Ep 98: From Devil Wears Prada to Web3 High Fashion?! | Francine Ballard (Founder, Metagolden)

Devil Wears Prada is the closest thing I have to the world of
high fashion.


When I asked Francine Ballard how closely it mimicked reality,
she said, “There is some truth to that.”


And she should know.


Francine Ballard has worked in the fashion industry for a
while. 


She was the American Fashion Director at Time Inc (InStyle),
Conde Nast (Lucky magazine), and PaperCity Magazine as Style
Editor at Large, working with fashion and jewelry brands Hermès,
Gucci, Fendi, Dolce & Gabbana, Cartier among others before
transitioning to the technology space.


Francine is also a founding member of BFF, along with Gwyneth
Paltrow, Kate Hudson, Paris Hilton and founders Brit Morin and
Jaime Schmidt, and co-founder of several startups including
Metagolden - a web3 emporium selling luxury phygitals.


In this episode, we tackle how Francine went from a small island
in Hawaii to the world of high fashion publication, what it takes
to rise to the top, how she got into the web3 space, how the
fashion industry is shifting, why phygitals and more.





Highlights:


2:52 Growing up in Hawaii

4:24 Speed until you get a ticket

6:26 Devil Wears Prada in real life?

8:10 Climbing to the top of US high fashion publication

9:40 Founding a registered resale startup

13:09 Testing an idea

15:04 Fashion Industry x Web3

17:11 Origins of Metagolden

20:35 Phygitals

21:54 Traditional fashion house v fashion house of the future

24:51 Building community

38:06 Are brands afraid of web3?

30:09 Interesting use cases

32:07 Launching Francine’s 1st collection

37:07 How to decide on pricing

40:38 Where community comes from 

43:31 Building partnerships 

45:00 Dream partner 

46:51 How to create a sense of belonging

47:55 Being a founding member of BFF






Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/98


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