WEBVTT - Never Settle for the Status Quo with Hettas Founder Lindsay Housman 0:00:04.080 --> 0:00:08.160 Big things happen when you're pretty, pretty bold, pretty clever, 0:00:08.840 --> 0:00:12.360 pretty strong. I'm Danielle Robe and each week my guests 0:00:12.360 --> 0:00:15.680 and I have conversations that put a new spin on pretty. 0:00:17.160 --> 0:00:22.160 This is pretty smart. Hello. I hope you are having 0:00:22.280 --> 0:00:25.840 a beautiful week. I am coming off a quick trip 0:00:26.000 --> 0:00:29.960 to Las Vegas. I went to Complex Con for all 0:00:30.000 --> 0:00:33.879 of three hours, I would say, and I love seeing 0:00:34.240 --> 0:00:37.960 the booths there. I was actually never a live events person. 0:00:38.560 --> 0:00:40.720 I don't like crowds. You guys probably know that about me. 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:46.000 But I do like to see what's going on and 0:00:46.600 --> 0:00:49.839 what's part of the zeitgeist. And I love seeing creatives 0:00:49.880 --> 0:00:54.240 and creativity and just like what's possible. When I see 0:00:54.360 --> 0:01:01.240 other people create booths or art or clothing, or create anything, really, 0:01:02.080 --> 0:01:07.680 I get so inspired for my own sake, like my 0:01:07.720 --> 0:01:11.760 own creativity. I've actually felt the last few weeks. I 0:01:11.760 --> 0:01:15.040 don't know if you ever get this, but I've felt tired, 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:17.360 and not at my Midwest accent. 0:01:17.360 --> 0:01:18.080 Came out tired. 0:01:18.560 --> 0:01:22.840 Not tired in a way that like that I could 0:01:22.880 --> 0:01:25.600 sleep off, really tired in a way that my body 0:01:25.720 --> 0:01:28.520 was just saying slow down. It happens to me every 0:01:28.520 --> 0:01:30.880 so often. I don't know if it's my hormones or 0:01:30.959 --> 0:01:33.520 if it's the time of year, or just my body 0:01:33.560 --> 0:01:36.800 telling me something. But I had about three or four 0:01:36.840 --> 0:01:42.800 weeks of just needing extra sleep, and in that I 0:01:42.880 --> 0:01:47.120 wasn't really creating as much. And after this weekend, I 0:01:47.200 --> 0:01:53.200 feel recharged and inspired again, like the ideas are flowing. 0:01:53.320 --> 0:01:56.640 I'm getting excited for what's to come. So I don't 0:01:56.680 --> 0:01:59.960 know if you ever feel like you are in a rut, 0:02:00.040 --> 0:02:03.720 but sometimes I feel like that time. It's not a rut, 0:02:03.760 --> 0:02:06.120 it's not a waste. It's actually really important to just 0:02:06.800 --> 0:02:10.080 let your mind and your body take a moment. What 0:02:10.120 --> 0:02:12.520 else is going on? Oh? You know how on the 0:02:12.520 --> 0:02:14.639 Pod a few weeks ago, I said I was going 0:02:14.639 --> 0:02:17.799 to New York for two celebrity interviews. Well, I actually 0:02:17.880 --> 0:02:22.160 ended up canceling the trip, which it was quite a bummer. 0:02:22.880 --> 0:02:25.080 Felt like I got some of my money back, but 0:02:25.160 --> 0:02:29.639 not all of it. I canceled the trip because one 0:02:29.680 --> 0:02:33.400 of the guests, the probably like the most notable name, 0:02:33.680 --> 0:02:39.440 canceled and it really got me. I was so mad 0:02:39.520 --> 0:02:42.640 about it because I had put so much time and 0:02:42.760 --> 0:02:48.120 energy into scheduling this trip, you know, like I do 0:02:48.200 --> 0:02:52.080 the pod independently, so when I do the interviews in person, 0:02:52.120 --> 0:02:56.120 I'm booking a studio location and the camera people and 0:02:56.280 --> 0:02:59.919 audio and hair and makeup, like it's a whole production 0:03:00.080 --> 0:03:03.280 that I'm putting together. And so I felt like I 0:03:03.320 --> 0:03:05.520 had wasted other people's time too, which was a bummer. 