Female Founders Rise Show

Hosted by Emmie and Mae

Honest Talk From Female Founders. Each week, Emmie Faust and Mae Yip break down what it actually takes to build a business - funding, growth, burnout, parenting, and everything in between. Regularly joined by founders, investors and operators who've either raised a million, made a million or raised millions. Just the conversations female founders need, every week. Brought to you by Female Founders Rise - a community of 11,000+ female entrepreneurs.

  1. 4d ago

    The Secrets from Women who Made a Million, Raised a Million, or Exited for Millions

    What do women who made a million, raised a million, and exited for millions actually do differently? In this solo episode, Emmie & Mae pull the biggest lessons from their conversations with female founders who built businesses built to last. They reflect on what it really takes to keep going and grow. You will learn: 1. Consistency beats talent - why sustained effort over years matters more than a fast launch 2. Bootstrap first - how smart founders fund early growth without giving up equity too soon 3. Start before you are ready - how taking fast, imperfect action gives you real market data 4. Build in public - how sharing the messy middle builds community and feedback 5. People carry you further - why mentors, team, and human connection prevent burnout and unlock growth.  If you are a female founder building something sustainable and profitable, this is your playbook for what to keep, what to drop, and what to do next. Connect with us: → Join Female Founders Rise Free: https://femalefoundersrise.com/ → Emmie on LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust/ → Mae on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238/ → Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ffr.show

  2. Oct 13

    The Family Business Behind Dior, Nike & Tesco’s Reusable Bags | Smruti Sriram OBE

    How do you build a family-run business that stays profitable, grows in a sustainable way, and genuinely cares about people? In this conversation with Smruti we break down what that balance looks like in practice - employing hundreds of people, making long-term choices on materials and design, and protecting margin while leading with empathy. We cover second-generation entrepreneurship and joining a family business, scaling from simple tote bags to reusable packaging for global retail, where B Corp fits in the business and a people-first playbook for loyalty, tenure and resilient growth. Practical takeaways on suppliers, operations and everyday leadership for founders at any stage. Perfect for founders who want to scale with values and build something that lasts. In this episode: How to grow to hundreds of employees without losing cultureHow to stay profitable while building sustainablyHow to lead large teams with care and empathyWhere B Corp fits in a bigger sustainability systemPractical ideas for materials, partners and daily operations  Connect with Smruti on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/smruti-sriram-obe-784244108/ Connect with us: → Join Female Founders Rise Free: ⁠https://femalefoundersrise.com⁠ → Emmie on LinkedIn: ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust⁠ → Mae on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238/⁠ → Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/ffr.show⁠ → Watch on youtube: ⁠

  3. Oct 6

    Why Most B2C Brands Fail, Lessons From a £40M Exit | With Joanna Jenson

    Why do most B2C brands fail and what does it actually take to build one to a £40M exit? In this conversation, hosts Emmie and Mae sit down with exit founder and angel investor Joanna Jensen to break down how a kids skincare brand for eczema (Childs Farm) went from kitchen-table idea to a £40M acquisition. We cover product sampling over paid ads, knowing your customer to lower acquisition costs, packaging as 'packvertising', and the biggest mistakes B2C founders make around growth pace and patience. We also go inside the exit itself - investor relations, corporate governance, cap table red flags, and what angel investors wish founders knew before raising. If you are building a B2C business and thinking about a future startup exit strategy , this is your playbook for building to sell without burning out. In this episode we cover: - Why naivety can help you disrupt FMCG giants - Sampling and word of mouth vs paid ads - How to know your consumer and track key metrics - Packaging, differentiation and challenger brand thinking - How to plan for an exit from day one - Angel investor red flags Connect with Joanna on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannajensenuk/ Connect with us: → Join Female Founders Rise Free: https://femalefoundersrise.com → Emmie on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust → Mae on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238/ → Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ffr.show → Watch on youtube: https://youtu.be/jU-qEyrzCqo?si=iQ5kSxH8JJxySygr

