Conscious Success Co (00:01.109)
Hi guys, I am so, so excited to have you both here today. And for everyone listening, Nikki and I met when I was living in New York at like 24 years old, had no idea what I was doing with my life or career. And we became fast friends and she introduced me to Greta, who's also here and amazing. And you two were the very first entrepreneurs that I knew in my life, like personally and around my age who are building something. And I just remember being so impressed and so inspired.
by the both of you. And now it's been 12 years and you're still building, you're still succeeding with the Bevy. So I'm so excited to just share this journey of building this company with everyone listening today. So thank you so much for making the time.
Nikki (00:48.344)
Thank you.
Greta Stack (00:48.76)
Thanks for having us. We're here.
Conscious Success Co (00:51.165)
Okay, yay. Okay, so matchmaking isn't really a traditional or like well-trod career path for a lot of people. So I'm so curious, you could just share with our listeners how you each found your way into initially becoming a matchmaker and what first compelled you to take jobs in matchmaking.
Nikki (00:54.334)
Thank you.
Nikki (01:12.123)
It's all Greta's fault. It's completely Greta's fault because I thought that when I was meeting her for an interview and PR, that's when she kind of told me, psych, got you to the interview. And this isn't a PR at all. I'm starting a matchmaking business. Yeah.
Greta Stack (01:13.708)
Yes!
Conscious Success Co (01:14.165)
Hahaha
Greta Stack (01:31.202)
Yeah. Yeah. I think that it would kind of sort of happened organically in the sense that my background was marketing and sales and some PR, but
Ultimately, it was I was a connector. So connected, you know, I think the right brands and help build brands. And when this idea was presented to us or to me.
I kind of, had a feeling it was a good fit because I loved working with people. And I think that's what ultimately sort of helped me really lean in and sink into the whole idea of it because it did have a stigma. Now it's much more common, but in 2010, no one was talking about it. It had a sort of this weird stigma and people thought of like,
know, cupids and clouds and the online world had just started to scratch the surface. So it was really hard to sort of grasp the idea of it, but the business behind it is what intrigued me. And that's how I sort of lured Nikki into it as well, because it does, it is being a connector. It's using all the sort of skills that you have in PR and marketing and sales and tying them together in a more sort of romantic way.
Conscious Success Co (03:01.792)
So you were initially approached by your former employer to come, he had this idea, it sounds like, and wanted you to leave your current job to come build this with him, is that correct?
Greta Stack (03:13.154)
So I didn't actually, I wasn't working at the time. was 2009 and I had just been laid off. So I worked, started my career in fashion marketing, brand building, and then I moved to hospitality. The Lehman crash had happened earlier that year and he had this person who presented it to me. Didn't have a business yet, but he had a business model and he had been a client of a matchmaker in New York. And he felt like the sort of process was interesting.
Nikki (03:42.532)
Okay.
Greta Stack (03:43.041)
and also knew that it was lucrative and it was a service business and he felt like it was a great process and I loved the idea of it but I didn't love the people behind it necessarily. And I met him randomly and my friend who knew him as well was a headhunter so she was very...
Like it was very familiar for her to sort of like connect people work wise. His sort of life within the matchmaking world was very short. So, you know, I think he was kind of an ideas guy, but was never good at the execution. So I came in sort of thinking it was going to be short term, but what ended up happening was that.
His sort of life within it was short-term and I sort of took over and then brought in Nikki and then You know eventually he was no longer part of it and we started our own
Conscious Success Co (04:40.158)
And so did you actually formally have to leave or did you just like refound the business without him? How did that work when he transitioned out?
Greta Stack (04:45.774)
Thank
Nikki (04:46.459)
Greta had even said to me, and it was so interesting because you were talking about partnership, Greta had told me, I mean, even just within the first few months, we kind of knew we weren't going to be working with this guy forever. And Greta said, you're coming with me whenever this ends. And Greta and I were so fortunate that in such a short amount of time, our clients who we'd become so close with were the case studies at HBS and Wharton.
and they were the ones cheerleading us saying, okay, you guys, it's time. You go, you start your own. You guys have really formed this incredible business model and you've done it with such grace and finesse and people spend years and years in business school and post-business school to kind of find a passion that is rewarding in their lives that is also a lucrative business model. And you guys have already done that. So.
Greta Stack (05:19.245)
Yeah.
Nikki (05:40.722)
Go do it, we'll be your unofficial board for as long as you need us for, and just go do it. And so that's what we did.
Greta Stack (05:40.939)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (05:45.133)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (05:48.557)
Yeah, it was kind of, it was a natural transition. You know, he was never really involved. We had built the business ourselves. So it was kind of like, yes, we had to officially say bye, but then it just sort of naturally went into. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (05:48.938)
when you
Nikki (06:03.183)
It imploded like as soon as we left.
Conscious Success Co (06:05.983)
And did you have any type of like non-compete? Were you able to take clients with you or did that business just dissolve? So you were like, all right, we're gonna leave and start our own thing, but ultimately we can like kind of take the business.
Nikki (06:17.851)
We had a non-compete in New York, but the cool thing is, you know, I'm born and raised in LA and I thought what better way to kind of launch this business, but my home turf. And that's actually what we did. Our first client was an LA client and then slowly but surely. And of course the business had impl... The other business had imploded by then. It was very natural that we started in New York and New York is really kind of...
Greta Stack (06:17.93)
it did. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (06:29.953)
Mmm.
Nikki (06:46.909)
our bread and butter still. So yeah, so we're really kind of both coasts.
Conscious Success Co (06:49.385)
Hmm.
Conscious Success Co (06:53.855)
Right. And when that other business imploded, especially I think Greta, you said you didn't expect it would last long or to be in it for long. What kept you from just being like, OK, this company imploded, this job's no longer a thing, I'm going to go back to sales or PR or whatever the thing is versus like, no, now we're going to create and found and run our own business?
Greta Stack (07:13.102)
Yeah. Well, I mean, I did, you know, I sort of got.
You know, I learned how to run a business. I'd never run a business before I started there. So I had, I took everything that I learned and I was like, I kind of got my mini MBA on the fast track here. Why wouldn't I use that to my advantage? And I really enjoyed the work. I was, um, you know, exciting. I think there was a gap. was this gap in the market, which, which we saw, and we were creating something, um, that was so different from our competitor.
Nikki (07:32.125)
Really?
Greta Stack (07:47.681)
and that's ultimately when I came on initially I had done some competitive research when he presented the business model to me I saw that there was nothing out there that I would have ever joined not to work for but even as like if I was single and I knew my friends wouldn't either so I knew that given it didn't exist this there was something there and
Conscious Success Co (08:11.049)
And what was that gap? What was that niche that you saw that was your entry point?
Greta Stack (08:14.286)
So I think there was the J-dates, the match.coms were just starting to scratch the surface and sort of become a little bit more normal, but for an older generation. This was, I'm 46, so I was 30 at the time, 16 years ago. But also the apps didn't exist. We were all on BlackBerrys. So those were...
nothing, you know, but you could see from our so called competitors that everything was really dated. felt very like back of the airplane magazine ads just like really cheesy. I knew
Nikki (08:41.017)
you
Nikki (08:51.282)
Rainbows, Cupid.
Greta Stack (09:01.738)
I mean, I had a very big network in New York after living there for a long time and a lot of friends, great social circles. And I knew, you know, with a little bit of like marketing edge and the right exposure and networking, it could grow into something that my people would like.
and eventually lots of other people. And did I know the apps, the dating apps were coming? And did I really know how big the dating industry was at the time? No. And now we all know it's massive and it's huge, but it was, you felt, and I definitely had conversations with friends and mentors and said, you know.
