409: Dying to Ego and Embracing Failure with Toni Ko of Bespoke Beauty Brands

Toni Ko's first beauty brand, NYX Cosmetics, made $4 million in year 1, and eventually exited to L'Oréal for $500 million. Craving a new purpose, she started a sunglasses business. It failed after 3.5 years—and Ko says it's one of the best things that ever happened to her. Ko's lessons from that "failure" empowered her to launch her third and current venture: Bespoke Beauty Brands, which partners with influencer entrepreneurs on everything from concept creation to product development, marketing, and fulfillment distribution. Listen to Nathan and Ko discuss: Being a third-generation entrepreneur of Korean immigrants The early days of NYX Cosmetics, when she had 6 job titles Raking in $4 million in retail value in NYX's first year Why she's not good at sales Selling NYX in 2014 for $500 million to L'Oréal Experiencing depression after exiting her business Starting a sunglasses business and failing Launching Bespoke Beauty Brand Working with celebrity influencers like Kim Chi and Jason Wu And much more influencer entrepreneur advice… Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don't forget to leave us a 5-star review if you loved this episode. Wait, there's more… If you enjoy the Foundr podcast, check out our free trainings. Get exclusive, actionable advice from some of the world's best entrepreneurs. For more Foundr content, follow us on your favorite platform: Foundr.com Instagram YouTube Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Magazine