April 11, 2025 • 33 mins
In the spirit of spring cleaning, we are bringing back a fantastic episode with the founders of The Home Edit, Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin. Learn how these blind date best friends created their home organizing empire that has expanded into books, tv shows, products and so much more! This is the perfect time of year to get some organization inspiration from these two pros!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi, everyone, I'm Rachel Zoe and you're listening to Climbing
in Heels. The show is all about celebrating the most
extraordinary superwomen who will be sharing their incredible journeys to
the top, all while staying glamorous. Today with me, we
have my favorite duo of festies, the incredible Cleia Cher
and Joanna Teplin from the Home Edit. Together, we speak
(00:24):
about the beginnings of their insane organizational skills, like actually insane,
moving to Nashville and why both for their husbands and
meeting on a blind friendship date that turned into their
most amazing business. The girls also talk about when they
have their moments where they need to mentally shut off, relax,
and of course recuperate, but of course they're still together
(00:46):
during absolute silence. First of all, I'm so happy to
see you both and speak to you both, and you
know you're such dear friends. I obviously know how you
guys came together. I don't want to make you tell
your whole life story, but what I do want to
talk about, how in God's.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Name did you get here.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
It's funny because I remember meeting you for the first
time and hearing about you from a few friends, and
I obviously fell in love with you guys because you
were so funny and so silly and so passionate, right
And for me, the magnet that I have to certain
people are when they have a passion for what they do,
no matter what it is, If you like are smiling
(01:29):
and excited and put your whole self into it, to me,
that's the draw right absolutely, And so I think with both.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Of you it's very clear this is your passion.
Speaker 1 (01:39):
All you have to do is spend ten minutes with
you in any closet or anywhere, and the OCD really
kicks in high. And so sure I want to kind
of understand a little bit. Who were you as a kid?
Like were you always like cleaning up? So sure, both
of you like that are not?
Speaker 3 (01:55):
Really this is actually my favorite question.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Joanna's smiling because she knows, like truly this just is
it hits to my soul because the most amazing thing
is that I was. But Joanna went through a real
flob period. That is just it's like my favorite thing
for people to ask. I love it, But I think
she pays people to ask. I literally am like, if
you could just ask this question because all this you
(02:18):
know what, here's what I'll tell my story and Joanne
can explain.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
But it's beautiful. Can I tell you why?
Speaker 1 (02:25):
Because it shows that there's hope for people that aren't
like Clea.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
So Clia tell me, So you were born like this.
Speaker 4 (02:32):
So I was born this way, and I now use
my powers for good and not evil. But when I
was a kid, I would spend an inordinate amount of
time in my room making everything just so. I would
move furniture around, like what I would do on like
spring break.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
I remember the first day of spring break.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
I was like, well, this is this room is my home,
like this is my apartment, and I am going to
make sure that every like my bed is made every morning,
that everything is perfect. And I was going to set
up my little you know, my reading station whatever it was.
You know, back of the day, we didn't have iPad,
like this was like my the what I did in
my room was my entertainment.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
That way, you just want to take the electronics for
our kids, so they do the same.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
I kind of do.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
And Stella, if she were here, she'd be like, oh,
but like I do that just on roadblocks, Like I
like make like a nice room.
Speaker 3 (03:20):
But I just I'm like, Okay, that's not the point.
Speaker 4 (03:22):
But there was a portion of my younger life before
my mother remarried and then my stepdad went to adopt me.
But my mother was a single mom until I was
in I would say, the fourth grade, fourth or fifth grade.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
It's pretty pivotal, it is.
Speaker 4 (03:37):
It was pivotal. And my mom was the hardest worker ever.
She inherited my grandfather's business, and even when she and
she just retired a few years ago, my dad has
been like begging her to not but it's just it's
who she is. And everyone in my family join and
I talk about this a lot. Every single person in
my family is an entrepreneur. No one ended up working
(03:58):
for a company. Everyone worked for themselves, and so that's
what I witness growing up. And that's, you know, I
think where my footsteps kind of fell in.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
So your kids, So, do your kids love it? Do
they reject it? Do you think it's just you're born
with it or not? Because I have one that is
and one that isn't.
Speaker 4 (04:16):
It's really interesting and I find myself being hopeful and
frustrated at the same time because I don't think that
there's like a perfect you know, no one has like
come out blazing here, so which is frustrating.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
My daughter has a lot of.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
Things where she will be like this bothers me, you know,
like if something isn't in place, sure, or this is
so satisfying, sure, or like doesn't it kill you if?
And I'm like, yes, I see all those things. Why
is their laundry on the floor?
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Like why? Like where? What about your skincare? Like why
is it on? Can you put it away? So it's
like I again, I appreciate that about her.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
My son is he's not bothered by anything something, will
wear the same three shirts for the rest of his
life because he wears them. They're clean, shouldered, put back,
So he just is things are less chaotic because he's
just simple and Stella has to try everything on and
then like leaves it everywhere. I think part of the
issue is my kids have never had one million toys
(05:14):
or one million things like that. I've always had a
pretty pair down. But with clothing, what are you gonna do?
They have to get dressed?
Speaker 2 (05:20):
God help God help us great. Exactly, I'd be in
jail because I'd be broke.
Speaker 4 (05:25):
You would be living on the street, and your daughter
would be the best stress in like head to Gucci.
Speaker 2 (05:29):
But I'd be broke on the street a one hundred percent, and.
Speaker 4 (05:32):
I'm about to be because Stella has now she's grown
into like an actual taste for clothing, which is so sorry.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Clothing is expensive.
Speaker 4 (05:40):
It's so frustrating, like we're target is a done day,
Like that is not happening anymore. So, yes, things actually
cost money and it's you know, very stressful.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
Thank god Sutton does the care like action. Yeah, it
has to be, He'll stay money there.
Speaker 4 (05:53):
Stella was always she always cared about her outfit's the
very first time Joanna came over with her kids, Marlowe,
who you know has an older boy younger daughter, and
so Marlowe came over like Frumpully Stumpkins. She was just
like in like Miles clothed like I feel like she
was like in, but she was dressed.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
Like me and like leggings and a sweat I was like,
probably like a cute normal girl like like she was.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
She wasn't like wet.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
Pants right ware.
Speaker 4 (06:18):
She was the like sweatpants and tennis shoes and like
whatever shirt and too like let's speak there, she was too.
Stella took Marlowe by the hand led her into her closet,
into her room. I was like to marlow yes, she
was like, let me help you. And she put Marlowe
in like a ball gown, of course, and Marlowe came
out like Cinderella when she is around and sparkled.
Speaker 5 (06:41):
Marlow was a change first, and she was like, mom,
like you what if you were holding out on that
were the same dress, this old navy dress that I
had to buy in every color until the size ran out.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
We bought it a year after year, six years in
a row.
Speaker 4 (06:56):
She only wore the one dress because it was like
basically the one that Sola showed her.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
But that's the thing.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
I do think ninety percent of who we are, if
not more, is how we're born, right Because I was
like Stella and most of my friends were like Marlowe,
and by the way, still are, but they still enjoy
getting dressed up. But they also, in their most happiest self,
are like they still look great, they still look cute,
but they're casual. And I think it really does. I
(07:23):
think we look at our kids when they're born and go,
who are you going to be? And I had so
many wise people tell me like, they're this, They're what
you're looking at. And when I think about it, my
kids are like exactly as.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
They were born.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
Okay, so, Johanna, you grew up and you were neat
freak and then became a slob and then became a
neat freak.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (07:43):
No, I started off really really organized, and I always
loved moving furniture around, like when my mom would come home.
I hadn't like move beds myself. I was really into
how things look. I also, you probably don't even know
this one, so just stand back on this one. But
I used to collect, like my grandmother would take me
shopping in California. I grew up in North Carolina, and
I remember coming to California every Christmas break and we
(08:04):
would go shopping and we would go to like Benetton
and Gap, like ben like all of those things. And
I would collect the bags that the clothes would come in,
and I would hang them on my walls, and so
I would decorate all the walls with all the shopping bags.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
Yeah, and this was like, by the way, by the way,
you should do that again.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Clea is a gas. I need to see I need
to see what it looked like. It was fabulous. It
was like an art and slat.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
That's what I mean.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
It sounds very much like something at the met like
I'm really I'm super into this right now.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
It was like pop art before I knew what that was.
Speaker 4 (08:37):
But anyway, I had this in me, so I was
like very particular how things would go, and I would.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
Always try to rearrange furniture.
