Episode 108: Gillian McIver

Gillian McIver

Intro: [00:00:00] Welcome to the Pretty Powerful Podcast, where powerful women are interviewed every week to share real inspiring stories and incredible insight to help women or anyone break the barriers, be a part of innovation, shatter the glass ceiling, and dominate to the top of their sport, industry, or life's mission.

Join us as we celebrate exceptional women and step into our power. And now here's your host, Angela Gennari.

Angela Gennari: So to the pretty powerful podcast, my name is Angela Gennari and I am here with Gillian McIver. Hi Gillian. Hi. So nice to be here. So nice to have you. So Gillian McIver is the founder of rain wellness, a brand committed to delivering high quality, sustainable, effective menstrual products that embody a meaningful purpose.

Gillian grew up in a small town. Small town, Ontario, Canada, with a, an amazing [00:01:00] supportive family with two brothers, one sister, and the best parents. She competed internationally in freestyle skiing until the age of 19 and credits competing at high levels for teaching her the value of commitment, determination, and learning from mistakes essential in entrepreneurship for sure.

So you launched rain wellness less than a year ago. And, uh, can you tell me about what made you come into the idea that you want to start a wellness?

Gillian McIver: Yeah. So yeah, I've been working on this company since 2021, but we just launched into market a year ago. So it feels new still, even though it also simultaneously feels like it's been a long journey.

Angela Gennari: Right. I understand. Entrepreneur years are like dog years.

Gillian McIver: Yeah. Just see, it's, it's exciting and it's fast, but it's also slow.

Angela Gennari: Yep.

Gillian McIver: Um, so yeah. But I'll say the, the root of kind of RAIN Wellness and why I wanted to start it came from, I call it kind of a full body and mind health and wellness [00:02:00] reset that I did in 2020.

Um, in February of 2020, I started my MBA at Ivy Business School here in Canada. And, you know, we started two weeks before COVID and we didn't know COVID was happening, obviously, and then everything went into lockdown. And I've always been a very active person, but Those first kind of six to seven months of COVID coupled with school, I definitely let my health and wellness take a backseat.

And I was, you know, consuming lots of things and. Just not using kind of my health and wellness as a priority anymore. And so in October of that year, um, it sounds so cheesy, but I literally like stripped down into a bathing suit and I looked at myself in the mirror and I was like, something needs to change.

Like, I'm not happy with where I am and how I feel mentally and physically. And so the next day I. You know, purchased a workout program at my house and I got a bunch of healthy food and I really started this rigorous routine and it, it gave me kind of a foundation [00:03:00] to look at what I was consuming across my whole life.

So whether that was, you know, media, um, personal care products, food, all of that. And from that, I kind of went down a rabbit hole of period products. And I'm, I'm a person with a very regular period. And so I use a lot of period products monthly. Um, And I was buying, you know, whatever conventional product off the shelf

Both: and

Gillian McIver: started reading more about it and what can be in conventional tampons that aren't certified organic.

And I thought, you know, it's, it's hard to find these products, at least in Canada on the shelf. So let's solve that problem. So I launched rain wellness with really a retail focused approach. And that's been my goal from the beginning is making these period products accessible, uh, wherever anybody with a period does their everyday shopping.

Angela Gennari: Nice. So retail is a very competitive space, isn't it? So how hard is it to get shelf space?

Gillian McIver: It is a world that I knew nothing about, and [00:04:00] maybe ignorance is bliss in this point, because I don't know if I would have taken a retail first strategy if I'd known how intricate it all is, um, and how many layers there is to get into retail, but

Angela Gennari: yeah.

Gillian McIver: I've been lucky, I'll say. And so there's a pharmacy chain here in Canada, which, um, I won't say the name because it's not official yet, but we're supposed to launch into quite a few stores, uh, in a couple months. And right before this, I came off of a pricing call and everybody wants bigger margins. Um, you know, and there, and I've learned very quickly that to get into retail, Um, it's really hard to just sell direct to a large retailer.

There needs to be a distributor involved because, you know, CVS or whatever, they don't want to hold a million accounts with every product in their store. They want to hold 500 accounts and have a distributor provide those. And so,

Both: you know,

Gillian McIver: the distributor needs their margins, which is fair. They're doing a lot of work for me.

The retailer needs their margins. I need to cover my costs and hopefully make a little [00:05:00] bit of money at the end of the day. Um, their shelving fees, you know, every, I have four skews. Every skew typically comes with a pretty hefty shelving fee. Um, so it's, it's kind of the wild west and, and the financial health of the company can fall away very quickly, or it can be very successful.

It just takes a really, Locked in strategy and, and that I have found is really all about relationships and who I enter a distributor relation with and stuff. But yeah, it's been, um, something I never expected. And again, I think ignorance is bliss in that

Angela Gennari: standpoint. I know. I feel the same way about my industry too.

I didn't know what I didn't know. And that. Is probably what allowed me to do what I did because, you know, it's one of those things where nobody told me I couldn't. So I just did. And so, yeah, ignorance can be very bliss when you're, when you're starting a business and you're trying to take chances on yourself.

Um, yeah, because if you overthink it and you listen to all the feedback from people saying, Nope, can't be [00:06:00] done. No, you can't do it. They're telling you their limitations, not yours. So.

Gillian McIver: Absolutely. And I found that at the beginning of starting this business, um, like my product line is considered by both the FDA and our organization called Health Canada.

