The Ledger
Every statement that passed quotation and attribution checks. Mix any filter with any other: certainty 1/5, debate potential 5/5, or both at once.
why aren't all 45 resolved? a statement only gets an assessment when the public record can support or contradict it. opinions and what-ifs never can, and 0 checkable ones are still open, waiting for their date. predictions held up or didn't; assertions are supported or contradicted. on every card: ▮▮▮▮▮ certainty · ▮▮▮▮▮ debate potential. speakers are clickable
Twine: Black people are not responsible for fixing systemic racial injustice
“I don't believe that it is the responsibility of black people to fix the problem.”
Twine: Aspiring to succeed depends heavily on seeing relatable role models
“Because so much of wanting to become better or becoming successful comes from seeing Other people who look like you that have done it.”
Twine: Silicones merely fake hair shine while natural oils improve health
“Instead of, you know, pumping our products with silicones, which are synthetic polymers that give the illusion of shine on the hair We actually used real natural oils to do that because not only is it natural, but the benefits, the vitamins, the nutrients the …”
Manufacturers told Nancy Twine sulfate-free shampoo required silicones
“Sometimes manufacturers would say, oh, we just started developing shampoos without sulfates, but we need the silicone base in order for it to hydrate your hair. If you don't have the silicones, the clean surfactants are gonna dry out the hair. You can't have o…”
Twine: Briogeo relies on EcoCert-approved synthetics to guarantee product shelf life
“One of the things I'm very transparent about is that Briogeo products are not 100% natural, and where we cannot find a effective, clean substitute, we will opt with a synthetic version, so long as we really do our diligence to make sure that it's a safe synthe…”
Twine: Briogeo approached $40 million in gross sales during 2020
“So we will, you know, finish this year close to forty million in gross sales”
Silicones Create Cosmetic Illusions While Natural Oils Improve True Hair Health
“Instead of, you know, pumping our products with silicones, which are synthetic polymers that give the illusion of shine on the hair We actually used real natural oils to do that because not only is it natural, but the benefits, the vitamins, the nutrients the …”
Briogeo Uses Safe Synthetic Preservatives for a 24-Month Shelf Life
“Briogeo products are not 100% natural, and where we cannot find a effective, clean substitute, we will opt with a synthetic version, so long as we really do our diligence to make sure that it's a safe synthetic. Right. And there is an organization in Europe ca…”
Twine: Trying to be indispensable at Goldman Sachs led to exploitation
“My goal of making myself indispensable to protect my career during a tumultuous time probably put me in the position of being taken advantage of at times.”
Twine: Market for textured hair was not established when growing up
“The market for textured hair wasn't really established back then. So I found myself struggling with the products that were available, and either needing to supplement them with other ingredients, or just create my own products from scratch.”
Twine: Briogeo launched with one universal shampoo and three conditioners
“So what I decided to do was to create one shampoo for all hair types. And then I had three conditioners that were texture specific. So with four products, I was able to hit a pretty diverse client base.”
Twine used diverse imagery at Cosmoprof to avoid ethnic aisle pigeonholing
“You know, I figured that people would, which is why when I designed my booth, I was very intentional about having hair model imagery at my booth that really displayed the diversity of our intended consumer. So I think when people saw the breadth of ethnicities…”
Sephora agreed to test Briogeo in February 2014 after category expansion shift
“And then in February of 2014, I received an email that changed my life. I had sent the merchant buyer January's press summary, and a couple of weeks later, she responded and said, Nancy, it's so great to hear from you. The stars must have been aligned because …”
Twine used 200,000 Ipsy samples to drive massive Sephora sales conversions
“Getting that product in the hands of about 200,000 people translated into incredible conversions at Sephora.”
Twine: The Term 'Natural' Lacks the Strict Legal Regulation of 'Organic'
“The word natural is not regulated the way that organic is. So natural means different things to different people.”
Twine Paid a Consultant Under $500 to Name Briogeo
“A friend of mine ended up putting me in touch with a guy who was a consultant, and For, you know, less than 500 bucks, he picked my brain on what I wanted this brand to be, and gave me a ton of options, and Briogeo stood out.”
Angel Investor Phil Palmetto Initially Invested $100,000 Into Briogeo
“So he gave me the first time about a 100,000 dollars.”
Sephora Tested Briogeo Online With a Conditional 25-Store Retail Expansion
“So it was a test, and the test was online only. So if I hit my targets, the next step would be to launch Briogeo in 25 of the then 400 Sephora stores.”
Sampling to 200,000 Ipsy Users Drove Briogeo's Sephora Retail Conversions
“Getting that product in the hands of about 200,000 people translated into incredible conversions at Sephora.”
Sephora Rolls Out In-Store Brands Twice Yearly
“Sephora has a cadence of twice a year in which they roll out brands into stores in March and in September.”
Briogeo Projected Nearly $40 Million in 2020 Gross Sales
“Yeah, so we will, you know, finish this year close to forty million in gross sales, which is pretty awesome.”
Briogeo Revised Its Pre-COVID Budget Upward During 2020
“We actually ended up revising up our pre-COVID budget.”
