Second Life show

Second Life

Summary: Join our host, Who What Wear co-founder Hillary Kerr, as she chronicles the career changes that can come at any age in our podcast, Second Life.

Podcasts:

 Abby Jimenez: Best-Selling Author and Founder of Nadia Cakes | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:55:01

From building the wildly successful bakery mini-chain Nadia Cakes to becoming a best-selling romance author, Abby Jimenez is no stranger to a career pivot. Jimenez spent her early career in a variety of service and retail roles, but when she was suddenly let go from her job as a retail manager, she leaned into her love of baking. With a Michaels cake-decorating course under her belt, Jimenez soon began selling cakes and cupcakes out of her home kitchen, and since then, her bakery, Nadia Cakes, has opened three brick-and-mortar locations, was crowned the winner of Food Network’s Cupcake Wars, and has grown its menu to include over 200 cupcake flavors. After successfully growing Nadia Cakes, Jimenez began writing romance novels in her newly earned free time. With some encouragement from her family and constructive feedback from online critique groups, she turned yet another hobby into a full-on career and has since published five novels. Jimenez’s sixth novel, Just for the Summer, comes out on April 2. Preorder it today here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/just-for-the-summer-abby-jimenez/1143886130?ean=9781538769409.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: The Story Behind Emma Stone's Oscars Dress, as Told by Her Stylist, Petra Flannery | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:23:07

And just like that, an eventful 2024 award season has come to a close. Today, we’re joined by super stylist Petra Flannery, whose roster of clients includes Emma Stone, Zoe Saldana, Reese Witherspoon, Claire Danes, and Emilia Clarke. Flannery is here to dish about the Oscars and give us the behind-the-scenes details on Emma Stone’s greatest red carpet looks, from the pale-yellow slip dress at the Poor Things premiere to the stunning mint-colored peplum dress she wore while accepting her second Oscar for Best Actress. And yes, we’re talking about that pesky zipper. This episode was brought to you by eBay.

 Gail Simmons: Food Writer, Culinary Multi-Hyphenate, and Top Chef Judge | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:58:52

Gail Simmons is the ultimate culinary multi-hyphenate. Though she’s perhaps best known for her 21-season tenure as judge on the competition reality show Top Chef, which debuts its latest season on March 20, she’s also made a lasting impact on so many other areas of food media. Simmons has spent 15 years of her career leading teams at Food & Wine (including organizing the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen); has written numerous books; and has even launched her own production company, Bumble Pie Productions, which focuses on bringing women’s voices to the food landscape. But before Simmons was making a name for herself as a food expert, she spent her early career gaining industry knowledge by attending culinary school; working at the iconic restaurants Le Cirque 2000 and Vong; assisting Vogue food critic Jeffrey Steingarten; and running special events for Daniel Boulud’s legendary restaurant group.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: Celebrity Hairstylist Mara Roszak on Crafting Emma Stone's Award-Season Looks and Getting Red Carpet–Level Hair at Home | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:33:31

With the Oscars only days away, celebrity hairstylist and Roz founder Mara Roszak is dropping all the details behind creating her gorgeous red carpet looks. Her client list includes stars like Olivia Wilde, Juno Temple, and Zoe Saldaña, but it's been an especially busy award season for her longtime client Emma Stone on the heels of her Oscar-nominated film Poor Things. Roszak is not only sharing the inspiration for Stone's hair looks this season, but she's also giving the full breakdown of how you can re-create her sleek Golden Globes lob and romantic BAFTA braid at home. Plus, if you've ever wondered how to achieve the elusive "wet look"—as seen on Roszak's clients Kristen Wiig and Natalie Portman—look no further. This episode was brought to you by eBay.

