“An acquisition is not the end all, be all. And I really want to emphasize that because I think there's so many misnomers or ideas out there that people think the norm is raising money. I did not. There's another way to do it. It's just less talked about and gets less attention. The end all is not always an exit.”
Gwen Whiting is a serial entrepreneur and the co-founder of The Laundress, an eco-friendly cleaning brand. After selling the company to Unilever in 2019, Gwen faced unexpected challenges navigating the acquisition process and the emotional toll of watching the brand she had built for many years start to sink. Now, Gwen is channeling her passion for wellness into her latest venture, The Fill, a private members cleaning community focused on sustainable solutions. Through this new chapter, she continues to advocate for responsible entrepreneurship and creating meaningful impact. After not being able to speak about the details of her acquisition until now, Gwen is finally able to reveal what can really happen after a sale. Tune in and hear the challenges Gwen faced going from founder to employee, what she learned from her acquisition, and why some of her best advice is to join the Entreprenista League.
We talked about:
- How the Laundress was acquired (06:42)
- The emotional toll of selling a business (24:52)
- Sustainable business practices (31:36)
- The importance of giving back (35:56)
- Challenges of starting fresh (47:14)
Connect with Gwen:
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Guests
Gwen Whiting
Hosts
Stephanie Cartin
Co-founder of Socialfly and Entreprenista.
Stephanie Cartin is the co-founder and CEO of Entreprenista, an all-in-one platform – which includes a private community & business membership called The Entreprenista League that's made up of over 2,000 women founders at all stages of business, a weekly newsletter received by 60,000 readers, two podcasts, in-person educational & networking events, and an award program – that women founders at all stages can turn to for everything they need to grow.
Stephanie is also the co-founder of Socialfly (acquired by Truform Media Group in 2024), Markid, and Pearl Influential Capital. She has won countless awards, including the SmartCEO Brava award, which recognizes the top women CEOs in New York, and a Stevie Award for Women-Run Workplace of the Year. She has also appeared in Bloomberg, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Refinery29, and more.
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