They're considered medical devices because they go in your body. And so they have to be approved by Health Canada and FDA. And before I'd even started the Health Canada licensing process, anybody I spoke to was like, you can't do it alone. There's no way you need to hire consultants. You need to hire a lawyer.

And so I did those things without even trying because I had. Essentially been scared into thinking I couldn't do it alone. And so I paid some consultants and I wasn't really happy with the work and I didn't get anywhere. So I eventually just did it myself. And

Angela Gennari: yeah,

Gillian McIver: it, it wasn't easy. It was kind of a head banging against the wall experience, but I also did it at the end of the day.

And I think it's really easy to get caught up in people being like, well, no, you can't do that. Like that's crazy. You can't deal with this government organization on your own and you can, you can do a lot more than you think you can. It just, it takes maybe a little bit more [00:07:00] time.

Angela Gennari: That's exactly right.

Yeah. Well, good for you. Good for you for doing it and going after it. So why not the e commerce channel or did you consider it and you just decided to do retail instead?

Gillian McIver: I've looked at both. It's funny. I, it was like 2022, I think. And I was kind of looking at my business plan and the projected financials.

And I didn't even have product in Canada yet. I wasn't selling, but I just kind of had this light bulb moment, so to speak of like. It, it just makes more sense to be on retail because at least here in Canada, shipping is quite expensive. And so a tampon is a product that when you need one, you typically need one pretty quickly.

Yeah. Yeah. Some people plan ahead. Some people don't. I don't. Um, yeah, I'm usually on a trip and I'm like, yeah, the amount of people that say that is amazing. Um, so yeah, it was kind of. I looked at it and I was like, how can we get this into more hands more quickly and [00:08:00] for a cheaper price? Because if I started adding up, you know, so a consumer buys it for 9.

99 from my website, I put it in a box, I ship it to them with Canada Post, you're, it's like 20 and that doesn't. feel accessible to people who want access to clean period products. And so that option exists, you can buy it through my website, you can buy it through e commerce wellness platforms in Canada, which I love because it lets people shop how they want to shop.

But I really wanted a retail first strategy because you're already buying, you know, something else at the grocery store and you're like, Oh yeah, I also need this. And you grab it and it's, it's not going to cost you 20.

Angela Gennari: That's good. Yeah, that makes total sense. So have you thought about setting up distribution outside of Canada?

Gillian McIver: Yes, I have my sights set on the U. S. Nice. Um, yeah, I'm just actually working with a logistics company now who's based in the U. S. who's amazing and they're When I'm ready going to help facilitate that process. Um, my products are FDA licensed already. I need my own [00:09:00] FDA. I think they call it like an establishment license, um, which comes at a hefty cost and it only renews every October.

And so we're quickly approaching October. So I'm just Yeah, I'm running the business case as to if I should purchase it this October or wait a little bit, but absolutely the U S market is big. It's amazing. There's such cool retailers that I'd love to get into. And I think my brand story and the product itself could do well there.

So that's my next goal.

Angela Gennari: I love it. Very cool. All right. Yeah, I imagine that anything on the health care side is going to be a challenge, um, just because there's so much more regulatory, you know, jargon and things that you have to know. And has that just been a huge learning curve for you?

Gillian McIver: Yeah, that year that I was working on those health Canada licenses and it, It, I feel like every week I was like, Oh, okay.

Yeah. Here's another layer to it. And you know, even though the, the, so the, how it works, I, I private label from a manufacturer. And so [00:10:00] the manufacturer was already health Canada license. The products themselves are health Canada license. As I white label under my own brand, I needed my own license as well.

So they're, they're like they're licensed at multiple levels. Um, yeah. And it just, it felt like a very, archaic process, I will say, trying to go through it, how they accept applications, how they communicate. Um, it's not streamlined in any way. And it's, it's, it's, Interesting at least when I hear our government, you know, saying that they really are here to help entrepreneurs, which I do believe to an extent, but there's also all of these roadblocks, which I think people who haven't gone through it don't even know exist.

And so it's our job of, I think people have gone through it with brands to be like, Hey, this is also, this could be way better. Let's make it better, you know? And so, yeah, it wasn't, It was, I cried a lot that year. I will say I was so frustrated a lot of the time.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Well, and I, I own a security company and last year we made this [00:11:00] decision to expand into several states.

And I had no idea what I was getting myself into because security is one thing. One of, one of the many, um, really cumbersome processes in the U S where it's state Governed not federal governed. So from state to state, the laws are completely different. Um, I mean, like so much so that I have to have somebody in that state managing compliance for that state.

And so I have to hire somebody full time and that's their job. You manage compliance and the and everything that you're doing. And so it's so cumbersome. So it really has to make sense, even just to expand state to state in the US when you're doing something That involves licensing or certifications or anything like that.

So I totally get it. You know, they think the United States is so easy to do business because we're all one country except that there are different things where the states govern it, not the federal. Oh, it's surprising.

Gillian McIver: And you never know that until you go through it, right? Exactly. No one would think that securities is [00:12:00] something that changes state to state.

It's just not intuitive.

Angela Gennari: Exactly. And so, you know, in some states they have to, uh, take a certain amount of training and then that exact same training won't work for another state. And so like, it's, it's just, it's something else. I tell you what, but, but yes, nobody knows until you go through it, how much regulatory things, you know, especially those states where they're like, Oh yeah, we really are.