I'm sort of exploring this idea and I think there's a lot of potential here. And people, know, sometimes you just don't know what it is. And when you start looking, you're like, my gosh, there is a lot of potential here. And that was...
Conscious Success Co (10:00.447)
Hmm
Greta Stack (10:03.074)
That was what, and we would just evolve. know, we would keep, we saw how many more people were getting into it and interested in it. How, you you reach that age where you no longer like went out every night and how were you going to meet people outside of your industry, outside of your social circles? It just made a lot of sense.
Conscious Success Co (10:22.241)
And when you, like at the beginning, when you guys were going off on your own, did you have a real vision for what you wanted the bevy to become? Or was it something that you were just kind of figuring it out as you went along and you're like, there's enough of a business here. Like, let's just try it. Let's just see what it becomes.
Nikki (10:41.194)
We were, where were we eating dinner? We were at, what's that place on third and Bowery? That's a Bowery Hotel. Is it Gemma?
Greta Stack (10:50.633)
Gemma.
Nikki (10:52.445)
And we were like, what are we gonna call this company? Because it can't be like Nikki and Greta's awesome matchmaking company. It's gotta be sexier than that. And then ultimately Craig came up with the idea, the bevy, and it was so fitting for what we'd already kind of... Really? We always have Craig, you know, our board execs.
Greta Stack (11:09.134)
I think it was my idea. I don't know. I'm not Craig. I can't give a...
Conscious Success Co (11:11.626)
You're like, don't give my husband credit. That was my idea.
Greta Stack (11:20.874)
Yes, but he definitely wasn't him. It was definitely me. But we definitely threw out a lot of ideas, but I can't give him credit for that because it wasn't him.
Nikki (11:21.757)
chirping in the background.
Nikki (11:29.245)
well, Greta, Greta is a marketing ingenue, you know, that was her background, but we thought it really kind of captured the essence of really what this was, which is, know, a bevy, like, I guess it's a bevy of, of beautiful ladies. But for us, it was really just a bevy of like-minded people, just a sophisticated network who just wasn't gonna
Conscious Success Co (11:29.887)
And what did the bevy mean to you?
Greta Stack (11:48.631)
beauty.
Nikki (11:58.481)
you know, swipe or go on these apps or work with these like, sorry, Yenta, mother-in-law matchmakers that had existed prior to us. And so it was just like a total fresh take and our clients completely represented that. These were clients who you would not, I guess, think would use a matchmaker. They certainly didn't need one, but it was that their time was so valuable. If you can afford to,
have someone who you really trust and you know their network and they can be in the places that you're not. It makes so much sense.
Conscious Success Co (12:36.619)
Mm.
Greta Stack (12:36.866)
Yeah, and we wanted it, you the bevy we thought was such a fitting name because we wanted it to feel exclusive. So it didn't have any of the words like love or match or anything like that in it. We wanted it to be sort of, you know, sort of like a hidden meaning. And then this was at the time, you know, I was a member at the Soho house when it was cool, which I know when it was cool.
Nikki (12:59.905)
Yeah, we all were when it was cool.
Greta Stack (13:03.552)
And I wanted, we wanted it to feel like a club, like an exclusive club that you had to get accepted into. It wasn't just, you know, and it wasn't going to be the love club or anything like that that was cheesy. It had to have some edge and it had to have like the meaning, the, the, the name of it had to be, make you think a little bit. It wasn't an obvious thing.
Conscious Success Co (13:26.549)
And was that like strategic or that just felt like intuitively right? Because, know, human psychology, like having to be accepted or like, you know, that there's some gatekeeper that you have to be cool enough to get in. I mean, you look at apps like Raya and I think the fact that like not everyone can join makes them more appealing at some level. So was that strategy or were you just like, hey, this is what my friends and I would like. This is what I intuitively feel would be compelling. Or was it both?
Nikki (13:53.947)
I think it's both, right? Because we always were so selective because we're only working with people who we would date, who our friends would date. And that was always gonna be our litmus test. So it really was like you have to be accepted by us and be the most marketable and fantastic human.
Greta Stack (13:55.374)
Yeah, I think you definitely.
Greta Stack (14:14.156)
And we knew we wanted, we didn't want to advertise because we knew we weren't trying to appeal to the masses. And we always said, we want to be the restaurant with no phone number. You can't just call and make a reservation. You have to sort of work your way in. And that's how we sort of looked at it. It's like, once you know you can't get in, you want to get in more.
Conscious Success Co (14:29.026)
Mmm.
Conscious Success Co (14:35.648)
I love that. And look, you guys charge, I think around 25K to work with clients and tell me if that's not correct or you don't want me to say that, but you guys charge a hefty amount to work with clients. And so it's no small investment, but you talked about how for the clients that you were working with, their time was their most valuable asset. And you understood that being able to save them time and curate this
Nikki (14:39.888)
Thank
Conscious Success Co (15:02.676)
you know, network for them was really valuable. Did you, from the beginning, were you like, okay, you know, I know we can charge 25k to bring on clients or did you work your way up to that? What did that look like?
Nikki (15:15.1)
I think back when we started, that was kind of our starting number. It's of course changed tremendously over the past 12 years, but we'd earned it already by that point because we'd really put in our time and our street cred was so good that we really never wavered from the base price.
So that was the base price and it could only go up from there.
Conscious Success Co (15:37.987)
And, you know, this, especially as dating apps were gaining popularity at the time, and those were like essentially free, did you see that as competition? Did that change your ability to like sign clients or was your ideal client so different from the masses that were going on dating apps that that didn't affect your business?
Greta Stack (15:41.207)
Yeah.
Nikki (16:04.285)
We were definitely worried at first, but.
Greta Stack (16:04.503)
I think.
Yeah, first we were, but it actually helped our business, I think, in a lot of ways, because it's similar to outsourcing, I think, an expert for anything. know, at the time, I remember just thinking, like, everything you looked for, whether it was a job or an apartment, and again, I'm aging myself, but it was like Craigslist. Like, you would go, you could go to an open outlet, just like you can with the dating apps, and have that source if you want to. If you want volume, if you want variety.
if you want to spend a lot of time doing this and really putting in all your efforts. And I don't poo poo them because I think it's great. But if you are more selective, if you're looking for a job, you hire a headhunter. If you are looking for an apartment, you hire a real estate agent because you're going to get to your goal sooner. It's much more effective. It's much more vetted. It's just you're going to, instead of interviewing a hundred people, you're going to interview five. And that's how
we knew we could charge the prices that we did and still do because people value their time. And if you have all the time in the world, then...
by all means. And then I also just feel like part of what we use in analogy a lot that we have the pocket listings, you know, not everyone is going to throw themselves out on the internet and on these apps because it's a lot of work and there's no protection. You don't know who's reaching out to you. like, it's, just, you can get, you know, beautiful women can get flooded with DMs and all these things. And it's really hard to manage. Yeah, now.
Nikki (17:42.428)
And there's fake profiles of fake people. We hear horror stories even from friends whose photos are getting stolen and they're getting put on dating apps. It's just, I think, especially now and with AI coming out, I think that swiping is starting to reach its lifetime. It's almost completely done.
Greta Stack (17:48.866)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (18:04.693)
Mmm.
Greta Stack (18:07.022)
Well people, yeah, they get the swipe of fatigue and I think just like anything that you do too much, know, like social media, you can sit there, Pinterest, whatever, you go into these dark spirals and holes and you're just like, what am I doing? I'm just sitting here wasting time. And people do get lucky and I believe in them and I think they're an incredible invention and.
