THE CITY CONFESSIONS

We are beginning season 6 of The City Confessions with two fabulous guests, Erin Swift and Anna Livermore. They are the founders of Swift Studios, a new design-centric photography and event space for creatives, which opened this year in March of 2021 in New York. Erin is a former magazine editor turned stylist turned prop warehouse owner and Anna is the founder of V. Mora, a consulting firm that helps fashion professionals achieve real results in the industry. Both of them have worked in various fields in the design world and have continued to pivot. Erin and Anna have extensive experience working with photo studios and their vision is a first-of-its-kind experience for creatives. They recognized the current economy could work in their favor to begin this passion project even with the various delays from city restrictions and manufacturing lead times. In this episode, we go through a brief overview of both women's careers and journeys. Erin and Anna explain how they dreamt of this self-funded project, their decision as friends to become business partners, their definitions of success and happiness, personal career highlights, and closing out with a few city confessions! Hear more about Swift Studios and what they hope to provide for influencers, brands, and creatives looking for new shooting locations.  You can schedule a viewing of the beautiful space by visiting https://www.swiftstudiosnyc.com/ and feel free to mention this podcast if you're interested in booking! You can also follow them on Instagram and direct any questions, feedback or comments regarding this episode to thecityconfessions@gmail.com. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

Welcome to season 6 of The City Confessions! Episode 101 is a solo one from yours truly and your host Mariann Yip. I explain what my one month break has taught me and why I feel compelled to continue this podcast. I give an overview of my life updates including how I feel mentally and emotionally, the power of mindset and trusting yourself. I also share my current struggle of letting go of control and why it's so difficult for me to do so. I recognize that this is an area I want to work on because I can see how it's affecting my relationships. I end the episode revealing two confessions and offer some insight and advice on how to embrace the highs and lows of life.  I am also always looking for guests so if you or someone you know would love to be featured, please email thecityconfessions@gmail.com. The only requirement would be a clear connection with New York City (whether you were born and raised here, currently live here or have a business here). You can also support this podcast in a few ways including following me on Instagram as well as the podcast, leaving a positive review on iTunes or send this to a friend to help me gain more reach and exposure. I appreciate each and every one of you and stay tuned for all the amazing upcoming episodes!  --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This episode is a solo one from yours truly and is a celebration of hitting 100 episodes on The City Confessions! I start out this episode by giving quick life updates and talk about where my mind has been and how I am feeling and doing mentally. I reveal my uncertainty when it comes to my future as I have no idea where I'll be based once my lease is up in addition to questioning my place in NYC. I also talk about how I've been feeling unsafe with the rise of asian hate crimes, which motivated me to start an IG Live series on #STOPASIANHATE. I have been discovering the activist in me and have been getting to know that side more.  Other topics I touch upon include the power of energy, the sacredness of time and the value and weight of intention. I end the episode by sharing a few confessions relating to body insecurities and outlook on dating, love and relationships. As a celebration of my 100th episode, I would appreciate if if you can support me and this podcast by sharing it with a friend or your network, by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts and following me on my below platforms. https://instagram.com/mariann_yip https://www.instagram.com/thecityconfessions/ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-city-confessions/id1447819476#see-all/reviews --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

The 99th episode of The City Confessions features Ming, who is a NYC based Occupational Therapist. Aside from her day job, she is also part of the food photographer duo team of The Bing Buzz, and works with her boyfriend to bring NYC content to her audience. She is also the host of the podcast Happier With Ming: A lifestyle design & personal development podcast designed to encourage and inspire you to live life to your fullest everyday! In this episode, we talk about how she found her passion and purpose during the pandemic, as that's the time when she decided to start The Bing Buzz's youtube channel. Ming also loves starting projects and explains how being a perfectionist plays in her life, as well as going out of her comfort zones. She discussed some of her insecurities and vulnerabilities and shares her favorite NYC ice cream spots as well as a confession that some New Yorkers might take offensively!  You can connect with Ming in her below channels and if you have any questions, feedback or comments regarding this episode, feel free to email thecityconfessions@gmail.com.  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheBingBuzz Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheBingBuzz Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheBingBuzz Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheBingBuzz --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

