TAKE CARE Newsletter Relaunch

It’s Friday, July 26, 2019 and I’m meeting up with Chana (founder of GEENIE, a curated beauty marketplace and community) at The Wing SoHo. We’re gathering to discuss the never ending challenges of entrepreneurship life. In the middle of our vent session, Chana asks, “Have you ever heard of Girls’ Night In?” Me, “Nope, what’s that?”

“Launched in early 2017 by Alisha Ramos, the core of Girls’ Night In is its weekly newsletter, which is sent to over 150K subscribers every Friday morning. Its mission is clear: to help women relax, recharge, and cultivate a more meaningful sense of community in an increasingly lonely and stressful world. The weekly newsletters feature links to stories and inspiration on the topic of self-care and connection, with sponsored stories and product links as a source of revenue.

With big plans for expansion that include doubling down on GNI's offline community, Ramos recently raised a pre-seed round of $500,000 from SV Angel, Third Kind Capital and Combine VC.” 

From Karin Eldor’s “Why The Founder Of Girls' Night In Left Her Tech Career To Reimagine Self-Care” on Forbes.com

I Googled, signed-up, and was amazed at all the information packed into their weekly email. Then I thought, what if I did this but for Black professionals? However I’m smack dab in the middle of Must Love Beards summer tour and can’t add another thing to my already hefty plate. 

I remain subscribed to Girls’ Night In and every Friday morning, I’m reminded of my dream deferred. Then the pandemic hit and I am forced into unprecedented downtime. On Saturday, April 18, 2020, I officially launched TAKE CARE. Check out the receipts below. 

TAKE CARE #1, TAKE CARE #2, TAKE CARE #3, TAKE CARE #4, TAKE CARE #5, TAKE CARE #6, TAKE CARE #7, TAKE CARE #8, TAKE CARE #9, TAKE CARE #10, and TAKE CARE #11.

To my surprise, my email open rates were through the roof and I received dozens of emails praising TAKE CARE. 

“This is amazing! Thank you for sharing!”

“Look at you, creating a whole new business in the middle of a pandemic!”

“I didn’t know you could actually write!”

That last one was a little shady lol but I got it. I haven’t shared a lot of my story, personality, or other skill sets over the years (working on that).

Now, I’m ready to relaunch TAKE CARE however I need your help. For starters, the monthly bill to maintain an email list of 60,691 contacts is $630.38. Next, I’ll need funding for a brand management consultant, custom website design, guest editors, legal fees, merchandise, social media advertisements, and a strategic partnerships consultant to guide TAKE CARE to the next level. And lastly, I need a salary. IDDC has been self-funded, that stops today. 

“As a business owner, I am sure you have heard of the concept of paying yourself. Unfortunately, based on my experience of working with hundreds of business owners, it’s a concept that many just don’t practice. I believe there are a couple of reasons for this -- business owners feel compelled to put everything back into their business, and they don't track how much money they actually take out of the business.

Those who put all the money they can back into their business often believe they will get a better return on investment than if they had used the money investing elsewhere.”

From Sam Harrop’s “Why It's Vital to Pay Yourself First in Business” on Entrepreneur.com.

So if you love the content and energy I’ve been putting out for nearly a decade (yes, IDDC turns 10 in August), please consider contributing. Thx in advance!

-Genese Jamilah