Episode 21: The Entrepreneurial Spirit with Alli Webb

and the dances like She's my bestpin. It was hilarious. I have not felt old until now. Like I don't know how to do a real Remember when I try to do a reel with Lauren at your house for Style and the Real Reel, the Real, Real, great website. If they want to sponsor us, We're down for it. I too, love me discounted Louis Vuitton bag. Um, yeah, I don't know how to do reels. I don't know how to do TikTok's. I'll never forget. When I was covering for Extra, they were like, hey, um, go cover

the kids, you know, Teen Choice Awards. I knew no one on that red carpet. I feel like, when when was it for you that you're like, oh, yeah, no, I'm not in the loop anymore, or maybe you get represented at the Teen Choice Awards. Snap, just being around these kids out here because we're with all these families and they know every word to every dirty rap song and I thought I was cool, but I was like, how do you know this? And yeah, I feel pretty old.

I'll tell you what's working though maybe you feel old, but then you're gonna fit right in on that golf course because you in a polo shirt never have I ever and you look so like with your hair before. Is this Aaron in Montana? When I FaceTime do yesterday, you were at the driving range and nothing made me happy. So my husband's a huge like golf person, golfer person and person. You've been out here in Montana for about

five six summers and this was the first time. Well last year I said I was going to do it. We have started to take lessons, So my girlfriend Ashley and I have started to take lessons and she's way better. And lessons consist of us just being on the driving range. So yesterday Ash was out of town. I just asked Jarrett, and we're gonna go hit some balls later, um if he would come with me. And I really like it and I'd like to hit a driver before I was a seven iron. But the driver's fun. But you got

to move the tea up a little bit. But then full disclosure. He always is like on Instagram. I'm always like, what are you looking at? What are you looking at? Oh? He's looking at stupid golf videos and stuff. And so now I get it because he took a video of me doing like my swing. I think I sent it to you. I didn't know you didn't, right, Okay, well we'll be putting it on the i G Calm Down. Oh yeah, the i G Calm Down Podcast, The Calm Down Podcast. I G. My arms need to stay straight,

and imagine is my posture is horrible like this? But it's so fun. Where is it? I guess what I ordered? I ordered the back place. I ordered the brace. I wonder if I should wear it. I don't know. I was just gonna put my riding range. That thing works, man. For those of you guys that don't know what we're talking about Aaron was wearing what looks like a backpack when you like, just in this shot that we have right here, but it pulls your shoulders back. Yeah, maybe

try it on the range. I just like, are you enjoying that? That's a good thing to do with like a couple. With couples, you know, Oh yeah, I would not go on the course with him as a couple. I like when he comes out in the range with me and he fixes me, he says, I take coaching very very well. But yeah, I was excited to put my golf shirt on for you and it looks and a head out there after. Oh my god, this is the best version. I'm so happy that you're in a

better mood this week in Montana. This is the errand that I need. In Montana. We dealt with the pillow shams, we dealt with the WiFi. You're in a better headspace and you look adorable. Must be the golfing. Well. I went to this acte puncturist out here today and she made me cry. It was awesome. I don't know, like what happened. And I go to acupuncture once a week for fertility stuff, for anxiety all that, and she was working.

She said certain areas were talking to her and she said she wanted to put some um what I don't know, some what's the dotera this stuff, the smelling stuff that she told me to close my eyes and she would um tell me the scent that was speaking to me. And the one I picked it was very pepperminty. She said open your eyes and said read with the label says and it said breathe and I started to cry. And then Faith Hill played in the background, just reads

for Groceries Yes with her hair. My gosh, I wanted to be faith Hill so bad that for prom that was when that album came out. I put in this terrible weave. It was like, I mean, which I've had a lot of bad weaves. I mean it is this one really took the cake. It was like a full on, like net kind of a thing. But I wanted to be faith Hell so bad. I'll tell you who else. I want to be Ali Webb who Hello, I'm so

excited you guys. We had the co founder of Dry Bar and Squeeze, which is her new business venture, on the podcast Today. As entrepreneurs, Aaron and I are always curious, um and excited to talk to individuals who have done it and crushed it. Um, I want to know she couldn't do just one thing. She had to do too. Why don't you leave the rest for leave us a shot, give piece a chance, Ali, So we'll talk to her. So I'm excited about that. But hello, I am so

sorry I didn't tell you. Congratulations. You must be wearing blue for your lightning winning the cup. Hello, so exciting. My mom and dad went to the parade today. Very cute. Um, and yeah, that was amazing. I cried. We downloaded again the video to the Calm Down podcast. I G it was very emotional. I feel like when the Stanley Cup

comes out anyways, it's super emotional. But just seeing the guys and it was the second year, then it was really excited because their families could go out and enjoy them. And then I don't think they let the families out on the ice, which I still have to get the full story from some of the wives about Sachosa McDonald,

