good morning. westbound. coming up, this hairdresser to the stars keeps creating product companies. why after making millions of dollars did he continue to come up with new ideas and new businesses. these two millennial entrepreneurs take a deep dive to rid the ocean of plastic. and a special star from the world of reality television. >> i'm kristin calf letter i. you're watching your business. i'm in nashville, tennessee, you'll learn about how i got this crazy company off the ground. >> all that and much more coming up on your business.

>> msnbc, your business is sponsored by american express. don't do business without it. hi, everyone. i'm j.j. ramberg and welcome to "your business," a show dedicated to helping your growing business. for entrepreneurs who hit the sweet spot of success and make a fortune, it was certainly something that jim markham thought about. he made his millions from the hair care lines that he's created and sold. each time he sold a company, he made a goal at relaxation and failed miserably. he has a passion for his craft

and he could never quite quit the business world. he kept jumping back into the industry building yet another brand from scratch. >> jim markham has definitely been around the block. his hair care empire includes five brands, 300-plus products and well over a billion dollars in combined retail sales. he's been in a position to hang it all up and enjoy the good life with the millions he's made multiple times. but he hasn't been able to do it. jim knows he's figured out a formula for success. he still thrives from the challenges of building new businesses. >> you keep bringing what you did before into the next company and then what you've used to the next company and the next company and then you actually have a little formula. >> jim made his first major mark styling hair for a slew of silver screen legends. the king of cool and the one known for his striking baby

blues. they were both jim's clients. >> the first time i saw paul newman, it was a delight. when i cut his hair, i said what do you think? he said, looks great markham. >> although he made a name for himself, jim's entrepreneurial spirit was there from the start. >> ever since i was a kid and started cutting hair, i thought selling products was a great idea. people bought your product. >> by the late 1980s, he had two successful product lines. but abba, his third line truly showed his business sense. this line blended healthy ingredients that could deliver superior results, something most insiders claimed was impossible. >> it's real important to better what you did to make a better mouse trap. you can't stand on your laurels, you have to keep getting better. >> there was a $20 million offer. >> we sold the company. we could eat enough enchiladas

or play enough golf. we liked the interaction of working with stylists and consumers, working with distributors. we loved developing product. it's all about passion. >> that passion propelled him out of retirement and right back into the industry he adored. to start yet another hair caroline. the concept for round four came from something completely unpecks ekted. >> a dear friend called me. she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and said my oncologist gave me a do not use list. we formulated product that was salt-free, no known carcinogens. she loved them. other people started saying these products are making my color last longer. >> purology hit the market in 2001 with a line of clean, safe products that also protected color. an absolute game changer in the hair industry. by 2007, purology was a product

powerhouse. jim knew an offer he couldn't refuse was imminent. >> we had 12 different individual people trying to buy >> one would give us more money if i stayed for five years. i never worked for anybody in my life. no, we're not doing that. we sold to l'oreal, it was an all cash deal and i didn't have to work for them. >> jim recognized that he had become a man of many returns and so he was very careful about the noncompete clause. >> we had a short noncompete period, two years. we kept it short because we didn't know if we would come back or not. signing a ten-year noncompete, it would keep you from doing what you're known for. then the buyer always wants the longest period of time. they want to keep you out of the game as long as possible. >> after he made another fortune with purology, he and his wife

cheryl tried to make a go at retirement. yet again. but it didn't last long. >> kept looking at products and how they sold and what was selling best. why did people like it? we kept saying, we can't get out of the game. we said well, let's do this again. >> jim jumped back in the game again launching color proof in 2011. >> seeing your product going across the line and how big it's grown, it's really a wonderful thing. i believe that we're all made to win. i think you have to choose to lose but we're born -- whether you believe in god or buddha or whatever, i do believe we're 100% prepared to win. just have the confidence and trial and error and keep striving to win and you'll win. >> you may know kristin cavallari from reality tv.

you may not know that she's a hardcore entrepreneur. she's the founder of uncommon james. she's serious about her business. from designing jewelry to managing a growing staff and a brick and mortar store in nashville, this is a company getting more and more popular right now. in part, because of her new e! entertainment show. very cavallari. >> whether you know her from mtv as part of the cast of laguna beach and the hills or her current show on e! reality tv star christina cavallari -- >> i've loved every second. i really learned a lot. at the end of the day, i'm working with a well-established company. that was more me putting my name on something. i had final say.

