Purpose Before Profit: Marty McDonald Of Elle Olivia On The Benefits Of Running A Purpose-Driven Business
An Interview With Chad Silverstein
When starting a business, you need a strong brand identity, a defined target audience, a solid consumer base, a team, as you can only wear so many hats for so long, and funding. Those are the things that you need to start building. It really doesn’t matter what business it is, but those are the items that you need to do so, and there’s going to be different stages to that, but I think that starting there gives you a great chance at success!
In today’s competitive business landscape, the race for profits often takes center stage. However, there are some leaders who also prioritize a mission-driven purpose. They use their business to make a positive social impact and recognize that success isn’t only about making money. In this interview series, we are talking with some of these distinct leaders and I had the pleasure of interviewing Marty McDonald.
Marty McDonald is a Dallas-based entrepreneur and designer who transitioned from a successful corporate career to pursue her passion for empowering women by founding Boss Women Media Group. Two years into building her company, Marty became pregnant with her first daughter, who was diagnosed at 24 weeks with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia. This life-threatening condition required immediate surgery after birth and a 35-day stay in the NICU. The experience deepened Marty’s understanding of the challenges that Black families face in healthcare and representation. Motivated by her daughter’s journey, Marty and her husband committed themselves to addressing systemic barriers for Black parents. In 2022, they founded Elle Olivia, a lifestyle brand designed for confident girls and their moms. The brand’s debut collection, featuring inspirational sweatshirts launched on Valentine’s Day, sold out quickly — affirming Marty’s belief that Elle Olivia would become a cherished staple for Black families. The brand is the true manifestation of a vision that every little girl can be strong, confident, and have the power to dream big. Elle Olivia was created to give girls a place to express themselves and see a world where anything is possible. Each piece in the collection has been thoughtfully designed to foster big dreams and aspirations in every girl starting from a young age.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us your “Origin Story”? Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I grew up in a small town where I didn’t see a lot of opportunities and possibilities but innately knew I wanted more. I became the first in my family to go to college, checked all the right boxes, and earned my MBA. However, once I entered corporate America, I didn’t see myself and didn’t know what was possible for my heart’s desires. So, I exited corporate America and started my media company to create stories of women who went after their more, so women who looked like me knew that more was possible for themselves. Fast forward to getting pregnant with my first child, I noticed a gap where more opportunities were needed for little girls to see themselves represented in the world. The through line is my belief that my purpose is to highlight the stories of Black and brown women, showing them that anything is possible if they believe in themselves.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
The most interesting thing I’ve learned since I began is that once I truly believe something can happen, it normally does. I sent a cold pitch email to Target without knowing anyone and I got a partnership. I also reached out to Michelle Obama’s team, and we collaborated on the Elle Olivia HerFuture collection. These experiences show that if you just believe a little and leave space for miracles, anything is possible. Ask yourself, are you bold enough to take a chance on yourself as much as you are on something else, on somebody else, embedding and making money for somebody else?
We often learn the most from our mistakes. Can you share one that you made that turned out to be one of the most valuable lessons you’ve learned?
One of my biggest mistakes was not realizing how important funding is in establishing a business. When launching into Target, I raised funds, but I was uncomfortable with taking money from others. Owing people hundreds of thousands of dollars left me breathless. Many founders are told there’s only one pathway to success through venture capital. I had never taken funding dollars before and because of that experience, I know that’s not necessarily a pathway that I want to pursue. So, taking those experiences and those life lessons and allowing them to nurture you for what you do want versus focusing on the failure from it is what I would say has been one of my biggest lessons.
As a successful leader, it’s clear that you uphold strong core values. I’m curious what are the most important principles you firmly stand by and refuse to compromise on. Can you share a few of them and explain why they hold such significance for you in your work and life?
The top three values I stand by are financial freedom, time with my family, and doing what I love. Financial freedom means creating opportunities for my children’s children to have generational wealth. Time with my family is invaluable. I want to be part of my children’s lives creating sustainable memories. Doing what I love is essential because I don’t want to be in an environment that sucks the life out of me. Being able to do what I love and knowing that this is why God put me here to give and land my talents onto this earth is extremely important to me. These are the values that I lean into every day today. I constantly ask myself, does what I’m doing align with the values that I have set before myself and the work that I desire to accomplish?
What inspired you to start a purpose-driven business rather than a traditional for-profit enterprise? Can you share a personal story or experience that led you to prioritize social impact in your business?
When I was 20 weeks pregnant, I found out my daughter had congenital diaphragm hernia and needed surgery. The time that I had preparing for this surgery and the experiences that I faced as a new mother left me in a lot of grief. The 35 days we had to spend in the NICU gave me a firsthand look at the systemic barriers Black families face within healthcare. We encountered challenges simply because they had never seen a Black family like ours — married, not on government assistance, and so on. The questions we received from the healthcare system left me thinking, “What in the world?” This experience became the foundation of Elle Olivia’s story. I quickly realized what my charge was as a mother: to teach my daughter how to advocate for herself. I knew I wanted to create a children’s brand that transforms how little girls see themselves, so they know their futures matter.
So, I think that we’re just getting started. But in a lot of ways, we want to incorporate a lot of policy work into this brand, fighting for childcare, fighting for NICU moms, and advocating for the systematic issues that happen in healthcare for black families are a couple of ways in which we will achieve making sure that black little girls see themselves in this world.
