In March 2024, I was at a West Coast Swing festival in Nantes, France. It was my first dance festival. I had been dancing for more than three years, yet still wore a DIY pair of dance shoes. Excited to buy a pair of real dance shoes, I went to one of the stands at the festival but was disappointed. I couldn’t see a pair I liked. I considered forcing myself to buy a pair, as I knew finding a pair outside the festival would be even harder. The least ugly pair was sold out in my size, a sign from the universe that I should save my money. I wanted a modern, fashionable brand that fuses fashion and functionality – a Nike for the dance community. In that moment, marleys was born.
I knew that I didn’t like being made to fit into a mold. I’m my own person and I like the freedom to focus on a variety of different things. I felt entrepreneurship would allow me to build this skillset, but I could never imagine developing this specific business idea or pitching the way I did before going through an MBA. At IMD, our diversity is our strength, and I was incredibly lucky to be able to reach out to classmates and receive their unique perspectives on my business. Their time, belief, excitement, and love helped me move forward and get to where I am today. I have no doubt that their support will motivate me to work every day to make this company flourish.
I have always wanted to create value and impact, regardless of where I worked, and to be well-versed in a wide variety of fields – accounting, finance, marketing, and leadership – while knowing how to make smart decisions. But I also knew that my own thinking could limit how far I could go. The choices are mine to make, which can feel overwhelming, but I remind myself that I’m not in this alone.
So many people have helped and supported me along the way. Valentina Persico brought my vision to life with a beautiful MVP shoe collection and Nadia Osman helped review all my material when I was conducting user research and starting to shape my pitch. Stephanie Vetsch and Sebastian Schulte helped me improve my pitch, and Gunjan Mittal helped with the financials. Finally, Lauren Holding, David Hobbs, Veronica Durando, Teodora Andrejic, Isa Fernández, Alison Brett, Martin Milotič, Carlotta Schwarz, and Susheel Kumar gave me their time, and feedback on how to get pitch perfect, while also grilling me with questions that they thought the judges would want answered. I truly would not and could not have gotten to where I am without them. I am so grateful to them for all their time, support, and belief in me.
The IMD MBA program has been pivotal to me in rediscovering who I am at my core, building the courage to pursue what I truly love (the arts), and embracing my strengths in communication, storytelling, and channeling my emotions to connect with an audience. The Designing Your Life leadership lab was particularly helpful in this regard. Drawing scenes from our ideal future life, I imagined the feelings of fulfillment as I ran marleys from my home office. As I explained these visions to Professor Zhike Lei, she encouraged me to pursue my dreams. I will never forget her support.
Having this MBA and this network has given me the ability to be successful at whatever I put my mind to. The Monk and the Riddle, read for our entrepreneurship class with Professor Benoit Leleux, refers to the concept of a ‘deferred life plan’ – one we truly want, but put off until we’ve done what we have to do. I have learned that living the deferred life plan is a risk, as you never know what life is going to throw at you, but that ultimately, you should always aim for the life you want, even if it’s scary. And always ask for help – you will be surprised by how many people wish you success and are willing to help you reach your goals.
I’m incredibly grateful for the support, the excitement, and the belief that Thierry Maupilé, Olivier Laplace, Jim Pulcrano, and Kevin Linker have placed in me. I’m excited to learn from them, discuss with them, and grow with them. Thank you so much.