Today's guest is Mariah Reeves, the founder of MARVES, which is a NYC based crochet shop, that offers modern, eco-friendly, handmade, and unique fiber arts products. She is a Black and Latina owned one woman operation and explains how her grandmother (one of the coolest & stylish humans EVER) taught her how to crochet. Through her modern aesthetic, with an emphasis on minimal luxury and a passion for art, Mariah tries to keep her family tradition alive and just as cool & stylish as her grandmother was. Mariah started MARVES as something to do outside her day job, but also as a side hustle to help pay off her student loans. Based in NYC, every piece is handmade. As a New Yorker, Mariah names her products after her favorite streets and neighborhoods and tries to keep her business as eco-friendly as possible by using natural fibers and reusable packaging. Being handcrafted, each piece has the value of human touch. Every limited, made to order item is created with its own unique quality. In this episode, Mariah gives insight to different techniques and tips on how to crochet, the process and realities of the hard work, effort and dedication to making each piece by hand, her definitions of happiness and success and what she hopes to accomplish with her business. Feel free to support Mariah Reeves on her below platforms: Website: MARVESnewyork.com Instagram: @MARVESnewyork Etsy:https://www.etsy.com/shop/MARVESnewyork Depop: Depop.com/marves --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This week's guest is a native New Yorker. Kristina Ang is a fashion design student at the Parsons School of Design in NYC, sustainability freelance writer, and fellow podcast host for The Life of A Fashion Student Podcast. From a very early age, she was determined to make a start in the fashion industry. Her ambition and passion to integrate herself in the fashion world have compelled her to take up various internships throughout her early years of high school including working as a Showroom Intern at Alice & Trixie and becoming a Nordstrom Fashion Ambassador. In the past she have taken on roles such as Design & Product Development Intern at Kassatex NYC, Intern at Sandy Liang, Design & Product Development Intern at The Arrivals NYC, Fashion Team Intern at V Magazine, and Education & Sustainable Strategies Intern at CFDA (Council of Fashion Designers of America). Currently, she is a Public Relations Intern at Conti-Communications. Kristina's biggest hope in life is to inspire, impact, influence, and invigorate those around her. In this episode, Kristina reveals that she has a twin sister and talks about what that relationship is like. We also dive into how she found her passion for fashion and her decision to follow that calling, despite some initial hesitations. Kristina is a driven individual and constantly puts herself out there and seeks opportunities. She explains how that stems from being a New Yorker and how the city has shaped her to be the woman she is today. We also talk about her career and personal highlights, how she utilities her competitive edge and hustle in a positive way, the struggle of trusting others, the importance of trusting your gut and validating your feelings, and so much more! Feel free to connect with Kristina on her below platforms: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristinamichelleang/ Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/5tk1Ptko1nBhcekYskjFD5 Website: https://www.kristinaang.com You can direct any questions, feedback or comments to thecityconfessions@gmail.com.  --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

Today's guest is Ashley Rodriguez, a fashion model and youtuber from Queens, New York. In this episode of The City Confessions, we talk about how Ashley got into modeling and the realities behind the scenes of being a model. Ashley reveals her career highlights as well as some struggles. She also explains why she's always positive and shares tips on how to develop a positive mindset including the importance of a morning routine and finding joy and happiness in the everyday moments. As a family oriented individual, Ashley is grounded by her family and the people she surrounds herself with. She is currently exploring Los Angeles with her boyfriend and have recently started a youtube channel where she posts fun content for entertainment purposes.  You can connect with Ashley below: INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/baddiee.ash/ YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrcXxDzsM73qTGRqVEpQnIQ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

