Lundyn Carter
“If you feel like you can do it, if you have that grit and that determination—take the risk. You have to be willing to jump out of the plane one day." —Lundyn Carter
“Focus on one thing, do that well, and you’ll thrive." —Lundyn Carter
Lundyn Carter (@lundyncarter) is the CEO and cofounder of Laine London (@lainelondon), a first-of-its-kind tech-enabled startup leveraging the clothing-as-as-service model to help brides-to-be say "yes!" to renting their dream wedding dress.
Lundyn holds an MBA in Business Leadership and Strategy from Emory University and Bachelor of Arts degree in both Political Science and Mass Communications from Flagler College.
Established in 2018 and based in Atlanta, Laine London’s mission is to provide brides-to-be with convenient and cost-efficient access to wedding dresses without the financial, emotional or social burdens of ownership.
There are many benefits of a sharing economy and Laine London encourages women to take advantage of these—by renting rather than purchasing their wedding gowns. Laine London was recently named one of the recipients of both the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund and American Express’ 100 for 100 program.
Please enjoy this wide-ranging conversation with Lundyn Carter (@lundyncarter) and Founded By Women host, Margie Chuang (@margiechuang)!
Subscribe to the show & listen to Episode #010 on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
You can find the transcript for Episode #010 here (coming soon!). Transcripts for all episodes can be found here.
Show Notes
Lundyn’s career path [1:35]
Becoming an entrepreneur at age 16 | The importance and impact of serving your community [5:30]
Humble beginnings, lessons on kindness & humility, and being motivated to shatter the glass ceiling [8:30]
Origin story of Laine London (part 1): Friends and cofounders & their aha moment [17:00]
Pre-Accelerator Learnings: Ideation → research → product/market fit [19:29]
Jump in and dive! [21:57]
Origin story of Laine London (part 2): Building Laine London’s first brick and mortar boutique to creating major brand partnerships
Finding Laine London’s first clients [25:51]
Changing the narrative [29:16]
Learning and focusing on the needs of your clients [33:19]
Curating Laine London’s gown selection | Lundyn’s predictions & hopes for the future [37:14]
What does the Laine London team look for in a great partnership? [40:39]
Laine London’s experience as the recipients of the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund [42:14]
Lundyn’s experience as a founder [44:58]
Lundyn’s candid thoughts on the “hustle” lifestyle [46:53]
What keeps Lundyn motivated? [48:48]
Morning & wind down routines | The positive effects of mediation [50:24]
Non-negotiables and setting healthy boundaries [55:56]
What’s next for Laine London? [57:18]
Medium fire questions [59:03]
Lundyn on what other women have said or done to empower her [1:00:11]
Parting thoughts and encouraging words [1:01:08]
What was your favorite takeaway or quote from this episode? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below!
Selected Links from the Episode
Connect with Lundyn Carter:
Laine London:
Nathalie Molina | Leapfrog: The New Revolution for Women Entrepreneurs
Mellody Hobson | Ariel Investments | TED2014, Mellody Hobson: Color blind or color brave?
Subscribe to the show & listen to Episode #010 on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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Notable Quotes—with Lundyn Carter
“If you feel like you can do it, if you have that grit and that determination—take the risk. You have to be willing to jump out of the plane one day.”
“Focus on one thing, do that well, and you’ll thrive.”
“[My manager] explained to me that we were responsible, not just for passing out donuts and coffee, but for making sure that the hardworking people in our community were equipped with the fuel that they needed to start their day.
And no matter if it was the police chief or the garbage man, she taught me to treat every customer the same. That really, even to this day, instilled a lot into me about how I treat people - whether that’s my customers or my staff or my suppliers. ”
“Slow and steady. It’s okay. You don’t have to be moving at a hundred miles an hour.”
“I think Gloria Steinem said it—you need to be doing more of what only you are good at and less of what everyone else can do. And once you can really do that and understand that, it clears so much time off your plate: time for your friends, your family, to work out, to meditate, whatever that is.”