I don't know. NBC showed a shot of them standing at the glass and kind of being like, let us in, and I never saw any pictures of the families and the babies on the ice, which, as we've talked about before, que is very scary sometimes because you can fall right down that that girl's okay, by the way, just in case I was wondering from that at their video. Um, but that's so exciting or is it not as exciting because they've already won? How many? How many times have

they won? Uh? Three times total as an organization owned? But back to back is how is it watching the Stanley Cup with Jared who has won to himself like, does he is it? Do you guys? Like turn the volume out and he like commentates the whole thing, what's happening? No, he tells me to calm down a lot, you know. Um. But he also I love it because he points out penalties before they get whistled. And it's really good too.

If my team is playing and he's like, oh no, and I'm like what and he goes too many men or that was a cross check or things like that, or he'll be like oh boy, and I'm like good or bad? He's like really good for you guys, Like he's really good at seeing that stuff. And I love it, you know, very tony romo of him to call things before it actually is happening now. If only he could get Romo's paycheck. Speaking of paycheck, I want Ali Web's paycheck. Same.

I'm excited or really interested to ask her how she adapted to the pandemic, because hello, I mean she was She is a salon and so she was hit. I'm sure the hardest. What does she change? What has she learned? How did she learn to deal with her business? All that kind of stuff, lots of good questions. I have a question. Why am I so red? Maybe it's the shirt. Look at us, we're very patriotic in our red and blue here we are. I did a deep conditioning mass

the other day. I'm so excited about it because I you know, I don't have a wee even and I'm trying to get healthy. That's all your own hair. Still, yeah, you have a lot of hate. Let me tell you what, well you know you do. I've got to go easy on myself where it's going to start to fall out, um breathe. So I, like I said, I put a deep conditioner like masking, and I left it in all day. I was really excited because I made an effort for that.

And then we were going out to dinner and I guess I didn't wash it out all the way I washed the top track, but I guess I didn't really get up in there. That is so greasy and nasty back here. Still you hit up the top track line. Um, we call that a top wash in the biz, because when you don't want to have to wash your whole weave,

you just take this front part and wash it. And I well, remember how Aaron and I used to send each other pictures when we would take our individual clippings out and they have to dry them in the hotels and put them over the racks. It's always sexy. I was, actually it might be in this bad I was pulling out my extensions. I had to go do an interview with Ron Rivera and his wife Stephanie. It was incredible. Do you want to talk about and those people that

did you see his gold retriever? I wish Tahoe you mean? And Tahoe was in Tahoe. I was looking for my extension. This was so classy of me. I'm sitting in his living room and I was pulling my individual extensions out. Um. Anyone that doesn't know Ron Rivera's story is incredible. He's the head coach of the Washington football team, and last year he was diagnosed with cancer um in the start of the season and he went through chemo and he's in remission. Yea, how does he look? How does he

sound great? He's yeah, he said he The biggest thing for him is just keeping weight on because his he just metabolizes things so fast from the treatments. But it was incredible, Aaron, I did you you worked some of their games? Right? I didn't get to see you. Didn't We didn't work you know what. Yes, but we did work their game this year, but we didn't get to see him, you know. And I wasn't on his sideline, got it? Yeah, I mean he was telling me that

at halftime, so what's half time? Ten minutes? Teen minutes? But I mean, you know, I don't um he would get an I V. He wouldn't even talk to the team at halftime. I mean the fact that he coached throughout the season and everything that he was going through. So I'm really excited that will air on NFL films. The UM presents those long form interviews. But what a team between Alex Smith and Rivera last year and then Washington, you know, looking to get. I'm excited for them this year.

