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Meet Andrea Weinberg, Founder and CEO of The ANDI Brand

Andrea Weinberg is the founder and CEO of The ANDI Brand, a line of functional fashion that launched in 2015 and brought in six-figure revenue in its first year. The company has continued to double each year, all while Andrea maintains a successful career in sales of litigation technology. Yet despite her entrepreneurial success, what is truly impressive is Andrea’s commitment to social responsibility; she has donated over 300 bags of necessities to survivors of domestic and gender violence, and spearheads involvement with a Girl Scout Troop made up of homeless New York girls.

 


 

My first job ever was… A Project Manager for a company outsourcing legal work to our collaboration teams in India. I was essentially a liaison between US-based clients and operations abroad. I spent some time in India and loved it.

 

I decided to be an entrepreneur because… I wanted to create something and then I wanted to see what could happen next. Entrepreneurship is the ultimate adventure.

 

My proudest accomplishment is… Having the most incredible team – to me, their passion for ANDI is a testament to what I have built.

 

My boldest move to date was… Starting.

 

I surprise people when I tell them… I don’t have a traditional design background. I was originally inspired by an idea and pursued the creation of my idea using a more industrial-design and user-centric process which I learned about during business school.

 

My best advice to people starting out in business is…You will get a lot of opinions from non-experts. Listen to everyone’s advice but know that a lot of it should ultimately be ignored. Originally, I would panic to enact every request and suggestion, until I realized that much of the advice I was being given contradicted advice I received from someone else.

 

My best advice from a mentor was… Just make sure you are moving forward and not side to side.

 

My biggest setback was… The first market that I ever did – I sold one bag and I think the woman who bought it did so because she felt bad for me.

 

I overcame it by… Understanding that it wasn’t failure, it was feedback. The bags needed improvement (this was about 60 iterations ago!) and it inspired me to continue to move forward in a research & development stage.

 

Work/life balance is… Balance in general is always my goal – that and not taking myself too seriously.

 

If you googled me, you still wouldn’t know… That I meditate everyday – 20 mins in the morning, 20 mins in the early evening (vedic meditation).

 

I stay inspired by… Making constant efforts to see new things and new places (including those right in my NYC backyard!) and meet new people. Just getting out and about and experiencing life gets my wheels turning.

 

The future excites me because… We live in an incredible world and it is getting smaller, creating more opportunities to expand and experience across it.

 

My next step is… Incorporating more recycled and repurposed fabrics to decrease our carbon footprint.

 

 

Do you know a successful female entrepreneur who deserves recognition? Nominate her for the RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Awards!