“It felt like eight, nine years we were like, ‘Did anybody ever see our videos? Does anyone ever comment on our stuff? Like, what is going on? Why? We work so hard, we edit new stuff every day!’ Until we started to commit to the audience and give them more of our attention and our time and listen to them, is when it really shifted.” -Sarah Potempa
In this episode of Entreprenista, we talked to Sarah Potempa and Erin Potempa-Wall, sisters who, along with their sister Emily, co-founded Beachwaver, a hair care company specializing in innovative styling tools. Celebrity hairstylist Sarah was known for styling stars like Reese Witherspoon and Camila Cabello when she invented the original Beachwaver, a revolutionary rotating curling iron. Recognizing the potential of this innovative product, Erin left her role in corporate law to focus on research and development, playing a crucial role in bringing the invention to market. Together, the sisters have built a woman-owned, self-funded company that emphasizes empowerment, innovation, and sustainability.
Today, the Beachwaver has grown into a global brand, inspiring confidence and beauty in women worldwide through its award-winning products and strong community engagement. Tune in and hear our conversation with Sarah and Erin, recorded live last month at our Entreprenista Founders Weekend event in Orlando. Sarah and Erin tell us about the evolution of the Beachwaver, how they use analytics and data to understand and build their audience, and the importance of pivoting and evolving as a self-funded, women-owned brand.
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Guests
Hosts
Stephanie Cartin
Co-founder of Socialfly and Entreprenista.
Stephanie Cartin is the co-founder and CEO of Entreprenista, an all-in-one platform – which includes a private community & business membership called The Entreprenista League that's made up of over 2,000 women founders at all stages of business, a weekly newsletter received by 60,000 readers, two podcasts, in-person educational & networking events, and an award program – that women founders at all stages can turn to for everything they need to grow.
Stephanie is also the co-founder of Socialfly (acquired by Truform Media Group in 2024), Markid, and Pearl Influential Capital. She has won countless awards, including the SmartCEO Brava award, which recognizes the top women CEOs in New York, and a Stevie Award for Women-Run Workplace of the Year. She has also appeared in Bloomberg, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Refinery29, and more.
Courtney Spritzer
Co-founder of Entreprenista.
Courtney Spritzer is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, author, and community builder with a passion for creating brands and platforms that empower women to lead, grow, and thrive.
In 2012, she co-founded Socialfly, a leading social-first digital and influencer marketing agency. Over the course of a decade, she helped scale the business into an award-winning agency working with Fortune 500 brands and emerging startups, building a powerhouse team and culture along the way. In 2024, Socialfly was acquired.
In 2018, Courtney launched the Entreprenista Podcast to spotlight the stories of inspiring women founders. That passion evolved into Entreprenista Media in 2021, a media platform and community supporting women entrepreneurs at every stage of growth. She now co-leads the continued expansion of The Entreprenista League, a membership-driven community and ecosystem for founders.
As an angel investor, Courtney supports female-led and mission-driven startups aligned with her vision for a more inclusive and equitable business landscape.
She is the co-author of Like, Love, Follow: The Entreprenista’s Guide to Using Social Media to Grow Your Business (2015), a strategic guide for leveraging social platforms to drive business success.
Her work and ventures have been featured in Bloomberg, Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur, and The New York Times. She is committed to championing visionary founders and helping build the next generation of impactful, community-driven businesses.
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