Speaker 4 (08:43):
And then I took a sharp left turn in high
school and was a complete slob, cheerleading clothes broad in
the back of my trunk of my car, like everything
on the floor, absolute total disaster.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
College close to the ceiling, the biggest mess. And then
I turned a quarter I guess, God.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
I don't even know when some time after college, and
I was like, I need everything in back and order.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
I just can't live like this.
Speaker 4 (09:10):
And I just became obsessed, and especially after I had
when I was pregnant and after I had Miles, my son,
just perfecting every closet and every inch matters, and like
how it makes me feel sane and calm and in
control and all these things that I didn't have but
you know, having a newborn or whatever.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Yeah, And I've.
Speaker 3 (09:26):
Never looked back.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
It's almost like we do.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
The same thing, honestly, but in a different you know,
a different angle, like a different facet of the industry, right,
Like there are so many similarities, right, and so for
me it's like that getting dressed thing. It's a little
bit like so you guys, your peace of mind is
like everything in.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Order, right, And I definitely have a lot of that.
Speaker 1 (09:49):
I do have this part of me that if I
have five events in a week, you cannot imagine what
my bathroom and bathtub look like. There's like gowns and
tool and jewel, like it's just everywhere.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
So a lot of it for.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
Me is like a time thing and like just being
like you know, but I will say that like for me,
even if it takes me five minutes to get ready
or whatever, I can't really like function until I feel
Like I was telling someone the other day, like I
had COVID once I took me two and a half
years to get I got it. They said, so what
did you do like when you had COVID? Did you
(10:19):
get dressed? And I was like, I was in different
rotating black robes. My skin hurts so bad that like
writing hurt, but I had a full cati lash and
a liplod because I couldn't. It was like I couldn't.
I just couldn't. I twirled my hair. Nobody was seeing
me like I nobody. I lacked everyone out.
Speaker 4 (10:39):
Clayton, I always say this about organizing, and I have
a feeling and this is sort of maybe how you feel.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
I mean, you can tell me if I'm wrong, but.
Speaker 4 (10:44):
When we're organizing, something just has to click into place,
and once it's in the right spot, it's just like
this is right. This is how the space has always
been intended to be.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
It's true. And I don't know if.
Speaker 4 (10:53):
You're like that with I'm not like yes, flowers or
out any thing. I know nothing about any of those,
but I can imagine for you you that's how.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
It feels, especially when you're styling somebody else, because you
look at it like the way you guys share a
roam in a.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Space and it like clicks clicks clicks, Yes.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
One hundred.
Speaker 3 (11:07):
But you know what, Rachel, I understand so much.
Speaker 4 (11:10):
I mean I laugh about the like the perfect wing
on the eye just because I actually don't know how
to do that.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
But I think about during chemo, where.
Speaker 4 (11:20):
Every single person in my life is like, oh, you
have a pass like you're like live in your pajamas lifts,
and I kept trying to explain, and then I stopped.
Speaker 3 (11:28):
Trying to explain that I was literally doing.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
It for myself, like putting on makeup, course, and I
was already like, you're already it like when you have
COVID or whatever, and I have COVID during Campcord, which.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Is like, that's ruod.
Speaker 1 (11:40):
And I want to touch on that because we've talked
about this, and I've mentioned it a few times in
different things. You know, I come from the family of cancer,
and I also have multiple friends that have gone through it,
obviously you being one of them. Bravest warrior I ever knew.
I will say that the hardest thing I have seen
for women is not feeling like a woman and not
looking like a woman and not and you do take
(12:00):
everything off and we do get stripped down. It's that
part of it that makes you feel a certain way.
And I think to your point, it was truthfully in
this podcast is not about me, so I don't want
to turn it on me. But actually, when I quit
styling right after nine to eleven, I quit styling because
I felt like it was very superficial. And I said,
I don't want to do this anymore. It means nothing
compared to like what these social workers, the doctors, the
(12:23):
frontline workers and everything. And I was like quitting. And
I turned down all these jobs for like three to
six months. It's crazy. And my father tried to get
me back in. And then there's this doctor friend of mine,
she's actually a brain surgeon, and she was down at
the hospitals, you know, during nine to eleven for that
whole month's month, and she said, oh my god, tell
(12:44):
me something about fashion, tell me something. And I said,
I quit. And she said, what do you mean you quit?
And I said, I quit. I don't want to do
it anymore. It doesn't mean anything. It's stupid. I'm just
like it's superficial. And she's like, you've lost your mind
and I said no, really, like what you do matters,
what I do doesn't. And she was like, Okay, sit down,
and she literally sent me down and explained to me
why it matters, and that how much like my book
(13:09):
or the things that I do and the way that
I helped women kind of want to get out of
bed sometimes and do those things. And she talked me
through this, and so it was at that point I
shifted literally like the purpose of what I was doing
and started to sort of try to go in all
these different directions that were really focused on helping women
live their best life, Oh, be their most confidence selves.
Speaker 4 (13:29):
That makes so much sense, And I think you inspire
me one hundred percent. And then I'm like it almost
makes me giggle because I'm like, who am I to
be inspired by Rachel Zoe, Like, I'm not going to
have a chance at that, you know, like Joanne and
I like will leave every time and be like, there's
no one more glamorous than Rachel in this world but you.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
But you're zero people.
Speaker 4 (13:48):
Maybe Molly too, Like I feel like you, guys both,
I can't.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
Do the sweats real cute.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
She can like do work out clothes all day and
still be super cute. And you just wouldn't, Like you
just wouldn't because you couldn't look cute.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
You know, you would look cute.
Speaker 4 (14:03):
But I genuinely like, I can literally see you in pajamas, Yes,
I could see you.
Speaker 3 (14:08):
And it's not who you are, right, It's just not
who you are.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
I feel like I ran out into the world naked.
Speaker 3 (14:13):
I think that's right. I think you rather be naked.
I actually think you'd rather be naked than it's what
I feel like. But it is true. You teach people
and you inspire people to be there.
Speaker 4 (14:22):
I think most beautiful inner glamorous self, you know, like
you don't necessarily need.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
It doesn't have everyone you wear, right, it doesn't.
Speaker 4 (14:30):
But I do feel that way about you, and it's
so genuine and it's so wild because it's not just
like your public persona, that is who you are as
a person.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
Yeah, I fully agree.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Don't you got well, don't you own your own infanity?
You guys? Don't you just say like, I am who
I am?
Speaker 1 (14:45):
And it's like you get to an age and a
point in your life where you just go, okay.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
Whenever I know it is I am, I am who
I am. And it's easier to accept friends for who
they are too.
Speaker 4 (14:55):
I mean, I honestly think that's what makes the friendship
CLEI and I have so powerful. It's like we both
know who the other person is so right, you meet
them where they are, that's exactly right.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
So you, guys, I have a question, so you obviously okay,
So give me like the tune inte of how you
came together, just for our listeners who don't know, because
I think and then I want to talk about this afterwards.
I do want to talk about the copycat effect. Yes, oh,
I do want to talk about that because obviously, like
we've all been through that, but I do want to
talk about it because I'm seeing them coming in numbers
(15:27):
and you're very sensitive to it. With you guys, I'm
very like. So, so I want to talk about how
you came together because it was very unlikely, it.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
Is very unlikely. I will give the very bird's eye
view of it.
Speaker 4 (15:39):
So I moved to Nashville in twenty fifteen, so that'll
it's coming up on eight years.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Joanna moved a year and a half prior. And you
move there?
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Why just randomly?
Speaker 4 (15:48):
Your husband, your husband's husband, both of us, both both
of us, us, both of us moved from California to
Nashville sight unseen.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (15:55):
We literally I flew in.
Speaker 4 (15:57):
For thirty six hours to buy a house and then
flew right back to LA like we had never stepped foot.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
You guys are here and I had never come here
until I moved here. Say that I came here.
Speaker 4 (16:08):
Thing ever, Joanna and I both think it's insane that
we said, yes, it is insane.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
But listen, people do it all day every day.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
But it was meant to be. You knows it was
obviously meant to be.
Speaker 4 (16:20):
We always say that we moved for husband's jobs, and
now everyone's staying for our jobs. So, but Joanna and
I met through a mutual friend who basically put us
in a blind friendship date together to go to lunch.
Joanna was slightly reluctant to go to lunch with me
because she did not want a business partner, and Leah
kind of pitched it as, you guys both want to
(16:41):
start an organizing company. We both told Leah this, which
is so random, right, like who wants to start? Well,
now everyone does, but who wants to start an organizing company?
