Heela Yang is the co-founder and CEO of Sol de Janeiro, an award-winning body care line that aims to capture the beautiful and vibrant energy of Brazilian culture.

The path to running a successful business and a life in entrepreneurship can look many different ways, and today's story is a particularly unique one. Heela had a picture-book corporate career, a great life in New York, and a bright future that seemed quite clear. It took falling in love, moving to Brazil, and some major moments of inspiration and epiphany to completely upend this!

Heela was in awe of the empowered ethos of the women in Brazil, who seemed so celebratory and confident in their own skin; it was this that Heela wanted to bring to the beauty industry, and that is exactly what she did with Sol de Janeiro. 

The brand launched in 2016 with the Brazilian Bum Bum Cream and became Sephora’s best-selling skin care cream a few months after its launch. They have now expanded to include fragrance and haircare, and are bringing in over $100 million in revenue. 

In our chat today, we get to hear it all from Heela, as she talks about falling pregnant immediately after moving to Brazil, her early years in South Korea before her family moved to the US, what self-belief means to her, and the importance of finding the right partners and support system on your journey. We also get into some interesting thoughts on meditation, mental health, the importance of staying true to your gut when building an authentic & unique brand, and so much more!

In this episode, we'll talk to Heela about:

* Overcoming hurdles in order to truly believe in yourself; Heela's advice. [2:37]

* The impact of Heela's upbringing and early years in South Korea. [7:00]

* Reflections on the important period when Heela's life changed, and she met her husband. [11:03]

* How Brazilian culture began to rub off on Heela and her self-confidence. [14:02]

* The first steps in starting a company and Heela's mindset at the time. [18:39]

* Why developing a mission for a brand is central to its success! [20:10]

* Creating the first product and building everything from the bottom up. [23:00]

* The timeline for launching the brand and getting involved with Sephora. [26:21]

* The connection between business and pregnancy, and advice from Heela for managing both. [31:43]

* Heela's meditation practice and how it has helped her in multiple ways. [36:04]

* Sol de Janeiro's partnership with L'Occitane, and how this has leveled up the business. [37:40]

This episode is brought to you by beeya: 

* Learn more about beeya's seed cycling bundle at https://beeyawellness.com/free to find out how to tackle hormonal imbalances. 

* Get $10 off your order by using promo code BEHINDHEREMPIRE10

Follow Heela:

* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soldejaneiro/

* Website: https://soldejaneiro.com/

Follow Yasmin: 

* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yasminknouri/

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