Episode 1: Trust Yourself, Build Boldly, and Scale Without Permission
with Kaylee Lieffers, CEO and Founder of Blanka
About the Episode
In our first episode of Off Script, I sat down with Kaylee Lieffers, founder and CEO of Blanka, to dive deep into the mindset, mistakes, and mission behind building an anomalous brand from scratch.
Kaylee’s story takes us from growing up between Mexico and Saskatchewan, to working in corporate consulting, to bootstrapping her startup out of her living room—and eventually raising an oversubscribed seed round. We talk about how to trust yourself as a founder, what most people get wrong about MVPs, and why she’s not afraid to let go of a business idea if the writing’s on the wall.
This episode is for anyone who feels like they’re building “against the grain” and needs a reminder that’s exactly where the magic happens.
In this episode, we cover:
How growing up internationally shaped Kaylee’s adaptability
Why entrepreneurship is often incubated, not inherited
How she made the call to bootstrap Blanka, and when she decided to raise
What not to do when building your MVP
How she found the right co-founders (including her husband)
Why the beauty industry is still operating like it’s 1995
The rise of niche brands and the future of personalized beauty
The role of founder values in every product decision
Quotes
“ Under promise and over deliver.”
— Kaylee Lieffers
📚 Book Recommendations
Links & Resources
Blanka – Build your own beauty or skincare brand
Forum Ventures – Accelerator that helped catalyze their seed round.
Favorite Topics
On walking away from her first startup idea:
“I see so many founders working on ideas that are never going to take flight. Sometimes the most courageous move is walking away.”
On finding your co-founders:
“It’s not about hiring someone who can code. It’s about finding someone who shares your pace, vision, and your grind level.”
On leading as a CEO:
“You go from player, to player-coach, to just coach. The work never slows down—it just shifts.”
Listen Now
Spotify → Click here to listen
Apple Podcasts → Click here to listen