Can you help articulate a few of the benefits of leading a purpose-driven business rather than a standard “plain vanilla” business?
My goal isn’t just to create an apparel company but to transform how Black and brown little girls see themselves in a world that currently doesn’t represent them. Through the books they read and the clothes they wear, we aim to create everyday moments for little girls to see themselves and feel empowered.
How has your company’s mission or purpose affected its overall success? Can you explain the methods or metrics you use to evaluate the impact of this purpose-driven strategy on your organization?
To evaluate our impact, I align with brands that share our mission. For instance, our partnership with Michelle Obama’s “When We All Vote” encourages community engagement. We’re not telling you who to vote for, but we are encouraging you to go vote because everything that’s on the line in this election season not only impacts myself, my generation, but it deeply impacts this next generation that’s coming up. I want my daughter to know her body and choices matter, and aligning with organizations that amplify this message is crucial. So, aligning myself with an organization that’s pushing messaging to amplify communities and communities of color to go to the polls and vote aligns perfectly with what I desire to accomplish. Same thing with some of the mom influencers that we’ve partnered with. They’re all aligned to this overarching message of believing in girls and knowing that girls’ futures matter regardless of her background, household, neighborhood, or economic status.
Can you share a pivotal moment when you realized that leading your purpose-driven company was actually making a significant impact? Can you share a specific example or story that deeply resonated with you personally?
A pivotal moment was a casting call we did on social media for a campaign. I didn’t know who would show up, but when I arrived, there was a line of excited little girls who looked like our brand. Braids and beads, puffs and bows, afros, and headbands. Their mothers were there as advocates, and hearing a little girl say, “She looks just like me,” made me realize how much our brand is resonating in the marketplace.
Have you ever faced a situation where your commitment to your purpose and creating a positive social impact clashed with the profitability in your business? Have you ever been challenged by anyone on your team or have to make a tough decision that had a significant impact on finances? If so, how did you address and reconcile this conflict?
Yes, I have. We’re always asked, when are you going to expand? There’s so much data that shows that little Black girls lose their confidence by age seven due to how they view their hair and skin. They get into a classroom where they don’t see themselves and they stop raising their hands. If we can reach girls as young as three or four and help them recognize the beauty of their hair and skin tone, we can change the course for generations to come. This work helps alleviate some of the trauma that has affected Black communities for generations. When asked about expansion, I emphasize that we are combating the loss of confidence among Black girls in the classroom. It’s crucial to empower these young girls and support their self-esteem.
What advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs who wish to start a purpose-driven business?
The best advice I can offer an aspiring entrepreneur is simply to start. There will never be a perfect moment, or an ideal blueprint handed to you. I truly believe that a body in motion stays in motion; by taking action, you’ll create momentum that will continue to bring opportunities your way. If you believe in your idea and leave space for miracles, you’ll blow your own mind and those of the consumers you serve.
What are your “5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Purpose-Driven Business.” If you can, please share a story or example for each.
When starting a business, you need a strong brand identity, a defined target audience, a solid consumer base, a team, as you can only wear so many hats for so long, and funding. Those are the things that you need to start building. It really doesn’t matter what business it is, but those are the items that you need to do so, and there’s going to be different stages to that, but I think that starting there gives you a great chance at success!
I’m interested in how you instill a strong sense of connection with your team. How do you nurture a culture where everyone feels connected to your mission? Could you share an example or story that showcases how your purpose has positively influenced or motivated people on your team to contribute?
I instill a strong connection with my team by embracing their personal lives. For example, one team member is a single mom, and we allow her daughter to travel with us. That’s how we nurture members of our team. I encourage them by speaking to their personal experiences, making our mission a shared one. Life happens, we need to understand we’re all human beings and acknowledge that fact while still working toward our goals together.
Imagine we’re sitting down together two years from now, looking back at your company’s last 24 months. What specific accomplishments would have to happen for you to be happy with your progress?
Looking two years from now, I would say we’ve launched incredible partnerships and became a household name. We’ve received non-dilutive funding from family foundations like Melinda Gates, Mackenzie Scott, or Michael Bloomberg to continue to amplify our messaging and the policies that we’ve put in place to ultimately help families across the country.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
If I could inspire a movement, it would be to establish policies around affordable childcare. There’s so much that’s at stake right now for our future and establishing a foundation that creates a framework for young people to be exposed to education and resources and curriculum at a really young age is critical. Working alongside Congress to create these policies would have a powerful impact on our communities.
How can our readers further follow your work or your company online?
Follow @shopelleolivia on Instagram and visit www.shopelleolivia.com
This was great. Thanks for taking time for us to learn more about you and your business. We wish you continued success!
About the Interviewer: Chad Silverstein, a seasoned entrepreneur with over two decades of experience as the Founder and CEO of multiple companies. He launched Choice Recovery, Inc., a healthcare collection agency, while going to The Ohio State University, His team earned national recognition, twice being ranked as the #1 business to work for in Central Ohio. In 2018, Chad launched [re]start, a career development platform connecting thousands of individuals in collections with meaningful employment opportunities, He sold Choice Recovery on his 25th anniversary and in 2023, sold the majority interest in [re]start so he can focus his transition to Built to Lead as an Executive Leadership Coach. Learn more at www.chadsilverstein.com
Purpose Before Profit: Marty McDonald Of Elle Olivia On The Benefits Of Running A Purpose-Driven… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.