 20s, it's really important to stretch yourself to understand at what point you're about to burn out. Because now I'm like, ooh, I'm getting there. I'm getting there. Let's. Let's kind of scale back a little bit. So I think when it comes to business, for me.

I used to be about speed all the time and doing as much as I could because I felt like time was limited. But the biggest difference now is I'm a lot more intentional, because when you're going so fast and you're doing so much and you're just kind of like, throwing everywhere, hoping that things will work out, it's messy, and sometimes something will stick, but most part, you're just exhausted. Right? And so I think for me now it's more about going slower. I'm a lot slower than before, but I'm a lot more intentional, and I'm a lot more focused. I think burning out is essential in your 20s, just to understand, like, your limits.

So something you mentioned, though, that is really interesting to me is. And something I feel has been really true through your careers. You're never completely complacent. Like, you always are focused on. You started one venture, then you started another one, or even, like, the COVID pivots that you made. And I think even for us, like, we launched our company, and then it was like, a week later, all I could think of was, wait, what if we become irrelevant? Like, our launch went well, but what if people stop downloading us? And then it's like, you feel motivated again, but also a little bit worried of, like, how do I keep upping the stakes of keep going and going? Like, how did that pan out for you? Why do you think that you. You've developed this trait of, like, okay, you have a successful launch, then you're like, oh, need to make sure people keep going on the website. Like, how do you keep upping the stakes?

I think it's just the nature of business. You have to evolve or you're going to die. And that. That's the harsh reality. And so the anxiety that you feel of, like, having to keep producing and having to figure out the next thing, it's a real thing. Because of the fact is there's a lot of competitors, right? There's a lot of people out there that also will take your idea and we'll make it better. You know, for Fleur, when we launched the first year, it was all about us, but, like, the next year, we had a lot of incredible fragrance brands that came out as well that I respect so much now, but the stakes are higher now, right? And so it's really important that you're on your toes consistently, especially in the beginning of your career. And it's just, it's so essential that you understand the landscape of what's going on. So I do understand that. That feeling of, okay, what's next? And waking up up being like, okay, are we still relevant? Because I still go through that sometimes. Right. But I think it's managing your emotions and not having it eat you alive. I think in my 20s, I did not know how to manage my emotions. If I was going through one work problem or a relational problem, I became frozen. I couldn't do anything else. Whereas now I'm like, okay, let's park that and we'll figure that out and let's go on to the next thing and focus on that and I'll come back to it. So I think it's really about kind of managing your emotions and being able to not.

You're not a reflection of what's going on in your business.

The who's down and who were making their list. But some didn't know Walmart has the best brands for their gifts.

What about toys? Do they have brands kids have been wanting all year?

Yep.

Barbie, Tonys and Lego.

Gifts that will make them all cheer.

Do you mean they have all the brands I adore? They have Nintendo, Nespresso, Apple and more.

What about so the who answered questions from friends till they were blue? Each one listened and shouted from Walmart. Who knew sharp gifts from top brands for everyone on your list in the Walmart app.

Ever since switching to T Mobile, something weird has been happening. I get to cut lines.

Oh, right this way.

Who me? I can stream shows at 30,000ft and I was able to buy reserve tickets for my favorite band.

It's not just you. With T Mobile, everyone can get VIP status. That means access to exclusive events and experiences just for being a customer. At t mobile VIP means y o u check out the VIP treatment at t mobile.com benefits.

Whether you're gifting, decorating or treating yourself. Lowe's December deal drops are here to help you save more. All month long, get up to 50% off select holiday decor plus get up to 45% off select tools and accessories. Shop new December deal drops every week this month Month and get so much more out of your holidays. Lowe's we help you save. Selection varies by location while supplies last.

What are your habits for success? Like, do you have a certain time you wake up now that you have kids.

I put kind of parameters and boundaries in my life where I. The things that I know make me feel good. And if I don't do those things, I know I will feel like shit for the rest of the day. And so I built in habits, and I think that's why a lot of people do wake up at a certain time. That's why they do work out in the mornings. And I've learned to clean my closet. Cluttered house, cluttered closet. Cluttered desk is a cluttered mind. And so I used to always use that as an excuse of like, oh, I'm just like, a creative. Yeah, no, my creative brain was messy. So now if you go to my house, I can't say I'm, like, the cleanest person, but everything has a place and a space. I put my stuff away. And we've made a lot of progress since the early 20s. Right. But I have a very clear mind. I have. My inner energy reflects my outer world now. Right. And so I don't even have to really think about putting my stuff away. It just kind of happens. And those are kind of habits that I do. And my closet people will be surprised. They're like, oh, my God, you must have a crazy closet. No, I don't. I have become habitual on getting rid of things because for me, the biggest frustration is when I can't find things and when there's too many options. I don't work well with options. I like to just see the things that I like. I'm an outfit repeater. I like to repeat things that I love so much.