Nancy Twine: Brother refused to let her join his venture
“While I was at Goldman, I was seeing a therapist, and prior to my mom's passing, I was even thinking about, you know, what life beyond Goldman looked like, and she encouraged me to see if I could join my brother in his entrepreneurial ventures, and he said, yo…”
Twine: 'Natural' lacks the regulatory standards governing 'organic' products
“The word natural is not regulated the way that organic is. So natural means different things to different people.”
Nancy Twine used public accountability with friends to commit to entrepreneurship
“I told myself that I was gonna tell all of my friends about what it is I wanted to do, because I knew if I went and told everyone that I wanted to start a clean, natural hair care product line, that they would ask me about it every time we went out, and I didn…”
Nancy Twine reached VP at Goldman Sachs while bootstrapping Briogeo
“Because this would have been 2011, 20 12. I had just become a vice president, so I had gotten promoted, but I was also trying to allocate time to work on Briogeo, so.”
Twine bootstrapped Briogeo with $25,000 before seeking outside capital
“So by that point, the most money I spent was on the business plan, which was about 5000. Some of the initial concepts for the packaging, which was, you know, north of 10 K. And then you factor in everything else. I was probably close to 25 K.”
Twine: Paid under $500 to a consultant to name Briogeo
“A friend of mine ended up putting me in touch with a guy who was a consultant, and for, you know, less than 500 bucks, he picked my brain on what I wanted this brand to be and gave me a ton of options, and Briogeo stood out.”
Twine spent roughly $15,000 to debut Briogeo at Cosmoprof Las Vegas
“Cost about 10,000 dollars for that weekend.
[3004] Guy Raz: And then that was just for the space.
[3005] Guy Raz: You had to like...
[3007] Guy Raz: Bring your stuff with you and like a signage and, right?
[3010] Nancy Twine: Yeah.
[3011] Nancy Twine: There wa…”
Briogeo left its first trade show with zero purchase orders
“I left with no orders, but I did leave with interest from Urban Outfitters.”
Twine: Urban Outfitters Bought Briogeo's Entire First Inventory Run
“They pretty much bought all of the stock that I had, so that, those few hundred units.”
Twine: Briogeo Raised $100,000 from First Angel Investor
“So he gave me the first time about a 100,000 dollars.”
Twine: Desk-Side Editor Meetings Won Briogeo Immediate Press Coverage
“And so I was able to create relationships with editors at a dozen of publications, and I started getting press out of the gate.”
Twine: Sephora promised 25 retail stores if Briogeo met online targets
“If I hit my targets, the next step would be to launch Briogeo in 25 of the then 400 Sephora stores.”
Nancy Twine: Angel Backer Phil Loaned Briogeo $150K to Scale Inventory
“So I reached out to Phil, put together a little deck of how I would use the funds to basically scale the growth of the business, which he was incentivized to do given his equity position. He felt like it was a good business case. I had, you know, POs to point …”
Twine's Goal to Avoid Layoffs Led to Exploitation at Goldman Sachs
“My goal of making myself indispensable to protect my career during a tumultuous time probably put me in the position of being taken advantage of at times. There were, I'm sure, some of my classmates who would never come in on a Sunday night randomly because th…”
The Textured Hair Market Was Not Established During Twine's Youth
“And the market for textured hair wasn't really established back then. So I found myself struggling with the products that were available, and either needing to supplement them with other ingredients, or just create my own products from scratch.”
Briogeo Launched With One Universal Shampoo and Three Conditioners
“What I decided to do was to create one shampoo for all hair types. And then I had three conditioners that were texture specific. So with four products, I was able to hit a pretty diverse client base.”
Twine Kept Briogeo Secret From Her Goldman Sachs Team
“No one in my immediate team knew that I was working on this project. I had a couple of friends at Goldman that I confided in, but only a couple that I knew would not say anything, because I was serious about my work, and I didn't want to compromise that, and I…”
Twine Bootstrapped Briogeo With $25,000 Before Seeking Outside Capital
“So by that point, the most money I spent was on the business plan, which was about 5000. Some of the initial concepts for the packaging, which was, you know, north of 10 K. Yeah. And then you factor in everything else. I was probably close to 25 K.”
Briogeo's First Trade Show Debut Cost Roughly $15,000
“There was travel. I had to design the space. I needed staffing. So I think when it was all said and done, it was probably closer to 15,000.”
Briogeo Left Its First Trade Show With Only Urban Outfitters' Interest
“I left with no orders, but I did leave with interest from Urban Outfitters.”
Briogeo Secured Early Press via Face-to-Face Editor Desk Visits
“And because I was in New York, I asked them if they could set me up with desk side appointments where I would actually meet the editor and be able to have a face-to-face connection. And so I was able to create relationships with editors at a dozen of publicati…”
Twine Joined UVA's First Hip-Hop A Cappella Group
“We were actually UVA's first hip-hop acapella group”
Twine Sold Homemade 'Clueless' Feather Pens in Middle School
“In middle school, this is when the movie Clueless came out, and those cool, like, feather pins were so popular, but no one, like, knew where they could get them, because Etsy wasn't around, and I went to Michael's, my local craft store, and got ribbon, pens, a…”