Conscious Success Co (18:07.426)
you
Greta Stack (18:33.856)
It's great and people get lucky, but it's so much about timing and yeah, just, think you sort of have to look at it from different perspectives.
Conscious Success Co (18:46.754)
And it's so interesting that at first, know, okay, dating apps are coming on the scene and you're like, shit, like, is this gonna undermine our business? Like, how big of an effect is this gonna have? And it actually had the counter effect of like, people were like so over swiping or seeing that it was an effective that made the need for like, hey, I just wanna outsource this. I just wanna pay someone to do this well and protect my privacy and get me dates that I don't wanna like, you know, blow my brains out after going on. It actually was like a tailwind at some.
Greta Stack (19:06.059)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (19:12.75)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (19:16.648)
Yeah, and I do think, you know, a lot of people depending on the age, but you know, the older you get, you know, if you are a C level executive and you're single, like putting yourself out there, you risk a lot because your employees can see you. There's some people who just can't. If you're a celebrity, know, like Raya is one thing, but a lot of people are not comfortable with that. They don't want to be approached.
Nikki (19:32.699)
Thank you.
Greta Stack (19:42.944)
in that way, saying, I saw you on Rio, you know, or I saw you on Tinder. Like, it's just, it's an uncomfortable situation because it's not related to work. It's your personal life.
Nikki (19:52.976)
And so we are confidential.
Conscious Success Co (19:53.407)
And people are, right, I imagine if you are someone who like is famous at some level, like then people are able to look you up and they might not be dating you for the right reasons versus you guys have this like kind of blind first date policy, right? Can you speak a little bit more about why you decided to build it in that way?
Greta Stack (19:55.416)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (20:08.13)
Mm-hmm.
Nikki (20:14.117)
We always had really high profile clients, even from the beginning. And it was so imperative for them that their privacy was protected because they don't want people coming for the wrong reason. And I also think that Greta and I, and certainly within our orbits, we pride ourselves on surrounding ourselves with great quality women because they're people in our orbits. They're friends of ours. These are people who are on their own two feet and they also bring a whole lot to the table.
as well. But we decided to keep it the same across the board. Whether it was a really successful finance guy or a big time tech entrepreneur to a household name celebrity, we kept it the same for everyone. And it ended up being such a wonderful tool because especially with swiping culture, you're basing everything off of a photo.
I think that everyone could take a good photo. A lot of the best men can really take only terrible photos. Don't ask me why, I don't make the rules. And that's, it gives everyone kind of the same opportunity. You go in blind, you don't have preconceived notions, and you're oftentimes very pleasantly surprised. But of course, like, we'll describe the person beforehand, but we only give.
We only get first names, we don't say where you work or anything like that. So it keeps the intrigue and the mystique alive.
Greta Stack (21:40.588)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (21:40.994)
Mm.
Greta Stack (21:43.663)
And I think people, yeah, people also just, we tend to gravitate towards the same things and miss so much of the peripheral. So we felt like it was important to get people a little bit out of their comfort zone because whatever they were doing currently wasn't working. I think.
Conscious Success Co (21:44.044)
Totally.
Greta Stack (22:03.53)
Men are extremely visual, but so are women. But if you're just gravitated towards something that is two dimensional, it's really hard to get away from that. Even though there's so many other things that are beautiful, you just can't see beyond the facade sometimes. And this is just approaching it in a different way.
Conscious Success Co (22:24.011)
Right, and obviously something isn't working at some level if they kept doing things in the same way. Like they're not gonna, they're gonna see the same results, right? So having a trusted advisor who can also show them or introduce them to someone they might not naturally gravitate towards or push back, like do you see that as a part of the service and the value that you provide beyond just the introductions themselves?
Greta Stack (22:26.67)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Nikki (22:47.835)
Absolutely. It's such a game changer.
Greta Stack (22:48.366)
Yeah, I got it down. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (22:50.947)
And so you guys, I think you boast like a 95 % success rate. Can you talk to us about how do you define that success rate and what do you think have been the main factors in being able to drive those type of results?
Nikki (23:05.669)
The reason that we can confidently say that that is our success rate is because we're so selective about who we take to work with. Just at a baseline, do we know that we are going to crush it for this client, that we have exactly who they're looking for, that we are going to surpass even whatever the best thing was that they had in their brain. So we are really selective about who we're taking. They have to represent us well, the company well, and
really be a great fit for our incredible women. So because we kind of know that going in, we already know that we're going to be successful with them. I'd say that the clients who we've been unsuccessful with were probably never looking for a matchmaker to begin with. I think they needed something different. And in their minds, a matchmaker was a solve for whatever this issue was. So success to us is a relationship that
was deep and connective and successful while it lasted. Of course, we cannot maintain any kind of timeline. We're not like puppeteers and there are marionettes, but we've had tons of marriages. We have clients who, know, some of them have been married more than once and maybe they're not necessarily looking to be married again, but they're looking for long-term partnerships. So we consider that a win as well. So, yeah.
Conscious Success Co (24:33.591)
And I think the biggest testament to your success rate is that you operate an entirely referral-based business, right? You've never advertised, which is wild. Like, not many businesses, successful businesses, seven-figure businesses can say the same to build an entire business just based off of referrals. And so I'm curious, like, how did you build that referral engine that you could rely on for consistent revenue without needing to look elsewhere to other marketing or advertising?
Nikki (25:03.566)
We always talk to our guns. We knew people in the space who were doing guerrilla marketing. It was untruthful. It was yucky. And Greta and I would be patient. And we also like, we were social creatures. It was so natural and really kind of easy for us, even from the beginning, because people knew who we were and we were out there and we were speaking on panels about what we knew about. And people were...
intrigued. So, you know, as any business, it's ebb and flow. Some years were slower, some years were busier, some years we were too busy we couldn't keep up. And that's just the nature of these kinds of businesses. They can be very ebb and flow.
Conscious Success Co (25:47.232)
And in a year where things are quieter and you're not getting as many referrals, how is that as a business owner to manage through? Do you start to spiral? Do you start to get really worried? Are you able to maintain the perspective of, hey, this is going to happen, and this doesn't mean that this is some existential crisis?
Nikki (26:08.069)
Well, COVID was a great example of that.
Greta Stack (26:08.122)
Yeah, mean, yeah. And I mean, our business is cyclical. think, you know, it is, of course, it's like any job, any project or service based job, there are going to be busy times and slow times. And we know that after doing it for so many years, now we know that. for sure, there were times where, you know, we just...
you know, when we were flush, we were like, okay, we can cool down. And then when we were in need, we had to hustle. And it was, you know, maybe we didn't need to network or get be out there as much at certain times. And other times we'd be like, time to hit the pavement, start with the coffee lunches, you know, the coffees, breakfast, lunch and dinners, and really networking and using the resources that we had, the people that we knew to say like,
you know, spreading the word, but we did it organically. But it takes a lot of work. It takes a lot of, I think, relationships and, you know, of all different kinds. You can't just sit at home and pretend like it's just going to come to you on your, like...
Conscious Success Co (27:20.896)
Hmm
Greta Stack (27:21.624)
just like appear. The same way I think we tell a lot of women and men, like, you're not gonna meet your person just, you know, sitting at home and not going out. You know, you really have to put yourself out there. And that's...
Conscious Success Co (27:35.31)
I think that's such an important point also that yes, you can have a referral-based business, but that doesn't mean that you're not networking. It doesn't mean you're not hitting the pavement. It doesn't mean you're not serving your clients amazingly and going above and beyond, because all of that then creates this energetic exchange, or then those referrals come to you. But it's not like, I'm just going to sit on my couch and hope people think about referring me. There is still an active action that you have to take.
