IAM1054- Founder Offers Extensive Variety for Thigh High Stockings

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00:31 - Intro

Are you ready to hear business stories and learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and level up your business from awesome CEOs, entrepreneurs, and founders without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. GRESTS values your time and is ready to share with you the valuable info you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO podcast.

00:59 - Gresham Harkless

Hello. Hello. Hello. This is Gresh Fumbi, I Am CEO podcast, and I have a very special guest on the show today, Avianne Brown of Avianne Milano. Avianne, it's great to have you on the show.

01:08 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Thank you so much for having me. Definitely super to be here.

01:12 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Super excited to have you on and super, excited to jump right into the interview. But before we do, I want to read a little bit more about Vienne so you'll hear about all the awesome things that she's doing. Vienne Chung Brown is the founder of Vienne Milano, a luxury hosiery brand dedicated to thigh-high stockings that are made in Italy. Founded in twenty eleven, Vienne transitioned her previous work in high-tech product management to designing, distributing, and managing a fashion e-commerce brand. Today, Vienne Milano has helped redefine thigh highs as a fashion category, and her collection of history offers one of the world's most extensive variety of thigh-high stockings consisting of classic styles, fashion-forward pieces, skin-tone-matching shears, eco-friendly stockings, plus size, and much, much more.

The brand has expanded from being sold exclusively at VM Milano dot com to distributing to many online distribution channels and brick-and-mortar outlets. Vian Milano has been featured on Fox, New York Fashion Week, Spark and Hustle by Tory of Good Morning American has been a popular accessory for celebrities in magazines and photo shoots across the world, VN. It's great to have you on the show again. Are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

02:23 - Vienne Cheung Brown

I am.

02:24 - Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Well, let's do it then. So to kinda kick everything off, I wanted to rewind the clock a little bit here a little bit more on how you got started, what I call your CEO story.

02:32 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Sure. So, you know, the reason why I started Yamalana was because I couldn't find thigh-high stockings, at the time that would stay up on my leg. It's not because I'm super thin or anything. It's just because, at the time, the only type of, style head stockings that were available was either meant for Halloween costumes or they were just so expensive that I could not not afford to buy, you know, a pair of stockings or those particular type of stockings to wear for work every day.

And so I knew that I wasn't the only woman in the United States that was looking for a high good quality thigh high stockings that would stay up on my leg, that could be worn for every occasion. But I also knew that this type of hosiery existed in Europe, particularly in Italy. And so I did some research, spent some time sourcing, and spent actually a few months in Italy altogether. And, yeah, I launched VM Milano in twenty-eleven.

03:30 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. I appreciate you for sharing that story because I think so many times we can look, you know, really far and wide to try to find a type of innovation, but sometimes it's right in front of us and some frustrations that often we'll have in our life and we're like, oh, there's gotta be a better way.

03:47 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Yeah.

03:47 - Gresham Harkless

I love that you've been able to kinda do that. Find a better way and find out that you're not the only one. There's so many other people that are looking for high-quality products.

03:55 - Vienne Cheung Brown

That's right. You know you know, a lot of our customers are actually women who, you know, lived abroad, who have worn nice stockings, nice hosiery before, and they're looking I mean, one of our customers, they are basically preaching my story. They're like, I've been trying to find something that would stay up on my late phone. I'm like, say no more. I know the story very well. You know? So it's to your point, you you just can't find it. You have to do something about it, and there we have it.

04:23 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Absolutely. And in so many times,  it's so empowering to know that a lot of times, especially as entrepreneurs and CEOs and founders, as we start to build and create things, we, start to tell our story and look for a solution, and then that story ends up being told, through everybody else and our clients and customers when we really do it right. So I love, that you've been able to do that. And so, I know  I touched on a little bit when I read your bio, and then you did it as well too. Could you take us through a little bit more on what we could find at VM Milano and all the awesome things that you're creating there?

