Sophia Amoruso is the kind of scary-cool woman who knows where your shoes came from, how much they cost, and she hates them. She is the founder and former CEO of online fashion behemoth Nasty Gal, which at one point was turning over $300million a year. She is a hugely respected figure in business, fashion and soon in entertainment - her Netflix series, Girlboss, drops on 21 April. She's executive producer, naturally, and we’re very excited about watching it.
Who is Sophie Amaruso?
Amoruso is a 32-year-old businesswoman from California, and is thought to be one of the world’s most successful self-made businesswomen. She had a tricky time as a teenager, dropped out of school after being diagnosed with ADD, and lived a nomadic lifestyle, dumpster diving and shoplifting - she describes her younger self as a “stinky little girl”. When she was 22 she started an eBay account to sell vintage and retro clothes, and it all started from there.
She swiftly became a pro at working out how to boost the price of a garment as much as possible by making the pictures as good as possible - selecting the exact right model in the exact right pose and making everything look as sellable as possible. She was kicked off eBay in 2008 - she was accused of diverting traffic away from eBay by using MySpace to message customers. Other users also accused her of shill bidding (where you artificially increase prices by getting friends or family to bid on your lots) which she denies.
After leaving eBay, she founded her own website which went on to make huge money.
Why did Sophia Amaruso leave Nasty Gal?
Nasty Gal filed for bankruptcy after Amoruso stepped down as CEO in 2015, suggesting that her sway at the top of the company was one of the big reasons Nasty Gal was such a huge success.
When did Sophia Amaruso become famous?
She published her memoir #Girlboss in 2014, which went on to become a bestseller. In the book (which is quite gripping) she talks about the incredible graft it took to get her where she is. There’s a story there about the work she took to get the exact right button to sew onto a vintage Chanel jacket that really makes you stop to consider the almighty effort on which Nasty Gal was founded.
What’s Sophia Amaruso's Netflix Series GirlBoss about?
It's loosely based on her life starting up Nasty Gal and the encounters along the way. Amoruso is played by Britt Robertson, and it’s by Pitch Perfect writer Kay Cannon and executive produced by Charlize Theron. In the recently released trailer Amoruso’s on-screen persona kind of looks like a nightmare, but she’s making money so I guess that makes it ok? And the trailer shows her crying a couple of times. Which makes her relatable?
What happened after Sophia Amaruso Left Nasty Gal?
She’s been working on a new form of activism. In March, she organised a 'Girlboss rally'. The event was aimed at women and was billed as an opportunity to improve in areas “from marketing and brand building to getting paid and quitting jobs, health & wellness, sexuality and more, it will be a day filled with actionable takeaways. 10% of all ticket proceeds went to the Girlboss Foundation, which gives grants to women in creative industries
Sophia Amaruso's wedding: what happened?
Amoruso married musician Joel Jarek Degraff in a super-fancy wedding at the Paramour Estate, LA, in 2015. They drew criticism from some commentators, who pointed out that a lot of the gifts they requested were a little on the expensive side considering Amoruso’s abundant wealth. Martha Stewart Weddings gave the wedding day the comprehensive coverage you might need - everything from flowers, to the three-tiered cake of cheese, to the design of the invitations.
The couple divorced in 2016, and according to TMZ they had a vv detailed prenup and he came away with none of Amoruso’s assets.
Career (and life) lessons from Sophia Amaruso:
1. Start at the very beginning
Sophia started her e-store armed with a copy of eBay For Dummies. For real. So ditch the pride and learn the basics - and remember that self-teaching does not mean you aren't qualified. 'I felt like a fraud, for a long time,' she writes, in #GIRLBOSS. Now, of course, there are many alternatives to eBay (which she soon outgrew); other great platforms are Etsy, Amazon Marketplace and the Swedish Tictail, which unlike the other platforms doesn't take any of the seller's cut.
2. Know every aspect of your business, inside out
From teaching herself graphic design so she could make a funny logo (which has been since revised) to doing all her own photography, styling, buying and shipping, Sophia had to learn every aspect of her business. Now, of course, she has almost 350 employees to help her out with that. But to build a business, you don't have to be an expert; you just have to be involved in every area, from the outset. And if it something doesn't work? Try again.
3. It pays to be the truffle pig
In Sophia's case, she was a vintage-seeking truffle pig; picking up two $8 Chanel jackets and re-selling them on eBay, at the very start of her e-store, for $1,500 each. But this can apply in other areas, too; it pays dividends to search for a bargain, basically, so that you can make the biggest possible profit margin. Good things come to those who hunt.
4. Get people to invest in your business
No, we don't mean financially - but emotionally. 'There's no great compliment than having a brand people care about so much that they aspire to be a part of it,' Sophia recently told Lucky mag. 'Practically every girl on my Instagram is begging for a job, and I wish I could hire them all. The best I can do is tell them how to get a job or create their own business, or to tell them the kind of person that I'd like to hire. Maybe they can be a great employee or start something awesome on their own and be a great boss for themselves.'
5. Don't care what other people think
'For most of my life I didn't believe in the concept of a role model,' Sophia writes in #GIRLBOSS. 'I don't want to be put on a pedestal. The energy you'll expend focusing on someone else's life is better spent just working on your own. Just be your own idol.'
6. Don't resent making the coffee
'A lot of people in my generation don't seem to get that you have to work your way up,' Sophia writes in #GIRLBOSS. 'An entry level job is precisely that - entry level - which means that you're not going to be running the show or getting to work on the most fun and creative projects. I've heard so many people in their twenties complain about thier jobs because they "have so much more to offer", but first and foremost you have to do the job that you're there to do.' In short? The shit jobs prepare you. So get on with them.
7. Always keep your GSOH
You don't have to be a churlish biz exec in pinstripes to build a successful business. 'The spirity of Nasty Gal is not one that can get outdated,' Sophia tells Lucky. 'I am never going grow up in the sense that I lose my sense of humour or my desire to try new things. I don't think I will ever be a wallflower, so Nasty Gal is more of a spirit that guides everything we do.'
8. Get karmic
'You get back what you put out, so you might as well think positively, focus on visualising what you want instead of getting distracted by what you don't want,' Amoruso tells The Cut. Focus on the good stuff, don't brood upon the negative, basically.
9. Sky's the limit
Exciting news for West Coasters is that Nasty Gal are soon launching a bricks and mortar store in LA. They're also expanding into makeup and homeware.
10. Step in and step up
'A few years back, our warehouse manager gave his two week's notice exactly two weeks before Black Friday,' Sophia writes in #GIRLBOSS. 'On Thanksgiving night, our creative director, merchandisers, girls from the buying team, me, and whomever else we were able to round up headed down there and shuffled around a dusty warehouse until 4:00 a.m..... at 2:00 a.m., as I was counting and recounting bustiers, I did not give a shit whether people were creative or whether they loved fashion - I was just thankful to have employees who were willing, even enthusiastic, to step up and work hard.'
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.