  4. Sep 29

    How She Built a £1 billion Business with Mia Drennan

    Mia Drennan got passed over for promotion, quit, then needed 400 meetings to land deal one. Ten years later she bootstrapped to profit, then scaled 10X in 3 years to a £1billion valuation. In this honest conversation we dig into bootstrapping vs private equity, the equity trap for women founders, referral-led growth, and building a team that shares in the win. Real tactics for funding, scaling, and confidence. In this episode we cover: Why she bootstrapped for 10 years before taking investmentThe equity mistake every female founder must avoidHow 400 meetings turned into deal one and referral-led growthGrowing 10X in 3 years with private equity and 4 acquisitionsBuilding a 500-person team with real ownership culture Find out more about Mia Drennan : ⁠https://glas.agency/member/mia-drennan/ Mia Drennan on LinkedIn here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/miadrennan/ Join Female Founders Rise Free: ⁠⁠https://femalefoundersrise.com/⁠⁠ Emmie on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust⁠⁠ Mae on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238⁠⁠ Download the episode playbook: ⁠⁠https://femalefoundersriseshow.com/⁠⁠ Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: ⁠⁠https://instagram.com/ffr.show⁠⁠ Watch on YouTube: ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icKi5eb_fXM

  5. Sep 22

    She Turned Her Personal Brand Into a £3M Business. Here's the Exact Playbook | Amelia Sordell

    What if your personal brand & posts brought in clients instead of just likes? This is the playbook behind a £3M bootstrapped business founded by Amelia Sordell. Find out more about our upcoming personal branding challenge with Amelia here: https://femalefoundersrise.com/personal-branding-challenge In this episode of the Female Founders Rise Show, we break down how to turn a personal brand into a client-winning asset - with a clear focus on founder led marketing , trust-building content, and selling without feeling salesy. We also cover what it takes to grow a bootstrapped business to £3M+, how to talk about money and charge your worth, and the mindset shift that helps female founders stay consistent. What we cover: 1/ Bootstrapping to £3M - scaling a service business without outside funding2/ Founder-led marketing vs personal branding - why people buy from people3/ The 4 Ps - point of view, personality, proof, product4/ Authentic niche content - creating posts that bring leads, not just likes5/ Mindset for self-promotion - charging your worth and staying resilient6/ Defining your own success - building work around the life you want Find out more about Amelia Sordell : https://ameliasordell.com/ Amelia Sordell on LinkedIn here: linkedin.com/in/ameliasordell Join Female Founders Rise Free: ⁠https://femalefoundersrise.com/⁠ Emmie on LinkedIn: ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust⁠ Mae on LinkedIn: ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238⁠ Download the episode playbook: ⁠https://femalefoundersriseshow.com/⁠ Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: ⁠https://instagram.com/ffr.show⁠ Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtu.be/ULn2e8e-0D0

  6. Sep 15

    Why you don’t always need VC Money | June Angelides MBE, founder and investor MBE

    Do you actually need VC money to grow?In this conversation, investor and 2x founder June Angelides MBE breaks down bootstrap vs venture capital - when to raise, when to walk away, and what investors actually look for.Hosts Emmie & Mae dig into the funding questions every female founder asks: angel investing vs venture capital, founder-market fit, warm introductions, and why raising more than you need can hurt your focus.You will learn how to find an angel investor, how to think about startup funding for the stage you are at now, and how to pitch with conviction without over-raising.June Angelides MBE is a prominent British tech entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and advocate for diversity in the startup ecosystem: https://juneangelides.com/What we cover:- Bootstrap vs venture capital - which path fits your business- Angel investing vs venture capital - the real difference- Founder-market fit and why investors back the founder- Warm introductions and building investor relationships early- Raising capital with focus - why more money is not always better- From Mums in Tech to MyPholyo- spotting a gap and building through burnout- Storytelling, visibility and conviction when you pitch- If you are deciding how to fund your next stage, start here. MORE RESOURCES June on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juneangelidesmbe/Join Female Founders Rise Free: https://femalefoundersrise.com/Emmie on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaustMae on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238Download the episode playbook: https://femalefoundersriseshow.com/Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: https://instagram.com/ffr.showWatch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ULn2e8e-0D0

  7. Sep 8

    The Unsexy Product That Built a £8M+ Challenger Brand | Laura Harnett Founder of Seep

