Wondering how to navigate the startup world as a woman of color?

This interview began by sharing a startup story about a mother-daughter team who created a revolutionary new tool for hair... and evolved into a candid conversation around the challenges women of color (and people of color) face when launching a business.

Saraa Green is the Co-Founder and CEO of THEBRAIDRELEASER, a new tool that keeps your hair from breaking when you take down your braids.

Unlike a pointy rat tooth comb, this beautifully designed tool glides through your braids to create a pain-free, time efficient, braid take down experience.

Prompted from a passion challenge assignment at grad school, Saraa recalled her mother’s ingenious innovation in 1992 for keeping her daughters' tears at bay and hair from breaking when taking down their braids.

Saraa tapped into her strong engineering and product design background AND her passion for the beauty industry, and she conceptualized a revolutionary tool that saves hours of time and tears.

Here are the highlights from our awe*mazing and meaningful conversation:

6:20​ - Saraa's side hustle startup story
13:25​ - Saraa's vision story
15:40​ - time to change the narrative for women of color founders
22:40​ - remember to nurture relationships with your loved ones
28:18​ - how The Braid Releaser Works
33:05​ - 3D printing vs. injection molding
35:10​ - how to use packaging design to create the best customer user experience
42:43​ - Saraa's crowdfunding strategy and advice
53:27​ - advice and insights for managing founder doubt moments
58:29​ - Saraa goes deep into racial injustice, how it affects founders of color, and shares her heartfelt, candid advice for founders of color to persevere no matter what

ORDER THE BRAID RELEASER HERE: https://bit.ly/FundBlackFoundersCampaign​

Connect with Saraa and follow The Braid Releaser here:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saraa-gre...​
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebraidrel...​
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thebraidrele...​
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BRAIDRELEASER​

Order It's About Damn Time here: https://amzn.to/32ztoU7​
Order Garrain Jones Change Your Mindset, Change Your Life here: https://amzn.to/32ztoU7​

Saraa’s deep passion for the beauty industry started as a makeup artist at MAC Cosmetics, and is backed up by her engineering and development background at companies like Shima Seiki and adidas.

Her design and engineering education began at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, where she holds a bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design. She went on to earn her MBA from Willamette University, and is currently a student at North Carolina State University’s Doctorate of Design Program.

Thank you carving out time to learn from Saraa's founder journey, to celebrate her wins/learnings,. and to add wind to her sails - cheers!

Ande Lyons
http://andelyons.com​