0:03:06.160 --> 0:03:09.239 But it got me thinking about disappointment because it has 0:03:09.320 --> 0:03:14.520 this way of arriving unannounced, and when one of the 0:03:14.560 --> 0:03:20.200 interviews canceled, not only did it leave a gap where 0:03:20.200 --> 0:03:26.480 I had expected a story and connection and you know, 0:03:26.600 --> 0:03:29.880 kind of messed up the podcast schedule. The initial sting 0:03:29.880 --> 0:03:33.680 felt like rejection, and it made me question whether I 0:03:33.720 --> 0:03:38.080 had misjudged the importance of the opportunity and my own 0:03:38.120 --> 0:03:41.680 worth to be honest, was the pod not great enough 0:03:41.720 --> 0:03:44.480 for them? Was it not big enough? You know, all 0:03:44.520 --> 0:03:46.840 those things. But then I remembered one of the most 0:03:46.960 --> 0:03:51.920 enduring lessons from the four agreements. Never take things personally. 0:03:53.360 --> 0:03:56.760 You never know what's going on in people's lives. And 0:03:58.280 --> 0:04:02.680 I think if we can view disappointment through that lens, 0:04:03.440 --> 0:04:06.240 it becomes less of an affront and more of a redirection. 0:04:07.600 --> 0:04:09.320 But I was left with this question, when do we 0:04:09.360 --> 0:04:13.040 stand firm and when do we soften? And choose kindness 0:04:13.160 --> 0:04:17.840 over indignation. It feels like a delicate tension because on 0:04:17.839 --> 0:04:20.680 one hand, sometimes you need to hold your ground and 0:04:20.720 --> 0:04:23.039 it honors your time and your value, and it says 0:04:23.080 --> 0:04:25.719 I matter, don't mess with me, you know. And on 0:04:25.760 --> 0:04:30.560 the other hand, extending grace is of ultimate importance. It 0:04:30.600 --> 0:04:33.920 acknowledges the humanity of the other person and often the 0:04:34.000 --> 0:04:36.719 unseen messes and struggles that may have shaped their decision. 0:04:38.440 --> 0:04:40.840 I've found one of the greatest lessons of doing this 0:04:40.880 --> 0:04:44.880 podcast and booking Guess is that the truth is you 0:04:44.960 --> 0:04:48.599 rarely know what's going on with people behind the scenes, 0:04:50.320 --> 0:04:53.120 and I think leading with kindness doesn't mean that you 0:04:53.240 --> 0:04:55.280 let go of your boundaries. It just means that you 0:04:55.360 --> 0:04:59.120 acknowledge that both you and they are navigating a world 0:04:59.279 --> 0:05:03.640 full of complex I've stood my ground before via email, 0:05:03.960 --> 0:05:10.200 and I don't necessarily regret it, but I don't know 0:05:10.240 --> 0:05:12.680 that it was me showing up as my best self. 0:05:13.960 --> 0:05:17.760 And when I've led with kindness, I've never looked back 0:05:17.800 --> 0:05:22.000 and regretted it. So that's what's been on my mind 0:05:22.040 --> 0:05:25.520 this week. I hope you're having a really great week, 0:05:25.880 --> 0:05:31.840 whether it's rest that you're craving or adventure or organization. 0:05:32.320 --> 0:05:34.760 As we're sort of leading up to the holiday season. 0:05:36.240 --> 0:05:38.960 I hope that you're getting what you're craving, and if 0:05:38.960 --> 0:05:41.919 you're not getting it, go get it. Go find a 0:05:41.960 --> 0:05:44.440 way to carve it out for yourself, because you really 0:05:44.480 --> 0:05:46.760 deserve it, and no one's going to give it to 0:05:46.760 --> 0:05:51.880 you but you. Okay, that was a complete tangent from 0:05:51.920 --> 0:05:58.120 our episode today, so I'm going to jump in. There's 0:05:58.160 --> 0:06:01.960 an old advertising strategy called shrinket and pink it, and 0:06:02.000 --> 0:06:05.200 the idea was simple, take a product made for men, 0:06:05.640 --> 0:06:08.599 make it smaller, slap on the color pink or maybe 0:06:08.600 --> 0:06:11.239 even purple, and that's how you market it towards women. 