Melissa Ben-Ishay took something very tiny and built it into something very big. The “tiny” is cupcakes. The “big” is Baked by Melissa, which over the last decade has grown beyond its popular storefronts into a fast growing online business, with corporate gifting, events, and more. Melissa is quick to share that her attitude towards life and how she takes on challenges have been a big part of her success, and choosing personal growth over insanity has been her key inspiration. When she started baking cupcakes after losing her advertising job, it didn’t just generate an idea for a business—it illustrated Melissa’s values of being your best self, telling yourself how strong and capable you are, and loving what you do. Melissa joins Socialfly co-founders Stephanie Cartin and Courtney Spritzer for a conversation about building her business and career, and describes her journey to success. She shares the challenges and joys of building a business with your sibling, and how you keep momentum when they move on to another opportunity; the importance of having a true leader; why you don’t send messages when you're emotional; how word of mouth and gifting have been key to the growth of Baked by Melissa; why gifting cupcakes might be a great sales strategy; Melissa’s toughest year, and special moments; how the business went rent-free in a prime location for 5 years; and, Melissa shares her superpower, and the goal of 100 million cupcakes. Plus, a surprise!
Guests
Melissa Ben-Ishay
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.
Courtney Spritzer
Co-founder of Entreprenista.
Courtney Spritzer is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, author, and community builder with a passion for creating brands and platforms that empower women to lead, grow, and thrive.
In 2012, she co-founded Socialfly, a leading social-first digital and influencer marketing agency. Over the course of a decade, she helped scale the business into an award-winning agency working with Fortune 500 brands and emerging startups, building a powerhouse team and culture along the way. In 2024, Socialfly was acquired.
In 2018, Courtney launched the Entreprenista Podcast to spotlight the stories of inspiring women founders. That passion evolved into Entreprenista Media in 2021, a media platform and community supporting women entrepreneurs at every stage of growth. She now co-leads the continued expansion of The Entreprenista League, a membership-driven community and ecosystem for founders.
As an angel investor, Courtney supports female-led and mission-driven startups aligned with her vision for a more inclusive and equitable business landscape.
She is the co-author of Like, Love, Follow: The Entreprenista’s Guide to Using Social Media to Grow Your Business (2015), a strategic guide for leveraging social platforms to drive business success.
Her work and ventures have been featured in Bloomberg, Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur, and The New York Times. She is committed to championing visionary founders and helping build the next generation of impactful, community-driven businesses.
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