Nikki (28:04.57)
So much hustle. So much hustle. And if you don't have it, you won't last.
Greta Stack (28:04.844)
Yes. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (28:09.535)
Mm-hmm. And in a business that kind of lives or dies by its reputation and by referrals, I'm so curious, you know, have you ever had situations where, you know, you have a client and you realize it's not a fit and you have to hold some strong boundaries or fire that client, but then you're also worried about like, well, what if they go like sully our reputation in the market and speak ill about us? How do you navigate that?
Nikki (28:32.538)
Yeah.
Nikki (28:37.826)
It's so few times that we've had to kind of navigate that. And sometimes there is talk just among the industry where people already know, that guy. So you kind of know already whether you don't want to work with somebody. But we really try to trust our gut and only work with people who we know are in this for the right reasons and at a.
Greta Stack (28:48.813)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Nikki (29:05.006)
Baseline are very kind people.
Greta Stack (29:08.482)
Yeah, we really are litmus testers. If we wouldn't invite them to our own dinner table, we don't really take them on. But sure, there have been situations where, you know, sometimes people come in and say they want one thing and they actually want something else. And that part is hard because
You know, we're having conversations like this over the phone and then they're like, well, this isn't what I asked for. we're like, really? This that's what we have in our notes. people also change their mind. You know, I do think that knowing when you come into this service, you know, we don't guarantee anything. And that's really important to convey that we're not dealing with a product here. It's not something tangible. It's emotions. So life happens.
Nikki (29:35.926)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (29:57.825)
and you might have felt one way about something that you needed and it might change and you have to understand that that has to shift for us as well. That might mean we can't deliver exactly what you're looking for. But when you... Yes.
Conscious Success Co (30:12.82)
Mm-hmm. And so you set those expectations upfront clearly so that you can't be, they won't be disappointed or you're not held accountable to something that you're never going to be able to deliver or promise that you can.
Nikki (30:19.831)
Exactly.
Greta Stack (30:21.187)
Bye.
Greta Stack (30:26.254)
Correct. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (30:28.19)
And just from a business perspective, if you're turning away potential clients who want to pay you tens of thousands of dollars, some business owners would be like, no, the more clients, the more revenue, that is the right strategy. But it sounds like you haven't taken that approach and you've been prioritizing, OK, we need to build this community and this network and be able to deliver.
Nikki (30:32.481)
Okay.
Conscious Success Co (30:53.62)
How did you land on that or how have you thought through those trade-offs, especially if you are giving up tens of thousands of dollars in revenue?
Nikki (31:03.179)
It is always a conversation. I mean, we just had to do that today. Perfectly kind, wonderful person, but not our person. And you know what? It's hard to turn away from that, but we...
Greta Stack (31:08.12)
Mm-hmm.
Nikki (31:18.379)
sticking to our gut has served us really well. And even if it's not accepting, you know, big, big paychecks, it's never worth it in the end because we take our, we take our clients to bed with us, you know, this is, this is our life. We don't want to, we don't want to stress about not being able to deliver. So it's never worth it in the end.
Greta Stack (31:41.831)
And ultimately, they're, I think, appreciative that we're being honest and not just trying to take their money and not being able to execute on the project. So we tell them why, if that's the case. And it could be geography. could be criteria. It could just be like, it's too limited or it's unrealistic.
Conscious Success Co (31:50.412)
Mm-hmm.
Greta Stack (32:06.922)
If anything, we're great communicators, I think, and we're kind people. So we're not like saying to them, you're a loser and you're never going to meet anyone because that's obviously not how you talk to someone. But we're not trying to change people or what they're looking for, but we're being honest on what we can deliver. And sometimes it can be
Nikki (32:08.666)
It just seems like we're going to be...
Nikki (32:20.609)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (32:29.41)
Mm-hmm.
Greta Stack (32:31.99)
You know, we're always willing to take on a challenge, but they have to, you know, our expectations have to be aligned in that sense. So they might not have the same structure as another client. It might be something more, you know, like a more sort of specific search. depends.
Nikki (32:51.992)
Mm-hmm.
Conscious Success Co (32:52.996)
And I've heard you say in the past that matchmaking is like one part science, two parts intuition. And I imagine that is applied to making matches, but it also sounds very much like how you've run the business as a whole. And you've really leaned into your intuition and trusted your gut, in my mind is such a like.
Nikki (33:03.961)
But it all doesn't have to do them.
Nikki (33:09.765)
I love that.
Conscious Success Co (33:14.41)
embodied feminine leadership that we don't always see. You know, I work with a lot of people in tech and a lot of the male tech leadership is like data, data, data. Like that's the only thing that we trust, right? But you're talking so much about intuition and about seeing this like bigger picture and not just being in the science and the data. Can you speak to that as a sound business strategy?
Nikki (33:37.817)
I think women are so intuitive. So much of the reason, you know, women seek out women doctors, because we don't, something is very real to us and we just have this inkling and we just know that another woman is gonna hear us. And we really follow our gut. I mean, still with our clients and who we don't wanna work with. And sometimes if we have a ting or a little twinge like,
Greta Stack (33:38.008)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (34:06.126)
Yeah.
Nikki (34:06.699)
It always comes around in the end.
Greta Stack (34:08.844)
Yeah, I think from also a business perspective, it's really important to evaluate projects or whatever it is you're doing because taking it, you know, only focusing on the...
the numbers will not make you happy. So if you want to do something that's going to make you happy, you have to trust your gut too. And I think that if that means making a little bit less money for your happiness, then do that because the money won't make you happy. It's having something that you feel behind and you feel confident with. And, you know, I think that applies to so many things.
Nikki (34:47.865)
Thank
Nikki (34:55.672)
Thank
Greta Stack (34:57.27)
that women do in making the right decisions, that they just know it's not just about the numbers. And I think men are a little bit more calculated. And I don't know if your listeners are most, I imagine they're mostly women, I don't But it's like, don't be so calculated. Yes, you know, get a financial expert, make sure that it all makes sense. But also don't spread yourself too thin just because the numbers look good. You're ultimately going to set yourself up for a fail.
Conscious Success Co (35:10.201)
Yeah.
Nikki (35:11.223)
it.
Greta Stack (35:27.184)
player.
Conscious Success Co (35:28.132)
And it's such an important part, but I think oftentimes it can feel almost like counter-cultural to think like that, especially when we're in this like capitalistic society and everything's like up and to the right. And especially if you work at like a public company and shareholder returns and you always have to be, you know, more productive and driving more value. But at some point that could actually come into conflict with what makes you truly happy or what makes the business feel good. And so because you have this business that you are...
Greta Stack (35:37.39)
Right.
Conscious Success Co (35:54.339)
you know, 50-50 partners that you own and run, you've been able to have the agency and empowerment to make those decisions and those conscious trade-offs and design, it sounds like a business that really feels good. And yes, it's successful. It doesn't mean we're not ambitious and not driving towards big goals, but you're not doing that with like no cost. you know, you're not just more, more, more for the sake of more, you're actually factoring in.
Nikki (35:58.185)
Yep. Yep.
Conscious Success Co (36:19.722)
when no or when making less money and when accepting that trade off is the right decision.
Greta Stack (36:24.95)
And I, yeah, and I've said this, mean, I feel there's, it's very, Nikki and I are a small portion of people that I know and that my husband's known that, you know, who have been able to be business partners for so long without a lot of conflict. And I think we got, yeah, we got lucky, but we also, you know, if you're a woman out there who's starting a business and you want a partner,
Nikki (36:44.825)
16 years.