I think they're going to be really good. They obviously their defense is their marquee, part of that UM team. They got a ton of reasons to be optimistic in Washington, so that was fun. But anyways, Yeah, so classy me was pulling out extensions. Not in front of Ron of course, coach. I wouldn't do that. That's disrespectful. But never wait, I have to ask you a question. So before we came on, I was getting a real random FaceTime and not one

that I'm like, I couldn't tell my husband. I tell by the way my husband at all because like I just encased it bites you in the bum bump. But um, it was just a random FaceTime. Well no, I was just saying a real random like no, yeah, yeah, yeah, personally you know calling me, but it's just a random let's talk about that. If you're if I haven't heard from you in a really long time, don't FaceTime me when he's doing. There's no chance I'm gonna pick that up.

I I only pick up your FaceTime. Who else would have? I think that's just you. That's that's that's how a FaceTime I would pick up. I don't. I don't get it, Like, what are we doing here? And by the way, it's very similar to the zoom thing now after COVID, Why does everything have to be a zoom? I don't want to. I don't want to have to get ready to do this meeting, so and I just go straight to the audio. The same thing on phones. I'm not into the face

timing for no reason. Well I don't even have WiFi, so well, yeah, well you have WiFi. Now things are going great, things are about to get even better. Um, yeah, so i'd be curious. Actually, let's take that to the I g um, Paul, Do we like a FaceTime from someone we're not that close to when I'm here and makeup ready? Sure, but that happens once a week during the season. The rest of the time, I look like I just got hit by truck. So I don't need you facetiming me because guess what I'm not going to

show you. My favorite is when someone you don't know, when you're not wearing any makeup, and someone's like, oh my god, I didn't recognize you, Like, do you think that's a compliment? Which part of that statement do you think is a compliment by saying, oh, I didn't recognize you that they see you, like at a game, when fans used to be able to come up to you and be like, you're so much skinnier than you are on TV. Get away from me, Like, who needs that?

It's so rude to you because I asked for that. Oh my god, it's it's along the same lines of you look tired. Okay, when in the history of anyone saying you look tired, is that going to be taken as a compliment. Yeah, I'm Oh my god, you're you're in a good place with social media right now, aren't you tell us about that? I'm so over social media, you guys, I love these people like I took a d tux from social media. I'm I'm getting off social media first. I'll just get off. Okay. We don't need

to make an announcement. We don't need a press release, and we don't need a press release that telling everyone now I've come back. I've been off social media for a month. No one knew you were gone. Okay, no one cares. I sat in the Starbucks parking lot the other day for forty five minutes, just everything I scolled. I was like, I don't like that. I don't like that. She's annoying. This is and I'm like, why am I doing this to myself? It makes me upset? It makes

me jealous. I want to be on the French riviera. Okay, so everything on Instagram is making me angry or annoyed. So what am I wasting forty five minutes of my day? And the Starbucks parking lot doing it for it's it's again. It goes back to being a massacrest. I do this to myself. I work myself all up. I need the acupuncture, peppermint patty you do and the breed. I feel that way a lot about social media. Yeah, it really goes with like I feel like my cycle. I'm either happy

or I am sad or the cycle again? What dare you in your cyclen? Who knows that? I don't. I don't know why you still have one? I don't have one? What do you mean because I'm like forty three? That's I need new eggs? I mean me, I don't. I don't want to have a period, so I don't have one. Well, you gotta have a period to I was related to this game by the way. Every man is just checked out. That's ever listened to our podcast, stay with us where we'll bring it back. Okay, we'll talk about a Tampa

two defense in a second. Okay, single highest safety coming at you real quick. Stay with us, Stay alive people. That defense is really bleeding today. What who's filling the egg gap? Um? I don't want to period, and I was really late to that game. I found out a couple of years ago you didn't have to have one, and I was like, why did I ever want one? If you are like me and you cannot get pregnant and you're doing this whole fertility IVF thing, you better

have a period. But I already did. I'd already did my freezing of the Higgs and I didn't and I didn't happen to do it again, to do it as many times as I have. I no, I'll go with you next time. No one needs that. Um. Okay for those men that are still listening, we're bringing alle Web on here in a second. Um. I can't wait to ask her what day she's on her cycle, So that'll be fun. It's a common thing when you're doing when you're doing I v F, what da are you. I'm like,