Today, we are joined by Andy Stone, the Vice President of Marketing at Bluestone Lane, which is Melbourne-inspired coffee place offering Australian-style espresso drinks & cafe fare all day. He is the brother to CEO Nick Stone and runs the business’s marketing.  We begin the episode by talking about his relationship with NYC, now that he's been here for 5 years. We then dive in to discussing how Bluestone Lane became successful at bringing Melbourne café culture to the states. Other topics we cover include how Andy got involved with Bluestone Lane, differences between Australian coffee culture and American (particularly NYC), the marketing strategies behind Bluestone Lane and their health focused menu, challenges in growing and expanding their business in a short amount of time and his definitions of happiness and success. Andy also shares a city Confessions as an Australian living in New York that you don’t want to miss! If you haven’t dined at Bluestone Lane then check out their locations here https://bluestonelane.com so you can try their delicious food items & coffee! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

In this episode of The City Confessions, we are joined by Yvette Bodden, the Founder and Author of Awakened-Woman (AW), a platform designed to inspire, empower and encourage women to live their best life and be unafraid to create the life envisioned. After going through a painful divorce, followed by depression, Yvette rose from the emotional adversity to write a self-help/autobiographical book, "A Journey to Becoming the Best Self" published by BRW in 2019. The debut sparked the birth of AW which she started in mid-2018. Since her self discovery journey, she has written over 500 articles, as a writer for AW as well as, Belatina News. In 2020, she developed the AW Empowerment Series, a series of interviews with women across all industries but done on a personal level. Women like Grey's Anatomy - Lisa Vidal, Emmy-Award Winning Media Personality, Nikki Boyer, Tyler Perry's Sistas Actress, Novi Brown, and so many others have shared their amazing stories to help the AW community connect and learn through their experiences.  In this raw and honest episode, Yvette opens up about her dark past and explains how her divorce and depression has shaped her to be the strong woman she is today. She talks about the process of recreating herself and finding her voice and identity, the power of self care and mental health, and the beauty of vulnerability and journaling. As a native New Yorker, Yvette opens about how true feelings for the city and reveals a city confession that may be controversial to other New Yorkers! You can connect with Yvette in her below platforms: https://awakened-woman.com/ https://twitter.com/WomanAwakened https://www.instagram.com/womanawakened/ https://www.facebook.com/AWinspires You can also direct any questions, comments or feedback regarding this podcast to thecityconfessions@gmail.com. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This episode features Zoé-Daphnée Gagne, a classical and electric cellist based in NYC who is passionate about playing all genres of music such as rock, musical theatre, pop, classical, movie scores and more.  Since first drawing her bow across the strings 13 years ago, she has performed around the world including Carnegie Hall (NYC), Disney Hall (Los Angeles), Spain, Italy, Germany and South Korea. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor's degree at Manhattan School of Music, the highest ranking school in the United States for classical cello performance. A self-taught electric cellist, she is passionate about playing all genres of music such as pop, metal, musical theatre, jazz, movie scores and more. She finds modern music to be the perfect outlet for her to express her love of singing, makeup, costuming, filmmaking, and creative eye. In this episode, we talk about how Zoé-Daphnée Gagne discovered her passion at an early age, the highlights of her career thus far as well as the challenges along the way and the power of having a positive mindset and journaling. We also dive deeper in topics including definitions of success and happiness, how fear and excitement coincides with one another and why she prioritizes finding magic in everyday moments. There is also a teaser of her music so be sure to have a listen to the end!  You can connect with Zoé-Daphnée Gagne on Instagram and YouTube in her below channels: Full music video of "The Queen's Gambit": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_83CYtprUYU Your favorite songs reimagined with cello on her YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTDy33atF14F2c1tH8-opLQ Daily music and inspiration on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cellozozo/ Feel free to direct any emails, questions or feedback to thecityconfessions@gmail.com.  --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This week's guest is Hannah Nieves, a marketing, branding and PR expert from NYC. She is also the CEO of Hannah Nieves, a digital agency that specializes in elevating luxury brands to become the authority in their space. With extensive experience in marketing, branding and PR; Hannah knows what it takes to build, market and promote authentic brands and create results. Her journey into marketing began as an Investment Sales Broker in the Capital Markets division working for Cushman & Wakefield, one of the largest commercial real estate firms in the world. During that time she worked to market and sell buildings, land and air rights in Manhattan. When she wasn’t underwriting $525,000,000 worth of real estate assets, she was marketing them. Fast forward a few years when she became Director of Marketing of California, managing $4,000,000 marketing budgets and leading a team of passionate marketing professionals. Hannah truly loves the work she does and created this business out of the sheer passion of being able to serve female entrepreneurs and visionaries. What started out as a mentorship program turned agency, consulting and education platform has allowed Hannah to serve women in a multitude of industries and creative backgrounds. In this episode, we talk about her transition, experiences and challenges working as an entrepreneur, the importance of creating a strong team and cultivating a strong work culture. She also gives insight to how she defines success and happiness compared to her definitions in the past and opens up about the struggles with stress and burnout. We end this episode with a city confession as well as a rundown of Hannah's go to favorite NYC spots. Hannah is the go to resource for marketing, branding and PR for entrepreneurs and brands alike and you can find her in the below platforms: Website: www.hannahnieves.co Instagram: www.instagram.com/hannahmnieves Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/hannahmnieves/ Feel free to email any questions regarding this episode or podcast to thecityconfessions@gmail.com.  --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This week's guest is Jeniece Trizzino. She is the Vice President of Product Development at Scentbird.  With over 15 years of experience at such brands as Avon, Laura Geller, BareMinerals, Deck of Scarlet, Goodhabit, and Confessions of a Rebel, Jeniece Trizzino has worked through every stage of makeup artistry, product and packaging development, partnering directly with brand founders to ideate, conceptualize, forecast, innovate, formulate, package develop, and market award-winning products that she has created for sale in the U.S. and around the world. Jeniece’s deep understanding of both the transforming needs of the beauty market and the advancing demands of the consumer, coupled with her strong market vision and intuition for product innovation has made her a thought leader and expert in the beauty space, with a proven track record of success. In this episode, we talk about how Scentbird disrupted the fragrance industry back in 2014 when it introduced the idea of a subscription model to the world. It was also a time where social media was growing and evolving so Jeniece explains how the company leveraged Youtube specifically to create buzz about the company's model and service. Jeniece also gives us insight to what her role consists of and the real timeline and steps of bringing a product from an idea to life. As a New Yorker, she also shares a confession relating to stereotypes that people have about New Yorkers. Feel free to support Jeniece's brands below: Scentbird: https://www.instagram.com/scentbird/  Goodhabit: https://www.instagram.com/goodhabitskin/ Deck of Scarlet: https://www.instagram.com/deckofscarlet/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This week's guest features Deanna First, a NYC based illustrator. Deanna First’s work centers on her fascination of the female form and capturing the many personalities of her muses. She explores these themes through a combination of pencil, marker, watercolor and digital editing. A broad range of illustration styles sets her work apart from the crowd. She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Kent State University in Fashion Design. It was there she pronounced her love for fashion illustration. She later went on to work for Elie Tahari, J.Crew and Ralph Lauren. Deanna focuses on both fluidity and movement in her work. Her most recent events have been with Diane von Fürstenberg, Tommy Hilfiger and Hermès. In this episode, Deanna explains how she started in the fashion design world and how she transitioned into being a freelancer and starting her own business. We talk about a wide range of topics including her passion and talent for drawing and art, how she's used social media especially Instagram to leverage her business, the power of relationships in the fashion industry in NYC, how spirituality plays a role in her life, her struggle of balancing her personal interests on social media with her professional work and how her plans for expanding and shifting her business avenues due to the pandemic. You can connect with Deanna on her social media platforms below: https://www.deannafirst.com/ https://www.instagram.com/deanna_First/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