You know, we're, we're pro small business. Like, no, you are not. I have done it. I have done it. And it is. It's so hard. Then you have other states that don't consider themselves, like they call themselves the Commonwealth, right? Like Virginia. Oh, the Commonwealth of Virginia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

And you just have all these other ridiculous laws that because they see themselves as something different than a regular old state. It's wild. And it's like,

Gillian McIver: why can't everybody kind of, you know, join forces and again, it's all about efficiencies. Why can't we just do it together and maybe make the process a little bit [00:13:00] easier.

Angela Gennari: Let's let's let's be really true proof. Pro small business. And, you know, even to the extent where I've actually talked to different politicians, like during 2020 is 2020 was just, it was a year where I felt like all I did was bang my head against a brick wall. It was like two steps forward, seven steps back.

You know, we can release, you know, we can open up events. Oh, but wait, there's this regulation and this regulation and this regulation. And then we have this, and then you can't do that. And then we might cancel at the last minute and you can't charge us. And you can't, you can't require that your employees show up if they call you and they say they have a fever.

So I'm like, so they can just not show up for work. Oh, I had a fever that day. You know, it's like, Oh, it was so much. But, um, but yeah, 2020, I had reached out to a couple of politicians. And even then I'm like, Hey, I want to join your small business committee. Who's making these damn decisions for the 20, you know, all these regulations.

I want to be on that committee. Like I need sensibility here. And they're like, Oh, but the committee is full of like, you know, accountants and. Attorneys and people who are not small businesses who are making decisions on behalf [00:14:00] of small businesses who again are nothing but politicians who are as far from small businesses you can get but Anyway, that was my it's the

Gillian McIver: definition of like a hair pulling experience.

You just want to be like why is this happening? No,

Angela Gennari: no, this makes sense. None of it. No, exactly So, yeah, I agree We should only allow committees of people who actually have been there and done that and none of the other You Things can, can, you know, be involved with it. Yeah. So I agree. So when you start going into this, how long did it take you from concept to getting on shelves?

Gillian McIver: Three and a half years. I guess two and a half. Sorry. My apologies. My math isn't great. Uh, two and a half. So yeah, I started the first iteration of the company in April of 2021. That's when I like officially incorporated. Um, also at that point it was, it was, It's essentially going to be a completely different company.

And as I kind of honed in on a strategy, um, this is what was born from that. And I'm, I'm very grateful for that, [00:15:00] but that was April, 2021. And you know, and then the, I think the manufacturer wasn't licensed with health Canada until January of 2022. Then I DMI licensing, which took me to December of 2022.

And then I ordered product. And then it takes four months to get here. And all of a sudden we were in September of 2023 and I finally had pallets delivered and like, that was a whole dumpster fire experience of itself trying to get those pallets delivered. And it's like a very memorable, memorable story, which I will take with me forever.

But all of a sudden it was like. Okay, we're in business, but now I also need to sell it. And so I was really lucky. I, I had a few local independent, um, health and wellness stores who were immediately like, yes, we'll take it. And they've been so supportive, which is, it means the world to get your first retailer.

It's like, I'll never forget that email of being like, The first retailer saying yes. And I like cried and I was just like, it feels like everything's real. Um, but yeah, it was, it was a [00:16:00] full, full two and a half years to get onto a shelf from concept to now.

Angela Gennari: Unbelievable. Wow. So, so when you got your first retailers, those were ones that I assume you went direct to.

Gillian McIver: Exactly, yeah. I just signed a distributor about a month ago, and so we're just now in the midst of doing our first, um, deal together, which is with a major retailer, and that's what spurred the need to get a distributor, um, I met with a retailer independently way back in March, and they were like, yep, we love it, um, we'll take it on, but you need a distributor, and then I need, I wanted to find the right partner, and so I, I took quite a few months to do that, because You know, I wanted a partner that I could see long term growth with and long term strategy in the distribution space.

Um, and so we just signed the contract in August. And so now we're doing that first deal together, which is exciting. But until, till now, I've been approaching stores, uh, on my own. Literally like door knocking or walking in and being like, Oh, I think my product can be a great fit here. And the feedback is, yeah, I don't always get yeses of course, but [00:17:00] the stores that take it, they're really excited and they love to tell the brand story and publish that on social media and stuff, which any little bit helps.

Angela Gennari: That's really cool. So tell me what the process is like when getting a distributor. Like, is that somebody that you, like you're vetting them and they're vetting you at the same time, I assume, right? Because I'm assuming, I'm assuming they don't want brands or products that they can't really sell.

Gillian McIver: Absolutely. It's kind of like. You're both contestants on the bachelor. Okay, so you both hold a lot of power and you're both kind of like You know what? Let's doing a song and dance together in a way Um, but there's there's lots of distributors in canada and the u. s. There'd be even more Um, there's also brokers So some distributors do just distribution they warehouse and they ship when they get a purchase order My distributor also has a broker angle.

So they have salespeople

Both: Uh

Gillian McIver: going into stores and selling your product and so that's really helpful because it's kind of a two in one thing But I probably had six to seven meetings with different distributors [00:18:00] from april till June, um, and then I started talking with my distributor now and that was the end of my search But it's a really interesting process.

I think particularly in retail A lot of people who want a piece of the pie will sell you the moon in your initial conversations, and it's hard to know how much of that will come to fruition. So part of it is a gut check, being like, you know, these people seem really committed, genuinely, and I think they'll actually get out there and sell my product.