Greta Stack (36:54.838)
you know, really take that into account and you know, that this is the person that you talk to more than your husband sometimes. And you just want to make sure you like that person and that you have different strengths. I think Nikki and I are not the same person at all. And we have, we compliment each other just like I think a lot of our successful relationships that we've matched, you know, it's not always about being the same type of person, but how,
Conscious Success Co (37:04.611)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (37:24.246)
you're different and you complement each other.
Conscious Success Co (37:27.064)
and
This is such an important point and I want to dive into your business partnership because 16 years like that's longer than I don't know most many marriages I know I I had a you know brief venture into exploring a partnership at one point and you know within the first six months before we even launched the business became clear that that wasn't right, but I think a lot of people have Experiences where partnerships can go really wrong. So I'm curious like what has made your partnership stand the test of time you talk about not being
Greta Stack (37:35.31)
Bye.
Conscious Success Co (37:57.388)
exactly the same and complimenting each other. But can you talk to us more about like what actually works about your partnership?
Nikki (38:05.431)
Yeah, you do the things I don't want to do and I do the things you don't want to do because that's where we naturally gravitate.
Greta Stack (38:05.45)
Yeah, I think.
Greta Stack (38:14.304)
Yeah, I think that's like it's a little bit of luck. think we were also I think it's very hard. A lot of people go into business together because they're best friends or something like that. Nikki and I were not that in the beginning. You know, we have a nine year age difference. So while our
Nikki (38:32.94)
Greta was like a mentor to me. I didn't know anything about anything and she taught me about running a business and about running a matchmaking company. So I already knew that I deeply appreciated her and I would just follow her around anywhere and learn from her anytime I could. And then it became much clearer, you know, as we went on that we were the duo.
Greta Stack (38:52.684)
Yeah.
Nikki (38:58.232)
And whether it was client engagement or pitching a client, we found our yin and yang and where our strengths lie. And, oh, Greta, you definitely got to take this client. Or Nikki, this one's all yours. And really just working together and agreeing. I think I can count on one hand the number of arguments we've ever had, which is insane. We do not argue. We have so much respect for each other and we trust each other.
Greta Stack (39:12.718)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (39:25.048)
Good night.
Nikki (39:27.989)
implicitly.
Greta Stack (39:29.59)
Yeah. And I think it's also just, I think again, as a woman, you, have to sort of.
maybe not, maybe getting into a business with your best friend isn't the best idea, but can also work really well. But you have to have, I think, different strengths, like we said. I think also depending on your age, you know, if Nikki and I had had kids at the exact same time, it might have been a very difficult time for us. But because of the age gap or just life things, we were able to balance it really well. When I was having kids, Nikki wasn't ready yet. And then when she was having kids,
my kids were at an age where I, you know, was able to have more time. So I think, yeah, thank you. Yeah.
Nikki (40:13.421)
We always covered for each other. When Greta was in baby land, I was hitting the pavement. And when I was in baby land, Greta's hitting the pavement.
Greta Stack (40:21.088)
Yeah, so I think it's important, you know, just lifestyle that you have your own like circles and you have your own lives aside from work and outside of work because there's some people who are
I have we have some good friends of ours they run a business together and they're best friends and their partners and Like it is hard when you're spending a whole day together and then you're also a night together and it can cause a lot of friction and ultimately They probably won't listen to this podcast so I can say this but it's like not because it's not good. They're just old men so But they you know, ultimately their friendship suffered they were both so in
invested in the business that they were not willing to give that up. But now they're definitely not as good as friends as they were. And that's okay too. They were able to maintain the business relationship, but just to be cognizant of those kinds of things, that it doesn't have to be, oh, because we're business partners, we have to hang out 24 seven. like, you have to be part of every aspect of my life. Yeah.
Nikki (41:31.67)
We always had our own friends and did our own things, even when we lived in the same state, which we don't anymore. And we genuinely miss each other, but you know.
Conscious Success Co (41:31.758)
Right.
Greta Stack (41:39.692)
Right. And then we liked each other's friends and could totally hang out with each other, but it was just not always the same.
Conscious Success Co (41:50.094)
And Nikki, you mentioned that Greta would do the things you don't want to do and you do the things she didn't want to do and you have different strengths. Can you talk to us about what are your strengths, Greta, and what are your strengths, Nikki? What is the yin and the yang of your specific partnership?
Nikki (42:06.019)
this point, I think we both drink the Kool-Aid on all facets of our business, but it's always been like, Greta can't stand to be locked in at her computer. She is breakfast, lunching, dinnering. She wants to be around all the people. And I can be that way. She's totally in person. And when I'm locked in and I am just like focused, I'm a machine and I can't stop.
Greta Stack (42:10.317)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (42:17.048)
make them.
Greta Stack (42:25.58)
I need to be like any person.
Nikki (42:35.552)
I'm like a, I'm a computer and I just like to just go, go, go. I am hustling, I am in the zone and then Greta checks her phone and she's like, Nikki, you just set up 20 dates while I was at this lunch. Is everything okay? And I'm like, everything's great. And that's how we, that's how we work. Greta's like, I just got the best new client and I'm like, I think I arranged a marriage.
Greta Stack (42:50.7)
No. I think I.
Greta Stack (42:58.99)
Yeah, I think you have to sort of know your personality. If you can, like I would have, I would never be successful as a person who sits at their desk all day. It's just not.
Conscious Success Co (42:59.439)
Hahaha
Greta Stack (43:13.62)
something that I am very much an extrovert. So it feeds me energy when I'm in front of people and talking to people and networking and like that is what makes me tick. It doesn't mean that I love being alone too. And that gives me a lot of value too. But I think from a work perspective, you know, sitting and while I do accounting and all stuff like that, it doesn't feed me. It doesn't inspire me.
Conscious Success Co (43:42.808)
Hmm.
Greta Stack (43:43.457)
emails and things like that. I'd much rather talk on the phone or go for, you know, sit and have a coffee. Like it's just, otherwise it feels too robot robotic for me. It just doesn't feed me. And I'm so inspired when I am out doing those things. And it's when truly when things happen, you know, for me, where Nikki is, she's very much, she's very productive with texts. And I also think it's a little bit
of a generational thing. know, Nikki answers a text within seconds and I might look at one and then it like processes. I'm just more of an in-person type person and I find that the younger the generation is, the more technologically like attached they are versus, you know, an older generation where they just prefer to be in person.
Nikki (44:31.423)
What do think?
Nikki (44:37.655)
Thank you.
Conscious Success Co (44:40.986)
Mm-hmm.
Greta Stack (44:41.708)
And that's the, I'm generalizing, but Nikki's definitely, you know, she's incredibly responsive and productive and I do things more, I'm more productive in person, I think.
Conscious Success Co (44:57.434)
Totally. Well, I love to hear one that you're an example of someone who doesn't sit behind their desk all day on, you know, email and the computer and you're, you have a thriving successful business. I think for so many people listening, they're probably like, is that even possible? Like, does that exist? Right?
Greta Stack (45:13.698)
We're gonna be wrong. We a lot of time on, if you saw the amount of texts and emails we get daily, I spend, and my kids will definitely attest to that. Yes, I've moved, I actually have moved a lot of my work from email to text, which is a blessing and a curse, but.
Nikki (45:19.959)
Thank
Greta Stack (45:34.048)
You know with like promotional like emails it just gets flooded I find them more responsive if someone texts me than email because I feel like it Lost in the shuffle. I do spend a lot of time texting and on emails, too, but i'm
Nikki (45:37.975)
Yep.