And so she was like, oh, I have these two
friends who both want the same thing. Joanna was hesitant,
but we sat down and we got up after four
hours of lunch as business partners. And that very same
day evening, actually we came up with our name, our logo,
(17:03):
or we got our domain, our social handles.
Speaker 3 (17:05):
We started filling out paperwork. We we opened up bank
accounts together. That week. It was crazy, no one's but
it worked.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
And how many years is this now?
Speaker 3 (17:15):
It'll be eight years on all and a half.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
Yes, Chris, that's literally crazy, and it's crazy for so
many reasons because look, you guys, girls are tough, right, Like,
let's be real, girls are tough.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
We've all had tough girls. We've had amazing girls.
Speaker 4 (17:32):
Right.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
But when I think about it, I think about you know,
I'm like, who would I be partners with? Honestly, I
think probably Mary Elizabeth could be in my business partner
right right, like right, the only person I might not
want to like assassinate after first like week. The fact
that you guys are still this inseparable because I see
you actually like offline not working, and you guys are
(17:53):
like an old married couple.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
Honestly, we really are.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
We literally are.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
Again, It's like it goes back to what we said
with you you like, I think all three of us
we don't really are public persona.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
And private Persona's actually the same thing. Yes, it's just
the same thing.
Speaker 4 (18:06):
We just don't have the patience, I think, to be
anyone else energy.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
We just are who we are, and Joanna.
Speaker 4 (18:12):
And I it is the craziest thing in my life
that we are still just this same exact way.
Speaker 3 (18:21):
I don't remember if we told you or not.
Speaker 4 (18:22):
But the house that I'm building, Joanna's building a house
around the corner for me. So we're actually everyone thinks
we live together, but now we're basically it's the most
It's the most clear and.
Speaker 3 (18:34):
Joanna thing we could do. We're building homes.
Speaker 4 (18:37):
Basically next to each other, which is psychotic, but like
spend all her life together to it. I know, I
just need, we just need to be together, like basically.
Speaker 1 (18:47):
That's literally the greatest and cutest thing ever. Do you
have a question? Do you guys have sisters?
Speaker 3 (18:53):
I have Joanna does I don't you're.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
Super close with your sister or no?
Speaker 3 (18:57):
You know what she I am in the sense that
she is the sweetest, the most You're very different, are
nicer than me? Very different?
Speaker 2 (19:05):
Oh? Stop? What is nicer than you? Stop it now things.
Speaker 1 (19:08):
Yeah, but by the way, she's I say that about
my sister.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
My sister is like Candy.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
She's like candy sugar next to me, and everyone's like,
I'm like, please, trust I look like an asshole.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
Next to her. Johanna's sisters very but I think that's also,
but you don't clean.
Speaker 4 (19:24):
I don't have a sister, So I'd say Joanna saying yeah,
because it's funny because I always say that we talk
like sisters or siblings, and then some people will be like, oh,
you must not have a sister because Johanna and I
don't fight.
Speaker 3 (19:37):
We just we don't fight. People think we're fighting, but
that's just the way you talk.
Speaker 1 (19:41):
But that's my point. But that so that is an
actual sister thing. Like Jen Meyer and Sarah Foster.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
Are like that totally. They are like sisters.
Speaker 1 (19:49):
Because my sister is my safe person, right who I
can like scream ahead off at her for like sixty
seconds and like be like what are we eating? You know,
and then like or sit in the sea room for
two hours and not say a word and like no,
I'm pissy about it, you know what I mean. So
it's like, so I do find you have that relationship
like we do. Like you'll tell each other if you're
(20:10):
what you're wearing is freaking hideous. Like I guess what
I'm saying is there aren't walls between you, and I
think that's the difference between a friend and a sister.
You know, you don't have to protect what you're saying.
You don't have to filter.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
How about that?
Speaker 4 (20:23):
It is shocking to Joanna that, like when I was
in treatment, specifically because you know me, I'm an energizer, bunny,
I'm a.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Big extra your a sane person.
Speaker 4 (20:33):
I love being around people. It like gives me energy,
it gives me life. And when I was in treatment,
I told Joanna there were a few times I was like,
I'm really type, like I don't know if I can
hang out with this person. Like I went for dinner
and I got tired at first of all, Joanne is like, welcome,
thank you, I'm tired.
Speaker 3 (20:53):
She was like this is great for me, But she
also was so shocked.
Speaker 4 (20:57):
She's like, I can't how can you have a friend
but depletes you, Like how can you have a relationship
with someone where you can't just not speak? Like how
Because with Joanna, she'll be like, I don't want to
wear you out.
Speaker 3 (21:09):
Like when I was tired and I was like, you
don't wear me out.
Speaker 4 (21:11):
I was like, you can sit there and I literally
don't have to talk sure, And she so shook that,
like anyone in my life isn't that, But it's true.
It's like Joanna is a special person in my life.
I think I also I think I have too many
people in general, but because Joanna is like I only
have three friends and I can do that with all
of them.
Speaker 3 (21:29):
For me, I need to be around people that I
tell Clea this is like the utmost compliment.
Speaker 4 (21:33):
But it's like you don't count. It's like you're sure
I only wanted to be around people that don't count.
But I can be that was the person myself. I
can sit there quiet or not. We could talk, we
can laugh or just ignore each other.
Speaker 2 (21:45):
So home at it.
Speaker 1 (21:46):
We have like the show, we have, the products, we
have the like I wish there was six hundred of you,
Like I wish one of you could just live in
my guest.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Room so I could live this organized life.
Speaker 1 (21:57):
It's funny because anytime I meet someone and they're like, oh, yeah,
you know, we have this business where we like go
into people's homes and we like go like the home
out it and listen. There can't be one stylist or
can't be one hit, Like there can't be one of anything, right,
and there is the old thing that you know, my
teamy stay will. Imitation is the best form of flattery.
I'm like, why does that not help me? Here doesn't
(22:18):
help me, It doesn't help right, So so I think
I like to talk about this because in every journey
to the top, there are challenges, right, and things that
concern you when you go to sleep at night or
wake up in the morning.
Speaker 2 (22:32):
You know, things that get under your skin.
Speaker 4 (22:35):
Well, I will say this, and Joanna might have a
different answer, but I think that things used to get
under our skin way more than it does now. I
think that, and I think that's normal, right, Like you
get to a point we had to center ourselves in saying, Okay,
we have multiple books out, we have multiple seasons of
(22:57):
a show, we have a very public Instagram count, we
have launched a thousand ships, and we've.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Given them the tool. We've given everyone the tools.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
We've given everyone what we do and the way we
do it, so we can't really be upset the people
have taken those tools and use them to create businesses.
And truly, if you can inspire, you know, there's just
what you I think also realize is that there's so
much room for everyone in this world. It's just you know,
if we can inspire, especially you know, female entrepreneurs, come
(23:27):
out do an organizing business like fabulous.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
You know, a lot of people come up to us
and they say, like.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
I started doing this because of.
Speaker 4 (23:35):
You, And I actually think that when like I I
think that's a huge compliment to me, is a huge compliment,
and I'm like, wow, that's amazing, so proud of you.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
That's incredible. So I feel like all of that is
really good. And I think everyone's different.
Speaker 4 (23:47):
When Joanna and I first started an organizing company, the Homeut,
we looked at all the other professional organizers who were
doing things very differently, and then we looked at, you know,
someone like Marie Condo, who was also doing it very
differently and.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Who now apparently came out that she's a slub.
Speaker 3 (24:03):
I know, I was like Marie, like Marie, so but
again I and I think that she's just going through
a Joanna I think that I think she'll be back.
I think she'll be back. That'll just totally right. I'm like,
she'll be back.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
But I think that from our perspective, we were like, Okay,
we sit here and we want to try and do
something that is different, and that that is how we
ended up with again, like no one was making cursive
labels back then, like that was silly. Everyone was using
the label maker or something practical.
Speaker 3 (24:33):
We were like, we want to just have a signature.
Speaker 4 (24:35):
We want to have a calling card that represents us.
Speaker 3 (24:39):
And again, that's totally fine. Right now.
Speaker 4 (24:42):
I can't say if I was starting an organizing business,
I wouldn't look at the two of us and be like, Okay,
let me find a partner that I really like.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Let me like try and do something cool on Instagram.
Let me you know, I get it. We created a
we emulate what you see, you know.
Speaker 4 (24:55):
And then again, I think we've all been so lucky
to be inspired by people to create, for us, to
create something, a new version of it, and then to
hopefully pass the torch on to the next generation that
doesn't even joy or gold.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
Like we're forgetting up there about climbing and hills, you
know what, climbing and I like climbing in tennis shoes
seriously barely.
