nyc: silliness, sippy cups + schlepping in stillettos

silly. silly, silly silly. that was book of mormon, which i thoroughly enjoyed my last night in new york city. those were some much-needed laughs after the day i had!  so with our sippy cups o’wine in hand, my hot date marcia and i settled in for the highly acclaimed broadway show, which was written by the creators of south park (boulder shout out!).  it was pretty amazing to have the show open and see that the star was the actor josh gad from the daily show with john stewart, and the movies ’21′ and ‘love and other drugs’.  he (and the entire cast) of mormon boys were hilarious, amazingly talented, and wildly entertaining. (do you like how i’m reviewing this as though the NY times might pick this up?).  but if could choose a phrase to sum up this show it would be: jaw-droppingly funny.  like some parts were so horrific and wrong that you couldn’t help but laugh, and at the same time have a tiny glimmer of guilt for laughing at all!  a few parts went a little far for this little conservative christian girl from the middle-of-nowhere, but i was absolutely able to appreciate the humor, story line, music, choreography…everything.  there was this man in probably his seventies sitting next to me and the entire time, marcia and i are just watching him and the elder member of the audiences…what was their reaction?  like this so isn’t something i’d take my momma to.  and when we walked out of the theater, still with tears in our eyes from laughing so hard, i must say that i was mighty tempted to peek into the church right across the street and make sure God and i were still cool.  we’re good.

so my last day in the city: this was what i’d been waiting for.  i printed my presentations, slipped on my stilettos, and primped and prepped as i headed off to meet with (hopefully) new retailers.  oh-so-gracefully, i trekked from meeting to meeting with THE 25lb box of fitbooks, product samples, and promo materials, while toting my laptop bag, and rolling my suitcase behind me. classy, right?  the meetings were so close that there was no time to go back to the hotel before heading to the airport, so off i was.

meeting #1:  met with the senior buyer from modell’s, an east-coast sporting goods store with around 147 (and growing) locations. i loved learning that it was family owned & operated and the owner, to this day, is still highly involved in the day-to-day of his business and locations – probably a large part of their success.  outcome: the buyer really liked our line of products, specifically the fitbook, and our live life fit line (coming out soon!) and wants to test it in a few stores. i loved that he said “anyone that comes in our store with any goal would benefit from this product.” my thoughts exactly.  so watch for fitbooks hitting modell’s in times square soon!

meeting (attempts) #2, 3, 4, and 5: with so many companies headquartered in new york city, it would be silly to not at least attempt to get a meeting or at the very least get samples in the hands of important people.  the buyer at equinox will have a sweet little display of 10 fitbooks on her desk tomorrow and a live life fit tank top – my goal: try ‘em!  if they sell, call me. (they will…i just know they will!)  then off to barnes & noble, paragon sports, and physique57…samples left with names on them. say little prayers that they land in the right hands!

meeting #5: 2 cabs and 1 train ride later from penn station, we arrive in farmingdale…as in like way outside the city.  but worth the trip for sure, i met with the head buyer at bed, bath & beyond and am happy to report that it couldn’t have gone better.  a previous participant in weight watchers, she immediately saw the value in a product like the fitbook. since we have very similar target customers, she thought it would make a great addition to their counter-top displays at checkout.  hello, prime placement!  outcome: testing fitbooks in 30 locations – and a few up in canada. did you know they have bb&b in canada? well, my fitbookers in canada probably do and will be happy to pick it up there instead of paying for shipping!

another meeting highlight: i was able to meet with the head of PR at soul cycle (my latest obsession – yes, i bought 2 shirts).  my little gift to her: 2 fitbooks with the soul cycle logo on the cover…how sweet would they be with yellow binding?  i then gave her my 2 cents on how  they MUST (not should, but must) open up an orange county studio so i gave her the scoop on the locations i recommended.  i’ll make it my personal mission to get this soulful spinning experience in my ‘hood.

finally, i must share details of my meeting with the fab 4 editors at SELF magazine. not only were they sweet to spend an hour just talking biz and life with me, um…it was hilarious.  mostly because meaghan murphy, the deputy editor is a crack up.  7 months pregnant, she arrives to the meeting tugging at her dress which she realized that morning was a bit shorter than the last time she wore it because the #babybump was hiking it up a bit more.  one of my proudest moments was when she exclaimed that she “swears by fitbook” because she used it to lose 45 lbs from her first baby and that she clung to it like a lifeline.  so obviously i was more than elated to show her  mama2b, our latest little bundle of joy, which will hit shelves next month.  randomly the conversation flipped from one topic to the next, them wanting to know my story behind the company, how i came up with the product, all the way to what we have coming up next.  and then somehow we ended up talking about my um, bra size.  i thought: “what better group of women to ask for a great recommendation for a sports bra than these ladies?”.  so one comment turned to the next and all i’m thinking is, “how am i in a meeting with SELF magazine editors talking about my boobs?”.  slightly entertaining.  meaghan’s advice that i must share: “once you go past c (cup size), you have to divide and conquer.”  as in encapsulation sports bras that “split up the girls” (like lulu’s ta-ta tamer).  ha-larious.

so cabbing a countless number of times, walking city blocks, and trekking by train, 4 days later i’m happy to report that the trip was a success.  even with no time for shopping or (intentionally) getting lost in the city that never sleeps, i  absolutely fell in love with new york city.

