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“Brighten spaces, uplift spirits, and inspire women” was the main takeaway from Anna’s conversation with Diana Contreras, a Peruvian-American artist and entrepreneur.

Diana was born in Chiclayo, Peru, and moved to Miami at age five. She sketched with relatives who made leather goods, won school art contests, and first felt recognized in second grade. In high school a teacher gave her a C.“It shocked me and made me try harder,” she recalls.

Focusing on Women and Art

High-school interest in fashion pushed her to clothe early characters in 1990s styles. Later she omitted clothes so the figures would not feel dated. When the same styles resurfaced she returned to detailed outfits and dressed her painted figures “the way I wanted to dress” when real life left little time for wardrobe experiments. She spoke of fur coats, accessories, and dyed hair as favorite elements.

Her earlier exhibitions included Street Art Dubai and murals in several cities.

She paints on almost any surface-sketching first, then moving from tiny brushes she used for sneakers to mops for murals. “There’s not a surface I don’t want to paint,” she notes. A highlight was a Levi’s mural with a llama: “It was the American dream fulfilled.”

She noted also that school projects once forced her into installations she disliked; with time she wanted to revisit them. 

Family Time

Diana credits her husband and both grandmothers for steady support. “My secret was having a very strong support system,” she says. She stays present with her children, pausing work when they need her because “they grow fast.” 

The result: her daughter has already enrolled in art classes.

Closing Remarks

Diana urges artists to “create a lot of art,” network, and learn business skills: “You could be the best artist and not sell… or not so good but great at marketing.” Internships, she adds, reveal the business side.

Anna closed with, “Embracing who we are is the ultimate masterpiece,” and invited listeners to keep creating “one step at a time.”

Between Miami’s bright colors and New York’s monochrome, from Foursquare nostalgia to ChatGPT struggles, Anna Anisin and Courtney Spritzer swap views on fashion, marketing, and more.

Courtney Spritzer grew up in Riverdale, New York, surrounded by two family businesses: a printing company (her first glimpse of entrepreneurship) and fashion boutiques on her father’s side (a hint of style to come). She studied economics at NYU just as Facebook took off, and early roles in finance and marketing led her to American Express, whose social-media experiments showed that the field could be a career.

“They were innovative with social, and that’s when I realized I wanted a career in it,” Courtney says.

Building Socialfly

A Miami trip introduced her to future co-founder Stephanie Cartin. The first interns came via Craigslist, and office space was bartered from a small print shop: social-media help in exchange for desks in the warehouse. The owner also dragged them to a networking group, where they landed their first retainer clients.

After 18 months, their nights-and-weekends project, Socialfly, became a full-time agency that later served global brands and was acquired in 2024.

“Flash forward 13 years—we sold the agency last year,” she notes.

Entrepreneurista Media & the Power of Podcasting

In 2018, looking for a new platform, Courtney and Stephanie launched The Entrepreneurista Podcast, interviewing women founders about funding and failure. Listeners began DM-ing, swapping tips, forming partnerships.

Three years later, the show became Entrepreneurista Media—a membership community, content hub, and the annual Entrepreneurista 100 list.

“Through the podcast we organically built a community of women entrepreneurs,” she says.

Digital-Marketing Trends & the AI Edge

When Socialfly opened, marketers fussed over Facebook pages and Google+. Now brands juggle organic, paid, influencer, affiliate—and generative AI is rewriting the rules.

“AI has flipped the industry. Everyone’s figuring out how to make work faster and more efficient,” she says. Smaller teams can now produce copy, captions, and UGC-style creative that once required large departments.

Style as Brand Strategy

Launching brands in New York, Courtney and Stephanie ignored the city’s all-black uniform. Their shoots popped with hot pinks and citrus yellows—hues that became Entrepreneurista’s palette.

“If you want to stand out, wear color,” she advises.

Today Courtney splits time between New York (black blazers) and Miami (neon sundresses), but color remains central to her brand.

Summary

In closing, Courtney shared advice for women entrepreneurs and joined Anna for a rapid-fire Q&A.

To-do lists in motherhood, fashion that evolves with every venture, and the power of community—it’s only a fraction of the unique experiences and thoughts Nicole Vasquez brings to her conversation with Anna Anisin.

Nicole Vasquez is the founder of MBD Partners and the Activator Network. She considers building connections and communities her superpower, along with her ability to work with various people and leverage her high social skillset for the benefit of brands and companies.

The beginnings

Nicole Vasquez grew up in Chicago in a Filipino-Croatian household, learning how to bridge cultures and connect with people from diverse backgrounds.