Speaker 1 (25:15):
Have I wait, what one of you barefoot at baby
to baby at iguala.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
I feel like it would never be me.
Speaker 4 (25:22):
Oh, I must sneak my shoes off at one point
because I've heard so much I'd rather be bleeding.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
I do want to understand a little bit about the
go forward for home at It, So home at It
is larger than life.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
I think everybody knows it.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
For me, the biggest challenge of trying to grow my
styling business when I was styling full time was that
they all wanted me to be there. You don't have
this problem. You have incredible people that work with you.
But like, my biggest challenge obviously was you know, kind
of snakes in the grass that worked with me. So
that's a very common thing with like hairstylists. I hear
it from makeup artists, I hear it from law firms,
(25:57):
I hear it from agents managers. So how have you
guys been so blessed to have incredible people that can
sort of execute on the home edit vision and dream.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Initially, hiring was the scariest thing we could ever think,
of course, and because number one, it's crazy to think
about replicating your skills and yourself and your work ethic, like.
Speaker 3 (26:18):
You know how you work.
Speaker 4 (26:20):
So initially I would say we gored the biggest score
of our life because we got Sumner and that she
was our first employee, so she set the path of
hiring other people. It never got easier to let that
control go. But what we learned really quickly was number One,
people are really talented and good at what they do,
(26:41):
and we can teach them everything other than the passion.
As long as someone kind of has that drive and
that passion and that work ethic, we can teach them
the organizing. So again, it's like figuring out the type
of people you want to hire. And I won't say
that every situation has worked out perfectly. And there are
definitely people who used to work for us who now
of organizing companies, just like there are people who work
(27:02):
for you that ended up becoming stylists. And I think
that in some ways it kind of is like launching
other organizing companies in general, Like you just have to
take a deep breath and steal yourself in your own
confidence that you are really good at what you do
and that everyone who works for you is really good
at what they do, and you have to trust to
a certain extent or like you'll never grows like we would.
(27:25):
You would never grow if we didn't trust, sort of
never grown, we could never be where we are to say,
trust people. So Joanna, what I'm curious, what I'm sure
you have other things to add to that.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
What is your take?
Speaker 4 (27:36):
No, I would agree completely. I think it was really
hard in the beginning. I mean it's why I didn't
want a business partner, you know. It was the same
reason I'm like, why would I ever want someone to
be in this world with me when I only can
count on myself? And so but you know, then I
sort of had the epiphany that it's like, wow, if
you meet the right person, this needs one billion times
better than what I could have ever dreamed of. Sure,
(27:58):
And so to cleart point, hired Sumner, who was like,
it was like birthing the first best child.
Speaker 2 (28:03):
You could ever dream up. So it's like so lucky.
Speaker 4 (28:06):
And so she sort of paved the way that like, yeah,
other people can absolutely do this and do this well,
and in order for us to continue to grow, we
have to trust, yeah, And so like we were only
going to.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Get in our own way if we didn't do that.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
No, one hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
And here's the thing take away for that, I want
to say to anyone like building a business of anything
of this nature where you have to hire in order
to grow, you have to It's never about how you leave.
It's never about leaving it's about how you leave. Yeah,
that's a thing. Like all of us want everyone to
live their best life and be their most successful, amazing selves.
Speaker 2 (28:41):
Yeah, but it's how you do it that matters.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
And that is really for me, the biggest lesson that
I try to teach kind of twenty somethings now starting
out in their lives is like, just be straight, Just
be straight, be professional, be kind, and you will never
trip over yourself.
Speaker 2 (28:59):
That's it.
Speaker 3 (29:00):
It's actually so true. It's so true.
Speaker 4 (29:03):
That's the thing is because we would never you would
never want to stand in away from someone of personality, not.
Speaker 2 (29:07):
To expect people to work for you for the rest
of their lives.
Speaker 4 (29:10):
Right.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
It's interesting because you know, it's very for me to
watch you guys grow to where you are now. I
think I always am like and you have very big
personal lives and very big family lives, and so I
think it's important to do that. What's next for home
at it? Are there obvious dreams ahead?
Speaker 3 (29:31):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (29:31):
Well, we got acquired by Hello Sunshine, Reese Witherspoon's company
in February, and Hello Sunshine is an unbelievable partner for us.
I mean, they're allowing us to continue to grow the
home edit in all the ways that, you know, amplify
all the things that we were already doing with their support.
Speaker 3 (29:46):
It's a dream. It is a dream.
Speaker 4 (29:48):
And one of the dreams that we're going to be
living out this year is a lot of stuff that
we had.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
To shelve last year.
Speaker 4 (29:53):
I physically couldn't do it, but that meant we physically
couldn't do it. So we're going to be just you know,
coming up on this year, we're going to be on
the road a lot.
Speaker 3 (30:00):
I can say that we have a few projects that
are going to be become public projects.
Speaker 4 (30:05):
We have a lot of like media sings and when
I say media, we have you know, our books, TV podcast,
all of that. And we're really excited to be in
person and live again, which we kind of haven't been
since twenty nineteen.
Speaker 3 (30:19):
Yeah, so we're really excited that we get to do
these things and be with people again.
Speaker 4 (30:25):
So I think that to me, and you know how
I am, I love being with people, so to me
that's like the most and I love being with Clea,
so it all ries out.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
I'm just excited.
Speaker 4 (30:32):
Honestly, at this point, the thought of traveling for work
nothing sounds better, right, nothing sounds better. But I was
like recounting all of my favorite last moments of twenty
twenty one.
Speaker 3 (30:44):
So this was in twenty two.
Speaker 4 (30:45):
But I was like thinking about all of like the
last trips we went on, like we were in d
C during the holidays, as like Joanna and I've had
so many good trips.
Speaker 1 (30:54):
You guys are literally the cutest. It's so amazing that
you built the home at it. I know you're like
really big and fancy now, but I really need you
to come live with me for a week so we
all one hundred percent dying here.
Speaker 2 (31:05):
I'm dying.
Speaker 1 (31:06):
I can't find anything I don't know or anything is
and I need rid of fifty percent of it. You know,
we'll be there, Rachel. I know I just said that,
but I'm not going to do that. I'm not going
I know you're we already know.
Speaker 3 (31:15):
We didn't even listen to get rid of stuff, Like
we already know that.
Speaker 4 (31:18):
You know. The crazy thing is we've organized of different homes,
different closets.
Speaker 3 (31:23):
I feel like I know your inventory.
Speaker 2 (31:25):
Yeah, so well good, so you can place it wherever
you want.
Speaker 4 (31:28):
I really like I feel like I know it, Like
I even know, like which things are priorities, which things
we could have on higher shel I feel like I
really know it you do, so we could probably yeah,
you could probably do it quickly.
Speaker 1 (31:38):
But I really just want to say that I love
everything you guys do. I'm so excited to see, like
what I feel like you have like another thousand things
that are about to happen, and I'm so excited. I
think it's a really great career path for a lot
of women that I hear from in person or my
social media, Like, I think that's this sort of really
big lesson that I think is really important to learn
(32:00):
from you guys and what you do and live in
the like cometit state of mind, you know, And I.
Speaker 4 (32:05):
Know, and I feel like Joanna and I could take
a page out of your book and live in slightly
more glamorous state.
Speaker 3 (32:09):
Of find but yeah, we live in me a dressed
every day.
Speaker 4 (32:13):
But yeah, I'm like, you know what, Rachel like checks that, like,
I'm like, I think of her glamorous.
Speaker 3 (32:17):
Okay, we don't. Joanna and I are never going to be.
Speaker 4 (32:20):
I'm just excited when I put jeans on, I barely
see you in jeans, but.
Speaker 3 (32:23):
I'm like hire jeans.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
She does, I'll do a polish flair thinking.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
About you in sneakers and a boyfriend.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
It's like a disaster. Okay. I love you both so much.
Speaker 3 (32:36):
I love you, love you.
Speaker 1 (32:38):
These two are such a breath of fresh air. I mean,
they're just two of the hardest, working, beyond hilarious women.
Every time I talk to Clean and Joanna, I can't
stop laughing because the way that they they really are
like an old married couple that have been together for
like seventy years. That's kind of like how their vibe is.
And also they're so professional. If they work so hard,
(33:01):
I think they are just such a good example of
how to follow your dream and also inspire others and
that positive, positive female energy and it's just so refreshing.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
And that was a fun one. I really love that.