I don't even know what day it is. What what are you talking about? Wait? Hold on, one more thing about social media? But barstool put up a video the other day. Did you see the girl this never ends fall, then jumped off the roof, dumps on the trampoline and then flips over in the pool. No. I did not see that. But that's the only reason I should just do my settings. So just barstool comes up because or

like funny videos. They actually put a video up the other day of a spelling bee I did with those boys back in like two thousand and sixteen, maybe when they were broke, and now they are rich rich. Speaking of rich, Ali Webb coming up after the break, I have so many questions, so many questions. I'm gonna go to the bat. How do you get rich? It's not my st Hi Ali, Hi, Ali, Hi, we welcome in now a New York Times best selling author and co founder of Dry Bar and now Squeeze. I'm excited to

talk to you about all things business and life. Ali Webb, thank you so much for joining us. Thanks for having me. Oh my gosh, I was saying before you jumped on, I'm so sorry, I needed to go to dry bar. I mean, this is pathetic that I have you on and my hair is in a ponytail. I mean, it's so embarrassing. They were they're just starting to open again. It's you know, it's kind of a rough year back. Yes,

thank god. We're dying to talk to you just about how that challenged you mentally and your business and what you did to overcome a lot of things. But first, Ali, I actually the reason why we reached out to you as I was telling a story about the clothing line that I started finally three years ago, but I got

sitting thank you. But I was sitting at Justin's house with you getting our roots done, and I think I showed you my legally blonde bend and snap move about getting a pen on the field, which I haven't told Calm Down podcast about. But I died for your whole story about how you told me you banged down so many doors and these people would look at you in the face and say that sounds like a salon. I love that story. Please tell us about being in your thirties having this idea and how you got people to

listen to you. Well, I mean it was. It was definitely personal necessity. Obviously, we didn't invent blowouts. You know, you're you're not inventing clothes, You're just inventing a different kind of experience around it, right, which there's so many similarities.

And we were, you know, I as a girl, naturally curly hair, girl who grew up in South Florida with frizzy, humid weather, you know, just kind of longed for a place like dry bar and you know, very very long story short, you know, I became a hair stylist, professional hair style, was learned how to blow out my own hair, and was a stay at home mom, and I started a mobile blowout business in l A where I was like blow drying all my mommy friend's hair and it

was only charting like forty bucks because it was like two twenties. Seemed really easy, and that was a great little business and like that was a great, you know way for me to get out of the house, get away from my kids for a couple of hours, earn a little extra cash, which I don't think I actually did, but it was a great like idea. And that's when I realized that there's really no place for women to go for an affordable blowout at a great place where

you know, the focus is blowout. And and to your point, when I first started, you know, talking to me about this, like women immediately got it. They loved the idea. You know. It was like even my brother Michael, who became my business partner in this, he was like, I don't understand. Like Sarah, his wife, like she's got straight hair and just drives straight. I'm like, she's like pent and those

women don't have hair. This drives perfectly straight out their heads, you know, and most women can't do their hair themselves, you know. And and so you know, we started talking about this. I gotten him into the idea, you know, and then we Mike, I was lucky, you know that Michael put up the first two and fifty thou dollars, so that really like got us out the door. And

then we realized we needed money. Um and I think you know the story you were alluding to is like when we started raising like big money because we knew we were onto something. We had opened Brentwood, it was like Gangbusters. We'd opened the second location. We've kind of been bootstrapping it and friends and family, but when we started going to like private equity and the big money guys.

You know, they were like what you know, and like maybe a sister or their wife had heard of dry bar, but they just were like, you know, didn't didn't totally get it. And it was like many many meetings and we were doing a formal process and many of those meetings were like, you know, guys were looking at me like I was sucking crazy and they're like, I don't understand.

It's just blowouts and you know, and it was like it was a really hard hurdle to get over explaining it to a room full of men, like really like the whole concept of blowout was completely lost on them and they didn't really get it um. And so we went through a lot of different like groups of venture capitalists and private equity guys and until we got to what became our partner in castanea you know who who

didn't first of all got got the idea. They also had Janet Gerwy she was the founder of Laura Mercy a Cosmetics, so she was a born she really got the concept and they were like, we don't want to mess with it. We wanted to be you know, just the way you wanted to be and and then the

Cassinea definitely asked this question. But most of the private equity partner firms that we were talking to were like, why don't you do makeup and add like sell nail polish and do all that you know, do sell all this other ship because you have this captive audience of a hundred plus women coming in your shops today. And you know, I had to really stick to my guns

with that. And I mean, there's so many of those early days stories, but but yeah, you know, I just I really believed in this thing that I knew so well and I knew like like nothing else I really knew in my life as well as I knew this that I knew this would work, and I and I'm imagined it would only be in a very small scale.

