What It Takes
How I Built a $100 Million Business Against the Odds
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
A USA Today and LA Times Bestseller!
“A force to be reckoned with. Funny, creative, and full of courage and charming sass. What It Takes will give you the tools you need to create your own success story.”
—Sarah Kauss, founder and CEO of S’well
“An inspiring story for anyone who wants to change their career, play by their own rules, and build a successful business in the process.”
—Rebecca Minkoff, founder and creative director
Founder of global baby brand aden + anais Raegan Moya-Jones doesn’t hold back on what it really takes to build a $100 million business from her kitchen table.
Raegan Moya-Jones never thought of herself as an entrepreneur. She was full-time corporate cog in her thirties, with a family to help support. Sick of her micromanaging boss, she quietly started a company in the wee hours of the morning while her daughters were asleep—and once that side business, aden + anais, hit the $1 million mark in revenue, she quit to work on it full-time, which now generates over $100 million a year in revenue.
In this riveting, vulnerable story, What It Takes is Moya-Jones’ tell-all and brutally honest advice to entrepreneurs—especially women—about how to succeed despite all odds. It doesn’t take an MBA to be your own boss. If Moya-Jones, an outspoken Aussie and college drop-out, could build a business from the ground up, anyone can.
Moya-Jones digs into topics most entrepreneurs shy away from, even the prickliest of things like mother guilt, butting heads with investors (or co-founders), and what to really do when you’re running out of money. There’s no magic formula to build a business, which also mean you don’t have to look or act a certain way to be successful. This empowering story from one of today’s most fascinating founders will show the hopeful entrepreneur or career changer that she doesn't have to know it all. This story is about staying true to who you are, trusting your gut, and harnessing your unique talent. Do you have what it takes to jump in?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Moya-Jones, founder of baby swaddle empire Aden + Anais, delivers a feisty but slim primer on entrepreneurship. The majority of the book is devoted to her story, organized into chapters illustrating her advice which unfortunately proves far from revelatory. A onetime sales executive, Moya-Jones found herself unfulfilled and unchallenged at work, so she began designing colorful muslin swaddling blankets that were a staple in her native Australia, but were unfindable in the U.S. She left her day job after Aden + Anais surpassed $1 million in revenue, and has since seen the company take in over $100 million. Taking a more general view, Moya-Jones observes that increasing numbers of women want to start businesses due to the obstacles they've encountered in the corporate world, namely few opportunities for advancement, limited flexibility, and outright bias. For all her abundant success, readers may find Moya-Jones modest to a fault; she writes that, while there's no magic formula for success, if she can do it, anyone can. However, her tips variously concerned with conquering doubt, managing risk, balancing family and work obligations, leading a team, and trusting one's intuition aren't anything new. The resulting book is an easy pass for fans of business guides.