Create & Cultivate NYC Recap

Outfit Details: Top (Madewell) | Skirt (Madewell) | Belt (Hermes) | Shoes (Soludos)

WOW! What a weekend! In case you haven’t been following along on Instagram, this weekend I attended my first-ever Create & Cultivate conference. Create & Cultivate is this amazing company that I’ve been following for years that is dedicated to providing women with the resources and experiences to create and cultivate the career of their dreams.

The conference was chock-full of inspiring speakers and even more incredible attendees. Throughout the day, I joined some of the entrepreneurs and industry leaders that I’ve looked up to for years (i.e. Martha Stewart, Ashely Graham, Becca Tobin, etc.) and I loved every minute of it. Below is a quick recap of the speakers & panels I loved most, the brands that I discovered and some network tips that I learned along the way.

Speakers & Panels I Loved

1| Martha Stewart: I don’t think I need to have a reason other than the fact that this woman is straight-up ICONIC. As the first woman billionaire, there are unlimited reasons as to why Martha is an inspiration to me but most of all it is her ‘no bullshit’ attitude. For example, there was one point in the panel where the Founder of Create & Cultivate, Jaclyn Johnson asked, ‘Have you ever experienced Imposter Syndrome?’ and Martha answered ‘No, no! You shouldn’t even know that exists.’ 😂 While everyone in the crowd giggled, it was TOO true! Martha never let anyone or anything stand in her way and that is SO clear in her success story.

2| Marketing Masterclass: Showing Up In The Social Offline & Online World: This panel was made up of Tezza (the legendary photographer), Cynthia Andrew (the full-time attorney, part-time blogger), Hilary Sloan (Senior Director at Shop Style), Rachel Curry (Marketing Director at Volvo), Naomi Jacobs (QVC director of social media strategy) and Jacey Duprie (the blogger behind Damsel in Dior). This incredible panel of women shed some light on the relationships between influencers and brands and how to build impactful relationships. I loved hearing about how Jacey works authentically with Volvo or how she continuously builds her relationships with brands like Tory Burch simply through supporting and advocating brands you love and keeping up with emails and DMs. If nothing else, this panel got me emptying my inbox almost immediately.

3| Rosie Huntington-Whitley: In case you missed it (because I did), Rosie recently launched a new company called Rose Inc. Rose Inc. is a beauty destination where you can find everything from Rosie’s favorite products, tutorials, and more. I loved hearing about how Roise built her business while being a full-time mom. Her perspective was both inspiring and crazy-relatable. For example, when Jaclyn asked her ‘What tips do you have for working moms out there?’ She had none! 😂 She actually wanted some advice from those in the audience.

Brands I Discovered

A great part of Create & Cultivate are all of the brands they have on-location. From long-time favorites like LaCroix to brands that were new to me like At-A-Glance, I loved all of the brands and products that were readily discoverable at Saturday’s conference. With every turn I was finding new beauty products, apparel companies, beverages and more. Below were a few of my faves:

1| At-A-Glance: As a planning aficionado, I love finding new brands for planners, calendars, to-do lists, and notebooks. That is why I immediately swooned when spotted the ‘Planner Bar’ at Create & Cultivate. At the Planner Bar, attendees were able to pick from various planner designs (marble, floral, etc.) and get it personalized with your name or initials. Of course, I went with MAG. These planners in particular were monthly planners, which I’m personally looking forward to using as my blog and Instagram content calendar.

2| Ketel One Botanical: OMG! I don’t know why this was the first time I’ve tried Ketel One Botanical!! I’ve seen some of my favorite bloggers post about it over the past few months, but this something you have to taste to believe. I tried the ‘Grapefruit & Rose’ flavor and it was DELICIOUS. Ketel One Botanicals is made with all real ingredients– no sugar, no artificial sweeteners, and no artificial flavors and to my surprise, it is amazing. The best part, this vodka is only 73 calories per serving. For context, a normal Ketel One serving is 96 calories!

3| Mural Cerveza: Of course, another alcohol related one! 🙈 I needed a lot of liquid confidence to get out there and network! 😂 However, that was the reason I discovered Mural Cerveza and WOW was I impressed. Mural Cerveza is the flavor of Mexico City and embodies all of the best flavors– hibiscus, agave, watermelon, and lime. What MORE could you want in a beer? I helped myself to not one, but two Mural Cerveza‘s throughout the day and you better believe that I’ve already looked up the closest stores to buy it for summer picnics.

4| LaCroix: Last but certainly not least, LaCroix! This was definitely not a new discovery, I basically live on LaCroix, but I was able to try their new(ish) ‘cúrate’ flavors and they are AMAZING. I usually order LaCroix in bulk and I’m always weary about trying new flavors, which is why this was the perfect opportunity to test. I personally tried the Melon Pomelo flavor, which is mix between cantaloupe and pink grapefruit flavor. If these flavors weren’t enough, I was DYING over all of the LaCroix swag they were giving out and already turned the baseball hat I received into a go-to staple.

Networking Tips

The primary reason I attended Create & Cultivate was to push myself and flex my networking skills. While I consider myself a fairly friendly and approachable person, I find networking crazy PAINFUL. I absolutely hate that unnecessarily awkward intro you need to make and the forced conversation you have before you get into the thick of it. That said, I’m really happy that I went and pushed myself in that area. Below are ways that I was able to find success throughout the day:

1| Find yourself a buddy. When I arrived at Create & Cultivate, I was riding solo and I was STRESSED. I quickly realized that a lot of the attendees came in pairs or groups, or at least it felt that way. Just as I was contemplating my decision to attend the conference alone, there was a tap on my shoulder and it was one of my sorority sisters from BU. I could not have been more relieved! While we did spend most of the day together, we didn’t hold each other back from talking to new people and taking full advantage of the experience. If anything, having her by my side made me feel a little bit more confident joining conversations and taking photos in all of the ridiculous photo booths.

2| Use common ground as a launching pad. The easiest way to start a conversation with something new is talking about something you both have in common. This requires intense active listening. Listen to every detail, where they went to school, what their biggest challenges are in running their business, what they are aspiring towards, etc. This common ground can be literally ANYTHING because it is just an authentic means to an end– a longer-term, mutually beneficial relationship.

3| Exchange business cards. Business cards may be a thing of the past, but it is definitely a tell tale sign of someone being actually interested in a longer-term relationship. There were so many bloggers at this conference, it was kind of difficult to breakthrough and read if the brands, PR agencies and other entrepreneurs were interested in working with me. As soon as they asked for my card, those worries went away. In the future, I want to work on being a bit more assertive and ask for their card first.