but i kind of didn't. i'm answering to a team of people. >> she dabbled in sifrl successful ventures beyond shoes, including two best selling books and a jewelry business she started with a friend called emerald dove. creatively she wasn't satisfied. kristin wanted to start something that was all hers. >> i'm in it. this is my baby. this is my company. for me it's really fun because it's the first time in my life i have complete creative freedom to do whatever i want. i have no one to answer to. it's the best for me. it's also challenging. but it's more fun than anything else. >> she named the company uncommon james. >> the name uncommon james, james is my daughter's middle name. it really is just because i love the name james for a girl even though it's traditionally for a boy, making it uncommon. >> wasting no time and no planning, kristin swung for the

fences and started her own lifestyle business. with three distinct lines. jewelry, home and baby. >> i just said, okay, i'm going to launch my own jewelry line. i didn't have time to think about it. i just did it. i found a manufacturer and from there, i was unstoppable. i found a guy to create my website. it happened overnight. i busted my ass and launched within a couple of months and i launched with just me, one girl to help me ship orders and my website guy. out of the office in my house. >> out of girl box moments are captured in her e telephone show, very cavallari. >> i woke up so excited to check the orders. the newsletter went out and we had to take them off the website. that's so bad. it looks bad on me. it doesn't fall on you guys. i'm glad you're crying. i'm glad you give a [ bleep ]. this is my [ bleep ] world right now. it got [ bleep ] this morning.

>> then she happened upon a perfect space to move her business in nashville and made another snap decision, to open an uncommon james brick and mortar retail store. >> i was looking for an office space and i stumbled upon this location. i just knew that for where this was in the city, being so close to downtown and with everything going on, it was a great location to have both the office and a retail component. so same kind of thing. i just decided okay, let's do it. i had enough time to think about it. i called a good friend, an interior decorator and he said how quickly can you turn this into a store for me. >> making affordable pieces that mix and match. >> i'm the only designer that we have. i don't really design the most traditional sense where i design a specific collection. i'll just sit down every month or so and just flush out a ton

of ideas. here's my collection with all triangles and here's one with all circles. everything in my line is so simple and effortless that no matter what, they're all cohesive. i have found that i do what i love and what i think makes a good collection. >> she loves when the design samples come in. >> receiving samples in the mail is better than christmas as a kid. it is the best day of my life. it's so cool to see what i sort of scribbled up and then send off to my manufacturer and have it arrive as a piece of jewelry. it's the best feeling in the world. >> with the success of her tv show, everything in the store sold out quickly. a mistake she says she's not going to do when season 2. >> truly, i have nothing in stock right now. because the show, i knew that the show was going to make a huge impact. i didn't know to what degree. i found that everything the girls and i were wearing on the show, i mean, it went flying off

the shelves. so i truly have seen firsthand what the show can do. it's crazy. it's the best thing in the entire world but now my biggest problem right now is keeping inventory in stock. presumably, most of you are using social media to try to boost sales. and i'm guessing a lot of you aren't seeing a lot from this social media. did you know you could make big mistakes? we've invited a guest to talk about four of them that could hurt your sales. >> the chief engagement officer at beyond 360. people know that they need to be on social media. they think at some point a lot of them give up because they sayi it's not working. right? i'm spending all this time on it, but it's not resulting in anything. let's point out some of the things they could be doing wrong. >> yes. >> the first one you have here

is simple. just about the bio. >> sometimes we have to go back to basics. what about the foundation. i always say to my clients, think about the basics and think about the foundation when it comes to your social media channel. are you using your bio effectively? what's the most important information that should be in that bio. so that if somebody discovers you on social media first, they have a clear understanding of who, what, where, when, why. and also social media, a lot of the time could be the first impression. >> that's what i'm saying. people might find you much earlier than anywhere else. >> exactly. also the bio and the banner on facebook, twitter, youtube are prime real estate. that banner is something that could be customizable. that banner is also something that we can tweak. if it's a new product launch, new service announcement, pr announcement, we can customize them to make sure the most important information is up

there. we can do that ourselves. like tools like -- we can get our graphic design on and make sure we're utilizing that real estate to solidify our branding and make sure nobody is confused by who you are and what you do. first things first, back to basics. >> not having a calendar is number two. where this comes into play, when it starts to feel overwhelming. >> yes. it doesn't have to be. it doesn't have to be overwhelming. here's most important thing. before you start thinking about all the great content you want to create and how to post and when to share, first do you know where your audience is on social media? just because social media exists doesn't mean that your target client is on every social channel. first, really understand the demographics of each social channel. what client might be on facebook might not be on snapchat. know what social media channels you should put your energy into. >> it is changing. if you look at instagram, which