    How do you turn an unsexy product into a successful challenger brand - without giving away all your equity? In this episode, Emmie & Mae sit down with Laura Harnett, founder of Seep - the plastic-free cleaning brand on a mission to wipe away microplastics from 10 million homes. Laura has made over £1M and raised over £1M for Seep, going from bootstrapped and customer-funded to stocked in Tesco, Whole Foods, Planet Organic and Amazon with a £8M+ run rate. She breaks down what really happened after Dragons' Den in 2024 - securing investment from Trinny Woodall and Deborah Meaden, why she went on the show for awareness ahead of Tesco talks, and how that halo effect more than doubled Seep's growth to a £2.5M+ run rate. We also dig into the reality of building a challenger brand in a boring aisle, bootstrapping vs raising VC, and the mindset shift every female founder needs to stay scrappy and sane. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:- Why bootstrapping helped Laura keep more equity - and why she now sees it as a superpower- How Seep raised over £1M from angels, a family office and impact VCs after VC rejections- What Dragons' Den really does for sales, website traffic and retail credibility- Why boring products are the best businesses for disruption and tongue-in-cheek marketing- The #1 killer for early-stage businesses- How Laura protects her energy as a founder-What's next for Seep - and why she plans to exit in her 50s to back other women in businessIf you are a founder building a challenger brand or navigating bootstrapping business vs funding, this is your playbook for staying lean, consistent, and mission-led. Enjoyed this episode?Subscribe for honest founder stories every week. CONNECT WITH US→ Join Female Founders Rise Free: https://femalefoundersrise.com/→ Emmie on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust→ Mae on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238→ Download the episode playbook: https://femalefoundersriseshow.com/→ Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: https://instagram.com/ffr.show→ Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sB0-3pxnaBs

  8. Sep 1

    The Truth About Being a Mum and an Entrepreneur

    Balancing motherhood and business is unpredictable, so how do female founders actually do both without burning out?In this honest conversation, hosts Emmie & Mae talk openly about what it really takes to run a business while raising a family. Emmie shares what she learned juggling four kids as an entrepreneur while Mae prepares for motherhood, and together they unpack the reality behind maternity leave when you ARE the business.Whether you are planning for a baby, in the early months, or years into the juggle, this episode will help you set realistic expectations, build the right support, and let go of perfection.WHAT YOU WILL LEARN: Why you should set your business up to run without you for at least 3 monthsThe flexibility advantage entrepreneurs have over traditional maternity leaveHow to navigate partner dynamics and avoid resentment when both careers are demandingWhy extended paternity leave changes everything for foundersHow to prioritise what matters and let go of being the perfect founder, partner and parentWhy you cannot compare your journey - every baby and every business is differentWhen and how to ask for help before you hit burnoutThis is for any woman trying to build a business and a family at the same time.CHAPTERS:00:00 - Why we recorded this live00:35 - The unknown of parenthood and business03:35 - Prepare for not being able to work09:52 - Plan for 3 months off10:44 - The entrepreneur advantage - flexibility14:44 - Partnership, resentment and taking turns to shine21:13 - The real mistake - not enjoying work or kids25:01 - Letting go of perfection28:23 - Doing what is right for you and your body29:51 - Be kind to yourself and embrace supportConnect with us→ Join Female Founders Rise Free: https://femalefoundersrise.com/→ Emmie on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/emmiefaust→ Mae on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/mae-yip-9017b238→ Download the episode playbook: https://femalefoundersriseshow.com/→ Female Founders Rise Show on Instagram: https://instagram.com/ffr.show→ Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ZzmT38gycW8

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About

Honest Talk From Female Founders. Each week, Emmie Faust and Mae Yip break down what it actually takes to build a business - funding, growth, burnout, parenting, and everything in between. Regularly joined by founders, investors and operators who've either raised a million, made a million or raised millions. Just the conversations female founders need, every week. Brought to you by Female Founders Rise - a community of 11,000+ female entrepreneurs.

Information

  • Creator
    Hosted by Emmie and Mae
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Hosted by Emmie and Mae
  • Show Website
    Female Founders Rise Show

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