Elizabeth Thomas, Founder Womanhood Unwrapped
Name: Elizabeth Thomas
Company: Womanhood Unwrapped
In less than three sentences tell us about your company and what you do.
Womanhood Unwrapped is a content community for and about women, their lives, struggles dreams, successes and everything in between. We offer active guest article opportunities, newsletter features, and growth consulting for female founded businesses.
What is the story behind your mission?
In 2012, almost seven years before I launched Womanhood Unwrapped, I realized that at some point I would launch a business, and content platform for and about women. It was the year I gave birth to my daughter, and first born. At the time I was working in a corporate marketing role, and the lack of support, information, and flexibility afforded to me as a new mother was astonishing. I have never really wrapped my head around how inflexible and unsupportive the modern business world is for working mothers. I set a goal, after returning from maternity leave, that within ten years I would launch my own business in support of women like me. Women who want to have it all, and know that it is a right all women should be afforded.
At what point did you make your company a full time gig? How did you know the time was right?
I moved from part-time side hustle, to full time gig two different times, with two different versions of the marketing, consulting and storytelling business. Most recently, I left my day job as a Content Strategist for a software startup in 2019, to run Womanhood Unwrapped full time. At the time, I realized that if I didn't give it my all, it would never truly turn into a thriving business and support network for women.
What lesson or skill did you take with you from a prior job to help you succeed in your role today?
Wow, tough question. I have worn many hats in my career. And all of them have in some way contributed to my success as a founder now. When I was working my way through college as a server in the restaurant industry, I learned how to think quickly on my feet, manage many conflicting tasks at once, and find patience in the midst of chaos. When I worked in the advertising industry as a project coordinator, I learned to hone in on the branding and marketing needs of clients, and look for gaps in their thinking. I also learned that I am an independent thinker, and more than once asked myself, "why am I not doing my own thing?" So I took that knowledge with me, and launched my first business.
Who was your first hire and why did you hire for this position and this person?
My first hire was a freelance operations manager. I hired her to help me with all the nitty gritty tasks, like invoicing, accounting, and miscellaneous services.
Who is someone you look up in business and why?
I look up to Reese Witherspoon. She has created an empire of businesses, all of which support women, through her clothing line and book club. She's a thought leader, and she still does all of this with happiness and humor.
What would you do differently if you were starting your business today?
Well, I dissolved my first business because it had grown out of my control. I was a new mother for the second time, and just hadn't yet learned the right lessons on growing and scaling a business in a manner that would work for my personal life. This is my second go-round, and hopefully I have remedied some of those novice mistakes. The lesson learned: Don't rush the process. Make good choices for your life, even if it means slower growth.
What are three strategies you use to market your business, grow brand awareness and generate bottom line growth?
Organic social media reach
Brand partnerships
Service partnerships
Let’s talk social media—who handles it for your company (you, an internal team member, an outsourced solution?) and what is the secret to making it successful? What is the biggest challenge?
At this point, I handle all of my social media efforts. In the past I have had a team of people who manage it for me, and my hope is to grow back to that point in the next twelve months. The biggest challenge is making social growth a priority in the midst of other pressing tasks as a business founder.
What are factors that contributed to your growth? Please detail your growth pattern—either in revenue numbers or percentage year over year.
Partnerships- Through strategic features and partnerships with other brands I was able to grow into a profitable and independent business in 2020.
Consulting- The consulting services offered through Womanhood Unwrapped have enable me to offer free supportive content and features over the past two years.
What are three traits you need to be successful as a female founder and why?
Self Motivation - Much of launching and growing a business is done through trial and error. There is no set road map, and you have to be willing to set an independent course, and reroute as needed.
Creativity - Whether you're running a production-focussed business, or a lifestyle brand. To be a female founder you need to get creative, especially when the road forward is blocked or unclear. Creativity is in all of us, but I've found it's especially prominent in successful female founders.
Grit - You can't let negative feedback, setbacks, or roadblocks stop you from seeking, and creating your dream. The difference between those founders who find a path to success, and those who give up, is whether or not they have the grit to keep going when all roads point to a dead end.
What are three pieces of advice you would give to a female founder starting out?
Micro-steps - Keep your larger goals in mind, but focus on the small steps that will lead to big results.
Compete only with yourself - Success is subjective and looks different in each business story. Don't let yourself get hung up in where others are in comparison to you. Focus on your goals, your wins, and in the long run it will all equalize.
Don't give up before the miracle happens - If your truly dig into the success stories of other prominent female founders, you will find that it took many failures before their "overnight success" actually occurred. Don't lose hope, but DO pivot as needed.
How did you land your first client?
I was fortunate to find an interested partner, Godfrey Social PR, who worked with me to find female-founder guests for the blog, and woman-owned business clients on the consulting side. They found me through content I was writing for the Womanhood Unwrapped blog.
What is something you do differently from the industry standard?
I believe that having a niche focus in brand development and storytelling is critical to truly changing the lives of clients. For me, it came down to passion. I focus solely on serving and recruiting women-owned businesses, and female leaders. Many similar businesses try to be generalists in the marketing industry, and by doing so, dilute their work and effectiveness.
What was an obstacle you overcame to get your business where it is today? Please share the story behind it.
Finding time to launch Womanhood Unwrapped while I had a full time job, two kids and a marriage to think about was incredibly tough. I did a lot of work then at 5am, or 9pm, and still do today. It's what gives me the flexibility I need, and desire to also be there for my family.
How do you support other female founders and women in business?
My entire business premise revolves around supporting other women in business. From one-on-one brand development consulting, to PR features and collaborations. I founded Womanhood Unwrapped to be part of, and support women as they strive, thrive and achieve in they own zones of genius.
What does BEING a FoundHer mean to you?
Being a FoundHer means that I wake up every morning grateful. Grateful for the work I am able to do to support other women leaders, grateful for the freedom I have gained through developing, launching and running three different thriving businesses, and grateful that I have the grit and motivation to keep growing courageously, even when the going gets tough.
