MEET MASAMI
FOUNDED BY
THE INTERVIEW
Written by Anne Muise, Boston Women’s Market
BWM: Can you tell us a bit about what led you to launch your business? What are your aHa moments?
Lynn: I was working in advertising and running a large agency and was dealing with a highly visible industry #MeToo situation. My job had turned into dealing with HR, finance, legal. It wasn't what inspired me so I decided to take charge of my situation and start my own business.
BWM: How have you continued to manage the growth of the company while also finding time and ways to invest in yourself?
Lynn: Self care is so important but so many women I know (including me) put ourselves last. I have come to recognize that it's ok to merge work and personal life. And that "downtime" is essential to keep the "uptime" going.
BWM: Our Members are often just beginning to grow their business and many are interested in learning from other successful businesswomen. What key pieces of insight have you learned from launching your business?
Lynn: Building a team who believes in the vision of the business is critical. Without having a smart team around me, I could never accomplish what we have in such a short time. But recognize that different people have different things that motivate them. And find a way to recognize people's skill sets and work to optimize those.
BWM: With the business acumen you have now, what's one piece of advice you wish you could tell yourself five years ago?
Lynn: I wouldn't have waited so long (until I was miserable in my corporate job) to do my own thing.
IT'S BEEN FAR MORE FULFILLING AND LIBERATING THAN I WOULD HAVE IMAGINED.
It's just so easy to get stuck in a rut - many of us are good team players and don't want to let down the people around us, even if that means staying in a less than ideal situation.
BWM: We think the stories of failure are just as important as the stories of success. Can you talk about a time that you failed in an entrepreneurial venture or objective? How did you face and overcome this failure? What was the lesson learned?
Lynn: We experiment all of the time but I'd like to think of that not as failures but as learning. We had a problem with the first run of bottles we did in terms of the silk-screening coming off which was an expensive "failure" to fix but we needed to do it. We also have tried a bunch of different platforms, digital efforts, etc. and some just have not performed to the level we'd like. Instagram for example has been hard to get conversion from. But we're continuing to optimize and learn as we go.
BWM: Do you have a favorite go-to business tool or resource you can recommend to our members?
Lynn: We are all on Slack which has become a must have. But I also am part of a Female Founders group which has been really supportive and beneficial.
BWM: In the name of celebrating other women what are some of your favorite female brands or shops local or otherwise?
Lynn: Cassandra McClure is focused on driving transparency and change around clean beauty which I love. There's a handbag brand called Milaner that makes stunning yet functional pieces. There's also a minimalist fashion brand called Souka Porter that's amazing.
PRODUCTS WE LOVE
MEKABU SHAMPOO
Enriched with the nourishing power of the Japanese ocean botanical Mekabu, this luxurious shampoo is low foaming, adding shine and hydration for all.
MEKABU SHINE SERUM
MASAMI Shine Serum, enriched with the Japanese ocean botanical Mekabu, gives even unruly, dull, lifeless, over-processed hair a hydrated, smoothed and nourished look.