We never ever would have imagined it would turn into a hundred locations in a product gun and all the others which I'm upsets with the dry shampoo thank you for that, by the wall, Oh my god, it smells so good. Um, but you you just mentioned it ali a hundred and fifty over a hundred and fifty locations in ten years because you opened up the Brentwood store back in two thou eleven years I guess right, two thousand and ten, you guys have opened up that store.

Is there a moment where you're driving down the road and you look over and you're like, oh, there's a dry bar. I started that like I would trip out if because I saw one the other day and I knew that we're going to talk to you, and I was like thinking, how cool that must be as an entrepreneur to watch an idea become an incredible movement that has, you know, as solidified its place now. Yeah, it is

so surreal. You know. I remember being in New York City years ago and walking I love to walk on them in New York and walking like from like a long ways in the city and probably passing four different dry ours and being likely, sh it, that's that's mine, the idea. You know. It's like, yeah, I mean, it's like we're like neck and neck with Nordstrums in terms of like how many locations. It's like Nordstrom. You know.

It's like to me that, you know, so, yeah, I have moments like that, you know, and then I have moments where it's like it doesn't even like enter my mind and then and then there's like other you know, it's like dry bar has given me such a platform and has opened up so many doors for me personally to do other things that I want to do in other businesses and other all this other stuff. So yeah, it's it's pretty surreal. I mean, if then, if you were asked like my parents as a kid and growing up,

I was such a like I was. I can't even believe this, but I was. I was definitely like a wall flower. My brother was always in trouble and I was always kind of sitting back, and you know, my my parents would be the first to say, like, who would have ever thought? You know, it's like took a while to come into my own and then to have done it, and this like you know, such a like on such a rocket ship has been She's crazy. Yeah, it's it's pretty overwhelming, Like, you know, what how been

to my life in the last eleven years? With all the locations that you have and who you are and who you've become, how much pressure is there for your hair not to look like shit? There is pressure? I mean, I mean literally, I don't think I had washed my hair like today's the first day I washed my hair in like five days, and I was like, I know I'm going to be on video whether other people see it or not. I'm like, yeah, I gain my hair

as the heinous lours Ago. So I do feel a little bit of although I don't really judge other people the way other people think I do, because I'm also like, I don't like hair to be perfect. I'm like, I like hair a little messy and not SuperFect, which you know kind of goes against my brand. But do you ever like secret shopper it? If I was you, I'd go into a dry bar and I would sit down as a client, and I would like to see what's happening.

You know, it's hard if so many people have asked me that, and I have I would like to do that. And every once in a while I'll walk in a shop and they won't know who I am, which honestly makes me more annoyed because I'm like history of the Bread, Yes, well I am um, and I'm just I'm Frankly, I'm not in the stores anymore, and I'm not in the

day to day business anymore. But it's and and yeah, it's it's hard for me to go into a dry bar for the most part because I'm very Oh it's like, you know, everything stands out to me where when necessarily but like I see all the things that are like

not exactly the way I want them to be. And then especially going in you know, post pandemic, and we just started opening them again and we were like spacing out and like everyone's wearing masks and the thing, and I'm like, oh man, this is not I mean, I know we have to do it and it's important, but it's like this is not like that. It's bustling and busy and crowded, and that's like the beauty of it. So it's that's been adjustment, I mean, just like anything

else that we've all had to adjust to. Um, it's not exactly my baby the way it was, you know. So I remember it was really this time last year. We were all sitting out here in Montana, this group that I have, and there's a lot of people involved in the NFL here, and we were kind of wondering are we going back to work. I was in your two of my clothing lines, thinking, oh my god, this thing's gonna die right here and there when everything starts shutting down, alley in l a and and all over

the country. What are you thinking about your baby? I mean about dry Bar. Yeah, I mean I thought that

it was like over for us too, you know. I mean it was you know, we were lucky that we had iron I mean, by the grace of like god, we sold the product division in early January, right before the world like the world fell apart, so we you know, the business sustained itself with that luckily for a little while, you know, And we were trying to do things like incentives for employees and we were just trying to do whatever we could. But it was like it was scary.

