This is a Story About Fate.
I launched Juliette in 2014, struggling to find any funding. It takes money to make money and, boy, was I looking high and low for something to come my way. But still, I remained focused. I needed to stay focused.
Juliette’s roots can be found in Tom Ford branding. I fell in love with the chic, sexy black aesthetic. The way the white words stood out on top of a black background is something I aimed to replicate. Something about it yelled confidence… and I needed to be heard.
In 2015, I still had no luck with fundraising. I struggled, but I couldn’t let my faith waver. When it’s something you love and something you’re determined to do, you should never let your faith waver.
Don’t worry, I’m getting there.
In November 2019, on a Sunday afternoon, I got a text message from a friend: “My friend Alex wants to invest in you.” Have you ever had that mixed feeling of relief, shock, and ecstaticness? Whether or not that makes sense — to you or me — that’s how I felt.
My friend told me to send over documents and a contract. I thought to myself, “Sh--t, I have nothing to lose.”
On a Wednesday, the funds I needed were put into my bank account. No document was done, and no contract was signed. Is this guy… my saving grace?
You’re damn right he is. And my saving grace’s name is Alex Cunha. Oh, and turns out, he’s a spokesmodel for Tom Ford. I spent days focusing -- manifesting -- on the brand. Everyone’s path to what they need, or desire, is different, but the power of my thoughts translated into energy, opening up this door of opportunity.
Think about it: Isn’t it easier to achieve something when you make yourself believe you can achieve it?
If you ask Alex why he invested in a business whose owner he’s never met before, he’ll tell you: “I don’t know.” But followed by that “I don’t know,” he says something in him just knew it was the right move.
He had a number of other businesses to choose to invest in and after pondering on it, he made the decision, translating into a life-changing moment for me. At this point, we hadn’t even directly spoken. We met after the fact. I felt like I was finally heard.
And here we are now, about two years later, and Juliette is beating its 2019 revenue numbers. You could believe in faith or you could believe in coincidence, but no matter what you believe in, there will always be a blessing heading your way when you’re committed, dedicated and passionate.
Think of your typical success stories: Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, hell, even someone like Beyoncé. My keyboard autocorrected “Beyonce” to “Beyoncé.” That is power, but that is achievable power.
Their dreams were not achieved in a day. Juliette was built from the ground up for seven years. I bled, sweat, and cried just like you. I’ve been low just like you.
I’ve had my dreams stomped on, probably, just like you.
Because the hard truth is that I was not put in a position to succeed — not even since the day I was born. Only 2% of investments go to women. Then, of that, only 0.2 % go to women of color.
But I wanted to succeed. I manifested it aggressively -- I had to.
There isn’t one path to success. Everyone has their own — I did, and so can you. Alex helped me find mine, so I want to help put you onto yours.