Conscious Success Co (45:50.759)
But you can be out and about in your life and responding to a text versus change to your computer. you have this, you get energy from being in person and networking. mean, for me personally, the thought of going to breakfast, lunch, and dinner and networking all day sounds like the most draining thing in the world. And so it's such an important thing, as we talk about a lot on this podcast, to align to your energy and what fuels you and what gives you that boost and figuring out how do I
Nikki (45:51.23)
you
Nikki (46:15.052)
Thank you.
Conscious Success Co (46:17.934)
make sure that my work actually is conducive to that. Otherwise, you're fighting yourself the whole time.
Nikki (46:20.439)
Yep.
Greta Stack (46:24.236)
No, my husband is one of those people where he's reached a stage in his life where, I mean, he works, his whole team works remotely. And for him, the working behind the computer has, even though it's exhausting in a certain way, for him going to like a conference and like talking to people and stuff is way more exhausting and making like small talk where for me, it's more of a natural, like, I don't know. It doesn't bother me as much. And I enjoy it where he could just
Nikki (46:39.031)
Thank you.
Greta Stack (46:54.18)
like, you know, sit and punch numbers. Like, it's just different. And I think it's, you have to figure out what feeds you. do I want to travel every week and be out every night? God no. But I definitely like to mix that in because I think it's, I don't know, I'm just like an IRL type of person.
Conscious Success Co (47:18.574)
Yeah. so you two are 50-50 partners. And I know you said you can count the number of disagreements or fights you've had on one hand. But when you have genuinely disagreed on something in the business, how did you resolve it? Can you give us an example? Or can you speak to how, when you have the same ownership and strong opinions with a 50-50 partner, how do you really get to the other side of that?
Nikki (47:44.281)
It's the same thing. It's, Nikki, you're being very passive aggressive. What's happening? And I'm like, yeah, okay. And then
Greta Stack (47:50.199)
Yeah.
Nikki (47:55.638)
And then I tell Greta and then Greta just always, she's just like a voice of reason and she's very practical and she's very logical and she doesn't say anything that doesn't make complete sense. And literally like we just kibosh it as soon as anything becomes a problem. Like we don't have any built up resentment or anything like that. Because I would never confront anyone if I was having a problem, but Greta will always know if I have a
problems.
Greta Stack (48:26.082)
Yeah, I think you also get to know your partner pretty well and I would probably, I mean, you've done it to me too, but sometimes I'll just be like, I'm having a problem, I can't talk right now. And with her, I know it in her voice, I can see it in her text or whatever it may be. But I also think it's important to...
Nikki (48:44.349)
If you want connect to the web...
Greta Stack (48:51.574)
you know, ask each other, call each other out and be like, are you okay? What's going on? You seem a little curt. Like, is there some, you know, are you too busy? Do you need me to take off the plate? And if you don't do that, and there's a lot of people who don't, when they can see things are really busy or there's a lot of pressure or workload for one person, I think we're really good at saying, can I help you?
Can I take some of this off your plate? And also if the person's not saying that, the other person as a partnership, you have to be comfortable saying, I feel overwhelmed and I need your help. And most of the time, if you have a good relationship with your partner, they're gonna be like, my God, of course, I never realized because I'm doing my own thing. Like that's just how it works or how you should approach it. don't think like.
Nikki (49:19.753)
Thank
Greta Stack (49:41.782)
you know, harboring feelings is a good idea. think also getting not just doing things. I talked about not just having like spending all time together, but doing things together that are not work related is important. And like even.
Nikki (49:50.263)
Mm-hmm.
We try to do like a little bevy retreat once a year just to like not talk about work and then obviously we of course do but just to like have real time with each other to just hang out and reconnect and chill.
Greta Stack (50:00.654)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Greta Stack (50:08.142)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (50:11.812)
I mean, it's not lost on me how much this is similar to a long-term romantic partnership, right? It's like, do you actually feel supported by your partner? Are you able to share your feelings or name what's going on for them? Do you take something off their plate? Do you spend quality time together? Yeah.
Greta Stack (50:16.738)
Yeah.
Nikki (50:17.557)
Huh!
Nikki (50:23.124)
I feel very fulfilled in our marriage, Greta.
Greta Stack (50:28.044)
call each other work wives. Like, you know, we really do. And I think it's important. Yeah, I think all those things are important. I do think it's funny. Someone asked me about our business or business or partnership or work. And they said, do you see a regular like therapist for as partners? like, luckily we haven't needed to. You know, I always have this like, sort of
I think therapy is amazing, especially if you're trying to fix something that's broken. I also have this sort of like love hate thing, because you don't want to find problems. And sometimes if you feel like you always need it, you're just finding things to complain about. So I think if you are a part of like, if you're having problems, try to fix them and try to not elongate it and like just fix the problem and then move on and then come back if you have to.
But no, we've been fortunate that we don't argue that much. And we also like ask our friends and our husbands for their opinions. Like if we do disagree and chime in, I think it's good to get other people's opinions too and not just trust your own always.
Nikki (51:40.182)
Mm-hmm.
Conscious Success Co (51:46.183)
It sounds like you've been fortunate, but also emotionally mature and conscientious and kind. And those things have served you really well. I'm curious. So you've scaled from LA to New York to San Francisco, San Diego, Miami. But you've also kept your business, it sounds like intentionally, pretty small and high touch, right? What has kept you from just deciding to be like, OK, we're going to bring on 20 matchmakers. We're going to like.
Nikki (52:07.734)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (52:13.627)
be everywhere in the United States or internationally? And what were those trade-offs? Or why did you decide to stay a small team?
Nikki (52:16.374)
There it is.
off the back.
We've always, yeah, we've always been asked like, don't you want to scale? And I think that we've seen so many people in our space do that. And when you actually get to know them and you get to know the founders, they say, I wish I had just kept doing it like you. And you listen to that because eventually you get to a place where you have no ownership and you have no control over something that you created and.
Greta Stack (52:24.056)
That's a great question.
Nikki (52:52.544)
Greta and I truly love what we do. It fuels us, it drives us, and especially when you have kids. It's like such a wonderful outlet to take yourself out of, remove yourself from your children and have your own thing going on that you're really passionate about. So the more that you remove yourself from that, where's the fun and where's the joy in it for you? So I think that we're so lucky that we have so much passion.
Conscious Success Co (53:06.471)
Totally.
Greta Stack (53:07.725)
Yeah.
Nikki (53:18.206)
in what we do and we want to be a part of it. And we love all aspects of this business, some more than others. But when you dilute it or you hire too many people and you can't oversee things, that's when things get tricky. And Greta and I, if we're gonna call ourselves matchmakers, by God, we're gonna do some matchmaking. So that's what we do. There are no hidden.
Greta Stack (53:39.31)
Yeah.
Nikki (53:43.146)
hidden interns and little robots working for us who meet people. We meet people ourselves.
Greta Stack (53:50.319)
And I think, you know, for your listeners, it depends on what kind of business you're opening. I think you have to really create your own sort of, if you're starting a business or if you're in your business saying like, what is the next step for us? If you're starting a business, you have to say like, is this a business that I want to build and then sell? Because by all means, God bless you, you know, do it. But then, you know, work out a path for that.
in a service business like ours, we're not dealing with a product. So it's what we do. So we're like the product. Yeah, we are the product and our membership. for us, was never about, it was about doing something that we love and being able to do it for a long time without feeling burnt out. And also I think we always call it, it's like,
Nikki (54:28.018)
We are the product.
Greta Stack (54:47.482)
I think we value quality and there's like, we always say like when you're with the bevy, it's like boutique shopping versus department store shopping. And for us, we'd much rather have less.