“Since I was very young, I always wanted to bring different people to the table,” she recalls when asked how her heritage impacted her approach. These experiences shaped her as a leader, thinker, and community builder.

Serial Community Builder

The theme of community building was the leitmotif of her career. “I’ve basically been doing this my entire career,” she says. “That’s my superpower.”

Initially, she scaled two neighborhood-serving co-working spaces and sold them later. She then led a marketplace across 20 countries before launching her relationship-driven agency. Now she advises executives and professionals on forging meaningful relationships as a consultant and trainer.

Obviously, this approach required her to excel at networking.

Style of networking

From Nicole’s perspective, networking is essential for business, and fashion is a powerful tool in that context. A strong style and bold outfit helped her overcome imposter syndrome.

“If I show up looking incredible…it takes away the anxiety,” she says. Yet her style evolved depending on the environment, from tech-startup hoodies to power blazers in elite executive rooms.

Looking marvelous was especially challenging during event days, when everyone was delivering their best look. On the other hand, it’s exhausting to maintain that standard even while commuting.

“You dress up a little more at work and bring heels in your bag,” she advises.

The efficient motherhood

Being a successful entrepreneur was a challenge in itself. Yet being a mother is also a challenge not to be underestimated. Surprisingly, business and organizational skills proved effective in parenting too.

“Keep a list on your phone…every moment counts,” says Nicole. “Lean into what you can do right now,” she adds.

Summary

In a closing round, Nicole and Anna engaged in a rapid-fire session, exchanging “this or that” questions about shoes, business, and fashion.

The full episode can be found on YouTube and Apple Podcasts.

In this episode, Anna Anisin talks with Ella Muradyan, a seasoned Financial Crime Specialist who shows that being tough and diligent in crime tracking is no obstacle to being feminine and stylish.

She also reveals a surprising way in which buying expensive fashion items can be a great investment opportunity.

Finances and compliance

Ella Muradyan is a Certified Financial Crime Specialist who tracks money-laundering, fraud, bribery, and terrorist-financing risks in major banks. After hours, she is a mother to a four-year-old daughter, the wife of a “culinary enthusiast,” and a fashion fanatic.

Born in Armenia, Ella moved to New York at 11 and spent most of her career there before relocating to Miami two years ago for a better family quality of life post-COVID. “We packed our bags and here we are!” she says of the move.

Fashion Philosophy

Ella works in a highly structured and hierarchical financial industry, yet she manages to reflect her values and approach in her wardrobe. The precision and discipline required in compliance translate directly into structured, feminine dressing: tailored suits, Chanel tweeds, and—above all—the color pink. Early in her law-firm days she was “the Elle Woods in a sea of navy,” trusting her grandmother’s mantra: “You go in with your looks and you come out with your brains.”

“My wardrobe and my demeanor are always intentional,” she says, highlighting how being conscious about clothing can be an asset even in finance.

The Miami Vibe

The tropical climate flipped her palette from grey-plus-blush to “all-pink-and-turquoise linen,” while athleisure stays “gym-only.” She also balances high/low pieces—mixing Target tees with Gucci skirts or Hermès sandals—to keep outfits approachable.

“I came here and it’s open Barbie! My whole closet is pink,” she laughs, contrasting Miami’s palette with New York’s.

Investing in fashion

Finance shapes Ella’s wardrobe beyond power suits. Her everyday budget formula is 50 % needs, 25 % investments, 25 % desires. When that “desire” bucket is spent, she still thinks like an investor: gold jewelry, limited-edition shoes, and especially Hermès Birkins, whose prices “are up 14 % year on year.”

Hermès Birkins illustrate how a non-obvious purchase can yield a super-high return on investment.

Yet Ella views fashion with more than an investor’s eye. She owns Manolo Blahnik Hangisi wedding pumps, hand-signed by Blahnik at Bergdorf Goodman after the first Sex and the City movie premiere. Despite their sentimental value, she wears them often—and has even run around Manhattan in them.

Summary

In closing remarks, Anna and Ella took a rapid-fire question round and exchanged final thoughts.

“Remember that style and substance are not just about the clothes we wear but the impact we make,” Ella says, showing how fashion can be an empowerment tool, a statement, and a passion all at once.

Sustainability can be a perfect fit for fashion—to the point of becoming the core concept of an entire brand. Although building such a brand is far from easy, the story of this journey is truly fascinating, as shared by Cynthia Lau, the founder of Casa Lily.