04:52 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Sure. So, you know, our collection can be divided into a couple of portfolios, if you will. I have something called a permanent collection, which are, items that I can't take credit for because they are classic items. So these are your sheer stockings, your matte stockings, your vaccine fishnets. These are the sellers, and they have been around for many, many, many years. We call that our permanent collection because they're products, that will be there permanently. You'll always find them available. They're also available in five sizes that range from size small all the way to three XL. So that's our permanent collection. Then you might find something on our website called the signature collection, which are our, fashion-forward limited edition items.

So these are items that I actually design. You know, I collect I select, the colors, the lace, the material, and everything. And they tend to be a little bit more trendy or fashion-forward if you will. And they are available for a limited time. So a lot of our customers know that you know, if there is something they like from the signature collection, they better get it soon because once it's gone, it's gone. And then we also have a couple of eco-friendly stocking styles. This is a new portfolio or a new addition to our collection, if you will, where we added this about a year or two ago.

These are we call them eco-friendly because they're made from reusable nylon. So when stockings are made, oftentimes, the material, the excess material is just thrown right out. And what we do is we take that material, and we put it back into well, we create it into yarn, and we create that put that into the machine and, you know, use it to create additional stockings. And so, in our eco-friendly portfolio, you'll find several styles that are available and can be worn for just about every occasion.

06:51 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. That's absolutely huge. I appreciate you breaking down, you know, each of the different, you know, lines and and and collections that you have as well too because I think so many times and I don't know if you feel this exact same way in, you know, our businesses and organizations. So important to kind of make sure that we're always kinda innovating, have those products and services are creating new lines and opportunities because we always wanna be I don't know if the right word is nimble, but we wanna make sure that we're serving our client and we're always in tune with that.

07:16 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Yeah. No. I think nimble is the right word. Resilient and nimble, are the two words that I would think of that are really important for for CEO or founder, if you will, to be, when running a business.

07:30 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Absolutely. So I love that you've been able to kinda do that, and that manifests itself in all the high quality and awesome products that you have designed and created. And so, I wanted to ask you now for what I call your secret sauce. And this could be for yourself or the business or a combination of both, but what do you feel kinda sets you apart and makes you unique?

07:48 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Well, I think it's, my relentless or my resilience. My resilience, meaning I obviously, you know, running a business that is in a very niche market, requires you know, it's not it's not always rainbow. Let's just put it that way. Right? And so, you have to be resilient to say, okay. This was not a good day. This was a bad day. But, you know, bounce it back up. You know? And not take things too personally, etcetera. And then you just gotta keep going. You gotta keep your eyes on the prize. And it's always easy to say keeping your eye you keep your eyes on the prize, but I think it requires a dose of humility and resilience. So that's, I think, my secret sauce.

08:37 - Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. So I wanted to switch gears a little bit, and I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be like an app, a book, or a habit that you have, but what's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

08:48 - Vienne Cheung Brown

That's so funny. So right before this interview, I asked my husband then, like, what is my hack? And he said, why? You know,  you know, I'm sure that is not really a hack, more of a substance. But,  I would say that one book that I've I've read a few years ago that really stuck with me is Marie Kondo, The Secret of Tidying Up, or The Magic of Tidying Up.  I really like some of the lessons that she pushed for, which is, you know if it doesn't bring you joy, throw it away.

Sure. That book really focused more on physical items and how to keep a clear space. But I think a lot of that can be applied to mentally as well. Right? So if you're in a situation or if you're, you know, in a relationship with clients or customers or vendors or whomever it may be, that just doesn't bring you joy. Life's too short to have all of that holding down. Right? And so I think that's definitely been a message that I have carried since I've read that book. And I think it could be helpful for a lot of folks, not just physically, but mentally as well.

10:10 - Gresham Harkless

And, I wanted to ask you now for what I call a CEO nugget. So this could be a word of wisdom or a piece of advice. It might be something if you were to hop into a time machine you would tell your younger business self.

10:22 - Vienne Cheung Brown

You know, I think the nugget that I would have for myself if I could go back into a time machine is to just stay focused and stay organized. I wish I read that book that I just mentioned earlier. Right? Because I I think there's definitely merit to staying organized. You know? I think growing up, especially in the US, there's often time a push for, okay. You're either creative or you're analytical. You're left brain focused, the right brain you're you're sorry. You're left brain dominant or right brain dominant. But the truth is it helps to be good at both.