Hi, everyone, I'm Rachel Zoe and you're listening to Climbing
in Heels. The show is all about celebrating the most
extraordinary superwomen who will be sharing their incredible journeys to
the top, all while staying glamorous. Today with me, we
have my favorite duo of festies, the incredible Cleia Cher
and Joanna Teplin from the Home Edit. Together, we speak
(00:24):
about the beginnings of their insane organizational skills, like actually insane,
moving to Nashville and why both for their husbands and
meeting on a blind friendship date that turned into their
most amazing business. The girls also talk about when they
have their moments where they need to mentally shut off, relax,
and of course recuperate, but of course they're still together
(00:46):
during absolute silence. First of all, I'm so happy to
see you both and speak to you both, and you
know you're such dear friends. I obviously know how you
guys came together. I don't want to make you tell
your whole life story, but what I do want to
talk about, how in God's.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Name did you get here.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
It's funny because I remember meeting you for the first
time and hearing about you from a few friends, and
I obviously fell in love with you guys because you
were so funny and so silly and so passionate, right
And for me, the magnet that I have to certain
people are when they have a passion for what they do,
no matter what it is, If you like are smiling
(01:29):
and excited and put your whole self into it, to me,
that's the draw right absolutely, And so I think with both.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Of you it's very clear this is your passion.
Speaker 1 (01:39):
All you have to do is spend ten minutes with
you in any closet or anywhere, and the OCD really
kicks in high. And so sure I want to kind
of understand a little bit. Who were you as a kid?
Like were you always like cleaning up? So sure, both
of you like that are not?
Speaker 3 (01:55):
Really this is actually my favorite question.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Joanna's smiling because she knows, like truly this just is
it hits to my soul because the most amazing thing
is that I was. But Joanna went through a real
flob period. That is just it's like my favorite thing
for people to ask. I love it, But I think
she pays people to ask. I literally am like, if
you could just ask this question because all this you
(02:18):
know what, here's what I'll tell my story and Joanne
can explain.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
But it's beautiful. Can I tell you why?
Speaker 1 (02:25):
Because it shows that there's hope for people that aren't
like Clea.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
So Clia tell me, So you were born like this.
Speaker 4 (02:32):
So I was born this way, and I now use
my powers for good and not evil. But when I
was a kid, I would spend an inordinate amount of
time in my room making everything just so. I would
move furniture around, like what I would do on like
spring break.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
I remember the first day of spring break.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
I was like, well, this is this room is my home,
like this is my apartment, and I am going to
make sure that every like my bed is made every morning,
that everything is perfect. And I was going to set
up my little you know, my reading station whatever it was.
You know, back of the day, we didn't have iPad,
like this was like my the what I did in
my room was my entertainment.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
That way, you just want to take the electronics for
our kids, so they do the same.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
I kind of do.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
And Stella, if she were here, she'd be like, oh,
but like I do that just on roadblocks, Like I
like make like a nice room.
Speaker 3 (03:20):
But I just I'm like, Okay, that's not the point.
Speaker 4 (03:22):
But there was a portion of my younger life before
my mother remarried and then my stepdad went to adopt me.
But my mother was a single mom until I was
in I would say, the fourth grade, fourth or fifth grade.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
It's pretty pivotal, it is.
Speaker 4 (03:37):
It was pivotal. And my mom was the hardest worker ever.
She inherited my grandfather's business, and even when she and
she just retired a few years ago, my dad has
been like begging her to not but it's just it's
who she is. And everyone in my family join and
I talk about this a lot. Every single person in
my family is an entrepreneur. No one ended up working
(03:58):
for a company. Everyone worked for themselves, and so that's
what I witness growing up. And that's, you know, I
think where my footsteps kind of fell in.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
So your kids, So, do your kids love it? Do
they reject it? Do you think it's just you're born
with it or not? Because I have one that is
and one that isn't.
Speaker 4 (04:16):
It's really interesting and I find myself being hopeful and
frustrated at the same time because I don't think that
there's like a perfect you know, no one has like
come out blazing here, so which is frustrating.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
My daughter has a lot of.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
Things where she will be like this bothers me, you know,
like if something isn't in place, sure, or this is
so satisfying, sure, or like doesn't it kill you if?
And I'm like, yes, I see all those things. Why
is their laundry on the floor?
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Like why? Like where? What about your skincare? Like why
is it on? Can you put it away? So it's
like I again, I appreciate that about her.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
My son is he's not bothered by anything something, will
wear the same three shirts for the rest of his
life because he wears them. They're clean, shouldered, put back,
So he just is things are less chaotic because he's
just simple and Stella has to try everything on and
then like leaves it everywhere. I think part of the
issue is my kids have never had one million toys
(05:14):
or one million things like that. I've always had a
pretty pair down. But with clothing, what are you gonna do?
They have to get dressed?
Speaker 2 (05:20):
God help God help us great. Exactly, I'd be in
jail because I'd be broke.
Speaker 4 (05:25):
You would be living on the street, and your daughter
would be the best stress in like head to Gucci.
Speaker 2 (05:29):
But I'd be broke on the street a one hundred percent, and.
Speaker 4 (05:32):
I'm about to be because Stella has now she's grown
into like an actual taste for clothing, which is so sorry.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
Clothing is expensive.
Speaker 4 (05:40):
It's so frustrating, like we're target is a done day,
Like that is not happening anymore. So, yes, things actually
cost money and it's you know, very stressful.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
Thank god Sutton does the care like action. Yeah, it
has to be, He'll stay money there.
Speaker 4 (05:53):
Stella was always she always cared about her outfit's the
very first time Joanna came over with her kids, Marlowe,
who you know has an older boy younger daughter, and
so Marlowe came over like Frumpully Stumpkins. She was just
like in like Miles clothed like I feel like she
was like in, but she was dressed.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
Like me and like leggings and a sweat I was like,
probably like a cute normal girl like like she was.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
She wasn't like wet.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
Pants right ware.
Speaker 4 (06:18):
She was the like sweatpants and tennis shoes and like
whatever shirt and too like let's speak there, she was too.
Stella took Marlowe by the hand led her into her closet,
into her room. I was like to marlow yes, she
was like, let me help you. And she put Marlowe
in like a ball gown, of course, and Marlowe came
out like Cinderella when she is around and sparkled.
Speaker 5 (06:41):
Marlow was a change first, and she was like, mom,
like you what if you were holding out on that
were the same dress, this old navy dress that I
had to buy in every color until the size ran out.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
We bought it a year after year, six years in
a row.
Speaker 4 (06:56):
She only wore the one dress because it was like
basically the one that Sola showed her.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
But that's the thing.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
I do think ninety percent of who we are, if
not more, is how we're born, right Because I was
like Stella and most of my friends were like Marlowe,
and by the way, still are, but they still enjoy
getting dressed up. But they also, in their most happiest self,
are like they still look great, they still look cute,
but they're casual. And I think it really does. I
(07:23):
think we look at our kids when they're born and go,
who are you going to be? And I had so
many wise people tell me like, they're this, They're what
you're looking at. And when I think about it, my
kids are like exactly as.
Speaker 2 (07:36):
They were born.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
Okay, so, Johanna, you grew up and you were neat
freak and then became a slob and then became a
neat freak.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (07:43):
No, I started off really really organized, and I always
loved moving furniture around, like when my mom would come home.
I hadn't like move beds myself. I was really into
how things look. I also, you probably don't even know
this one, so just stand back on this one. But
I used to collect, like my grandmother would take me
shopping in California. I grew up in North Carolina, and
I remember coming to California every Christmas break and we
(08:04):
would go shopping and we would go to like Benetton
and Gap, like ben like all of those things. And
I would collect the bags that the clothes would come in,
and I would hang them on my walls, and so
I would decorate all the walls with all the shopping bags.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
Yeah, and this was like, by the way, by the way,
you should do that again.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Clea is a gas. I need to see I need
to see what it looked like. It was fabulous. It
was like an art and slat.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
That's what I mean.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
It sounds very much like something at the met like
I'm really I'm super into this right now.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
It was like pop art before I knew what that was.
Speaker 4 (08:37):
But anyway, I had this in me, so I was
like very particular how things would go, and I would.
Speaker 3 (08:41):
Always try to rearrange furniture.
Speaker 4 (08:43):
And then I took a sharp left turn in high
school and was a complete slob, cheerleading clothes broad in
the back of my trunk of my car, like everything
on the floor, absolute total disaster.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
College close to the ceiling, the biggest mess. And then
I turned a quarter I guess, God.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
I don't even know when some time after college, and
I was like, I need everything in back and order.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
I just can't live like this.
