476: The Real-Life Girlboss: How I Built Nasty Gal to a $100M Business

In this episode of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast, the hosts discuss the remarkable story of the rise and challenges of the brand Nasty Gal with its founder, who started the business without a formal business background or intention to create a company. Initially, the founder did not consider herself as starting a business; it began with selling vintage clothing on eBay, driven by her interest in photography, style, and using what she had—access to thrift stores and a digital camera. Nasty Gal's growth was organic and driven by unique e-commerce strategies that differentiated it from the competition, such as styling clothing in a way that wasn't typical for eBay listings at that time. The company quickly saw substantial revenue increases yearly, starting with $224,000 in the first year, eventually leading to millions in the subsequent years, achieving $28 million just before investors sought her out. The business operated in a non-traditional manner, out of a warehouse with a young and minimal team, and was fully profitable when venture capitalists expressed interest, despite the founder having saved a million dollars in the bank without any venture funding. The interaction with investors brought in substantial capital, between $50 to $60 million over two rounds, but also significantly altered the operations of the company. With the investment, new hires, including C-level executives, were brought in, and aggressive revenue targets were set by the board without a solid foundation or intentionally built culture to sustain such explosive growth. This led to hasty scaling, lack of streamlining, and challenges that came with trying to rapidly expand a business that was originally not designed to operate on venture capital and as a standard startup, ultimately leading to profitability issues.