0:06:12.000 --> 0:06:14.880 This is so baffling when you consider that women control 0:06:15.040 --> 0:06:19.800 seventy to eighty percent of consumer spending. We influence thirty 0:06:19.839 --> 0:06:24.720 one trillion dollars globally trillion, okay trillion. Yet we've just 0:06:24.800 --> 0:06:28.000 been buying pink versions of guy's stuff across the board 0:06:28.000 --> 0:06:31.120 almost and athletic shoes stand out to me is a 0:06:31.200 --> 0:06:33.479 huge one. So today we're going to hear more of 0:06:33.520 --> 0:06:36.960 the why behind some of the pinke it and shrinket 0:06:37.640 --> 0:06:40.839 that comes to my mind, athletic shoes stand out to 0:06:40.880 --> 0:06:42.320 me as a huge one. But some of the other 0:06:42.360 --> 0:06:46.440 items that come to my mind are sporting equipment, safety gear. 0:06:47.279 --> 0:06:51.000 Historically that's just been adapted for women by downside it, 0:06:51.120 --> 0:06:54.560 by downsizing male designs, often resulting in ill fitting and 0:06:54.640 --> 0:06:58.200 less functional products. Can you believe that they test airbags 0:06:58.960 --> 0:07:02.719 on mail test dummies? Air bags are not made for women. 0:07:03.160 --> 0:07:07.720 I constantly think about the conveyor belts at security when 0:07:07.720 --> 0:07:11.440 I'm at the airport. They're made for It's called like 0:07:11.440 --> 0:07:14.400 the Golden Rule, which is basically a six foot one mail. 0:07:15.640 --> 0:07:19.000 That's how they're made. That's how most parks are designed 0:07:19.000 --> 0:07:21.760 for the six foot What's how kitchens and bathrooms are designed. 0:07:21.960 --> 0:07:25.120 Have you ever been to a countertop, like gone to 0:07:25.160 --> 0:07:28.440 a hotel or something and been like, why why can't 0:07:28.480 --> 0:07:30.200 I reach this? Or why is this so high? Or 0:07:30.200 --> 0:07:32.840 why does this not fit me? Most of the time 0:07:32.840 --> 0:07:34.640 it's because it's made and design for a six foot 0:07:34.680 --> 0:07:37.360 one mail. But I digress. We're going back to shrink 0:07:37.400 --> 0:07:40.920 it and pink it. Almost all outdoor gear is made 0:07:41.120 --> 0:07:46.640 for men. Some electronics like laptops, definitely, most tools, razors, 0:07:47.440 --> 0:07:49.080 and I have to tell you the two that have 0:07:49.200 --> 0:07:53.040 really bugged me or affected me personally are bicycles and 0:07:53.080 --> 0:07:57.600 backpacks because I love to bike, and every backpack that 0:07:57.640 --> 0:08:00.840 I've ever used that's designed by men, which is why 0:08:00.840 --> 0:08:04.040 I love Dignu Dover so much, just lacks the comfort 0:08:04.040 --> 0:08:06.920 and utility that comes along with making a smaller version 0:08:06.920 --> 0:08:09.480 of a man's product for women instead of making one 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:13.000 based on the female body. Now you've probably heard the 0:08:13.040 --> 0:08:16.560 famous phrase Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but 0:08:16.680 --> 0:08:20.000 backwards and in heels. It's used to highlight how women 0:08:20.040 --> 0:08:22.880 often do the same things as men, gracefully, but with 0:08:22.960 --> 0:08:27.640 extra challenges. And today we're not necessarily talking about heels, 0:08:28.360 --> 0:08:31.760 we are talking about athletic shoes. It turns out we 0:08:31.800 --> 0:08:34.400 haven't just been living in a man's world. We've been 0:08:34.400 --> 0:08:36.880 walking in it too, And as someone who's dealt with 0:08:36.920 --> 0:08:39.400 my fair share of foot issues, it's wild to think 0:08:39.400 --> 0:08:42.719 that the very foundation of our movement, our feet are 0:08:42.720 --> 0:08:45.720 often supported by products that don't even consider our anatomy. 0:08:46.440 --> 0:08:50.800 Our feet do everything for us. They carry us through workouts, commutes, 0:08:51.360 --> 0:08:54.920 even dance floors. They keep us steady on our path 0:08:55.360 --> 0:08:59.680 literally and metaphorically. You know, in Chinese medicine, they're seen 0:08:59.720 --> 0:09:01.839 as the foundation of the body in the gateway to 0:09:01.960 --> 0:09:07.040 overall health. I really love reflexology, and I've heard certain 0:09:07.080 --> 0:09:10.280 people refer to the feet as the roots of our body, 0:09:11.160 --> 0:09:13.400 kind of like how a tree's roots support its growth 0:09:13.480 --> 0:09:16.600 and stability. Poor foot health is thought