Speaker 4 (09:10):
And I just became obsessed, and especially after I had
when I was pregnant and after I had Miles, my son,
just perfecting every closet and every inch matters, and like
how it makes me feel sane and calm and in
control and all these things that I didn't have but
you know, having a newborn or whatever.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Yeah, And I've.
Speaker 3 (09:26):
Never looked back.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
It's almost like we do.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
The same thing, honestly, but in a different you know,
a different angle, like a different facet of the industry, right,
Like there are so many similarities, right, and so for
me it's like that getting dressed thing. It's a little
bit like so you guys, your peace of mind is
like everything in.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Order, right, And I definitely have a lot of that.
Speaker 1 (09:49):
I do have this part of me that if I
have five events in a week, you cannot imagine what
my bathroom and bathtub look like. There's like gowns and
tool and jewel, like it's just everywhere.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
So a lot of it for.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
Me is like a time thing and like just being
like you know, but I will say that like for me,
even if it takes me five minutes to get ready
or whatever, I can't really like function until I feel
Like I was telling someone the other day, like I
had COVID once I took me two and a half
years to get I got it. They said, so what
did you do like when you had COVID? Did you
(10:19):
get dressed? And I was like, I was in different
rotating black robes. My skin hurts so bad that like
writing hurt, but I had a full cati lash and
a liplod because I couldn't. It was like I couldn't.
I just couldn't. I twirled my hair. Nobody was seeing
me like I nobody. I lacked everyone out.
Speaker 4 (10:39):
Clayton, I always say this about organizing, and I have
a feeling and this is sort of maybe how you feel.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
I mean, you can tell me if I'm wrong, but.
Speaker 4 (10:44):
When we're organizing, something just has to click into place,
and once it's in the right spot, it's just like
this is right. This is how the space has always
been intended to be.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
It's true. And I don't know if.
Speaker 4 (10:53):
You're like that with I'm not like yes, flowers or
out any thing. I know nothing about any of those,
but I can imagine for you you that's how.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
It feels, especially when you're styling somebody else, because you
look at it like the way you guys share a
roam in a.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Space and it like clicks clicks clicks, Yes.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
One hundred.
Speaker 3 (11:07):
But you know what, Rachel, I understand so much.
Speaker 4 (11:10):
I mean I laugh about the like the perfect wing
on the eye just because I actually don't know how
to do that.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
But I think about during chemo, where.
Speaker 4 (11:20):
Every single person in my life is like, oh, you
have a pass like you're like live in your pajamas lifts,
and I kept trying to explain, and then I stopped.
Speaker 3 (11:28):
Trying to explain that I was literally doing.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
It for myself, like putting on makeup, course, and I
was already like, you're already it like when you have
COVID or whatever, and I have COVID during Campcord, which.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Is like, that's ruod.
Speaker 1 (11:40):
And I want to touch on that because we've talked
about this, and I've mentioned it a few times in
different things. You know, I come from the family of cancer,
and I also have multiple friends that have gone through it,
obviously you being one of them. Bravest warrior I ever knew.
I will say that the hardest thing I have seen
for women is not feeling like a woman and not
looking like a woman and not and you do take
(12:00):
everything off and we do get stripped down. It's that
part of it that makes you feel a certain way.
And I think to your point, it was truthfully in
this podcast is not about me, so I don't want
to turn it on me. But actually, when I quit
styling right after nine to eleven, I quit styling because
I felt like it was very superficial. And I said,
I don't want to do this anymore. It means nothing
compared to like what these social workers, the doctors, the
(12:23):
frontline workers and everything. And I was like quitting. And
I turned down all these jobs for like three to
six months. It's crazy. And my father tried to get
me back in. And then there's this doctor friend of mine,
she's actually a brain surgeon, and she was down at
the hospitals, you know, during nine to eleven for that
whole month's month, and she said, oh my god, tell
(12:44):
me something about fashion, tell me something. And I said,
I quit. And she said, what do you mean you quit?
And I said, I quit. I don't want to do
it anymore. It doesn't mean anything. It's stupid. I'm just
like it's superficial. And she's like, you've lost your mind
and I said no, really, like what you do matters,
what I do doesn't. And she was like, Okay, sit down,
and she literally sent me down and explained to me
why it matters, and that how much like my book
(13:09):
or the things that I do and the way that
I helped women kind of want to get out of
bed sometimes and do those things. And she talked me
through this, and so it was at that point I
shifted literally like the purpose of what I was doing
and started to sort of try to go in all
these different directions that were really focused on helping women
live their best life, Oh, be their most confidence selves.
Speaker 4 (13:29):
That makes so much sense, And I think you inspire
me one hundred percent. And then I'm like it almost
makes me giggle because I'm like, who am I to
be inspired by Rachel Zoe, Like, I'm not going to
have a chance at that, you know, like Joanne and
I like will leave every time and be like, there's
no one more glamorous than Rachel in this world but you.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
But you're zero people.
Speaker 4 (13:48):
Maybe Molly too, Like I feel like you, guys both,
I can't.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
Do the sweats real cute.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
She can like do work out clothes all day and
still be super cute. And you just wouldn't, Like you
just wouldn't because you couldn't look cute.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
You know, you would look cute.
Speaker 4 (14:03):
But I genuinely like, I can literally see you in pajamas, Yes,
I could see you.
Speaker 3 (14:08):
And it's not who you are, right, It's just not
who you are.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
I feel like I ran out into the world naked.
Speaker 3 (14:13):
I think that's right. I think you rather be naked.
I actually think you'd rather be naked than it's what
I feel like. But it is true. You teach people
and you inspire people to be there.
Speaker 4 (14:22):
I think most beautiful inner glamorous self, you know, like
you don't necessarily need.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
It doesn't have everyone you wear, right, it doesn't.
Speaker 4 (14:30):
But I do feel that way about you, and it's
so genuine and it's so wild because it's not just
like your public persona, that is who you are as
a person.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
Yeah, I fully agree.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Don't you got well, don't you own your own infanity?
You guys? Don't you just say like, I am who
I am?
Speaker 1 (14:45):
And it's like you get to an age and a
point in your life where you just go, okay.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
Whenever I know it is I am, I am who
I am. And it's easier to accept friends for who
they are too.
Speaker 4 (14:55):
I mean, I honestly think that's what makes the friendship
CLEI and I have so powerful. It's like we both
know who the other person is so right, you meet
them where they are, that's exactly right.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
So you, guys, I have a question, so you obviously okay,
So give me like the tune inte of how you
came together, just for our listeners who don't know, because
I think and then I want to talk about this afterwards.
I do want to talk about the copycat effect. Yes, oh,
I do want to talk about that because obviously, like
we've all been through that, but I do want to
talk about it because I'm seeing them coming in numbers
(15:27):
and you're very sensitive to it. With you guys, I'm
very like. So, so I want to talk about how
you came together because it was very unlikely, it.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
Is very unlikely. I will give the very bird's eye
view of it.
Speaker 4 (15:39):
So I moved to Nashville in twenty fifteen, so that'll
it's coming up on eight years.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Joanna moved a year and a half prior. And you
move there?
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Why just randomly?
Speaker 4 (15:48):
Your husband, your husband's husband, both of us, both both
of us, us, both of us moved from California to
Nashville sight unseen.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Wow.
Speaker 3 (15:55):
We literally I flew in.
Speaker 4 (15:57):
For thirty six hours to buy a house and then
flew right back to LA like we had never stepped foot.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
You guys are here and I had never come here
until I moved here. Say that I came here.
Speaker 4 (16:08):
Thing ever, Joanna and I both think it's insane that
we said, yes, it is insane.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
But listen, people do it all day every day.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
But it was meant to be. You knows it was
obviously meant to be.
Speaker 4 (16:20):
We always say that we moved for husband's jobs, and
now everyone's staying for our jobs. So, but Joanna and
I met through a mutual friend who basically put us
in a blind friendship date together to go to lunch.
Joanna was slightly reluctant to go to lunch with me
because she did not want a business partner, and Leah
kind of pitched it as, you guys both want to
(16:41):
start an organizing company. We both told Leah this, which
is so random, right, like who wants to start? Well,
now everyone does, but who wants to start an organizing company?
And so she was like, oh, I have these two
friends who both want the same thing. Joanna was hesitant,
but we sat down and we got up after four
hours of lunch as business partners. And that very same
day evening, actually we came up with our name, our logo,
(17:03):
or we got our domain, our social handles.