It was like we were faced with this, like oh my god, this could be like it like Dryver could just be done, you know, and and and listen, it kind of came close to that, and we we we worked it out and we are still here. But it was, you know, it was very touch and go there for a while, and it was like this is how this ends like this, you know, it was like, you know, not that thought, that thought and idea I was like,

you know, kind of my life's work. And then it's like, oh, we're just gonna go bankrupt because we don't you know, because it was obviously I mean, you do the math. It's like we had all these locations with all this rent to pay, no money coming in, and it was the scariest, like craziest, like you just you know. I remember my brother used always say, like, you know, you have to save up for rainy day, and what if the world falls apart. It's like that's never gonna happen,

and then it happens, and you're like, holy ship. Oh yeah, very very scary, and thank god we got through it. Like did you you know Aaron's um a few years into her successful clothing brand, I started an interior design company, And I'm curious, from you know, your bird's eye view. Now, sitting at the top as a business owner and entrepreneur with such success, were you overwhelmed? I'm overwhelmed by the business.

I'm not business savvy. I know that I know what I know and I know design, but I don't know the business part of it. How did you learn or was that something that was innate to you or who helped you with I don't I don't really consider myself

business savvy either. I think maybe other people do, and I think I've learned a lot about business, and I probably know more probably like you than most people know because when because when you start a business, as you know, you're kind of thrust into like making decisions on ship that you're like, I don't know, I'm just gonna you know, but I was likely to have like a good partner and my brother who was much more business savvy than I was, which is always like advice I give people.

It's like find that person that you really trust that kind of not only is good at the stuff that you're not, but like enjoys it so that you could go enjoy design and do the thing that you love, you know, I mean we we had that conversation so much like what is my alley's highest and best use?

And it was like the training program, the customer service in the shop, you know, the way the shop looked and felt, and like how we talked to people, like all all of that stuff, like I was really good at that, you know, spreadsheet and payroll and are no, thank you, I don't want to do it, and sometimes we have to. And I did in the beginning, I mean I did. I did do payroll in the early days.

I don't know if they did it well. But you know, it's like, of course, I think it's good to go through the motions of it, but I think it's like give yourself a break and let somebody else take that on because they'll be better at it also than you know.

That's that's kind of you know, And I'm in the throes of that right now with my jewelry company that I started, Beckoning Quill and uh, you know, and it's really really tiny and it's all direct to consumers, so it's very different than what I know, which is like breaking mortar. And it's like, oh, I have to get people to go to my website to buy stuff, Like I don't know how to do that, and I'm figuring

that out. I'm trying to like pull favors and leverage people and ask as many people as like hey, because I just don't know how to do it, you know, and I kind of find the challenge fun, you know, like how do I get this business off the ground. What's the trick um? Because I'm determined to crack the code and I was like, there is a coat, But you know, it's the same thing. There's so much about

this that business that I don't really enjoy doing. Like there's stuff about you and I think figuring out and and like sourcing out the other stuff is really so important. You sound like and I and I know, just spending a little bit of time with you that I have in person. You have a ton of ideas all the time. You know, no matter what's going on in your life, how do you handle that? How do you deal with it?

So you're not going nuts? Well, it's it's interesting because I'm at this like strange phase in my life where I'm kind of like what now, Like what am I

doing now? It's like, you know, I'm still involved in dry round on the board and and that sort of thing, but not in the day to day operations, and you know, I'm an advisor and investor and Squeeze and then we just launched this okay humans the therapy concept, and then I have back in and Quill and I'm writing a book and I'm like, you know, to your point, I'm just like so many things, um, but I but I'm like trying to figure out like what's like the next

like what am I doing for like the next ten years? And maybe it is like I think, I mean, like the figuring it out kind of phase right now, because I do come up with a lot of ideas, and my fiance and I are like working on a lot of things together, and so I'm just kind of like I feel like I'm at this stage where I'm throwing a lot at the wall and seeing what what sticks and what makes me the most happy and trying to just put a lot out there and see where see

where I land. And I don't know, do you feel it? Just kind of do you feel pressure? I mean in that thing of like, oh, dry Bar is so successful, like now it's like okay, the next thing, you know, we're in the sports world and you know, you win uh Lombardi Trophy and then it's like okay, but then go do it again, and go do it again and do it again. And so this idea of having a successful business and then being having that entrepreneurial spirit to

start other companies. But do feel pressure to haven't be successful the same way I do sometimes? But I feel like I try to like get in front of that pressure by like talking about, you know, my jewelry company as like it could work and it could not work. And I think that like I've had a really successful business I've had a really good run, and I probably won't have other businesses that are quite as successful or dry as dry Bar is, and or maybe I will.