to disrupt the 0:09:16.640 --> 0:09:21.120 flow of chi and impact the entire body. So why 0:09:21.160 --> 0:09:24.440 are our feet so overlooked? Why are women's feet and, 0:09:24.440 --> 0:09:29.160 by extension, our health and longevity in afterthought? Joining us 0:09:29.160 --> 0:09:33.400 today is Lindsay Housman, a self proclaimed recreational athlete and 0:09:33.480 --> 0:09:37.760 runner who's discovered this the hard way. After constant foot issues, 0:09:37.960 --> 0:09:41.640 she realized the problem. Athletic shoes were not designed for 0:09:41.760 --> 0:09:45.960 women's feet or bodies, just smaller versions of men's and 0:09:46.040 --> 0:09:49.920 sometimes in pink. Well that didn't sit right with Lindsay, 0:09:50.520 --> 0:09:53.600 and it led her to found Headahs, a running shoe 0:09:53.600 --> 0:09:58.600 brand designed specifically for women. It's been an uphill battle, 0:09:58.600 --> 0:10:02.359 but her startup is turning heads with big brands taking notice. 0:10:03.160 --> 0:10:06.240 Society made something as basic as female athletic shoes harder 0:10:06.240 --> 0:10:09.240 than it really should be. But I think Lindsay's showing 0:10:09.240 --> 0:10:13.560 the world that she can change the game gracefully. In 0:10:13.559 --> 0:10:16.840 today's conversation, Lindsay's going to break down how the footwear 0:10:16.880 --> 0:10:20.520 industry got here, the changes that she's making with heads, 0:10:21.200 --> 0:10:24.199 and what it means to design with women's physiology in mind, 0:10:25.440 --> 0:10:28.000 and if we zoom out of it. The big question 0:10:28.040 --> 0:10:31.439 that I think we're answering today is what happens when 0:10:31.480 --> 0:10:44.360 women demand better and create it for themselves. Lindsay, welcome 0:10:44.440 --> 0:10:45.240 to Pretty Smart. 0:10:45.800 --> 0:10:47.800 Thank you. I'm so excited to be here. 0:10:48.200 --> 0:10:50.800 I am so happy to have you here. And it's 0:10:50.800 --> 0:10:53.840 time to talk about shoes. Yes, okay, true or false? 0:10:54.160 --> 0:11:00.119 Most athletic shoes are designed for men. True, shocking, shocking 0:11:00.280 --> 0:11:04.760 In twenty twenty four, athletic shoes are built around male physiology. 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:07.840 Yes, how it just boggles my mind. 0:11:08.120 --> 0:11:13.640 I mean the short answer is it's easier and a 0:11:13.679 --> 0:11:17.200 lot of these legacy brands that still dominate the industry 0:11:17.240 --> 0:11:21.080 today started in the seventies. Track was predominantly male based. 0:11:21.240 --> 0:11:23.640 Even in nineteen eighty six, only twenty percent of women 0:11:23.679 --> 0:11:27.520 were running. Okay, so women's participation in running increased one 0:11:27.600 --> 0:11:29.640 hundred and fifty percent since nineteen eighty six. 0:11:30.400 --> 0:11:32.640 So if you think what do they attribute that to? 0:11:33.480 --> 0:11:38.160 I think it's just it's I'm hypothesizing. Yeah, but if 0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:40.560 I had to guess about what it's being attributed to, 0:11:41.360 --> 0:11:47.960 it's around the accessibility of sport, the acceptance of women 0:11:48.160 --> 0:11:51.200 participating in sport, and women believing they can do sport. 0:11:51.520 --> 0:11:51.840 Yeah. 0:11:51.880 --> 0:11:55.600 So the first woman, Catherine Sweitzer to do the Boston Marathon, 0:11:55.679 --> 0:11:58.720 did it illegally. I'm going to get the year wrong 0:11:58.760 --> 0:12:01.320 that it was the late sixties or early seventies, and 0:12:01.360 --> 0:12:02.160 so even. 0:12:02.080 --> 0:12:03.960 I've seen that photo of hert right, and you. 0:12:03.920 --> 0:12:06.719 Need representation to know that you can do it. 0:12:07.040 --> 0:12:11.480 So as more women participate, more women realize, oh, I 0:12:11.520 --> 0:12:15.160 can do this too, And that's where I think you're seeing, 0:12:15.280 --> 0:12:18.160 you know, even now, exponential growth and women doing ultra 0:12:18.240 --> 0:12:23.839 