Anika sits down with Julie Ellis to explore the inflection point every founder dreads—the moment you’ve built the business, achieved the goal, and suddenly realize you have no idea who you are without it. Discover why selling an eight-figure business can feel like Grief disguised as success, how delegation is the real bottleneck between scaling and plateauing, and the counterintuitive truth that derails most women entrepreneurs: it’s never about having a bigger vision. It’s about believing you’re worthy of one—and whether you have the systems and people around you to make it real.
In This Episode
- From dance to Finance to founder: How an unexpected career path led Julie to solve a problem every parent knew existed
- The basement to eight figures: Building Mabel’s Labels from a 300 sq ft basement in Hamilton, Ontario to an internationally recognized brand—with zero industry experience
- Grassroots Growth and celebrity endorsements: How a tiny magazine feature led to Daily Candy recognition and a life-changing mention from Elizabeth Hasselbeck on The View
- The art of delegation and scaling: Why most founders plateau and what separates those who scale to eight figures from those stuck at product-market fit
- The post-exit identity crisis: Navigating grief, imposter syndrome, and gratitude after selling to Avery Products—and why the 90-day rest period changed everything
- Big Gorgeous Goals: Why “gorgeous” matters as much as “big”—and how to chase ambitious goals while actually enjoying the journey
- The confidence gap and funding inequity: Why only 2.9% of venture capital goes to women entrepreneurs, and what Julie is doing to change that
- Pocket Coach: The asynchronous Coaching model that keeps entrepreneurial momentum alive between sessions
- Building community for women founders: The Big Gorgeous Goals podcast and Investing in women-led businesses
- Leading through uncertainty: Why the biggest breakthroughs happen in times of change
Timestamps
- 00:00 Introduction: The woman who solved every parent’s labeling problem
- 02:01 An unexpected founder: Dance degree, 15 years in finance, and the moment everything changed
- 04:00 The basement days: One year of research, zero industry experience, and a team of misfits
- 06:28 From tiny magazine feature to Elizabeth Hasselbeck’s endorsement on The View
- 11:06 The biggest gap between founders who plateau and those who scale: Delegation and decision-making
- 12:49 The acquisition: Selling Mabel’s Labels after nearly 13 years—and why it was the right time
- 17:29 The post-sale Emotions: Grief, imposter syndrome, and the gratitude sandwich
- 19:07 The 90-day rest and the identity crisis: Why “I’m not qualified” became the biggest lie
- 22:22 The coaching pivot: Why certification gave her the “add” she was looking for
- 23:18 Writing during the pandemic: How a daily writing group turned a book idea into Big Gorgeous Goals
- 25:37 Why “gorgeous” matters: Dancing toward your goals instead of grinding toward them
- 28:01 Creating white space: Why unstructured time is where the best ideas live
- 31:33 The confidence gap and funding inequity: 2.9% of VC goes to women; only 2% of women-founded businesses reach $1M
- 33:45 Pocket Coach: Asynchronous coaching for keeping momentum alive between sessions
- 35:52 The Big Gorgeous Goals podcast: Storytelling for women entrepreneurs
- 39:02 Her ideal coaching clients: Low seven-figure founders scaling to $5-10M
- 40:01 What’s next: New keynotes and workshops on leading bold teams through uncertainty
- 41:38 Her guiding quote: Rabindranath Tagore’s “Reach high for stars lie hidden in you”
Key Insights & Takeaways
Insight 1: Unmet Market Needs Beat Industry Expertise
Julie and her co-founders had no background in supply chain, marketing, or distribution—just a teacher, a financial planner, a lawyer, and a printing expert. What they had was a real problem to solve and a growth mindset. Expertise can be learned; identifying genuine customer pain points cannot.
Insight 2: Delegation and Decision-Making Are the Scaling Bottleneck
The biggest gap between founders who plateau and those who scale to eight figures isn’t product or market—it’s the ability to delegate and make decisions. Most founders get caught in the “I should have just done it myself” trap, which prevents them from reaching the next level.
Insight 3: Post-Exit Grief Is Real—And Worth Processing
Selling your business is an achievement, but it’s also a loss. Julie experienced imposter syndrome, grief, and identity confusion after the sale. Her 90-day rest period—where she did nothing—was transformative. The emotional work matters as much as the financial outcome.
Insight 4: White Space Is Where Creativity Lives
The best ideas don’t come at your desk—they come in the shower, on a walk, flying on a plane. Creating intentional unstructured time requires saying no to things and protecting space fiercely, even though it feels counterintuitive.
Insight 5: Women Entrepreneurs Face Systemic Funding and Confidence Gaps
Only 2.9% of venture capital goes to women, yet women-led businesses outperform on efficiency and team management. The solution isn’t just funding—it’s mentoring, networks, and other women believing in women.
Insight 6: Asynchronous Coaching Keeps Momentum Alive
Traditional coaching sessions every two weeks create gaps where momentum dies. Pocket Coach’s voicemail-based model lets entrepreneurs push through decisions in real time, maintaining the energy they need to scale.
About Julie Ellis
Julie Ellis is a leadership coach, author, investor, and podcast host specializing in helping women entrepreneurs scale from seven to eight figures and beyond. She co-founded Mabel’s Labels in a 300 sq ft basement in Hamilton, Ontario in 2003, growing it into an internationally recognized eight-figure brand before selling to Avery Products in 2016.
After a 90-day rest and a brief stint managing 135 people in corporate Retail, Julie pursued coaching certification and discovered her true calling: helping other entrepreneurs navigate the inflection points she’d experienced. She is the author of Big Gorgeous Goals: Bold Women Achieve Great Things, which features interviews with 16 women entrepreneurs who’ve scaled beyond the comfort zone.
Today, Julie invests in women-led businesses, hosts the Big Gorgeous Goals podcast, offers one-on-one and asynchronous coaching through Pocket Coach, and delivers keynotes and workshops on leading bold teams through uncertainty.
Resources & Links Mentioned
Julie Ellis’s Ecosystem
- Big Gorgeous Goals (Book) — Hybrid published with Page Two, distributed through Macmillan
- Big Gorgeous Goals Workbook — Self-published companion guide
- Big Gorgeous Goals Podcast — Stories from seven and eight-figure female founders
- Pocket Coach — Asynchronous voicemail-based coaching for entrepreneurs
Connect with Julie Ellis
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Anika is a mother, community volunteer, philanthropist, marketing and communications strategist and podcast host. As a marcom executive, she has done it all including experiential marketing/ event production, launch marketing, public relations, digital, and influencer throughout her multiple decade career.
She is a member of the Quickbooks Small Business Council, as well as on the Advisory Board for the Women in Leadership program for UCSB’s PaCE; advisor for Junior League of Los Angeles’ 2022 – 2023 President; Co-founder and board member of Learn Grow Lead; and Ballona Wetlands Philanthropy Chair for National Charity League’s Pier Chapter.
In Anika’s newest role, she is an adjunct professor at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, teaching graduate students in both the Masters of Public Relations and Advertising as well as the Masters of Digital Media Management programs.