 Sandra Oh Lin: Founder and CEO of KiwiCo | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:55:49

Sandra Oh Lin is the founder and CEO of KiwiCo, the company that’s helping millions of children develop creativity and problem-solving skills through art- and STEM-based activities. Remembering how much she loved participating in hands-on projects with her mom when she was a child, Lin sought to inspire that same sense of innovation and “creative confidence” in her own kids. Soon, other parents began asking about the activities she was creating for her children’s playdates, and she realized that she wasn’t the only parent wanting to provide fun, educational experiences for her kids. With her engineering and business degrees, alongside her experience at major companies like eBay, Procter & Gamble, and PayPal, Lin started KiwiCo out of her garage. Over the last decade, she has scaled the company to include more than 1500 products, sent out 50 million shipments of KiwiCo products, and developed partnerships with over 400 educational organizations.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: Zac Posen on Designing Costumes for the Epic Black and White Ball Scene in Ryan Murphy's Feud: Capote vs. the Swans | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:31:41

Zac Posen is an internationally acclaimed fashion designer whose designs have been worn by Natalie Portman, Oprah Winfrey, former First Lady Michelle Obama, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Rihanna, among many others. Posen is known for his fine craftsmanship and glamorous gowns, and powerful women have historically sought him out to dress them for significant moments in their lives. Because of this, it only made sense that Ryan Murphy and Gus Van Sant called upon Posen while developing FX's Feud: Capote vs. the Swans to craft costumes for the reimagining of a real-life event: Truman Capote's 1966 Black and White Ball. He's giving us all the details about how he walked the line between historical accuracy and his signature stylistic flair to create showstopping looks for all of Feud's leading ladies. This episode was brought to you by eBay.

 Dianna Cohen: Crown Affair Founder and CEO | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:57:22

Crown Affair is a haircare brand that empowers people to create ritual out of their hair routine. Launched in 2020 with four products (a towel, a brush, an oil, and a comb), Crown Affair has since grown to include a range of hair products and tools; has become one of the buzziest beauty brands on TikTok; and is now sold at retailers such as Goop and Sephora. But before Cohen founded Crown Affair, she spent her early career in marketing and partnerships and later consulted for some of the most influential direct-to-consumer companies of the time. Think Away luggage, Outdoor Voices, Harrys, Buck Mason, and more. But when a Google Doc detailing her other passion (aka her haircare routine) began circulating, Cohen realized it was time to take a pause on building other people’s companies and create one of her own.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: New York Fashion Week F/W 24 in Review | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:26:13

New York Fashion Week just wrapped, and Editor in Chief Kat Collings and fashion editor Jasmine Fox-Suliaman are here to give you the inside scoop on what the fall-winter 2024 collections had to offer. Tune in to hear which emerging designers to have on your radar, who's giving a sultry update to workwear, which types of interesting necklines we can expect to see everywhere this fall, and what it was like breathing the same air as Beyoncé at the Luar show. This episode was brought to you by eBay.

 Maria Dueñas Jacobs: Super Smalls Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:55:55

Super Smalls is a line of playful, gem-studded accessories inspired by and made for kids. After years as an accessories editor and director at fashion publications Glamour and Elle, as well as working on brand development at personal styling company Stitch Fix, Maria Dueñas Jacobs developed a deep knowledge of the accessories space. So when her daughter, who was five at the time, began playing with her beautiful (and expensive) jewelry, a lightbulb went off for Dueñas Jacobs. Soon, she began channeling both her inner child and her trained editorial eye to bring the luxury jewelry experience she knew and loved to a kid-safe jewelry line. Today, Super Smalls has made Oprah’s Favorite Things list three years in a row and expanded into a stunning range of jewelry, shoes, crafts, and more. Each item is made for play and is sure to bring joy to any kid (or “kidult,” as Dueñas Jacobs refers to herself in this episode) who wears it.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: Amy Smilovic, Founder of Tibi, Gives a Style Master Class Through Her Lens of Creative Pragmatism | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:39:32

Amy Smilovic founded the women's luxury brand Tibi in 1997, and over the years, she's honed her distinctive brand identity and coined a phrase for her design philosophy: creative pragmatism. If you're a creative pragmatist like Smilovic, you find your style rooted in creative expression and utility, and you feel at home in an aesthetic that is at once chill, modern, and classic. Written from the point of view that style can indeed be learned, her book The Creative Pragmatist details all of her guiding principles, from how to style colors and prints in a way that feels modern to how to pick basics that aren't, well, basic. Smilovic has developed a highly analytical approach to making outfits look effortless, and she's breaking down her greatest and most useful style tips for us this week. This episode was brought to you by eBay.