marathons and things that would previously have been considered not 0:12:23.920 --> 0:12:27.400 appropriate for women back in the day. And so I 0:12:27.400 --> 0:12:31.520 think you've got these brands that started with men as 0:12:31.600 --> 0:12:34.640 the core of their identity, and shoes require a lot 0:12:34.640 --> 0:12:37.520 of tooling, and so when you're investing in all that 0:12:37.559 --> 0:12:40.559 tooling it as you build it out, it gets harder and. 0:12:40.520 --> 0:12:41.800 Harder to turn the boat. 0:12:42.320 --> 0:12:46.880 Oh so now you are introducing women's product, but women 0:12:46.960 --> 0:12:50.840 are a small part of your segment, and it's just 0:12:51.040 --> 0:12:55.080 easier to shrink and pink it than to develop a 0:12:55.080 --> 0:12:57.760 whole new line. And why would you even in nineteen 0:12:57.800 --> 0:13:00.760 eighty six from a business decision standpoint, when twenty percent 0:13:01.360 --> 0:13:04.120 of your customer base and so then you go another 0:13:04.200 --> 0:13:08.160 twenty years, you now have all these different skews, all 0:13:08.200 --> 0:13:09.959 these different shoes, all with. 0:13:09.960 --> 0:13:11.480 This tooling that exists. 0:13:11.880 --> 0:13:15.280 It's like turning an oil tanker and you have still 0:13:15.480 --> 0:13:19.000 the majorities of these large athletic companies are very male 0:13:19.080 --> 0:13:23.800 dominated at the executive and senior leadership levels, and there's 0:13:24.000 --> 0:13:27.319 just an unconscious bias. 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:31.079 That exists, like what are the percentages look like now 0:13:31.120 --> 0:13:32.120 for their customer base. 0:13:32.280 --> 0:13:35.760 So the most recent fleet feed report and fleet feet is. 0:13:35.679 --> 0:13:41.040 A major US independent retailer, independent meaning not a big 0:13:41.080 --> 0:13:44.680 box store. Like there's still some corporate owned stores and 0:13:44.720 --> 0:13:48.520 some franchises, but they're your local run store. Okay, sixty 0:13:48.600 --> 0:13:51.199 one percent of their customers are women. 0:13:51.960 --> 0:13:54.400 And there's still not investing money to reach tool. 0:13:54.240 --> 0:13:59.000 This they're starting starting. I mean it was crazy. Last year. 0:14:00.240 --> 0:14:03.320 One brand, I'm not going to name it, name it. 0:14:04.800 --> 0:14:08.840 They released one shoe based off of a woman's last 0:14:08.880 --> 0:14:11.960 and I remember I was on Instagram and I said 0:14:12.000 --> 0:14:13.679 to him, I'm like, did you did you see this? 0:14:13.920 --> 0:14:18.160 I'm like, they just released one shoe. There was no 0:14:18.240 --> 0:14:21.320 media announcement. I don't even know how you find the shoe. 0:14:21.800 --> 0:14:24.640 And this is a really big brand that exists today 0:14:24.840 --> 0:14:26.320 and is very well regarded. 0:14:26.920 --> 0:14:28.120 And I was like oh. 0:14:28.560 --> 0:14:29.960 And then in my mind I was like, oh, this 0:14:30.000 --> 0:14:32.240 is this is good and bad, Like how do we 0:14:32.480 --> 0:14:34.320 how do we maybe going to need to do good? 0:14:34.360 --> 0:14:36.720 Because I think it elevates the conversation bad. Okay, now 0:14:36.760 --> 0:14:39.120 we need to navigate this new competitor, maybe not bad, 0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:40.480 but something we're gonna. 0:14:40.280 --> 0:14:43.120 Have to think about, think about. And then it just 0:14:43.200 --> 0:14:47.480 went away. Wow. And just for context, a lass is 0:14:47.520 --> 0:14:50.280 basically like an impression or the mold that you use. 0:14:50.400 --> 0:14:51.040 Yes, exactly. 0:14:51.120 --> 0:14:54.560 A last is like the foot shape in plastic, the 0:14:54.720 --> 0:14:59.920 hard plastic okay, solid, and it's what's used to base 0:15:00.320 --> 0:15:01.320 dictate your shoe design. 