angela

the glam life as an entrepreneur: NYC

don’t you love facebook?  like how all we post are the absolutely wonderful things in our life? like all the pictures that i post of my adventures in new york city…the food, the sights, the meetings, the outings?  i promise you that about half of the people that read my posts think (like i find myself sometimes thinking): really? do you have nothing better to do than brag about your oh-so-perfect little life?  i found myself in this big city in awe of it all, and i think i had an epiphany, that experiencing all the wonderfulness that life has to offer really has little meaning until we share it with others.  this is why we take quick pics of what we’re doing in life and text it to a loved one.  or tweet about something we saw that made us laugh.  and blog all the thoughts that go through your head, wondering if just one thing you say makes someone think, smile, or reflect.  or, in my case, post hourly updates of my mere being in nyc that honestly, probably only my mom and dad are quite that interested in – and they don’t even have facebook.

and so i blog.

my second night in nyc was complete only because, like my previous thought: i had someone to share it with.  my dear friend marcia flew in for the week for meetings. what a coincidence that she had meetings for her non-profit (mylifeline.org) the same week as me in the city? ok so we totally planned it – a girl trip coupled with meetings during the day and fun at night. brilliant.  dinner that night was at the highly recommended restaurant, nobu, in tribeca where we dined on the most amazing 6-course meal of 1) edamame, 2) grapefruit martini, 3) yellowtail sashimi salad, 4) grapefruit martini, 5) sushi, and 6) grapefruit martini.  um, so in my fitbook that was 1 checkmark for veggies, 2 for protein, 1 for grains, and 3 for fruit, right? i don’t do martinis…but marcia can attest to their fabulousness. (don’t worry, that’s not a word,  but it is now.)  post-nobu we headed to the bubble lounge for a glass of bubbly for her and an espresso for me before calling it a night.  we had 6:15am spin at soul cycle (day 2!) planned.

somehow 5:45am came much sooner after having my fruity concoctions, but nothing was going to get in our way of meeting the sweet renee from shape.com for a 45-minute grueling spin session that has left my legs, booty, abs, and (yes) arms still sore 2 days later. marcia and i then trekked our 31 blocks back to our hotel via central park, starbucks in hand, in a desperate attempt to stay warm.  now doesn’t this sound like a lovely day?  ah, this is where the glam begins.

author’s note: i love what i do and nothing, no nothing, said here is meant to be interpreted as a complaint, merely a dose of reality.  ok, ahem. so many people dream of being entrepreneurs.  i know because i did too. my visions were of running my own show, calling the shots, traveling in style, going to important meetings, creating and doing and making things happen.  and yes, there is a lot of those moments. but my favorite part of communicating my adventures as an entrepreneur is the not-so-glam part that never seems to make the facebook posts.  ah, but it will make it in the blog.  so here was my day yesterday:  fabulously trekking through new york city in a desperate attempt to locate….a box.  yes, a box.  a box that contained all the product samples, promo materials…all the goodies for the meetings that i’d flown out for.  needless to say, it does no good to trek all the way to the other side of the country just to show them my smiling face.  my precious cargo was shipped to the wrong hotel by mistake…so here’s how the day progressed:.

• 8:13am    get word that the box won’t arrive til the next day…minor panic attack ensues
• 9am – 2:30pm    coffee meetings with health mag, fitness mag, working mother, and SELF magazine…running all over the city making coffee runs because, well i wanted to come bearing coffee because that makes anyone smile right?  8 coffees, 3 taxis, and 4 fab meetings later…off to get my box!
• 3:58pm   walk about 20 city blocks (in high-heel boots, nonetheless) to the upc service center in hopes that my box was rerouted to them
• 4:25pm *still waiting*  cancel dinner reservations at 5pm because if i don’t get this box before 7pm, i can’t pick it up until between 7 and 9pm….right when we’re supposed to be at the book of mormon!  no bueno.
• 4:42pm   they find out that my box is on a ups truck “somewhere on 5th ave. between 33rd and 37th street” with a drive named phil.
• 4:46pm i hail a taxi and thank heavens he was a sweetie. i told him my predicament, so cabby ken and i were on a mission: to find phil.
• 5:02pm  i learn a lot of new words from ken in the cab…have you been on 5th ave. during rush hour? it’s fabulous.  and then he turns onto 6th ave. instead of 5th…putting us right in times square traffic. and you can’t turn onto some streets during peak hours so we had to go about 4 blocks just to turn around.  the chase continues.
• 5:24pm  ups truck #1: phil? ok no. the ups trucks park on each city block and just do deliveries inside so you have to wait until they’re at the truck in between deliveries to even find out if you’re at the right truck!
• 5:28pm ups truck #2: not so much.
• 5: 35pm me yelling out the cab window down 5th ave: “PHIL! PHIL??”  cabby: just amused at me.
• 5:42pm ups truck #3: there was a sweet man just sitting in the back of his truck with a box.  me: “PHIL?”  guy in truck: “ANGELA? it was a miracle – if it were a movie we would have been running in slow motion toward each other but instead of embracing i just signed for the package, grabbed my box and tossed it into my cab.  mission accomplished!
• 6:01pm cabby ken and i part ways, a big tip for him and my beloved box for me.  29 minutes to get ready and grab a bite before the show!

and so that was my glamorous day as an entrepreneur living the high life in NYC. that one didn’t make facebook did it? oh no. i’m sharing pics of rockefeller center (which, was amazing by the way, but the ice skating rink was much smaller than i expected), my organic juice bar find on lexington ave. (if the juice wasn’t so amazing i would have choked on the $12 price tag), and of course my adventures to book of mormon with marcia (wine sippy cup in hand).  isn’t that just like life though? we often share the good and skip sharing the bad, well until it’s funny at least. after all, who wants to be a downer?  my box chasing adventure: not so funny yesterday. and i’m barely smirking now!

more soon on my full review of the book of mormon, details on my last day in the city schlepping around a 25lb box of fitbooks in stilettos (again, glam), and how meetings went with prospective new retailers.  right now, well…this little entrepreneur is tuckered out.

good night, nyc.
angela