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Girlboss Radio

Claire and Erica's Business Runs on Friendship, Not VC Funding

Girlboss Radio

Girlboss Radio

Entrepreneurship, Business, Careers

4.41.9K Ratings

🗓️ 11 April 2023

⏱️ 35 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Claire Mazur and Erica Cerulo's careers are intertwined and built around a deep friendship that goes back to their days as undergrads at the University of Chicago. They got set up on a friend date, hit it off and remained close ever since. "We always knew the minor characters in each other's work lives," says Erica. After graduating, both of them moved to New York. Erica worked in magazines at Lucky and Details, while Claire worked in the theater world. Then, their first business idea was born: Of a Kind, an ecomm site that stocked goods from over 600 independent designers and makers. Claire and Erica's brand was born in the heyday of New York's fashion startup boom alongside Rent the Runway and Warby Parker. In an exciting turn, Of a Kind was acquired by Bed, Bath and Beyond, only to be shuttered a few years later. Today, the pair are still working together on their newsletter and podcast brand, A Thing or Two. On this episode of the podcast, Claire and Erica explain how women's friendship can fuel great businesses, when it's ok to walk away from a great project and how success shouldn't be measured in VC dollars raised. Subscribe to A Thing or Two's newsletter or listen to their podcast at athingortwohq.com. Get your very own Workplace Affirmation Deck from Girlboss at girlboss.com/affirmations! Sign up for Girlboss Daily, our must-read morning newsletter, at girlboss.com/newsletter. You'll get A+ career advice, dream job postings, free coffee every Friday and a few emojis (because we’re fun like that), delivered right to your inbox. Looking for your next dream employee? Post your open role on our Girlboss Job Board at jobs.girlboss.com. Girlboss Goods, our women-owned and operated marketplace, makes it easier for you to vote with your dollar while also championing small businesses. Head to girlboss.com/goods. Happy shopping!

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Is becoming a new manager really that hard?

0:04.0

Is gossiping at work good for you?

0:06.0

Is it okay to take meetings from a salon chair in the middle of the work day?

0:10.0

These are the kinds of questions and hot topics we dive into every day on our

0:14.0

hit newsletter, Girlboss Daily.

0:16.0

What else can you expect?

0:17.0

Dream job postings, A-plus career advice, and a few emojis,

0:21.0

because we're fun like that.

0:23.0

All delivered right here in box,

0:25.0

join 250,000 ambitious women and sign up at girlboss.com slash newsletter.

0:31.0

That's girlboss.com slash newsletter.

0:34.0

Hello and welcome back to another episode of Girlboss Radio.

0:43.0

I'm your host Avery.

0:45.0

I'm the founder of Bloom, a workplace design consultancy,

0:48.0

and a firm believer that works your work for all of us.

0:51.0

Today I'm joined by Claire and Erica, the best friends and business partners behind a

0:55.0

thing or two, a hit podcast newsletter and membership based content platform.

1:00.0

The duo has developed a reputation as influential curators with a knack for spotting the next big thing,

1:05.0

when it's still a small thing.

1:07.0

Claire and Erica met in 2002 as undergrads at the University of Chicago,

1:12.0

and followed each other to New York City.

1:14.0

It was then in their early 20s when the concept for their first business of a kind was born.

...

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