0:15:02.520 --> 0:15:06.840 So you and your husband Kyle have invested so much 0:15:07.160 --> 0:15:09.640 in research. That was the first part of this, even 0:15:09.640 --> 0:15:13.240 before you had a product. Yes, I was shocked and 0:15:13.280 --> 0:15:15.760 you were shocked too when you found out that in 0:15:15.800 --> 0:15:19.680 such research, women are considered confounding variables. 0:15:19.840 --> 0:15:25.280 Yes, yes, there's a study from twenty sixteen that was 0:15:25.960 --> 0:15:30.320 referenced in the literature review that we funded that stated 0:15:30.400 --> 0:15:36.440 that women are often excluded from sports science research their 0:15:36.560 --> 0:15:42.600 hormones are too variable to control and they represent a 0:15:42.640 --> 0:15:47.680 confounding subject. And this really I remember reading that, clipping 0:15:47.760 --> 0:15:50.480 it out, sending it to all my girlfriends. When we 0:15:50.880 --> 0:15:53.240 got this paper it was twenty twenty one. I found 0:15:53.320 --> 0:15:57.120 this quote referencing twenty sixteen, and it just blew my 0:15:57.160 --> 0:16:01.400 mind that even five years ago that women were still 0:16:01.440 --> 0:16:03.960 considered confounding variables in research. 0:16:04.520 --> 0:16:08.280 Well, it's across the board that that's the case. Historically, 0:16:08.440 --> 0:16:14.000 they've been underrepresented in cardiovascular health, psychology, sports medicine. They're 0:16:14.080 --> 0:16:17.240 finally recognizing gender differences. And you say, a lot of 0:16:17.240 --> 0:16:18.400 it has to do with hormones. 0:16:19.360 --> 0:16:21.760 A lot of the gender differences. 0:16:22.480 --> 0:16:25.720 Hormones are one piece, like physiology is definitely a piece 0:16:25.720 --> 0:16:30.160 as well, but for exclusion from research, hormones is largely 0:16:30.200 --> 0:16:30.600 the piece. 0:16:31.240 --> 0:16:33.960 So what do you think it is about women that 0:16:34.360 --> 0:16:37.760 makes it easy for researchers to easily dismiss them. 0:16:37.960 --> 0:16:41.360 Women's hormones are really variable, even within your monthly cycle, 0:16:41.560 --> 0:16:46.880 and every women's monthly cycle has some variation to it. 0:16:47.680 --> 0:16:52.200 That makes it difficult to understand when they're seeing differences 0:16:52.280 --> 0:16:56.760 in biomechanics, is that really caused by a hormonal variation 0:16:57.200 --> 0:17:00.760 or is that something related to the equipment or the 0:17:00.800 --> 0:17:02.160 training that's happening. 0:17:02.800 --> 0:17:04.919 I think it's hard to measure hormones. 0:17:05.680 --> 0:17:10.800 The historical way of including hormones and research is through 0:17:10.800 --> 0:17:15.920 mailing out ovulation kits. Even when I started discussing including 0:17:15.960 --> 0:17:19.840 hormones in our research with Simon Fraser University, we were 0:17:19.880 --> 0:17:23.679 going to be mailing out ovulation kits. I was fortunate 0:17:23.920 --> 0:17:26.800 to learn of a company out of Calgary that has 0:17:26.960 --> 0:17:31.639 created a way to do hormonal research at scale. Wow, 0:17:31.720 --> 0:17:35.440 and so we are now partnering with them in our research, 0:17:36.080 --> 0:17:41.000 which one ovulation kits limit the population of women you 0:17:41.040 --> 0:17:43.439 can research because they need to be ovulating. 0:17:45.640 --> 0:17:47.760 Whereas I didn't think about that, that's huge. 0:17:47.840 --> 0:17:48.240 That's huge. 0:17:48.440 --> 0:17:51.040 And if you think about there's very little research on 0:17:51.119 --> 0:17:56.840 perimenopausal or menopausal women because you it's difficult to measure 0:17:56.880 --> 0:17:59.240 those hormones without doing a lot of blood testing or 0:17:59.280 --> 0:18:02.760 things that require are a lot of time and analysis. 0:18:02.840 --> 0:18:06.879 And so my normative is the name of the Calgary 0:18:06.920 --> 0:18:13.080 company is working with universities on wide scale hormonal research. 0:18:13.480 --> 0:18:17.359 So how do hormones affect our shoes? Are what we 0:18:17.440 --> 0:18:18.359 need for our shoes? 