 Charlotte Cruze: Co-Founder of Alice Mushrooms | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:57:24

If you’ve dipped your toe into the world of functional, non-psychedelic mushrooms, you’ve likely seen Alice’s chic adaptogenic chocolates grace your social media feed or the shelves of your local boutique grocer—you have Charlotte Cruze to thank for that. In 2022, Cruze and her co-founder Lindsay Goodstein launched Alice with two products: Nightcap, a sleep aid, and Brainstorm, an energy booster. Today, the line has expanded to include an aphrodisiac chocolate called Happy Ending and a limited-edition lingerie collab with Fleur du Mal. But before she was creating mushroom chocolates, Cruze spent most of her career in media at companies such as Refinery29, InsideHook, and NBC. During that time, Cruze realized she loved the food industry, and in the early days of the pandemic, she enrolled in a food studies master’s program at NYU with the intention of pivoting her career. From there, she took on a role as the head of operations at meal-kit company Quinn and later led growth at Nutella-alternative brand TBH. While Cruze was still working at TBH, Goodstein, a former pharmaceutical salesperson, tapped her to help build Alice, and the rest is delicious, benefit-packed history.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: Talking to Paige Adams-Geller of Paige and Celebrating 20 Years of the Perfect Fit | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:41:12

Twenty years ago, Paige Adams-Geller saw the need for a female voice in the male-dominated American denim industry—someone who deeply understood the female form and could help other women find their perfect fit. As a successful fit model for the top premium denim companies of the time, she knew she was the woman for the job, and Paige was born. Today, Hillary sits down with the founder to talk about the brand's history and many expansions into menswear, outerwear, shoes, accessories, and beyond. They also dive into why denim sizing is such a tricky science, what goes into developing new fabrics, and which Paige jeans are so comfortable you could sleep in them three nights in a row, something Adams-Geller tested herself.

 Natalie Holloway: Co-Founder of Bala and Balacize | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:45:31

Natalie Holloway and her husband, Max, had their aha moment during a yoga class in Indonesia. As the class was more meditative than sweat-inducing, they wondered, Why isn’t anyone making chic wrist or ankle weights that could turn up the resistance on everyday exercises? They immediately began brainstorming their idea on a napkin, and after returning to the United States, the two created prototypes of what would eventually become the best-selling Bala Bangle. With the help of a Kickstarter campaign and a successful Shark Tank debut, Bala has grown to include a range of fitness equipment sold in retailers including Goop, Saks, and Target, as well as a digital fitness instruction platform called Balacize. But what led Natalie and Max to Indonesia in the first place? The two met while working at global advertising agency 72 and Sunny, where they thrived but ultimately felt burnt out. They decided to take a sabbatical to travel, and a year later, returned ready to use their branding expertise to give the ’80s-era fitness equipment a fashion-forward makeover.

 Who What Wear with Hillary Kerr: Wes Gordon—Creative Director of Carolina Herrera—Talks Honoring Herrera's Legacy, Storytelling Through Design, and Disregarding Fashion Rules | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:36:21

This week, Editor in Chief Kat Collings chats with Wes Gordon, the creative director behind the legendary womenswear brand Carolina Herrera. Before taking the reins at the glamorous New York heritage brand in 2018, Gordon ran his own successful namesake line for eight years, establishing himself as a visionary with staying power. Today, he's sharing how graduating into a recession gave him the hard skills he'd need to one day run Carolina Herrera, why we should disregard the archaic fashion rules around how to wear color, and what kind of storytelling to expect from his upcoming fall/winter 2024 collection as New York Fashion Week approaches.

 Gabriela Anastasio: Founder of Anastasio Home | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 00:54:09

At a young age, Gabriela Anastasio fell in love with stone while visiting the work sites of her father’s landscaping business. Throughout her childhood, she began to associate a new patio or an updated blue-stone trim around a pool with good fortune, and years later, in 2021, she launched her home accessories brand, Anastasio Home, with a single category: stone trays. The brand quickly gained popularity for its expanding offering of upcycled, luxury home accessories, produced by the company’s factory in India. That being said, Anastasio’s journey to building her business was anything but linear. After graduating with a degree in art, she spent over a decade in public relations, eventually working her way up to director of communications at the luxury watch brand, Tudor. Combining the skill set she gained from her early career with her art education and love of stone, Gabriela decided to bet on herself, and soon after, Anastasio Home was born.

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