Both: Sure. Um,

Gillian McIver: and what I kind of held As a frame of reference was there's huge distributors with a huge portfolio of products, which down the road, maybe that will be an amazing fit. I'm still a really new brand and I'm not going to make them a ton of money at the beginning. And so I went with a smaller distributor who I wouldn't get lost in the shuffle of 500 other brands, right?

They have a few. They're giving me a lot of attention and I love that because I need that right [00:19:00] now. I need sales agents like excited about it. And so it's kind of that balancing act of who do you think is going to work really hard for you? Who do you trust? Who do you think is going to sell your product?

There's so many different decisions that went into it.

Angela Gennari: That's so true because you're right. You need somebody you can trust, right? Like you're, you're turning over the basically the kind of the marketing or do they, do they do marketing for you as well or how does that work?

Gillian McIver: Yeah. So they'll help, um, construct like in store marketing initiatives and stuff.

So, you know, you walk into a CVS for example, and you'll see some shelf danglers or like, you know, a two for one special and stuff. And so they manage all of that, which is really nice. They'll help, um, put me into like the store flyer and stuff. Um, so they do a lot of marketing efforts. They warehouse, they ship the product to the retailer, and they again do some, they do sales on my behalf as well.

So I'm really like, here's my company, please take care of it. .

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Yeah. I love it. Okay, so, so yeah, finding the right distribution [00:20:00] partner seems like it's key. So do they. So how does that work? Do they help you with like designing your packaging or anything or that's all on you?

Gillian McIver: That's been all on me. And a lot of that has to do with, um, the packaging itself has to be health Canada approved.

And so there are certain things that like, have to go on each package to be Health Canada approved. So that includes where the manufacturing is, a toxic shock warning, which has to go on every period product or every tampon, I should say. Um, the certifications have to be approved by Health Canada. So, and also by every certification body.

And so I had to get the packaging approved. By six different governing bodies before I can even order product. And so I did that back in, again, it was like 2022 or 2023. Um, and got that approval. So I designed the package. I had an amazing individual, um, named Sarah, who she does. Marketing and brand design.

And so she designed the packaging and it's [00:21:00] like, people walk by my booth at a trade show and they are just like, what? It's so beautiful. And that was the intent. Yeah. And so I really wanted packaging that looked amazing. Um, and I, I took that on on my own and then obviously onboarded a professional to do it.

And I couldn't be happier with it.

Angela Gennari: Very cool. So I don't know if you ever follow any other entrepreneurs, but I'm a big entrepreneur nerd. Like I like to follow other entrepreneurs. So Sarah Blakely, are you familiar with her? Of course, the queen. So yeah. Yeah. Like she was like the queen of like the women owned billionaire businesses.

And I love her story about how she was getting all of her products shipped to her house. And there's just pictures of her in her living room, packaging things up and like making it all happen. So is it similar when you just get two pallets or a couple of pallets dropped on you of tampons? You're like, great, this is, you know, like, how does this work?

So are you then taking them yourself to these stores, especially the first ones where you're, it's a, you know, it's a smaller [00:22:00] shop, are you just taking them yourself and in the trunk of your car, like, here you go.

Gillian McIver: Yes, literally. And I, yeah. I love it. It's that exactly. And when I fulfill orders through my website right now, or I get a purchase order from one of my current retailers, um, I package them up on my kitchen table over there.

I print out the packaging labels. I take them to the post office. Um, I have one pallet of product in my basement. And then, uh, a very good friend of mine offered to keep the other two pallets. Three pallets in their basement for me because I don't have room and so Those will get moved once I get a purchase order and those will get offloaded to the distributor But for right now and for the last year, it's like the most homegrown grown organization possible It's it's amazing and you know, I think as I do this I Can only think of, you know, one day I'll look back on this and I hope that's true.

I hope it is obviously such a success that I look back to when I was taping things at midnight closed on my kitchen table. Um, [00:23:00] but even like, you know, I, I said the first order of. The pallets was a bit of a dumpster fire. And I all like, I was so excited. You know, I knew the date they were getting dropped off.

It was like September 22nd and I was ready. And I knew where they were going to get, they were going to, they're supposed to go to my storage facility. And so I knew the truck was on the way and then the company calls me and they're like, we can't drop them here. Like we don't have the right truck. We didn't bring one of those.

Decks at like lower.

Both: Oh. So we need, we need a thing that we can

Gillian McIver: back into. And I was like, but I don't have that. Like Yeah. I, I don't have just a, like a w like a warehouse. Warehouse. Warehouse. Mm-hmm . Yeah, . And so they're like, well, let us call one of our customers in the area. And so what? Bless her heart, they're like truck dispatcher.

She called a local furniture company. I'm from a small town, so people like to help each other out, but she called a local furniture company, who they deal with, and they were like, Okay, like, yeah, we'll take them, but they need to be out by 7 o'clock tonight, it's like 11 in the morning, and I was like, Oh no!

Okay, so the truck [00:24:00] rolls up, three huge pallets off the back of the truck into this furniture store. Furniture store. And I was like, this is crazy. And I call my mom and dad crying. And I was like, I don't know what to do. Like, I can't move them. Like, what are we going to do? And so my dad was working, bless my mom's heart.

She's like, let's do this. So she loads up the SUV in the trailer and comes over. And for the next like five hours, we did like box by box into this trailer, drove home box by box into the garage. And we did that like three or four trips and we got it done and it's just one of those things where it's like I was all tears and overwhelmed it got done and it is a funny story now and I I just think it's again one of those like Moments burned into my memory where I'm like, again, down the road, this will be laughable.

