Bootstrapped to Beauty Powerhouse: Scaling SUGARED + BRONZED with Courtney Claghorn

23/09/2025 26 min
Bootstrapped to Beauty Powerhouse: Scaling SUGARED + BRONZED with Courtney Claghorn

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Episode Synopsis

Send us a textCourtney Claghorn, co-founder of SUGARED + BRONZED, joins Lara Schmoisman on Coffee Nº5 to share how she bootstrapped a beauty service out of her apartment into a nationwide brand. From $1,000 in startup capital to 10 stores before raising funding, Courtney reveals the lessons of growth, customer loyalty, franchising, memberships, and creating a product line—all while keeping customer service at the core.We'll talk about:How Courtney turned $1,000 in savings into Sugared + BronzedThe leap from apartment spray tans to opening a first brick-and-mortar in Santa MonicaBootstrapping growth for 9 years before raising outside capitalBuilding a team you can actually trust—and learning when to take back controlCreating a product line without losing focus on servicesCustomer service as the foundation of brand loyaltyWhy raising capital with the right partners changed everythingFor more information, visit Courtney Claghorn's LinkedIn.Subscribe to Lara’s newsletter.Also, follow our host Lara Schmoisman on social media:Instagram: @laraschmoismanFacebook: @LaraSchmoismanSupport the show

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