Like less is more, it's just quality over quantity. So for us, we wanted to have a career and a lifestyle that we could have a balance of family and work and also love what we do without feeling like.
It was just without feeling like we were spreading ourselves too thin or without feeling like it wasn't true to what we had envisioned from the beginning. And that was important to us that it was just like more handmade and hand tailored, a curated experience.
Conscious Success Co (55:36.392)
I mean, I think that's the dream. And so many struggle to get there, but you've built it so intentionally. And you've known what you value and what you're willing to trade off and what you're not to be able to have these families and still do something that you love to do and have success, but not, as we talked about before, just chase more or more money and compromise what actually makes it worth being in the business.
Nikki (55:44.15)
you found.
Thank you.
Greta Stack (55:53.294)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (56:00.333)
And you also have to know what works for you. I mean, we work a lot. Like we work every day. So it is not a punch in and punch out kind of job. But with that.
You can also, we've been able to somewhat make our own schedules, you know, so, but that means you have to put in the work at some point. You can't just have it all. But if you are a person, you know, you have to figure out what's going to work for you. For us, it's like even working at 10 o'clock at night, but then, you know, we can pick our kids up from school if we want. So you just have to decide what.
Nikki (56:21.59)
you
Greta Stack (56:34.23)
is going to work for you mentally. is hard because we can't just shut off. We have to be there. being present sometimes is a little bit challenging. We do allow ourselves, think, because we're a team. I'll be like, I'm off air or you're off air. It can be challenging because it's not just like, I'll see you Monday. You have to be on. So I think.
Nikki (56:36.949)
you
Conscious Success Co (57:01.517)
And obviously you love what you do, but it is, you still work. You're still accountable to clients. Like you still have to drive results. All of that. Have there been seasons, I don't know whether it's like in new motherhood or just in certain cycles or whether COVID or whatever else where motivation wasn't as easy to come by or it felt like more of a slog. And how did you move through that? How did you not just like throw the baby out with the bath water and like
Greta Stack (57:07.31)
Yeah.
Nikki (57:11.172)
I don't know whether it's like if you have a home or a certain site or whatever.
Nikki (57:21.813)
There's always, it's always something for all of us and you know, we've relied
Greta Stack (57:28.407)
Yeah
Conscious Success Co (57:28.433)
Throw in the towel and be like, I need to find a whole new career. Can you talk to us? Because over 16 years since you started matchmaking, or 12 since you've run the bevy, I imagine the cyclical nature of life and our energy as humans shifts. So how have you moved through those seasons?
Greta Stack (57:44.588)
wine.
Nikki (57:50.225)
also on employees. know, we, there was a time I had, I had, I'd moved to California and I was renovating a house and my daughter was born and it was not an easy delivery at all. And I was on bed rest and you know, Greta and Katie had to really pick up the slack for me. And you know, I wanted to do the work, but I couldn't be there.
Greta Stack (57:52.43)
Yeah.
Nikki (58:18.418)
I remember being on FaceTime's while breastfeeding and I was like, okay, I can't do this and I need to ask for some help. And that's what you do. And then I cover for them when they need it.
Greta Stack (58:29.038)
Good night. Yeah. Yeah.
Greta Stack (58:35.758)
And listen, I'm the first to say I have full-time help at home as well. know, like, and I might have you delete this, but I have a housekeeper three times a week because I don't want to spend my weekends doing laundry. I value my time and I break it down by saying,
how much time is this going to take me or I could hire someone not get the like fancy bag this year and have a housekeeper so I don't so I can spend time with the kids focus on work and not have to be doing laundry. You know I think it's also important to
to understand that you're not going to be able to cover it all with kids. So I have a nanny as well. And I think I'm a better mother because of that. Because when I'm working most of the day, even though it's at different times, you know, I'll work all the time when they go to bed because then I, you know, between five and eight, it's really hard because I want to make dinner for them and hear about their days and do all those things. But then I'm back on Slack and my computer after that. But I think it's important to
Nikki (59:30.165)
Thank
Greta Stack (59:42.433)
know that you really can't do it all. So don't be afraid to outsource and don't think that because you don't work, you know, 12 hour a day, like an investment bank or something like that, that you shouldn't have help. Like I don't pick up my kids from school hardly ever, but I get to have dinner with them.
So you just have to like, don't have mom guilt, have someone help you because you will be more present when you're with them versus like trying to fit it all in and be a crazy person. Just don't do it. Yeah.
Nikki (01:00:11.413)
Thank you.
Conscious Success Co (01:00:20.232)
100%. And it's such an important conversation, I think, for ambitious, successful women to have. Like, I have a nanny 45 hours a week. I have a housekeeper come every other week. Like, I have worked with clients and talked to them a lot about, like, having a house manager for some of my, like, know, clients that need to be in an office and, you know, long hours. It's like...
Nikki (01:00:23.542)
Thank
Greta Stack (01:00:25.71)
Yep.
Conscious Success Co (01:00:44.722)
Figure out how to make it work. Figure out what you really value. What is quality time with your children? Or what are you not willing to compromise? And be willing to outsource and be willing to receive support. Where we get it wrong and burn ourselves out is like, okay, well, I have to be doing it all myself or I'm in some way failing. And it's such an important point of like, you've been able to stay in love with your business too because you've also allowed yourself to get support in your life and support from Nikki when you need that in your business.
Greta Stack (01:01:01.634)
Yeah!
Greta Stack (01:01:06.509)
Yes.
Greta Stack (01:01:10.348)
Yeah, and don't be ashamed. I am never shy to say I can't do it all. And again, my kids, they remind me of it, but they also know I'm a working woman and they love that too. And I think being a mom is the hardest job out there. And I think, but if you're craving or wanna start something, just...
you know, know that it's okay. you know, you can get it if it's like, you're never seeing them. But I think it's also important to remember that they look up to you if you're doing something for yourself and you'll be happier instead of just doing stuff for them all the time, you know.
Conscious Success Co (01:01:50.789)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (01:01:55.207)
And each of us have two girls, right? And so I always think about it, like, I wanna model the type of life and career that they might actually want to have, right? And so it's important for them. I was just on a girls' trip this last weekend and my girls knew that like they were FaceTiming with their aunties, but they knew like, mom takes time away to go on a girls' trip because that's the life I also want them to have one day, not this like.
Nikki (01:01:58.86)
I think about it, like, I want to talk about it, like, both my experience and my experience, think, I'm love with that. And so, if there's worrying for them, I think my rules for this will have to met. And I feel a few of them, like, they work really hard, they make their money, but maybe there's no one to rule over it. I feel like I'm so much in love with it. And that's what about.
Greta Stack (01:02:05.73)
Yeah, for sure.
Greta Stack (01:02:19.874)
Yes. I think, yes.
Conscious Success Co (01:02:20.334)
martyr life. They see that I have support, right? They see I do something that I love that gives me energy and brings me a sense of satisfaction outside of them. And so I think we really get to think about like, okay, what are we modeling for our daughters and our sons? But if we have them, but like, is this a model? Am I actually happy in my life? And if not, what changes what I need to make in order to model something I might actually want for them?
Greta Stack (01:02:42.7)
Yeah, and it's important for them to know that you're not always going to be there and just be at their back end call. You know, they need the separation. They need to learn how to miss you and value everything that you give them. I think that's super important too. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (01:03:00.528)
I love it. Okay, so I want to wrap up with five rapid fire questions. One of you can take each or you guys can both jump in whichever feels right to you. But to start, I ask every guest, what does conscious success mean to you?
Nikki (01:03:04.916)
How's that supposed to be rapid fire? I have no idea.
Conscious Success Co (01:03:18.952)
You're like, I need to go back.