And it will be one of those things where you're like, mom, remember when we had to move 10, 000 boxes of tampons?

Angela Gennari: That's awesome. I love it. [00:25:00] So, you know, these stories are so priceless because honestly, like, so I I've done, um, With this podcast, I was asked to do a public speaking event and I'm like, what am I going to talk about?

And I like, just talk about, you know, you and tighten. And I was like, I mean, I have some crazy stories about things that I've had to overcome. They're like, those are great. And honestly, like, I just this week did my 3rd speaking engagement. And those stories are what resonate like that is, you know, I could, I could give them, you know, here's how to start a business and become a millionaire step by step.

And they will listen to none of that. But that one story that I tell them about how I, you know, nearly lost the entire business, uh, in a matter of three days, they're like, that story was great. And I'm like, but what about the other things?

Gillian McIver: They're like, no, we only care about those things. I think it adds, it adds a really human perspective, right?

Like I think on. You can look on LinkedIn and Instagram, and it seems like every entrepreneur is so successful. But we've all also had those really, A, not every [00:26:00] entrepreneur is successful, and I don't make any money from my company right now, just full context. But yeah, it really gives a human perspective of like, these are, The highs and the lows, and it's not all fun and it's certainly not all pretty,

Angela Gennari: but it's so much like there's so much that you have to come, you know, like grit and tenacity and that grit and tenacity and that early hard days.

This is why I always tell people don't go and get VC funding with an idea. Don't do it because number one, you're giving up your whole company. And number two, you don't get to learn the lessons that help you to be a great entrepreneur and make really good business decisions later on when you do have the money.

So like if people, if somebody hands a. 22 year old who has this, you know, Oh, I'm going to start the newest great dating app and they hand them 20 million. That 20 million has gone in six months on some stupid stuff that should never have been a thing. But the entrepreneur who's been gritty and who has like, you know, hold themselves up from their bootstraps.

They're going to make really good choices with that 20 million later.

Gillian McIver: So you [00:27:00] really value every penny when you're figuring it out yourself. And I've certainly learned the value of that. And it's scary at times, you know, you can really stretch your personal finances and get yourself personally into a scary situation financially.

But you know, it, it's all part of it to an extent

Angela Gennari: of it. Yeah. I mean, like as an entrepreneur, you know, you do have to do things that sound like the worst business decision ever. Like I'm going to finance my business with this. Credit cards that have 27 percent interest rates and like, that's what we're doing right now, you know, and so like hang on by your fingernails and we'll work it out later.

That'll be my, that'll be my, uh, that'll be my later on plan, but like right now, this is what we're doing. Yeah, we've been there, but yeah, so I am a big believer in, you know, figure out the hard stuff early. Um, I even tell my son that as like life lessons, you know, I'm like, make all the mistakes before you turn 18.

And so that way, because those mistakes, you have a landing pad, you have a little soft place to fall. [00:28:00] You make those same mistakes financially, you know, like you can go invest in Bitcoin. If you lose it all tomorrow, it's okay. You don't have to pay rent. Right. So, you know, go, go make crazy stock investments, go do all those things and, and learn what it feels like.

It's kind of like getting an immunization. You know, you get a little dose of something that if you were to get it full on, it would be much worse. So get little doses of immunization against like financial decisions and like, or life choices do that early. Cause then you learn.

Gillian McIver: Absolutely. And I think we all like, as.

Young individuals before we leave high school, we should have way more financial literacy than we do. And so I think giving your, I mean, I don't have children, but I hope one day to be able to give my kid or children some financial literacy and, you know, let them make those little Absolutely. Choices and mistakes like you talked about, because then when you enter quote unquote the real world, you kind of have a little context, but it's, it is so wild that like I could go to university and just get a credit card by walking past like a [00:29:00] booth at Welcome Week.

And you

Angela Gennari: get like a free t shirt and now you have a, uh, postcard. You know, 1, 000 limit and a 28 percent interest rate. And you're like, awesome. And you're like, this is not awesome. It's free. It's 1, 000, right? I can just spend 1, 000. 3, 000. Let's go on a cruise. Yeah, like it's the craziest stuff. Absolutely.

They should not be giving credit cards to kids who have not had to make any financial decisions yet. Exactly. So let's talk about that while we're talking about finances. How do you finance three pallets of tampons? Like, how do you? You know, working with the distributor, I'm sure they are going to demand, Hey, we're going to put all this product into all these stores.

How do you finance that?

Gillian McIver: Yeah, to date, the, the company has been, um, self funded. I, you know, my, my parents corporation put in some money for the inventory, which I'm forever grateful for.

Both: Um,

Gillian McIver: I have. A couple times now maxed out the line of credit that I received to do my MBA. Um, I would pay it [00:30:00] down. I would jack that right back up.

I'm, I'm approaching the limit again, like every day I'm getting a little bit closer. Um, so I've done a lot, you know, I it's not been glamorous by any means. Um, The fall of 2021 after I had graduated school, I went back to waitressing. Um, I did waitressing, you know, all through university and bartending and it's great money.

Both: Um,

Gillian McIver: late nights, it's not great. I still do it. I work tonight and tomorrow night at a, at a local restaurant. Um, but it allows income. To be made in the hours that I don't have to do my own work. Um, and so I've really relied heavily on that. I also do some, I've done a few different short term contracts. So I worked a couple of years ago for a friend's company, a consulting firm.