Speaker 3 (17:05):
We started filling out paperwork. We we opened up bank
accounts together. That week. It was crazy, no one's but
it worked.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
And how many years is this now?
Speaker 3 (17:15):
It'll be eight years on all and a half.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
Yes, Chris, that's literally crazy, and it's crazy for so
many reasons because look, you guys, girls are tough, right, Like,
let's be real, girls are tough.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
We've all had tough girls. We've had amazing girls.
Speaker 4 (17:32):
Right.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
But when I think about it, I think about you know,
I'm like, who would I be partners with? Honestly, I
think probably Mary Elizabeth could be in my business partner
right right, like right, the only person I might not
want to like assassinate after first like week. The fact
that you guys are still this inseparable because I see
you actually like offline not working, and you guys are
(17:53):
like an old married couple.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
Honestly, we really are.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
We literally are.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
Again, It's like it goes back to what we said
with you you like, I think all three of us
we don't really are public persona.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
And private Persona's actually the same thing. Yes, it's just
the same thing.
Speaker 4 (18:06):
We just don't have the patience, I think, to be
anyone else energy.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
We just are who we are, and Joanna.
Speaker 4 (18:12):
And I it is the craziest thing in my life
that we are still just this same exact way.
Speaker 3 (18:21):
I don't remember if we told you or not.
Speaker 4 (18:22):
But the house that I'm building, Joanna's building a house
around the corner for me. So we're actually everyone thinks
we live together, but now we're basically it's the most
It's the most clear and.
Speaker 3 (18:34):
Joanna thing we could do. We're building homes.
Speaker 4 (18:37):
Basically next to each other, which is psychotic, but like
spend all her life together to it. I know, I
just need, we just need to be together, like basically.
Speaker 1 (18:47):
That's literally the greatest and cutest thing ever. Do you
have a question? Do you guys have sisters?
Speaker 3 (18:53):
I have Joanna does I don't you're.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
Super close with your sister or no?
Speaker 3 (18:57):
You know what she I am in the sense that
she is the sweetest, the most You're very different, are
nicer than me? Very different?
Speaker 2 (19:05):
Oh? Stop? What is nicer than you? Stop it now things.
Speaker 1 (19:08):
Yeah, but by the way, she's I say that about
my sister.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
My sister is like Candy.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
She's like candy sugar next to me, and everyone's like,
I'm like, please, trust I look like an asshole.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
Next to her. Johanna's sisters very but I think that's also,
but you don't clean.
Speaker 4 (19:24):
I don't have a sister, So I'd say Joanna saying yeah,
because it's funny because I always say that we talk
like sisters or siblings, and then some people will be like, oh,
you must not have a sister because Johanna and I
don't fight.
Speaker 3 (19:37):
We just we don't fight. People think we're fighting, but
that's just the way you talk.
Speaker 1 (19:41):
But that's my point. But that so that is an
actual sister thing. Like Jen Meyer and Sarah Foster.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
Are like that totally. They are like sisters.
Speaker 1 (19:49):
Because my sister is my safe person, right who I
can like scream ahead off at her for like sixty
seconds and like be like what are we eating? You know,
and then like or sit in the sea room for
two hours and not say a word and like no,
I'm pissy about it, you know what I mean. So
it's like, so I do find you have that relationship
like we do. Like you'll tell each other if you're
(20:10):
what you're wearing is freaking hideous. Like I guess what
I'm saying is there aren't walls between you, and I
think that's the difference between a friend and a sister.
You know, you don't have to protect what you're saying.
You don't have to filter.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
How about that?
Speaker 4 (20:23):
It is shocking to Joanna that, like when I was
in treatment, specifically because you know me, I'm an energizer, bunny,
I'm a.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Big extra your a sane person.
Speaker 4 (20:33):
I love being around people. It like gives me energy,
it gives me life. And when I was in treatment,
I told Joanna there were a few times I was like,
I'm really type, like I don't know if I can
hang out with this person. Like I went for dinner
and I got tired at first of all, Joanne is like, welcome,
thank you, I'm tired.
Speaker 3 (20:53):
She was like this is great for me, But she
also was so shocked.
Speaker 4 (20:57):
She's like, I can't how can you have a friend
but depletes you, Like how can you have a relationship
with someone where you can't just not speak? Like how
Because with Joanna, she'll be like, I don't want to
wear you out.
Speaker 3 (21:09):
Like when I was tired and I was like, you
don't wear me out.
Speaker 4 (21:11):
I was like, you can sit there and I literally
don't have to talk sure, And she so shook that,
like anyone in my life isn't that, But it's true.
It's like Joanna is a special person in my life.
I think I also I think I have too many
people in general, but because Joanna is like I only
have three friends and I can do that with all
of them.
Speaker 3 (21:29):
For me, I need to be around people that I
tell Clea this is like the utmost compliment.
Speaker 4 (21:33):
But it's like you don't count. It's like you're sure
I only wanted to be around people that don't count.
But I can be that was the person myself. I
can sit there quiet or not. We could talk, we
can laugh or just ignore each other.
Speaker 2 (21:45):
So home at it.
Speaker 1 (21:46):
We have like the show, we have, the products, we
have the like I wish there was six hundred of you,
Like I wish one of you could just live in
my guest.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
Room so I could live this organized life.
Speaker 1 (21:57):
It's funny because anytime I meet someone and they're like, oh, yeah,
you know, we have this business where we like go
into people's homes and we like go like the home
out it and listen. There can't be one stylist or
can't be one hit, Like there can't be one of anything, right,
and there is the old thing that you know, my
teamy stay will. Imitation is the best form of flattery.
I'm like, why does that not help me? Here doesn't
(22:18):
help me, It doesn't help right, So so I think
I like to talk about this because in every journey
to the top, there are challenges, right, and things that
concern you when you go to sleep at night or
wake up in the morning.
Speaker 2 (22:32):
You know, things that get under your skin.
Speaker 4 (22:35):
Well, I will say this, and Joanna might have a
different answer, but I think that things used to get
under our skin way more than it does now. I
think that, and I think that's normal, right, Like you
get to a point we had to center ourselves in saying, Okay,
we have multiple books out, we have multiple seasons of
(22:57):
a show, we have a very public Instagram count, we
have launched a thousand ships, and we've.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Given them the tool. We've given everyone the tools.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
We've given everyone what we do and the way we
do it, so we can't really be upset the people
have taken those tools and use them to create businesses.
And truly, if you can inspire, you know, there's just
what you I think also realize is that there's so
much room for everyone in this world. It's just you know,
if we can inspire, especially you know, female entrepreneurs, come
(23:27):
out do an organizing business like fabulous.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
You know, a lot of people come up to us
and they say, like.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
I started doing this because of.
Speaker 4 (23:35):
You, And I actually think that when like I I
think that's a huge compliment to me, is a huge compliment,
and I'm like, wow, that's amazing, so proud of you.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
That's incredible. So I feel like all of that is
really good. And I think everyone's different.
Speaker 4 (23:47):
When Joanna and I first started an organizing company, the Homeut,
we looked at all the other professional organizers who were
doing things very differently, and then we looked at, you know,
someone like Marie Condo, who was also doing it very
differently and.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Who now apparently came out that she's a slub.
Speaker 3 (24:03):
I know, I was like Marie, like Marie, so but
again I and I think that she's just going through
a Joanna I think that I think she'll be back.
I think she'll be back. That'll just totally right. I'm like,
she'll be back.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
But I think that from our perspective, we were like, Okay,
we sit here and we want to try and do
something that is different, and that that is how we
ended up with again, like no one was making cursive
labels back then, like that was silly. Everyone was using
the label maker or something practical.
Speaker 3 (24:33):
We were like, we want to just have a signature.
Speaker 4 (24:35):
We want to have a calling card that represents us.
Speaker 3 (24:39):
And again, that's totally fine. Right now.
Speaker 4 (24:42):
I can't say if I was starting an organizing business,
I wouldn't look at the two of us and be like, Okay,
let me find a partner that I really like.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Let me like try and do something cool on Instagram.
Let me you know, I get it. We created a
we emulate what you see, you know.
Speaker 4 (24:55):
And then again, I think we've all been so lucky
to be inspired by people to create, for us, to
create something, a new version of it, and then to
hopefully pass the torch on to the next generation that
doesn't even joy or gold.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
Like we're forgetting up there about climbing and hills, you
know what, climbing and I like climbing in tennis shoes
seriously barely.
