Turning Followers into Customers with Beachwaver’s Sarah and Erin Potempa

“It felt like eight, nine years we were like, ‘Did anybody ever see our videos? Does anyone ever comment on our stuff? Like, what is going on? Why? We work so hard, we edit new stuff every day!’ Until we started to commit to the audience and give them more of our attention and our time and listen to them, is when it really shifted.” -Sarah Potempa

In this episode of Entreprenista, we talked to Sarah Potempa and Erin Potempa-Wall, sisters who, along with their sister Emily, co-founded Beachwaver, a hair care company specializing in innovative styling tools. Celebrity hairstylist Sarah was known for styling stars like Reese Witherspoon and Camila Cabello when she invented the original Beachwaver, a revolutionary rotating curling iron. Recognizing the potential of this innovative product, Erin left her role in corporate law to focus on research and development, playing a crucial role in bringing the invention to market. Together, the sisters have built a woman-owned, self-funded company that emphasizes empowerment, innovation, and sustainability.

Today, the Beachwaver has grown into a global brand, inspiring confidence and beauty in women worldwide through its award-winning products and strong community engagement. Tune in and hear our conversation with Sarah and Erin, recorded live last month at our Entreprenista Founders Weekend event in Orlando. Sarah and Erin tell us about the evolution of the Beachwaver, how they use analytics and data to understand and build their audience, and the importance of pivoting and evolving as a self-funded, women-owned brand.

We talked about:  

• Launching the Beachwaver on QVC (03:45)
• Using live social media platforms to educate and market to consumers (04:41)
• Dividing and conquering as co-founders (09:33)
• Forecasting production for a new launch (17:50)
• Tailoring social content to individual platforms (23:31)
• The inspiration behind Beachwaver’s many collaborations (24:54)

Connect with Sarah and Erin:

• Beachwaver Website – Use code: FAVE50 for 50% off until 6/30/24!
• Beachwaver Instagram
• Beachwaver TikTok
• Sarah on Instagram
• Erin on Instagram

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