I did some work with them. I'm in the middle of like a three to six month contract right now as well. So I try and do that for, you know, three to four hours a day and then do my stuff. And it's, it's kind of a balancing act. And I'm in the phase now of, of growth, where once I secure, uh, One or two purchase orders.

It's a lot easier to go raise money. And I've [00:31:00] certainly now have proof of concept that the product and company can be successful. And so whether I take a loan, whether I take investor money, I'm, I'm in that decision making period right now, but it has been such an interesting experience being in my thirties and watching my colleagues from the MBA, um, have these jobs where they're making a lot of money and I am waitressing.

And that is, it's, it's, that's not the full story, but that's. The comparison that I just look in the mirror sometimes and I'm like, I'm waitressing and that's an amazing profession and I love, I love it and I love the social aspects of it. I'm not trying to put it down, but it's really hard when I sometimes sit here and compare myself to my peers and it's just like,

Both: yeah, this

Gillian McIver: is, you know, it's, it's not glamorous and it's all part of it again.

Um, but that's it today. It's still what I'm doing.

Angela Gennari: But, you know, with the, with, and, and I get it because I'm, but this, the entrepreneurial spirit, it's the feeling like you're doing something much bigger than yourself [00:32:00] and that you're solving a problem. And that to me is priceless. And, and I mean, I get in that same mindset sometimes, like even as an entrepreneur and even, you know, I've been in my business for nine years and I'll look at other entrepreneurs.

I'm like, but they're doing so much. Better. And there's more free time. And like, there's always a comparison that you're going to make, but the whole idea of you doing this and grinding it out and doing the hard work now is so that you can TEDx their income in, in, you know, 10 years. So hopefully it's all for a good cause and you're helping women and you're doing all this really cool stuff and you're learning some really cool lessons.

So that's awesome. Yeah.

Gillian McIver: But you're right, there's always comparison. Like, I talk to those individuals who, you know, have the consulting and finance jobs, and they look at me and they're like, Your life seems sweet, like, you get to do what you want, and, you know, so we're always comparing one another, and they might not get as much fulfillment out of their job, they might have fewer.

Financial stability. I get a lot of fulfillment. I don't have financial stability. Right. So it's kind of the grass is always greener and, and it's just what [00:33:00] we choose to focus on. But yeah, like self criticism of where you are in life can be so detrimental. Yeah.

Angela Gennari: So harsh. I mean, and it doesn't even matter where you are in life.

Like, even if you have all the money in the world, you're going to look at somebody who has, you know, a family, you know, a spouse and the kids and. And you're like, Oh, I wish I was them. And they're looking at you. Like, I wish I was you, you know? And so it doesn't matter exactly. Like you get to go out and do what you want.

Right. So yeah, it's, it's, it's all, you know, it's so easy to compare your journey to somebody else's, but. It's your journey and it's up to you what happens with it. So we'll good for you. So tell me, I mean, we've talked a lot about the obstacles that you've had to overcome in order to get where you are, but, um, tell me.

So one of the questions that I ask on my podcast all the time is tell me about a time that you've given your power away and another time that you've stepped into your power.

Gillian McIver: I feel like as a female business owner, I unconsciously give my power away [00:34:00] every time I talk about my business and. I have been thinking about that more recently, and it's It's our nature to be like, Oh, just that, just that little thing I'm doing.

It's not successful yet though. I'm not making any money from it. It's like, every time I talk about the business and I'm actively trying to change this, because what is the purpose of being like, Oh, but it's not, it's nothing yet. Like maybe it'll be big one day because that's not

Both: true.

Gillian McIver: It is something it's.

It's three years of work. It's a passion. It's successful to what it can be right now. And, and so I truly think though, and today it's almost every time I've talked about my business, I've given my power away a little bit and made it seem smaller, um, and made myself feel smaller than just stepping into being like, This is my business.

And the flip side of that is, you know, this, it's kind of silly, but it was a big deal to me. And so this week, so two weeks ago I got these, um, uh, I did a photo shoot, [00:35:00] right? So I had got some headshots done. It was really fun. And so I'm holding the product, whatever. And. I haven't been really so like, I haven't really promoted my own business on my own social media until recently.

And so on my story on like Monday night, I put up one of the new photos of me holding the product smiling. And I kind of made a joke. I was like, you know, so happy to be a broke founder, LOL. And it, but it's, I realized it's the first time I've used the word founder in like a public platform, other than just like on my badge for the trade show and just, That's, I feel like, using that word on a social platform with, you know, it's not like I have a bunch of followers, I have less than 2, 000, but that felt powerful to me.

And it's like, I am a founder at the end of the day. I have started this company. I have gotten onto retail shelves and that's pretty cool. And so let's celebrate that. And yes, I did it in the form of a joke because that's what I find fulfilling. And it, but I use that word and I really stepped into it.

And the amount of people I had [00:36:00] responding, being like, I had no idea you started a company. This is amazing. Tell me about it. You know, my business Instagram grew by a hundred people. And so it's just, it's owning that and seeing. And so I'm gonna be like, Oh, the excitement of people in your network being like, yeah, own it.

Like, this is great. Yes. Great. Yes.

Angela Gennari: Yes. Well, and let's just, let me tell you, cause I, this is another soapbox that I'm going to jump on real quick, but I, I see this all the time with women. We're constantly giving our power away, downplaying our accomplishments, you know? And actually with this security conference and um, there's a good friend of mine and I adore her and I think she walks on water.