Be a girl.

Yeah, conscious consumer.

Yeah, I become a conscious consumer. I wasn't before. Before, it was more, more, more, more, more. And until you get to a point where you're like.

I feel like I have less, even if I have more. And so I got rid of 90% of my closet and my. I think I have, like, five handbags that I really love that I continue to repeat all the time. And I'm proud of my. The stuff that I have.

I think it's also. That's so interesting because there's a lot of entrepreneurs where it's like, they wear the same thing every single day. It's like their uniform. But it's because of paralysis of choice, where that little friction of having to think about, oh, my God, what am I going to wear today? It just, like, bogs down your energy for the rest of the day, where, as if you start on a start, like, strong foot of, I already know what I'm doing it just helps to prep you for success. And that kind of ties into. I would love to understand you have so much going on that you have your own personal brand, then you have these ventures. What does your day to day look like? Like, how do you split your time?

Every day looks really different, but we schedule out things. So I only have to use one side of the brain at a time. Because before I we used to just like plug in, filming to meetings, to brainstorming to. And it would just, I would have to go from right to left, right to left. And that's exhaustion. Talk about burnout, right? Yeah, like that's brain burnout. And so I've learned to maximize my brain. So if I am focused solely on business, I will focus on just meetings for Monday. Tuesday are my flirties. I'm in the office. All the meetings that my team needs to get done with me happens on Thursday, Tuesday for Fleur, Wednesdays are my content day. No one can bother me for a meeting. I don't unless it's like an absolute emergency. Because I'm now using my creative side of the brain and so I really focus on. Because I, I still create content, I still work with a lot of brands and so I want to focus on delivering the best creative content. And I cannot do that if I'm having to do both at the same time. So I've just learned how to like maximize my days with one, one side of my brain at a time without having to burn out.

So I'm so impressed. You guys are literally. You guys were just a team of 12. Now you're a team of 30 at Fleur and you guys are doing an insane amount in revenue between the US and the uk. How do you like, especially for our listeners who are getting involved in, you know, applying to jobs, looking for their first jobs, how do you scout like exceptional talent and what do you look for? Do you have any resume hacks you would recommend?

I mean, that's always.

I think talent is the hardest part in building a team.

Say it again. We did not listen to that enough. And I don't think we understood. Like, everyone says that. And I think we had to learn that for ourselves too, because it really is. You're asking people, hey, you know, come believe in this vision. Come work harder than you ever would have before. Probably take a pay cut to come work at a startup. But hey, believe, you know, that this piece of the pie is going to be worth, you know, 100x in the future.

I think part of it's also like anything. In the beginning you think you can do so much. I thought we could do everything. We were like marketing, operating, we were.

Trying to code, we were doing, we.

Can do all of it. And I think when you realize, holy, I'm really stretched thin, then you're like, I need to find someone who's as good as me at this thing. And that's really challenging. But I think that's also like a really practical lesson for people in their 20s of, you need to learn what you're good at.

Yeah.

And then understand where you need to fill in. I'm curious how you were like, this is what I want to focus on in the business. And then here's the other stuff where I want people to start slot in.

I always knew that I had a very strong creative mind. That's always been my strong suit. So every business that I built, I knew that. And I'm a very self aware person. And so just like you guys be having each other, I knew that I need to have a partner for any business that I start that I refuse to do a business alone. And I give so much props to solo entrepreneurs, founders because that is literally the hardest thing. So I'm able to show up and be like, this is what I'm great at. Of course you can't ignore what you're not great at. I think over time the goal is to somewhat get better at the things that you're not great at. Just so you have an understanding of what's going on within your business. But really spending 80 to 90% of your time on what you're really good at. And then same thing with my partners in any of my ventures and businesses. They're great at the operational, they're great at production, they're great at the things that I'm not incredible at. And so we know our grounds and we're able to utilize that. I think speaking of burnout is when you're trying to do everything, and I get it, when you first start a business, you have to do everything. You have no other choice. You don't have, you know, the resources to be able to hire a team. You don't. But that is part of the journey. And that's why I say you have to burn out in the beginning. Because along the way you're like, God, I cannot do this anymore alone. Okay, where can I invest the small amount of money that I made to get the support that I need on this side? And then once you realize that you have brought on someone on the team that could help You. And again, finding talent is very, very challenging. But once you do find that person, you're like, okay, this has freed up this side. Now I could go here and focus more on this. And then your team slowly starts to expand. And so, going back to your question, I'm going to be really honest with you. Of course we work with recruiters and people to help us find the right talent, but I think the best. Best.

