DECEMBER 15th- Chanel, Business and Babe caves.

riva razdan
Dec 15, 2021
3 min read

(News under 3 mins)

GOOD MORNING MAHARANI

And repeat after me.

‘Today I will...,make some room for rest.’

NATION : CHANGE THE CHANEL.In very exciting news, CHANEL appointed an Indian businesswoman Leena Nair, as their global CEO. (!!!) Nair holds the distinction of being the first female, first Asian and youngest ever chief human resources officer of Unilever. She joined Hindustan Unilever in 1992 after passing out from one of the top B schools in the country–the Xavier school of management in Jamshedpur as a gold medalist. When she decided to specialise in Human Resources, her father, an industrialist from Kolhapur, was apparently quite disappointed because HR within a company is usually considered the ‘backroom’ of the business with few opportunities for dynamic growth. But Nair, having a knack for managing people and leading with empathy rose quickly through the ranks due to her passion for the department, to eventually manage 150,000 people at Unilever. Alan Jope, the current CEO of Chanel also said that while it is unusual for a Human resources officer to become CEO of a company, it is Nair’s global reputation for ‘human centered leadership while delivering significant business impact’ and her ability to ‘lead with compassion and empathy’ that was one of the key factors that led to her appointment at Chanel. They trust her now to build Chanel into a company for the future. Our takeaway from this is that success doesn’t necessarily lie in a tried and tested path. It lies in doing whatever you’re good at, to the absolute best of your abilities to rise to excellence. We’re cheering on Nair for reaffirming this for us.

BIZ : HOW STARTUP VALUATIONS WORK. Simply, a valuation is just a quantification by analysts of how much the business is worth. This is done so that the founder can get more cash from investors to expand her business. The investor gets equity (or part ownership) for the amount he invests in the founder’s business. The valuation number is important because it determines the market value of the business, the amount the founder gets to run the business and the percentage of ownership she has to give up in exchange. Say we have a successful shoe business of 6 inch heels in Bombay that I want to expand. I think it’s a super lucrative industry since the average female height is 5 feet 2 inches here and we have supermodel aspirations. The valuation of my biz then will be dependent on

1) Traction - number of existing consumers for my sky-high heel.

2) Reputation : how responsible/reputable I am as a founder

3)Prototype : The amazing, incredible sky-high stilettos, pumps and peep-toes I am selling.

4) Pre valuation revenue : The ca$h money I’m already raking in from my existing customers.

5)Distribution channel : Investors will want to know how you’re planning to sell the shoe, so that they get max returns on their investment.

6) Industry : If it’s a booming industry- like female retail/beauty- investors are likely to pay a premium.

So seriously, what are you waiting for? Start your fab shoe business and supply to ME.

POP CULTURE : WHAT TO DO WHEN BRAD PITT WALKS OUT ON YOU? Turn his study into a ‘babe cave’. That's what Jen Aniston did. Okay so it wasn’t Brad who’s study was converted but second husband Justin Theroux’s. Still, we’re proud of Rachel for living her best life by spending Sunday nights hosting her best friends’ at a ‘sunday funday’ dinner parties that are apparently so hospitable and warm, that everyone in LA wants an invite. And to see the doormat ‘Welcome to the Babe cave’ outside what used to once be Theroux’s study. We’re taking a feather out of Jen’s very pretty cap and setting one day of our weekend aside for good friends too. Even if he isn’t having his boys night, you better have a good girls’ one. In any case, everyone knows the babe cave>>bat cave.

STYLE : Color on color

And vibes on vibes