Speaker 1 (25:15):
Have I wait, what one of you barefoot at baby
to baby at iguala.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
I feel like it would never be me.
Speaker 4 (25:22):
Oh, I must sneak my shoes off at one point
because I've heard so much I'd rather be bleeding.
Speaker 1 (25:26):
I do want to understand a little bit about the
go forward for home at It, So home at It
is larger than life.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
I think everybody knows it.
Speaker 1 (25:35):
For me, the biggest challenge of trying to grow my
styling business when I was styling full time was that
they all wanted me to be there. You don't have
this problem. You have incredible people that work with you.
But like, my biggest challenge obviously was you know, kind
of snakes in the grass that worked with me. So
that's a very common thing with like hairstylists. I hear
it from makeup artists, I hear it from law firms,
(25:57):
I hear it from agents managers. So how have you
guys been so blessed to have incredible people that can
sort of execute on the home edit vision and dream.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Initially, hiring was the scariest thing we could ever think,
of course, and because number one, it's crazy to think
about replicating your skills and yourself and your work ethic, like.
Speaker 3 (26:18):
You know how you work.
Speaker 4 (26:20):
So initially I would say we gored the biggest score
of our life because we got Sumner and that she
was our first employee, so she set the path of
hiring other people. It never got easier to let that
control go. But what we learned really quickly was number One,
people are really talented and good at what they do,
(26:41):
and we can teach them everything other than the passion.
As long as someone kind of has that drive and
that passion and that work ethic, we can teach them
the organizing. So again, it's like figuring out the type
of people you want to hire. And I won't say
that every situation has worked out perfectly. And there are
definitely people who used to work for us who now
of organizing companies, just like there are people who work
(27:02):
for you that ended up becoming stylists. And I think
that in some ways it kind of is like launching
other organizing companies in general, Like you just have to
take a deep breath and steal yourself in your own
confidence that you are really good at what you do
and that everyone who works for you is really good
at what they do, and you have to trust to
a certain extent or like you'll never grows like we would.
(27:25):
You would never grow if we didn't trust, sort of
never grown, we could never be where we are to say,
trust people. So Joanna, what I'm curious, what I'm sure
you have other things to add to that.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
What is your take?
Speaker 4 (27:36):
No, I would agree completely. I think it was really
hard in the beginning. I mean it's why I didn't
want a business partner, you know. It was the same
reason I'm like, why would I ever want someone to
be in this world with me when I only can
count on myself? And so but you know, then I
sort of had the epiphany that it's like, wow, if
you meet the right person, this needs one billion times
better than what I could have ever dreamed of. Sure,
(27:58):
And so to cleart point, hired Sumner, who was like,
it was like birthing the first best child.
Speaker 2 (28:03):
You could ever dream up. So it's like so lucky.
Speaker 4 (28:06):
And so she sort of paved the way that like, yeah,
other people can absolutely do this and do this well,
and in order for us to continue to grow, we
have to trust, yeah, And so like we were only
going to.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Get in our own way if we didn't do that.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
No, one hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (28:19):
And here's the thing take away for that, I want
to say to anyone like building a business of anything
of this nature where you have to hire in order
to grow, you have to It's never about how you leave.
It's never about leaving it's about how you leave. Yeah,
that's a thing. Like all of us want everyone to
live their best life and be their most successful, amazing selves.
Speaker 2 (28:41):
Yeah, but it's how you do it that matters.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
And that is really for me, the biggest lesson that
I try to teach kind of twenty somethings now starting
out in their lives is like, just be straight, Just
be straight, be professional, be kind, and you will never
trip over yourself.
Speaker 2 (28:59):
That's it.
Speaker 3 (29:00):
It's actually so true. It's so true.
Speaker 4 (29:03):
That's the thing is because we would never you would
never want to stand in away from someone of personality, not.
Speaker 2 (29:07):
To expect people to work for you for the rest
of their lives.
Speaker 4 (29:10):
Right.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
It's interesting because you know, it's very for me to
watch you guys grow to where you are now. I
think I always am like and you have very big
personal lives and very big family lives, and so I
think it's important to do that. What's next for home
at it? Are there obvious dreams ahead?
Speaker 3 (29:31):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (29:31):
Well, we got acquired by Hello Sunshine, Reese Witherspoon's company
in February, and Hello Sunshine is an unbelievable partner for us.
I mean, they're allowing us to continue to grow the
home edit in all the ways that, you know, amplify
all the things that we were already doing with their support.
Speaker 3 (29:46):
It's a dream. It is a dream.
Speaker 4 (29:48):
And one of the dreams that we're going to be
living out this year is a lot of stuff that
we had.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
To shelve last year.
Speaker 4 (29:53):
I physically couldn't do it, but that meant we physically
couldn't do it. So we're going to be just you know,
coming up on this year, we're going to be on
the road a lot.
Speaker 3 (30:00):
I can say that we have a few projects that
are going to be become public projects.
Speaker 4 (30:05):
We have a lot of like media sings and when
I say media, we have you know, our books, TV podcast,
all of that. And we're really excited to be in
person and live again, which we kind of haven't been
since twenty nineteen.
Speaker 3 (30:19):
Yeah, so we're really excited that we get to do
these things and be with people again.
Speaker 4 (30:25):
So I think that to me, and you know how
I am, I love being with people, so to me
that's like the most and I love being with Clea,
so it all ries out.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
I'm just excited.
Speaker 4 (30:32):
Honestly, at this point, the thought of traveling for work
nothing sounds better, right, nothing sounds better. But I was
like recounting all of my favorite last moments of twenty
twenty one.
Speaker 3 (30:44):
So this was in twenty two.
Speaker 4 (30:45):
But I was like thinking about all of like the
last trips we went on, like we were in d
C during the holidays, as like Joanna and I've had
so many good trips.
Speaker 1 (30:54):
You guys are literally the cutest. It's so amazing that
you built the home at it. I know you're like
really big and fancy now, but I really need you
to come live with me for a week so we
all one hundred percent dying here.
Speaker 2 (31:05):
I'm dying.
Speaker 1 (31:06):
I can't find anything I don't know or anything is
and I need rid of fifty percent of it. You know,
we'll be there, Rachel. I know I just said that,
but I'm not going to do that. I'm not going
I know you're we already know.
Speaker 3 (31:15):
We didn't even listen to get rid of stuff, Like
we already know that.
Speaker 4 (31:18):
You know. The crazy thing is we've organized of different homes,
different closets.
Speaker 3 (31:23):
I feel like I know your inventory.
Speaker 2 (31:25):
Yeah, so well good, so you can place it wherever
you want.
Speaker 4 (31:28):
I really like I feel like I know it, Like
I even know, like which things are priorities, which things
we could have on higher shel I feel like I
really know it you do, so we could probably yeah,
you could probably do it quickly.
Speaker 1 (31:38):
But I really just want to say that I love
everything you guys do. I'm so excited to see, like
what I feel like you have like another thousand things
that are about to happen, and I'm so excited. I
think it's a really great career path for a lot
of women that I hear from in person or my
social media, Like, I think that's this sort of really
big lesson that I think is really important to learn
(32:00):
from you guys and what you do and live in
the like cometit state of mind, you know, And I.
Speaker 4 (32:05):
Know, and I feel like Joanna and I could take
a page out of your book and live in slightly
more glamorous state.
Speaker 3 (32:09):
Of find but yeah, we live in me a dressed
every day.
Speaker 4 (32:13):
But yeah, I'm like, you know what, Rachel like checks that, like,
I'm like, I think of her glamorous.
Speaker 3 (32:17):
Okay, we don't. Joanna and I are never going to be.
Speaker 4 (32:20):
I'm just excited when I put jeans on, I barely
see you in jeans, but.
Speaker 3 (32:23):
I'm like hire jeans.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
She does, I'll do a polish flair thinking.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
About you in sneakers and a boyfriend.
Speaker 2 (32:32):
It's like a disaster. Okay. I love you both so much.
Speaker 3 (32:36):
I love you, love you.
Speaker 1 (32:38):
These two are such a breath of fresh air. I mean,
they're just two of the hardest, working, beyond hilarious women.
Every time I talk to Clean and Joanna, I can't
stop laughing because the way that they they really are
like an old married couple that have been together for
like seventy years. That's kind of like how their vibe is.
And also they're so professional. If they work so hard,
(33:01):
I think they are just such a good example of
how to follow your dream and also inspire others and
that positive, positive female energy and it's just so refreshing.
Speaker 2 (33:15):
And that was a fun one. I really love that.
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