And then it's like, you know, you hear people say all the time, and I know it's cliche like our failures build us and our mistakes make us and all that stuff, but it's really true, you know. And it's like I'm I'm you know, just kind of giving all these new ideas a shot now, and I'm sure some

will work and some won't. And I like to be really transparent about that because it's not like, oh, just because I've had success means I'm going to have success again, and you know, and I had little bits of success before dry Bar, but obviously not on the scale um, And I don't know, I mean, I feel pressure, but I also feel like a freedom to like I can like I've done some really great things and now I can kind of like not sit back in a way of like relaxing, but I can like kind of do

what I relive and I can yeah, and you know what, all these different things and then then to see what makes me happy, and you know, my life is like, you know, I met a new guy, and I fell in love, and I'm like, tell us about that, where did you meet him? You know? I met a new guy and I fell in love and I'm like, tell us about like that, where did you meet him? Well, you'll laugh. We met through this company called the Three

Day Rule. It's a matchmaking service. I was like dating after I got divorced, and I was dating on all these like you know, these like apps and they stopped made no offense my friends. But I just had a hard time finding, you know, the right guy for me, you know. And I'm like, I'm a pretty strong like female and you know, and successful and all the things.

And I was meeting guys who were like either intimidated or just like you know, they were like they wanted kids still, and I was like, yeah, no, that ship has sailed. And I was just like, lining up your stuff is hard. And so I had on my podcast, Raising the Bar, I had the founder of this company, the Three Day Rule tell you. She came on and she was like, listen, we prioritize like working out and how we eat and all this ship and our jobs,

but we don't prioritize our love lives. And I was like, you're right, because I was like, it feels like kind of desperate to hire somebody, to meet somebody. But she's like why, you know, It's like it's just like anything else. If you hire a headhunter to find a great job, you know, I'm like yeah, and so I hired them and they Adrian, my fiance now, is the third guy I met and like it was like really like love at first sight. And we've been together almost two years.

And he's like coach. He's an executive coach, so like you can he coaches like founders like me, so perfect know how that goes? Yeah, So I mean this like, you know, I was in a marriage for sixteen years. That was you know, Cam was like my best friend and we built driver together. We have two amazing kids. But it wasn't like that like wow, like knock you over, like love affair that I'm experiencing now. So I was like that part of my life. It's kind of back.

You know, you can't have it. You can have italus proof of this look at her. Yeah, just at different times. You know. It's like for like I I was married for sixteen years and I and I think we're both

kind of like ship. This is it like this, uh doesn't feel like right, you know, and then you know, meeting Adrian and like, oh, I think this was what I was supposed to feel like, you know, um and I have a relationship with my ex and you know, we it's like, yeah, I mean it's personally it feels like where my life is supposed to be in that way, And you know, I think I was just like not paying attention to my marriage when we're building dry Bar because just just so dry Bar was like my third

baby and it was just like every everything we had and Cam was in the business too, is a creative mastermind of dry Bar. Everything we had went to Dry Bar. And now I'm like, you know, like what I feel, you know, really have fallen in love and enjoying that part of my life that I was ignoring for twenty years. So yeah, it's like everything is like how opened into a strange order. Good for you. I'm just glad it's happened.

It gives people like myself and Chris. I hope you may have already answered this with COVID and maybe you know your divorce and so forth. What's been the hardest part about being you? And you know, having all these ideas and businesses and you know, throwing stuff against the wall. Well, I think it's probably like the pressure, you know, like you were saying, it's like what you know, I really don't.

