When Natasha Oakley and her best friend, Devin Brugman, created their blog, A Bikini a Day, in 2012, they had no idea their passion project would eventually turn into a multimillion-dollar global brand. The site, which expanded to feature fitness, travel and lifestyle content, was, at its core, a platform to celebrate curves and the diversity of women's bodies. Oakley and Burgman's ability to cater to that gap in the swimwear market, however, was the catalyst for the duo to launch Monday Swimwear in 2014.  "When we started A Bikini a Day [there weren't a lot of swimwear options] that were beautiful, that fit women's curves and that made women feel confident. Everything just didn't fit quite right. We were featuring the best that we could, but it still wasn't up to the standards that we would have liked," Oakley said on the latest episode of The Glossy Podcast. "So we thought, 'We just need to create our own brand. We're so passionate about swim, so let's go for it.'" The brand's expansive range of sizes, along with its quality products and the built-in community that came from it being founded by influencers, has helped it grow. According to Oakley, in 2022 alone, Monday Swimwear organically grew 30%.  For Oakley, Monday Swimwear was just the beginning of her journey as a founder and investor. In 2020, the serial entrepreneur launched an online exercise platform called The Pilates Class alongside Jacqui Kingswell, which grew 22% in the 2022, she said. And most recently, she invested in jewelry brand Emma Pills.  Though Oakley has many projects on her plate, she said her main priority is continuing to grow and expand Monday Swimwear. The brand plans to expand into international markets, as well as launch retail locations. 

When Elyce Arons met Kate Spade, then Kate Brosnahan, at 18 years old, the two quickly became friends over a shared interest in journalism. But they moved to New York after college and realized a greater passion for the fashion industry. That led the duo, plus Andy Spade and Pamela Bell, to become the founding partners of Kate Spade, in January 1993.  After eventually selling Kate Spade to Neiman Marcus Group in 2006, Arons and Kate Spade realized they hadn't lost the desire to create and design. Thus, in 2016, they launched Frances Valentine, starting with shoes and handbags. Since then, Frances Valentine has built a growing business by focusing on often overlooked demographics: boomers and Gen X.  "When [Kate and I] started Kate Spade, we were 29 and 30 years old. We were at a time in our lives where we were young professionals, and the products we made were targeted to women like us. But when we started Frances Valentine, we were missing things in the market that we wanted." Arons said on the latest episode of The Glossy Podcast. "I thought, 'We've done this before. I know we can do this again.' So we started by making beautiful [shoe] designs at great prices, with good quality." Though Frances Valentine initially began selling apparel as an homage to Kate Spade, it realized the great demand and soon released a full apparel line to complement its accessories. Apparel has grown to become the brand's No. 1 product category. Now, Frances Valentine has its sights on expansion, most recently entering the home decor and beauty categories. As it slowly works toward becoming a premier lifestyle brand, it also plans to open more physical store locations.