Talent that we found is always the referral, is someone saying, I've worked with this person and I could vouch for her. We did. We were incredible partners. She was a great boss or whatever that was. And that is more.

I think it's more important to me than a resume, to be honest, because you can make a resume look fancy, right? You could. Anyone could be like, I did this, this and this. And you could be like, wow, that's impressive. But what really matters, especially when it comes to startups, is the energy that you're able to. To have with one another as a small team. You're spending a lot of time doing a lot of different things together, right? Of course, you have to have the technical skills of whatever you're looking for, but it comes down to character, it comes down to energy. It comes down to how well you guys mesh. And you can't. You can't write that down on a resume, right? And so I always tell people I have to date you for a while before. Before we actually commit to each other, because I'm not committing until we're vibing, right? Until we really get a good sense. Look, in a bigger corporation, things are a little bit different, but in a startup world, like, I have the ability to be like, okay, let's get coffee. Let's get coffee. Ten times right up until 2am Together every night. Need to get to know you right before I commit to actually getting into bed with you.

So how did you find the partners that you're with right now in your different ventures?

All referral. All referral. Like how I met Ben, my business partner for Fleur was through. This is. You guys would appreciate the story. It was through Juliana, who is my Fleurs publicist. But I used to be her intern.

What?

I was her internal intern when I was in college. She was working a showroom and I wanted to be in fashion. I was going to fashion school, so I interned at her showroom. And this shows you the power of just showing up and being a great worker. Because I thought I was like. Honestly, I didn't even like it, but I was like, I'm going to show up every day, I'm going to put in my best work. And this might not be for me, but I committed to starting it. So let's finish this internship. And I finished it. We kind of kept in touch here and there in the fashion world. And you know, 20 years later, I get a call from Juliana and be like, hey, I have a friend who is, who is looking for this. I think you'll be the right fit. And she was my word of mouth to meeting my business partner today.

It's like fate almost. You believe in fate a little bit?

I absolutely believe in faith, but I also believe in showing up regardless of the situation. If you told me back then when I was interning as a college student that I would be running a multimillion dollar fragrance company, I would not have believed you. But it was simply because I showed up to my job and I did a good job that led one thing to another to another. So I always tell people, even whatever you're doing right now, whether you're in college, whether you're, you know, an intern for someone else, and it just feels mundane and you're getting someone coffee, do the best freaking job. Be the best coffee deliverer.

The bamboo tree. You're growing the five years of the bamboo.

Exactly. Mine took 20 years. Mine took about 20 years. But yes, it's a bamboo tree. It's. It's absolutely correct. You just never know where your path is going to lead you. And so you just have to always show up.

Crystal, thank you so much for coming on the Burnouts. We learned so much from you, so much that we of course decided to partner with you on creating our own Fleur X Burnouts candle. So you guys can now burn this instead of burning out.

I love that. I mean, I'm so excited for you guys. Once I heard what you guys are doing, I'm like, we gotta do something with them. They're. They're on fire.

I'm literally glowing. Because it's so funny because we literally used to burn your candles in our dorm room and be like, wow, she's so badass. Like, should we do fragrances? Let's research the fragrance industry. Like, and so it feels so full circle to be working together.

I mean, like I say, you never know what's around the corner. So I mean, we should have known. It was, it was an easy manifested it. I manifested you guys into my life as well. So mutual.

We created our rich mom business lady in our head and it was you.

But thanks guys so much for listening. Check out herself, check out our candle and tune in next week for another episode of the Burnouts.

When you invest with Fidelity Go, it does all the work for you. So while Fidelity Go monitors the markets, rebalances your portfolio and tracks your progress to keep your investments aligned with your goal, you can invest your time however you want, all while paying no advisory fees under 25k. Invest your money, not your time, with Fidelity GO. Get started@fidelity.com go Advisory services offered by Strategic Advisors, LLC, a registered investment advisor. Brokerage services provided by Fidelity Brokerage Services, llc. Member NYSE and sipc Tis the season.

Of gifting and holes to Deck and the who's and who Noonville were in love with new tech. Where can we find Sonos and Samsung and Nintendo? They shouted. Would they find it in one place? This they questioned and doubted when suddenly a who yelled, Walmart's the place to start. And each who added headphones, TVs and games to their carts. With Walmart, their shopping was done in a flurry. They cried out, who knew? And ordered their gifts in a hurry. Shop the latest tech gifts in the Walmart app.

Ever since switching to T Mobile, something weird has been happening. I get to cut lines.

Oh, right this way.

Who me? I can stream shows at 30,000ft and I was able to buy reserve tickets for my favorite band.

It's not just you. With T Mobile, everyone can get VIP status. That means access to exclusive events and experiences just for being a customer. At T Mobile, VIP means y o u check out the VIP treatment@t mobile.com benefits.