This episode features New York State licensed Acupuncturist, Lana Stacy. Board certified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM), Lana has a passion for developing meaningful relationships with each of her patients and creating a safe space for them to heal, grow, and evolve into the best versions of themselves. At the crux of all of her treatments is a profound understanding of the connection between the mind and body. Lana specializes in pain management and have received advanced training in trigger point therapy.  She also has experience with internal medicine, including migraines, digestive disorders, menstrual issues, and chronic urinary tract infections. As a long-term patron of therapy herself, she has a special interest in working with mental health and those in recovery, especially anxiety, trauma, eating disorders, and addiction. For these internal conditions, she focuses primarily on the styles of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Five Element, Japanese, and Korean techniques in order to fully tap into and treat the "Shen" (the spirit). In this episode, we talk about how Lana discovered acupuncture and what moment drove her to decide to pursue this as her calling and career. Lana also explains the difference between western and eastern medicine and why she incorporates Chinese medicine and approaches to healing in her practice. She currently works at WTHN, which is an acupuncture studio in NYC (which is how we met because she is my acupuncturist!) and discussed how the studio aligns with her own values of the power of healing and prevention.  As someone who used to be a workaholic, Lana recalls how she would burn out by working constantly and running around in NYC. Since the pandemic and her loss, she has learned the beauty of slow living and advocates for all us to practice that. She is now appreciating all the magic surrounding NYC and is also working on her side hustle which are house calls for acupuncture sessions. You can find Lana in the below platforms: https://www.lanastacyacupuncture.com/ https://www.instagram.com/lana.stacy.acupuncture/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support

Welcome to Season 5 of The City Confessions! Before we get started with today's guest, this episode opens up with a quick introduction from your host Mariann Yip about what she's up to and what you can expect from this season moving forward. Instead of doing a solo episode as the introduction episode of the new season, we are joined by Reagan Petrehn, who is a a filmmaker, food and bev expert, and serial entrepreneur. Before co-founding his first business –1900 Barker– at 21, he spent several years consulting with and training professionals across multiple disciplines within the coffee industry across the US, Mainland China and Hong Kong –then the fastest growing market for coffee globally. He has since consulted with dozens of coffee and food startups to create unique programming across various cultures and locales. Today, 1900 Barker is recognized as a cutting edge and trend setting institution, despite its rural location in the Midwest, and has been nominated every consecutive year since opening for the James Beard award –a massive honor across the food and beverage industry. In 2018, Reagan became a founding member at Felix Roasting Company in NYC. In addition to acting as Brand Manager and developing the guest experience, He created the unique (and often viral) food and beverage program that makes Felix stand out among foodies and coffee aficionados everywhere, and oversaw the meteoric rise in engagement from the press, tourists, and local New Yorkers. Currently, Reagan is refocusing his energies into his creative studio, Kind Studio, with an aim to develop meaningful stories through film. He hopes to utilize his background in hospitality to help hurting food & bev businesses get a leg up during and after Covid. Outside of his many professional pursuits, Reagan is an avid surfer, a distance runner, and is always looking for an excuse to play in the kitchen. In this episode, Reagan talks about how he met his partner of Felix Roasting Company, which is a stunning cafe in NYC. He opens up about how the design concept and birth idea came into fruition and the struggles of trying to maintain afloat as the company struggled with COVID last year. However, as someone who is constantly working on a million projects, Raegan and his partner was actually able to open a new location in August of 2020 in Soho.  As a natural entrepreneur, Raegan explains how he got his motivation and confidence to start his string of businesses, especially in a city like New York. He acknowledges that he does experience impostor syndrome as is still trying to figure out how to redefine what success and happiness looks like to him. Raegan is also a talented photographer and is now actively pursuing that creative outlet. He closes this episode with a confession that you guys definitely won't expect so have a full listen to see what that is! Feel free to connect with Raegan on his below channels and follow along his journey to see all the amazing things he has in the works: https://www.instagram.com/reagan.petrehn https://www.instagram.com/felixroastingco/ https://www.instagram.com/1900barker/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecityconfessions/support