Cynthia Lau is the mastermind behind Casa Lily, an ethical fashion company run by women of multicultural heritages—including Cuban, Chinese, and Spanish. The company is located in Miami, FL, and is distinguished by its fair, open, and ethical approach to style at every level—from sourcing materials to production, and everything in between.

The Beginnings

Cynthia Lau shared her story, highlighting that for as long as she can recall, she has been interested in self-expression—both through fashion and theatre. Yet, her passion for fashion eventually prevailed over her plans to become a doctor or scientist.

“I’ve always been a fashion lover in one way or another,” she says. Since she started working with designers and gained experience in modeling, she had multiple opportunities to explore this world and ultimately decided to start her own brand.

The Impactful Steps

For Cynthia, building her own fashion brand is all about recognizing that everyone can make an impact. For example, she uses vegan and responsibly sourced materials in her products.

“The most important thing when it comes to being sustainable is that you’re realizing, first, that you’re part of the problem, and second, that you’re taking small steps,” says Cynthia.

Running the company in a sustainable way is also about limiting the number of produced goods and supporting “timeless designs” instead of flooding the market with new products and encouraging people to buy continuously.

No Easy Way

Building a startup from scratch in the highly competitive fashion environment was far from easy. As an early-stage founder, she had to deal with limited funds, production delays, and tariff issues, among others. Yet, the key was being prepared—even for less probable scenarios.

“I always have a plan B and C,” she says.

Cynthia also emphasizes how important branding consistency is to building the business. She shared that the signature “wave heel” not only reflects the brand’s commitment to environmentalism but also aims to showcase the empowerment these shoes bring.

“I want women, when they step into a Casa Lily, to know that it’s a Casa Lily and to feel empowered—because when you wear heels, you feel empowered,” she says.

Building the Community

The brand consistency and reliability have resulted in building a community of customers who recognize the value brought by the brand. Cynthia is also hosting community-based events, where deeper connections with customers can be forged.

At the end of the podcast, Anna and Cynthia held a rapid-fire Q&A session, during which Cynthia showcased her energetic and decisive nature and shared further details about her approach to building adaptability, resilience, and multiple backup plans for any venture.

The full version of the talk can be found on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

The burning problem with fast fashion, building The Plug, and creating her own style at the crossroads of business, journalism, and private life were the topics Anna Anisin discussed with her guest Sherrell Dorsey.

Sherrell Dorsey is an author, speaker, entrepreneur, data journalist, and ecosystem builder who focuses on climate tech, sustainability investments, and transforming business to make it better for the planet and its people. She is also a founder of The Plug, the first Black tech news platform to be featured on Bloomberg Terminal.

During her talk with Anna Anisin, she shared stories of her origins, the early days of The Plug, as well as her inspirations in both fashion and business.

Building The Plug

Sherrell started The Plug as a side project while working for companies like Google Fiber and Uber. The project was born out of a lack of representation of people of color in tech and business news.

“I would get up every morning at 5 o’clock, put this little $10 newsletter together, and cover the conferences I attended,” she says. Considering how amazing the things built by the people she was writing about were, it was not a surprise that the project was successful. But it was not without challenges. “One of the biggest challenges was finding the right revenue stream—knowing how to price effectively when you are very niche-based,” she says.

Stylish Sustainability

The conversation was also an opportunity to exchange opinions about fashion and sustainability. It was a great point to start the conversation about building a fitting narrative. According to her experience, citing only numbers and statistics related to climate change is not an effective way to support a better world. In her opinion, the stories also need to include information about lowering bills or saving on transportation.

Sherrell criticized fast fashion for generating a lot of waste, lacking quality, and being unfair to employees.

“When I look at brand story and quality, I know that the pieces in our closet should feel like they were made with care and love… sustainability isn’t just about hugging trees,” she says. That’s why she supports indie designers who practice fair trade.

Sherrell expressed her disappointment with the idea of burning unsold inventory—a problem that not only wastes resources but also increases emissions. “Sustainable brands are making investments in technology so that they produce only what is needed and protect their craftsmanship,” she highlights.

The Style Itself

The conversation would be incomplete without discussing fashion and style. As a woman who considers fashion a powerful tool for self-expression, she found fitting into corporate style challenging.

“I’ve always gone through an existential crisis with fashion—wanting to be taken seriously while still expressing who I am. Transitioning to a CEO role meant embracing tailored, powerful suiting,” she says. Yet the challenges helped her forge her own personal style, refined by creating mood boards on Pinterest and following a curated list of influencers and designers.

Summary

“Style isn’t just about what you wear; it’s about how you carry your passions and dreams into the work you do every day,” she says, encouraging everyone to see style as a connection between personal and professional spheres.