And like, to me, she is just like the epitome of this accomplished woman. and she, and she. Was with the CIA, you know, fairly prominent organization. Really smart individual. She retired from there and now she's a very top level executive at another very large government, um, agency. And we were talking at this trade at this event last week.

And she, um, and I, and she introduced herself. She's like, [00:37:00] yeah, you know, and she like totally like downplayed who she was. And I looked at her and I looked at the guy she was saying this to, and I was like, do not believe a word she says. She is a. Badass. Who is like, and I just went right down her resume and, and the guy's like, wow, I had no idea.

And I'm like, and she's like, well, yeah. And I'm like, no, not like own it. You are a badass. You know what it takes to get where you are. And so, yeah, I think we do that all the time. And as women, we just downplay our accomplishments and I even catch myself doing it. And I talk about not doing it and I catch myself doing it.

Like. People would come up to me and say, Oh my God, it's so cool what you're doing with Titan. You're growing it. This is so great. And I'm like, yeah, you know, it's okay. But yeah, I mean like, yeah, it takes a lot of work. Like it takes so many sleepless nights and so much grit and so much tenacity. And then to downplay it, it's not fair to us and, and what we have done to get there.

[00:38:00] So yes. Good for you. It's

Gillian McIver: yeah. It's so interesting. It's like, I was thinking about it today and it's almost like, This discomfort of just letting something sit in the air without being like, but it's not a big deal. Right? It's like if somebody, even when I think females and maybe people in general receive a compliment, it's like, like, I love your shoes.

Oh, I got them on sale. It's like, right, right, right. Immediately just, yeah. It's just like, okay, yeah, you love my shoes. Thank you. I love them too. Yeah. You know, and it's stuff like that. And if someone's like, wow, it's amazing what you started. Instead of just letting that sit and be as it is, we have to somehow downplay it.

And it's just like, why can't we just let it sit there and be like, thank you.

Both: Yeah. And just be like, yeah,

Gillian McIver: that's right. Yeah. It's yeah. It's, it's, it's a training process almost. It's like a D sent, like we have to like decommission that part of our being just to be like, yeah, thank you. I appreciate that.

Angela Gennari: Exactly. And, and I do that even now in my personal life. Like when I, um, so I had bought myself a nice [00:39:00] little Porsche for my little reward for all my hard work, uh, after five years at my company, after I'm driving a mom car, whooped you for a long time and somebody actually this week said, um, they said, Oh, I love the Porsche thing.

And like, I've. Immediate reaction was, Oh, you know, it's okay. But I was like, yeah, me too. You know, as you should own that a hundred percent. Yeah. So it's like, you have to start owning that it is, it is difficult though, because we immediately want to downplay our accomplishments. And, and that's one of the hardest things that we have to do is step into that, into that power, into the innership.

Um, we had a, um, I went to, there was like this, uh, Top 100 Fastest Growing Companies thing. And we, we were, you know, in the top 100 Fastest Growing Companies, which is really exciting, but the guys who were up there on like the number three, there were the top three companies up at the front, you know, they got to be honored.

And we were like 15, you know, so we weren't up on the stage, but I thought that was still pretty cool. Right? Yeah. And so I'm listening to these guys [00:40:00] and, you know, it's all cool. Uh, male led companies, which is great, you know, it doesn't bother me, but he was up there and, and as he's talking about his company, it comes out that he's pre revenue.

And I'm like, how are you the fastest growing company? If you don't even have any money, like there's no money. And so I've, you know, it's come to, it's just like, how did you get, I don't understand. I have busted my ass. All this time. What's my, what's happening here? I know. How are you up in the top three pre revenue?

And it's like one of those things where, listen, we've all been at that pre revenue stage, but it does sound better when you say I'm a pre revenue entrepreneur versus a broke entrepreneur because, you know, at the same time, you can just say pre revenue and, you know, it sounds like you're in the VC world and that's how they get away.

I'm going to

Gillian McIver: start using that. That sounds way better.

Angela Gennari: Pre revenue. Yeah, so I, I've now switched into, yeah, we're just pre revenue this month. That's it. We're not, we're not behind. We're not in the [00:41:00] red. I love that so much.

Gillian McIver: See confidence though. That's so different than being broke.

Angela Gennari: All the confidence in the world talking about how they're pre revenue and I was like, wow, that takes a lot of guts, man, I tell you.

Gillian McIver: But I love it. We can all learn from that. We

Angela Gennari: can, we can. Absolutely. You know, there's no shortage of audacity in the world, so we can do whatever we want.

And apparently it's okay. So, um, so tell me what advice would you give to your 18 year old self?

Gillian McIver: Oh, I would say that it's all going to be okay and you have so many years to figure it out. Um, I always describe my twenties as tumultuous, like hectic. There's so much going on. And I mean, I didn't go to university until I was 21.

So I, I kind of consider almost my 18 year old self, my 21 year old self, because most people start school then, but [00:42:00] it's, you're figuring out so much and there's so much unknown. And. You feel like you should be figuring out cause you're a quote unquote, an adult all of a sudden. Um, and I put a lot of pressure on myself and I, every time I think you're my twenties, I feel like I never completed something.

And that really bothered me. I feel like I would start something and then lose interest and start something and lose interest and have a new idea and then not see it through. And. I would say that's okay. Try everything.

Intro: Yeah.

Gillian McIver: Make mistakes. Like you said, don't, I would beat myself up less about why haven't I figured it out?

