Vivienne Decker
A lover of clean, classic fashion, Vivienne works as VP of sales for an ethically-sourced jewelry company called Soko. Soko works with over 3,000 artisan entrepreneurs in Nairobi, Kenya, who make jewelry pieces by hand using all sustainably-recycled materials. Vivienne oversees the sales team to coordinate logistics to over 600 stores around the world including Reformation, Barney’s Japan, and Nordstrom. Vivienne is also a writer for Forbes, where she focuses on millennial female entrepreneurs. Through her interactions with and personal experience as a woman in business, she has wise advice for other women following the same path. For getting press, she says to be persistent and continue reaching out to writers--you never know when you’re going to send an email just as they’re looking for a story. And in general, she stresses staying balanced amidst the extreme highs and lows of being in a startup. It’s important to not be emotionally invested in each swing and know that even the low moments are learning experiences. Overall, Vivienne has noticed that women entrepreneurs are committed to solving problems and impacting change in their industries--and she is no different. In her career, Vivienne has helped Soko create more opportunities for marginalized communities and worked with female entrepreneurs to further their companies. She’s realized that in both her career and life, her goal is to help people and make positive change.