11:01 - Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. So now I wanted to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. And we're hoping to have different quotes, unquote CEOs on the show, Sylvia. And what does being a CEO mean to you?

11:12 - Vienne Cheung Brown

So, you know,  I had several definitions for this. So I think, you know, CEO, even though you are the chief executive officer, ultimately, your role is to be an effective communicator to the folks outside of your company or business or whatever it is because you are the face of the company. And so I think, my first definition is that you are the the face of the company, but, you know, it goes internally as well. You know, I run a small business. And so, if nobody is going to take out the trash.

I, you know,  I'm doing that, or I'm the person who calls the folks to come and clean up the office or whatever. But I'm also the person responsible for all the decisions that I make, how big or no matter how big or little. Right? And so, I guess the definition of it is you're you're the person in charge, and you have to take your responsibility seriously as well, going you know, whether it's outward facing or inward facing for your company.

12:25 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. I appreciate that definition. And then too, like, just, you know, the, of course, the forward-facing and being able to kinda promote and talk about the business and everything like that. But I think that we often forget about the kind of behind-the-scenes things as well, and how it's so much in all part of the responsibility of things that we have to juggle and be responsible for, you know, as businesses. And I think that sometimes if we forget about either or, it's kinda like the legs of the stool where the stool will topple over if we're not holistically looking at the very definition and all that encompasses in our roles as leaders.

12:58 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Yep. Absolutely. Yes. That's a great, analogy. You know, you have to make sure that there's, you know, not too many legs for the stool, but just enough to do the job get the job done.

13:12 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. And  I love that you just said that too because I think so many times we think that complexity equals success, but sometimes the simplified is really where that success and opportunity are. So I love that.

13:24 - Vienne Cheung Brown

I would agree with that. And I don't know what it is, but sometimes we naturally wanna make things more complicated, or at least I speak for myself. But you have to kinda step back and say, why? Why? You know? Let's just simplify as much as we possibly can.

13:42 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. And  I think it there's definitely a space for that, and I think, there's even, like, a Steve Jobs quote that he talks about design, and he talks about how really good design is not in complexity. It's actually in simplicity, and simplicity is something that you have to work towards. And when you start to understand that, you start to kinda trim the fat, so to speak, so that you start to get to really the essence of what you're trying to do and create. And I love that because it's it's just a reminder of working towards simplicity, not working to get more complex, if that makes sense.

14:13 - Vienne Cheung Brown

Yes. I think there's a book that I read a long time ago, Don't Make Me Think. Mhmm. And it's all about I mean, it's about usability, but  I think there's also truth in that when you're designing or when you're doing something that has, you know, that someone else up to you, you wanna make it as simple as possible.

14:36 - Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Absolutely. Because I think that, again, at the end of the day, we're we're hoping to try to solve a problem. So as quickly and easily as we can solve that problem for our clients and customers, that's the better product, the better design, and the better, actual improvement that we're making, you know, in the world. So, man, truly appreciate that. I appreciate your time even more. What I wanted to do is just pass you the mic, mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional that you can let our readers and listeners know, and, of course, how best they can get ahold of you and find out about all the awesome things you're working on.

15:0.10] - Vienne Cheung Brown

Yeah. Sure. Well, I invite everyone to come check us out. We are vienne milano dot com. That's v I e n n e m I l a n o dot com. Bienne's my first name. Milano because a lot of our products are made in Italy, actually, near Milan. And so Mia Milano was a nice little fit for our bar name. Come check us out. Come follow us on Instagram. That's also Mia Milano. We're also on Twitter and Facebook. You know, you can always email or text us. Our phone number is on our website, but we're available for questions at any time. So feel free to reach out to us.

15:42 - Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. Well, thank you so much, Vianne. We will make it even easier and have the links and information in the show notes as well. But thank you so much for your time and all the awesome work that you're doing and reminders, of building and creating something that's really, you know, phenomenal that you gave to us today, and I hope you have a rest of the day.

15:58 - Outro

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.