Be True to Your Vision: Interview with Stacy Igel, Founder of BOY MEETS GIRL

I recently went one on one with Stacy Igel, founder of BOY MEETS GIRL. Stacy is also the author of the new book Embracing the Calm in the Chaos: How to Find Success in Business and Life Through Perseverance, Connection, and Collaboration.

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? 

Stacy: I knew what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be from the womb essentially.

Adam: What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?

Stacy: I have found the hardest part of running a business, especially a business that owns intellectual property and needs to protect its assets that it is super hard and a lot of money is needed to protect assets which means in turn you need a lot of money on the onset of your business. This brings me to raising capital and finding the right partners. I failed when I made rushed decisions out of the need to bring capital into my company. 

But if I didn’t learn from those mistakes, I would not be here to share my story with you.

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas? Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea? 

Stacy: When I first started BOY MEETS GIRL®, I knew I wanted to create a message and a logo that spoke to everyone. One of the many ways I embrace the calm amidst the chaos in my life and career is to constantly distinguish myself from those around me, because my style is different from everything else on the market.

From the day I launched after 9/11, I made a promise to myself that I would always help others by sharing stories and bringing awareness to topics, organizations, and current events that were happening around me. And that is how I have led for 21+ years running my business.

I have a lot of advice for others who want to come up with great idea/s. I want you to think about what does your brand stand for? Why are you creating it? Can your idea change the landscape of a business? Is your idea a necessity in your market?

You have to be confident in your capabilities and your open point of view. It’s one thing to be unique and another to share that in a public forum. To move forward, the latter is necessary. Test your idea with 100 people.

How do you get your product awareness when it is in a store? Why would a salesperson in a big department store want to help you? For me, it has always been necessary that anyone who is selling my product or my brand comprehends not only my professional goals but also the ethos of why I got started and that my brand has been an impact brand from day one and that there would always be a nonprofit piece to it. I always share with any sales rep or store salesperson my story of who I am, where I came from, why I am so excited to launch there, how grateful I am to be in that particular store, and go through all product specifics that apply to my brand ie thumbholes on the sleeves of my hoodie etc.

As an owner and boss, you have to understand how customer service operates and how important that personal touch is when you’re trying to stand out. And you have to treat everyone equally, from the picker and the packer to the top salesperson to the president. It doesn’t matter who they are, to earn their respect and their belief in your success, every person needs to know that you care about them, so they’re motivated to represent you and your collection.

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?

Stacy: My model for growth has always been to partner and collaborate with thought leaders from all facets of business from other brands, designers, artists, musicians, activists, and non-profits. I think each business is unique in its approach and there is not one recipe for success. However, I will say that how you communicate and how you treat a partnership is key to success and taking your business to the next level. Industries are small after you learn more about your industry and when others hear that you are a great partner and you created change they will want to join your roadmap. If you are not kind to others and you treat partnerships poorly it will come back to haunt you. 

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?

Stacy: Find something that you know will resonate with your consumer, that you know will make a change, that you know will make a statement, and be true to your vision even when there are naysayers along the way. Then find which market will resonate with your product or vision. Now you have resources that were not here 15+ years ago to target those ideas. If you get a bite on one channel focus on that channel and grow there before you enter 100 more channels. And always be there for your CUSTOMER!

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?

Stacy: I believe a leader should not micromanage. I believe a leader should trust the employees on their team and create an effective reporting system to avoid any micromanagement. 

Adam: What do you hope readers take away from your new book?

Stacy: In Embracing The Calm in the Chaos: How to Find Success in Business and in Life Through Perseverance, Connection and Collaboration, I want to encourage entrepreneurs to follow their dreams. This is for those just starting out or entrepreneurs who are thinking of making a career change to start their own venture, entrepreneurs a few years in, and moms who might have left the workforce and coming back in to start their own venture, but they need to realize it is NOT EASY.  But, I want them through my eyes and experiences to see that YOU CAN DO IT, if you really put the work in and set up your systems properly. But I want them to also know that hardships and failures are part of the road to success and that if you cannot endure the lows on the road to success you cannot or will not be a business leader. 

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?

Stacy: Ask yourself what kind of impact you’d like your business to have on the world. What kind of footprint do you want to leave behind?

Focus on what’s directly in front of you and take it one step at a time. When you make a mistake, learn from it.

Treat everyone you work with equally to earn their respect and their belief in your success.

As an entrepreneur, you have to be willing to challenge yourself and do things that are outside your comfort zone.

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?

Stacy: So hard to answer as there are so many. My mom taught me to never doubt my own capabilities, and to believe in what you set out in the universe and take ownership of it. My dad taught me that there are and will be many twists and curves on your journey so remember to keep moving when you feel you might have failed. Lastly, I always loved what Bob Dylan said, “A man/woman is a success if he gets up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between, he does what he wants to do.”


Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally-recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.

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