Why don't I have a job? Like my friends, all of that. Um, because we find our paths all at different times. And I spent so much of my twenties being like, Oh, like I'm not making enough money. I don't have a good enough job. I, you know, I'm not where I Should be, whatever that even means. Um, and so I would just tell [00:43:00] myself to like, enjoy it more than be critical of myself because I didn't enjoy my 20s that much.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Yeah. I completely understand that. You think it has anything to do with the, you know, the fact that you were an exceptional athlete, you just tend to beat yourself up more. You have higher expectations of yourself.

Gillian McIver: I think so. Like certainly that transition out of competitive sport to school, I dropped out of my first university.

I started school, like I kind of stopped skiing, obviously. The end of that winter. And then I started school the next September

Both: and I dropped

Gillian McIver: out six months later, um, I wasn't ready to go to school. That transition was really hard. Um, and then I took another year off and then I started school and. I think there's certainly an inherent, like, I want to be good at everything, and that's what I'm used to, and I'm used to performing at, like, a pretty high level, um, and it took a while for me to kind of, like, calm down out of that, but I certainly wanted, I wanted that same feeling [00:44:00] from a career, and I wasn't getting it in my 20s, and that, I think, really It's like, I was just beating myself up that I hadn't found it yet.

Um, which isn't nice. Like we, we should be nicer to ourselves in general and give her cut ourselves a little slack and give ourselves grace and all of those things. But when you're in it, you don't see that right now I'm 34 and I can look back and be like, Oh, like I hold space in my heart for that 25 year old girl who was really lost.

But when you're 25 and you're just like, It's like, Oh, like this isn't working. You can't see outside of that. But I would, I would certainly look back and be like, it's, it's all good. And you don't have to be a high performing athlete every day of your life.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Yeah. Well, and when you're in that mindset of like domination, you know what I mean?

Like you can dominate. In a sport, you expect to be able to do that same thing in every aspect of life. And it's not that easy. And I think that's why a lot of athletes, you know, they'll get out of, you know, their competitive sports and they'll coach because then they can, they can put that same passion into [00:45:00] something that they know they're already good at.

Because starting something that is new, that you're not good at is a different feeling. And it's not a nice feeling, you know, when you've been so used to being really good at something. So I can imagine that's a hard transition.

Gillian McIver: Yeah. And you kind of leave your safe bubble that you've known forever. Right.

And then you're like, and I think that's why I dropped out of my first university. I was kind of like, I don't feel like I fit in here. And it's, it's like, of course, I don't feel that way because I've lived, lived in one world forever. Now I'm trying to move way over here. And it took time. And, you know, I'm glad I dropped out of that school because it led me to my other school.

And I'm so happy that I went there. But, yeah. I was so, I was so critical of myself at that time because I was like, Oh, you can't even like commit to this. Like first you quit skiing. Now you quit school. What are you going to quit next? And that kind of played in my mind for a lot of years.

Angela Gennari: Absolutely. That makes so much sense.

So this has been such a fun conversation. I am really, really excited about everything that you're doing. So what's next for you? [00:46:00]

Gillian McIver: What's next I think is, um, you know, I have two big retailers that I'm kind of in the process with now. Um, that'll be, if I can get those finished before 2024, um, I will be so happy.

And so that's kind of front of, front of radar right now. And then, Uh, raising money, which is cool. It's, it's an exciting time for the business and, you know, putting together that investor deck and seeing who bites. Um, I'm, it feels like a good time to do that. And so I think, I guess growth of the company is next for me, but particularly kind of those two big retailers and then finally maybe getting some money in that bank account.

Yeah.

Angela Gennari: I hear you. I hear you. Good for you. I am cheering you on from here. Um, I think you're doing exceptional things and you're definitely the person to take this to the finish line. So, uh, I think you have every bit of the grit and tenacity and everything that you need to, to get there. So good.

Congratulations on your success so far and what you will be accomplishing, no doubt, very soon.

Gillian McIver: Thank you. It's been really, really nice [00:47:00] chatting with you and congrats on all of your success. It's amazing what you're doing as well.

Angela Gennari: I appreciate that. So Julianne, one more thing that I want to ask is, uh, what do you wish more people knew?

Gillian McIver: I wish that more people knew The importance of recognizing all sorts of different power. Um, I think when we think of power, it's kind of either high leadership or the loud voice or something like that. Um, but power comes in all sorts of different forms. And, you know, I've worked as an executive assistant.

I've worked as a coordinator. Kind of these lower level jobs that don't always get looked at as. Holding a lot of power, but being able to recognize people where they are and for the power that they bring to an organization or, um, a family or whatever it is, is so important. And so, and I think it really inspires people to, for a more inclusive environment, um, where people can kind of step into their own [00:48:00] power.

And so as we all grow into different leadership positions, just remembering to recognize everybody along the way.

Angela Gennari: That is amazing. I love that. Well, thank you again. And, um, how can people find you?

Gillian McIver: Uh, my, uh, business social media is at rain. wellness, R E I G N. wellness. My website is www. myrainwellness. com.

And please go check out the products. I'd love that. And there'll be available in the U S soon.

Angela Gennari: Hopefully soon. I definitely plan to check it out when, as soon as it comes. So you'll have to let me know when that happens and I will be your first customer in the U S so perfect. Well, thank you so much. Um, I have really, really enjoyed our conversation and I am looking forward to seeing what else you've got going on and all the other things that you achieve, so thank you so

Gillian McIver: much.

It's been a great, great chat with you. Have a good day. Thanks. You too. And everybody, you can also.