We had the good fortune of connecting with Melissa Barker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Melissa, what role has risk played in your life or career?

Risk is a muscle. With every win, I’m more empowered to think and act bigger. Every time I fail, I recover faster, and it hurts my pride a little less.

I left my job at a Fortune 5 company to move to the city of my dreams (Charleston, SC) with a one-year-old and no job. Risky? You bet. 

What’s riskier? Being stuck in a job I hate and modeling to my son that failure is scary and he should always play it safe, no matter how much it sucks.

I believe that risk is an inherent part of being an entrepreneur. Taking risks (and empowering your people to as well) is in your job description as CEO.

Risk is what gets me out of bed in the morning. Risk is what pays for my vacations. Risk is what teaches me to do better next time.

“If you don’t take risks, you’ll have a wasted soul.”― Drew Barrymore


Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

In the Spring of 2015, I uprooted my family and moved from Atlanta, GA to Charleston, SC seeking a fresh start for my rocky marriage, a chance to raise my son at the beach, and a career change.

When we arrived, I quickly realized that while Charleston was everything I hoped it would be, finding a marketing position that matched what I had previously been making was going to be nearly impossible. Panicked at the idea of using up all of our savings while I kept searching, I spun up my LLC and got to work finding clients that I could help with their marketing.

With over a decade of experience marketing for some of the most valuable brands in the world, like The Coca-Cola Company, FIFA World Cup, and The Olympics, how hard could it be?

It wasn’t long after I started attending networking events and working my personal connections that I had a full client roster, a team of contractors, and a bonafide business.

I was also glued to my phone, short-tempered with my toddler, losing sleep over the ups and downs of running my own company, and my marriage was about to be over.

There was no book, podcast, webinar, or networking group that could dig me out of the giant hole I had dug for myself. Miles away from friends and family, completely new to running my own agency, lacking sleep, and losing confidence in myself, I started to spend more and more time researching remote jobs, hopeful to put my new business behind me and go back to doing what I knew – working for someone else… on their terms.

My only saving grace was a few women entrepreneurs that had befriended me and let me ask them a zillion questions, always being willing to talk about their early days and what worked for them. Unfortunately, as in any one-way relationship, I knew I wouldn’t have their ear to bend forever.

That’s when I had the idea to create a platform where women could “opt into” giving and getting help. The idea wouldn’t be to impress one another and hope to transform each other into buyers, but instead, to create a membership that gave us access to each other. A place where you wouldn’t have to apologize for asking a question or worry you’re asking someone for help who doesn’t want to give it.

This idea, however, relied on one question that I needed to ask: if given the opportunity, would women help each other?

The answer? A resounding YES.

Today, we connect women entrepreneurs from all over the world. We make it easy for members to help each other while helping our members to gain more visibility through access to partnerships, speaking, press, awards, and grants.

We’ve not only proven that women want to help each other but that they WILL. We were featured in Forbes as Editors’ Pick, #2 on the Forbes Weekly Roundup, and #1 on the ForbesWomen Must Watch list. In partnership with Kendra Scott, we gave away over $5k+ in scholarships to women in financial need. Our lifestyle and beauty product partners enabled us to gift $100k+ worth of products to our members and speakers. Our Speaker Series put mics in the hands of over 40 women.


If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
My ideal day in Atlanta would be an A-Town Cream donut from Sublime Donuts, a walk around Piedmont Park, and a late lunch at The Optimist.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shoutout goes to Anne Winters, COO of Women Entrepreneurs Inc., my right-hand woman, and soul sister.

Website: womenentrepreneursinc.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/women.entrepreneurs.inc

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/womenhelpingwomen/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/womenentrepreneursinc

Image Credits
Special thanks to our Official Photographers: Erin Turner, Erin Turner Photography Hayley Wick, Lucky Strike Studio Leah Roth, Leah Roth Photography Stacey Gardin, Smit’N Photography Austen Taylor, Austen Taylor Photography

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