0:18:18.480 --> 0:18:22.959 Yeah, hormones And this is still early yeah, and so 0:18:23.240 --> 0:18:26.840 and my knowledge is limited. So from what we know 0:18:27.280 --> 0:18:33.600 that there are laxity differences based on when your estrogen 0:18:33.680 --> 0:18:37.000 levels fluctuate in your cycle. And so if you have 0:18:37.119 --> 0:18:40.720 different varying levels of progestrogen and estrogen which happened during 0:18:41.280 --> 0:18:46.159 a monthly mental cycle, they happen during pregnancy postpartum. You know, 0:18:46.400 --> 0:18:50.280 we're always having these variation levels. It affects your tendons 0:18:50.359 --> 0:18:54.800 and your ligaments and the elasticity of them and whether they're. 0:18:54.640 --> 0:18:58.000 Looser or tighter. And so if you think about that 0:18:58.200 --> 0:18:59.040 and you think about. 0:18:58.920 --> 0:19:03.120 Ankle stability or nie stability or hip stability, what you're 0:19:03.160 --> 0:19:09.359 putting on your feet that affects your ability to balance 0:19:09.840 --> 0:19:13.400 as your joints maybe in a state of being hypermobile 0:19:14.240 --> 0:19:16.800 or more rigid based on your hormones. 0:19:16.960 --> 0:19:24.280 Interesting, So how do you solve for that in a shoe? 0:19:24.320 --> 0:19:26.960 Like are what his head is doing? Differently? 0:19:27.760 --> 0:19:32.200 So what part of what we're doing is wanting to 0:19:32.280 --> 0:19:35.439 understand this more so, we have upcoming research studies that 0:19:35.520 --> 0:19:39.240 are focused on the menstrual cycle of women and how 0:19:39.240 --> 0:19:44.760 it affects their performance and measuring both laxity and joints 0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:50.280 as as well as biomechanical measurements that would show how 0:19:50.840 --> 0:19:55.879 their gait is performing or there's asymmetry is occurring. And 0:19:55.920 --> 0:20:00.679 then we're also doing a larger study to understand stand 0:20:00.800 --> 0:20:03.720 in training for an intense race like a marathon or 0:20:03.760 --> 0:20:08.679 a half marathon, what is the interplay between biomechanics, hormones 0:20:08.720 --> 0:20:13.520 and injury. Okay, and if we leverage something like big data, 0:20:14.359 --> 0:20:17.520 can we predict it from the shoes that will help 0:20:17.560 --> 0:20:21.159 inform where do we need more support, where do we 0:20:21.320 --> 0:20:24.520 need to make sure there's less impact. 0:20:24.720 --> 0:20:27.280 Are there different types of insoles we can use? 0:20:27.440 --> 0:20:30.320 Are there different Like the plate design in this shoe 0:20:30.359 --> 0:20:35.240 specifically was designed to reduce impact on joints and to 0:20:35.320 --> 0:20:40.639 provide more stability so that if you're in a phase 0:20:40.680 --> 0:20:44.440 of your cycle where there's more laxity in your joints, 0:20:45.880 --> 0:20:48.959 you don't have to worry as much about rolling your 0:20:49.000 --> 0:20:53.480 ankle or if you've had previous injury. So it's considering 0:20:53.600 --> 0:20:55.280 like those factors. 0:20:56.119 --> 0:20:58.680 So I love how like you see this big issue 0:20:58.760 --> 0:21:01.080 and you decide you're going to be the one to 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:04.359 solve it. Have you always had this entrepreneurial spirit. 0:21:04.680 --> 0:21:04.920 No. 0:21:05.280 --> 0:21:09.120 I'm an accountant by trade, so I'm like extremely pragmatic. 0:21:09.440 --> 0:21:13.800 I've been in finance and technology, but one thing that's 0:21:13.840 --> 0:21:18.560 been really consistent in my life is I never sort 0:21:18.600 --> 0:21:21.120 of settle for status quo, Like there's always a. 0:21:21.080 --> 0:21:25.760 Better way to do something, And I think with this. 0:21:25.720 --> 0:21:28.960 Particular issue, you know, I have a real passion for 0:21:29.040 --> 0:21:32.600 the role that sport plays in girls and in women's 0:21:32.680 --> 0:21:37.960 lives and how it impacts your personal wellbeing, your career, 0:21:38.560 --> 0:21:43.639 your community, and for girls. I'm extremely passionate. I have 0:21:43.640 --> 0:21:48.639 two daughters, they're twins. They're extremely active in sport and 0:21:49.520 --> 0:21:54.240 seeing girls drop out of sport, actually going to assemblies 0:21:54.480 --> 0:21:58.320 and watching grade three to grade seven the number of 0:21:58.400 --> 0:22:02.720 girls shrink, and then knowing what that's going to mean 0:22:04.200 --> 0:22:06.480 for skills that they're going to miss out on developing. 