I don't put a lot of emphasis on what people think necessarily, but it is this like, you know, will I will anything I do, you know, become as successful as drybar? You know? Um and you know where where you know? I remember when I was going through my divorce and my life is really falling apart, and I ended up going to this place called on Site in Nashville. I don't know if you have heard of it. It's kind of like the Hoffman um and it was a place where you go where you like did your phone

for six days or like serious intensive therapy. And anyways, I who runs it, this guy Miles addicts he's amazing. And I had a conversation with him before I went, which was like a very weepy conversation when I was just like on the floor a mess, and he was like, you know a lot of people who have reached this kind of success you have and you got it's kind of like I know, it's a little like woe is me, but it's like this lonely at the top thing. It's

like what now, Like what am I building now? And where? You know, It's it's less of a like pressure but what other people think. It's more of a like finding what like gets me excited to get out of bed in the morning again. I think that's like the biggest personal like challenge in the mix of now. It's like Adrian, my fiance, he's like building his business and he's like he's really into like the building phase, and I'm kind of like, well, can we travel? Can we just go?

Like because you couldn't know that, you know, um so yeah, So I'm in this like what feels like I think I said, like no man's land of like trying to figure out what makes me kind of tick now and that feels like a little bit of a weird lonely place. Um but but I'll so fun and exciting. It just depends on the day. You know. Some days I'm like, I love that I don't know what's happening the next day, and I do love that. I love that, like every

day brings a new opportunity. And I've been so lucky to meet so many great people and have so many great connections and I know so many cool people. But yeah, it's just kind of like, what's gonna happen next? Well, you have a lot of things and before we let you go, Ali, I'd be remissed if as a someone who's trying to get my little engine that could business off the ground. What is the best advice that you received as a first time entrepreneur that you still apply

to all your other eventures. I mean, I think it's being an approachable boss is a big one. You know. In the early days of Drive Off, Yeah, I was like pretty unapproachable and I didn't realize it. You know. It was like my thank God. My brother was the person who was like, hey, people are scared of you. And I'm like what you know. I'm like, I'm so nice. What are you talking to me? He's like you're not.

He's like, you can be really hard to talk to you, and you know, and I was like, oh ship, you know. And I in the early days, I would walk into dry bar and like lose my ship. I'd be like cleaning. I'd be on my hands and knees cleaning the foot baby. I get it. Everybody about everything, and while it's important to have the one person who who cares about it

that much as as the founder, you know. I think what I learned over time was like creating an environment where people feel like they can come to you and say, hey, I don't think this is working or have you thought about this without like getting their head chopped off, without feeling like they're not going to be heard and seen, you know, and creating an environment where also people get a little more autonomy. Like I was very much like it was like my way of the highway, and I

felt like I knew everything. I felt like I had to know everything. I had this like unrealistic like I had to know everything, and like you said, like you're not you know, you don't feel like you're that business savvy. But then people come to you and ask you, and you're like, well, who else is going to answer this thing? I've got to be the one that answered And so you just you feel like this sense of like I have to know everything, and it's and so it's very

vulnerable to will say you know what I don't. I don't actually know? Can you know? Maybe you can figure it out, you know, versus like oh, I'm the boss and I should know the answer some I'm just gonna tell you an answer, which which there's some of that too,

and sometimes you just are the person. But I think you know the moral of the story is like getting surrounding yourself, being the kind of person that has people around you that aren't yes, people people who feel empowered, and like those people work so much harder for you anyways, because they feel like they're not in this like oh, I'm just gonna I just do what I'm told, and then you know, because like that, they're gonna something. Yeah, you empower and then they feel like they're part of

the bigger picture. And when you get people to feel invested than they care more than like and then they're not leaving. You know. I can't tell how many managers who have come up to me and have we're telling me about their store and they're like, so I'm doing this and this happened, you know, and they refer to it as like my dry bar, and then they're like,

I'm sorry, I know it's like yours. No, No, I want you to feel like it's yours, and I want you to have this ownership in it, and that like ownership, it goes so much further than money and any anything else. Like it's that, like they feel like it's there's and they're and they're really to your point, invested in it and they want to work harder. Well, Ali, you are a very busy woman. Yeah it is. You're a very

busy woman with all sorts of things. You've got Beckett and Quill raising the bars, your podcast, you have squeeze in a Corse dry bar. Thank you for taking time out of your very busy schedule having to shed some light and congratulations on love. Love looks good on you and the new Man. Thank you. I feel very grateful, good for you, Thank you, thank you. Calm Down with Aaron and Carissa is a production of I heart Radio.

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