How This Entrepreneur Raised $58 Million to Revolutionize the Interior Design Industry with Lee Mayer, Founder of Havenly

Lee Mayer is the co-founder and CEO of Havenly, an online
interior design company that makes interior decorating services
more accessible and affordable to all.  


In 2013, Lee had just relocated from a small NYC apartment to a
larger home with considerably more space in Denver, Colorado.
Overwhelmed by all the furniture and decor choices to be made,
Lee was frustrated by the lack of quick, simple, budget-friendly
interior design options that were available to her. 


As someone who never thought of herself as an entrepreneur,
especially growing up with certain cultural expectations from her
Indian family, Lee tried to convince all her friends to start an
online interior design company to solve the problem. After
spending months in an empty home, Lee, encouraged by her sister
Emily, quit her lucrative career in finance and the two started
the company together. Neither of them had interior design or
tech backgrounds but were confident that there was a need in the
market.


Under Lee’s leadership, Havenly has raised $58 million dollars in
funding from top tier investors and is now the leader in the
world of online design while many competitors have struggled or
even failed to stay afloat.


In this episode, we'll talk to Lee about:


* How Lee’s upbringing and cultural expectations of her Indian
family impacted her career trajectory [2:25]


* Lee shares how she never thought of herself as an entrepreneur
& how her own narrative for becoming a tech founder changed
[6:00]


* Before taking the leap to start her company, Lee walks through
how she thought through financial security and leaving her
lucrative career [13:33]


* Lee opens up about the early days of Havenly, mistakes she made
along the way and what she thinks held her back [18:30]


* The importance of not taking anything personally in business
and blaming yourself for failures [24:35]


* How to change your perspective on success and live a more
purpose driven life [27:50]


* Lee’s experience raising $58 million dollars from venture
capitalists & how she dealt with 140 no’s [29:14]


* How to overcome imposter syndrome and deal with the naysayers
[40:40]


* Lee walks through the silver lining of her divorce and how it
pushed her to ask for help which benefited both her personal
& professional life [44:53]


* How Lee manages her family life and a high growth business
& why the partner you select in your life is one of the most
important decisions you'll ever make [48:38]


Follow Lee:


* Personal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leeathavenly/


* Havenly Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehavenly/


* Website: https://havenly.com/


Follow Yasmin:


* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yasminknouri/


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