Greta Stack (01:03:19.694)
Yeah, think I can answer that. mean, I obviously the sort of conscious uncoupling comes to mind when I hear that. But I think to me, it means being thoughtful with how you value success. just choosing even if it's not what the norm is or if what's, you know, like
Nikki (01:03:22.484)
You
Greta Stack (01:03:46.381)
Choosing what you really know is going to make you happy because you can only be successful if you're happy. So if that means, you know, leaving your job or getting divorced or whatever it is, doing what's going to be best for your mental and physical health. And yeah, I think that is what it means to me. Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (01:04:09.55)
it. Even the people we admire most are still growing and evolving. So what is one area of your life where you're currently being stretched or learning something new?
Nikki (01:04:21.971)
Wait, can you repeat the question?
Conscious Success Co (01:04:23.964)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Even those that we look up to, like the two of you, are still learning and evolving. So what's one area of your life where you're currently being stretched or learning something new?
Greta Stack (01:04:35.5)
We can definitely speak to that. would say, yeah, we're small. For me, it's definitely managing people. I think, you know, we've always been a small team and, you know, given that we're business partners, it's very easy for us because, or easier because it's our business. But for...
Nikki (01:04:37.908)
Yeah, I can definitely answer that too.
Greta Stack (01:04:59.758)
Managing people is very hard and that's even in your personal life and in your work life because you only see one side of them a lot of the times and it's just hard. The politics and all of that, it's the hardest part of work I find. And even our clients, yeah.
Nikki (01:05:20.788)
Bye, Hickory.
Conscious Success Co (01:05:24.71)
Who is someone in your world today who you admire for how they live, lead, or succeed? And what is it about this person that inspires you?
Nikki (01:05:33.524)
Greta inspires me. You do!
Greta Stack (01:05:34.894)
No, I don't say that.
Like, I don't know, she's had such a moment for me. Can it be like a celebrity? I would have to say Martha Stewart because she's, I don't know if I can swear, fucking 80 years old and still going, I mean, she was a model.
Conscious Success Co (01:05:45.948)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (01:05:52.744)
Hell yeah.
Greta Stack (01:05:57.679)
a financial advisor. She's been to prison. She built a media empire. She's like Betty Crocker, like the amount of lives she's had and still been able to like maintain not only her beauty and her poise and I've heard, you know, I watched her documentary and I know she's supposedly not the easiest person to work with but
So I don't want to be her, I just find her incredibly fascinating and inspiring for everything that she's accomplished.
Conscious Success Co (01:06:34.088)
Totally, and having that many lives, that many different careers and seasons, and just continuing to, know, prison doesn't keep her down, like, that's inspiring. 100%. If you could give your 10-year-old selves one piece of advice, what would it be?
Greta Stack (01:06:36.888)
Yeah.
Greta Stack (01:06:41.112)
Yeah. No. Machine. She's a machine.
Greta Stack (01:06:59.02)
Nikki.
Nikki (01:06:59.208)
Don't get hung up on something that you think is your dream. And if you find joy in something else equally or more, find that.
Greta Stack (01:07:12.034)
I think that's a great one. I couldn't agree with that more. When we started this business, like, I had a lot of, we had a lot of haters. I mean, I certainly did. They're like, what are you getting into? My parents were like, what are you even talking about? They were like, your parents were way more supportive. My parents were like, you've really lost your mom.
Nikki (01:07:25.882)
My parents too!
Nikki (01:07:32.936)
That's because I was 22 and they wanted me to make mistakes.
Greta Stack (01:07:36.526)
I was 30 and they're like, you're going to start what? like, so, and they've, they've took, they've, you know, they fell on the sword. They're like, good for you. You stuck with it and it's a great business. And we're so proud of you because we had no faith in you. They thought it was going to be. They did not think that. So I think that's a great thing to remember.
Conscious Success Co (01:07:52.828)
Hmm and some
Nikki (01:07:52.936)
Same.
Nikki (01:07:56.785)
Thank you.
Conscious Success Co (01:08:00.124)
I love that and sometimes like you have to hold that vision and believe in it before other people are going to come around. just because people who love you aren't initially supportive doesn't mean always it's a bad idea. They just might not be able to see it yet.
Greta Stack (01:08:11.936)
And I think it's good to for, know, like if it's something you want to do, try it. And if it fails, that's okay, because there'll be another idea. And that's how you just get to where you will eventually be by failing, you know, we all have in different ways. So.
Conscious Success Co (01:08:28.788)
100%. And that with each failure, quote unquote, you learn so much, it's a redirection. It opens up that next door for you that you would have never seen or been able to walk through without it and having that perspective. And also, also, Nikki, I don't know, I know like, from knowing you at some point, you you had aspirations of theater or something that might have been a young childhood dream if you're speaking to your 10 year old self, but
Nikki (01:08:38.576)
Never would have known about it. And now it's a compulsion. would do it anyways.
Conscious Success Co (01:08:56.059)
also realizing that like that initial dream, it can shift. And if you're finding joy and doing what you love and continuing to follow that, yeah.
Nikki (01:09:02.205)
That was what it was. When I got to New York and I was immersed in it, I said, this is not glamorous. And if I'm not gonna be handed a role on a silver platter, I am not waiting in the snow to audition, because gross. And then I found this and how lucky I could have been. I always wonder like, what would have happened if I hadn't met Greta or I hadn't taken that meeting? Would I be doing something?
that I would pick any day over the latter. So be open to other opportunities and learning about things that you don't know about yet because you might fall in love with it.
Greta Stack (01:09:41.198)
Yeah.
Conscious Success Co (01:09:42.237)
So good. Okay, last question. If you could give any advice to the women listening who are maybe sitting on a business idea, but too scared to start, what would that advice be?
Nikki (01:09:49.364)
Thank
Nikki (01:09:53.124)
even though you're really nervous to do it. And that was me when Greta and I left and I said, Greta, are you crazy? What are we doing?
Do it, just do it. and, cause then you'll know, is it a success or is it not? Because you're always gonna regret not having taken the chance.
Greta Stack (01:10:14.944)
Yeah, there's people have so many ideas and they never execute and that's where it really takes, you can talk about your ideas all day long and if you don't actually, you're gonna look back and regret it. So just try it and if you fail, cool, then go to the next one. Like it's better to try and fail because at least you've gotten that far. But I would say for sure, just take the leap.
Conscious Success Co (01:10:44.657)
It's such good advice. I distinctly remember when I was thinking about leaving tech and starting this business thinking like, you know what? At the end of my life, sitting on my deathbed, even if it doesn't work out, am I going to regret that? Or will I be proud of myself for trying? Or will I regret the life, the dream I lived that I never felt brave enough to execute on? And it's like, I got to the point where like, OK, even if it fails, that's a success. And I think when you can get to that place, then like the
Nikki (01:10:45.332)
Thank you.
Conscious Success Co (01:11:13.245)
world of possibility and potential opens up to you and you can fail and fall forward and iterate and find your path. And so I love that and just giving that permission slip to women to like, just try it, just do it. You'll learn so much. Like you won't regret it even if it doesn't turn out the way that you initially conceived that it would. So good. I've loved this conversation so much. Thank you both for your time and for being here and for just being such
Greta Stack (01:11:31.502)
Yeah, for sure.
Conscious Success Co (01:11:42.245)
embodied role models of what it looks like to build a consciously successful business and live a genuinely successful life. So it's so inspiring to me and I'm sure to everyone listening. Thank you.
Greta Stack (01:11:53.272)
Thanks so much. Yes.
Conscious Success Co (01:11:55.786)
All right.
