What does it mean to network now? At CEW today, Polly Blitzer discusses the changing face of networking with three experts in the field: Lydia Fenet, author of The Most Powerful Woman in the Room Is You and the founder and CEO of The Lydia Fenet Agency; Allison Statter, CEO and Co-Founder of the Blended Strategy Group, and Katie Welch, CMO of Rare Beauty. “Until just a few years ago, networking was a straight forward endeavor. Go to cocktail party. Wear a name tag. Speed-date your way across the room and exchange business cards,” writes Blitzer. “But technology and flexible offices are disrupting the way we socialize and work and experts say that we now all tend to network throughout the day without even realizing it.” With insights from Fenet, Statter and Welch, Blitzer takes five new networking tips in turn – one of which may come as a relief for the more introverted among us. “You do not need to be an extrovert to be good at networking,” maintains Fenet, by way of example. “Although it’s important to let the other person know more about your current situation and interests, it does not need to be self promotional. People love to talk about themselves if you let them. If you come armed with initial questions, you can ask follow-ups to keep the conversation.”
In other female leadership news, WWD spotlights five beauty industry founders and CEOs on a mission to support and encourage women in achieving career success. “The statistics are terrible. In 2022, less than 2 percent of venture capital funding went to women and less than 1 percent to women of color,” Cristina Nuñez, co-founder and general partner of True Beauty Ventures tells WWD’s Jenny B. Fine. “I try to make a difference directly, by investing and putting dollars to work in order to change those statistics about female founders, and also indirectly, by giving a new face to what a venture capital or private equity professional looks like.”
Read on for more on these and other news stories today.
Five New Ways to Network Now. “Reframing your definition of networking means you can do it on your own terms anywhere and anytime,” writes Polly Blitzer at CEW. (CEW)
Changing the Face of Beauty: Female Founders Committed to Helping Women Get Ahead. (WWD)
Why QVC is Focused on Engaging Women Aged 50+, the U.S.’ 60 Million “Super-Consumers”. “We know that women 50+ love to shop. They find it fun, energizing, stress-relieving—and they are inspired by storytelling, which is at the heart of our QVC business model,” Anna Baker, QVC’s VP and GMM Beauty, tells Genevieve Monsma. (CEW)
Emerging Beauty Companies Are Bringing Third Party Brands to Their Websites. (BEAUTY INDEPENDENT)
Swiss multinational Clariant is planning to purchase Lucas Meyer Cosmetics from International Flavours and Fragrances (IFF). (COSMETICS DESIGN)
The (Under) Eyes Have It, says SPATE. According to its Weekly TikTok Update, “under eye correctors” are trending across all beauty categories this week, with brightening formulas from brands such as Charlotte Tilbury being featured in videos. “Brands and creators should keep in mind that demonstrating visual comparisons is a great way to both engage viewers, and help educate them in their purchasing decision,” it reports. (SPATE)