0:22:07.440 --> 0:22:11.399 It all sort of came together when I learned about 0:22:12.040 --> 0:22:16.320 the shoe industry and we had my husband and I 0:22:16.359 --> 0:22:19.840 had this idea that we would start a brand when 0:22:19.840 --> 0:22:22.400 we were you know, our kids were older and out 0:22:22.400 --> 0:22:24.040 of the house, and we had all this time to 0:22:24.080 --> 0:22:27.640 put towards it, and we realized that actually the time 0:22:27.760 --> 0:22:30.840 was now, which was not ideal. Our kids were life 0:22:30.960 --> 0:22:35.159 is very full and busy. We're both also, you know, 0:22:35.280 --> 0:22:39.760 have our careers that I'm transitioning to this, and the 0:22:39.800 --> 0:22:41.959 intent wasn't originally for me to lead it. 0:22:42.480 --> 0:22:45.800 Wait, so you're still both working separate jobs one hundred 0:22:45.800 --> 0:22:49.760 percent and building this, Yes, and that's how you're funding 0:22:49.760 --> 0:22:54.080 this research. Yes, Lindsey, that's incredible. 0:22:54.920 --> 0:22:56.399 It's just what needed to happen. 0:22:56.840 --> 0:23:00.240 Like, so when you say that you're you were weren't 0:23:00.320 --> 0:23:02.040 supposed to lead this, what does that mean? 0:23:02.359 --> 0:23:07.679 Like the when we started this, the idea was Kyle 0:23:07.760 --> 0:23:11.760 would come in transition and and be the CEO, and 0:23:11.800 --> 0:23:14.600 he's your husband, he's my husband. That was the original 0:23:14.640 --> 0:23:17.639 thought way back in twenty twenty. You know, y'all all 0:23:17.680 --> 0:23:19.920 this time in your hands, it's COVID. We went through 0:23:19.920 --> 0:23:24.720 so many different iterations and when we started this, we 0:23:24.720 --> 0:23:27.320 thought we had two investors, okay, and they both fell 0:23:27.359 --> 0:23:30.359 through for different reasons. And being the pragmatmatic person that 0:23:30.400 --> 0:23:33.400 I am, I would never have agreed to this had 0:23:33.440 --> 0:23:37.480 I had thought that we didn't have funding. And I 0:23:37.640 --> 0:23:41.400 remember when the both investors fell through and we got 0:23:41.480 --> 0:23:46.040 the the project plan from Simon Fraser, and doing university 0:23:46.080 --> 0:23:50.639 research is expensive, very and we were either like we 0:23:50.720 --> 0:23:53.440 either fund this or we canceled this whole project. 0:23:53.600 --> 0:23:57.679 And we just so strongly believed in this that we 0:23:57.760 --> 0:24:00.040 cut the check. And are you. 0:24:00.160 --> 0:24:02.320 Able to share how much that was that first check? 0:24:03.160 --> 0:24:05.119 It was close to one hundred thousand dollars. 0:24:08.000 --> 0:24:10.359 And this is not you're not making a product yet, 0:24:10.600 --> 0:24:12.680 you're not. You were just funding research. 0:24:12.800 --> 0:24:15.080 Yeah, it was just funding research. We didn't have a 0:24:15.160 --> 0:24:19.520 shoe design, we didn't even have our word mark, we 0:24:19.760 --> 0:24:22.920 don't even have a URL. You're just funding recar. 0:24:22.800 --> 0:24:25.280 Like, if we are going to do this, we are 0:24:25.400 --> 0:24:26.480 gonna do this right. 0:24:27.160 --> 0:24:31.080 And it means that we are doing the work to 0:24:31.240 --> 0:24:33.960 build the product that is going to make a difference. 0:24:35.520 --> 0:24:39.359 Yeah, I guess well at that point, all of a sudden, 0:24:39.400 --> 0:24:41.240 there's a different level of commitment that you have. 0:24:41.440 --> 0:24:41.960 Then you're in. 0:24:42.119 --> 0:24:42.480 You're in. 0:24:42.600 --> 0:24:42.960 You're in. 0:24:43.119 --> 0:24:44.840