is fast growing and you might have thought a younger base is creeping up. >> it is creeping up. but if you're appealing to the millennials and gen zer, they're more active on instagram and snapchat than on a facebook. ignoring comments. this is an easy one, right? super easy. >> super easy. social media is being used for customer service more than ever. millennial conditi millennial consumers expect it more than ever. it's an experience. not a department. if you have a bad customer experience online, nine out of ten chances, they won't be a repeat customer. don't ignore the dms. get back to the comments within a 24-hour time frame. that experience of the client or the consumer is going to be way more pleasant and appreciated because we really just want fact/action solution. >> by the way, i think it's fun. not all the comments or complaints are just a quick

comment on something you put up. it's fun to respond to that. >> doesn't have to take so long. if you want to put notifications on to remind you, take ten minutes a day, look at your dms, respond to your comments, your clients, your consumers, they will be grateful for that feedback. >> finally, not putting up fro pro duct or service information. this goes back to your first point. people may not go to your website. >> this goes back to the second point of the content calendar. your calendar should be 80% fun be, engaging, valuable information that you're sharing through your channels. 20% promotional. about products, your sales, more pushing sales. so find the happy medium of the balance between your content calendar. take one day a month, try to block out as much type as possible and create content in bulk. that will give you time back in your day. and then, as you start rolling out on content. give yourself three months. social media does not happen overnight. traffic will not happen

overnight. give yourself three months to assess what content worked, what content didn't work, what formats were resonating better with your audience and then refine and repeat. >> thanks so much, chelsea. good to see you. still to come, would you let an outside software vendor have access to your data? two entrepreneurs start with plastic and trash in the ocean. n don't forget that the past can speak to the future. ♪ ♪ i'm going to be your substitute teacher. don't assume the substitute teacher has nothing to offer... same goes for a neighborhood. don't forget that friendships last longer than any broadway run. mr. president. (laughing) don't settle for your first draft. or your 10th draft. ♪ ♪ you get to create the room where it happens.

♪ ♪ just don't think you have to do it alone. ♪ ♪ the powerful backing of american express. don't live life without it. how do we convince i.t. departments in enterprises to allow software vendors to access their data as it is now in the cloud? >> this is a trickier question than ever right now. data security and data privacy is a super hot issue. we all know go gdpr in europe. the privacy laws are coming out of state. california has these rules. the first thing we have to do, if you want to access that data, the entity or people accessing it have to be vetted. we have to know they're following the privacy rules and the various security

functionality. secondly, there has to be an objective purpose. what is this data access going to do for the stakeholders, for the business itself, for the individuals that desire to have it made? it's a complex issue. it's something we think about a lot at mind body. we're tracking the data of 68,000 businesses more than 50 million consumers. so it's an important question. when you take your gashage out to the curb, it's probably the last time you think about your trash. some goes into land fills, some is recycled. a lot of it, unfortunately, ends up in the ocean and a great deal of that is plastic just left floating in the sea. nbc's kerry sanders headed out to the water with millennial entrepreneurs who started the company for ocean and are cleaning up our coastal waters by fishing for trash. >> just off the coast of palm bea beach, less than a mile from president trump's mar-a-lago, a picture postcard of one of america's most beautiful

playgrounds. but it's what lies below. in the atlantic ocean waters here that end up shocking and heartbreaking. on this day, we joined andrew cooper and alex schultz, two millennials who turned problem solving upside down. first, the problem. >> it's hard when you can't see it. to a lot of people, it's not -- >> reporter: teaming with plast irs. each year, 17 billion pounds find their way into the world's water ways. >> somebody's telephone? >> yep. somebody's telephone. ridiculous to find it here. >> reporter: like trying to count every star in the sky, andrew and alex's mission would seem impossible, ridding the world's ocean of plastic and garbage and everything else that

just does not belong. >> are you surprised to see a tire down here? >> no, i didn't expect to see that, but i'm not surprised. you will find a lot of strange things down here. >> reporter: this struck these guys on a surfing vacation in bali. >> we saw a beach full of plastic. i said, hey, dude, how come no one is cleaning up the ocean? he said we clean it every day. there's so much in the ocean it catches up. >> reporter: two buddies up ended traditional thinking. instead of asking for money, they started a business. they would pay people and sponsor volunteer groups to pick up as much plastic as possible. >> what if we create a demand. >> we were like how do you do that? >> reporter: how would they hire

220 people in three countries and turn clean up into a business? >> they have been selling bracelets from recycled materials. it's funded by this? >> absolutely. >> it cost how much? >> $20 a bracelet. >> reporter: so far, 20 bracelets sold. for ocean, cleaning up to clean up. >> who is intimidating the ocean, green peace or tesla? the private sector is where action happens. that's why we are here. >> for every $20, for ocean promises to extract pounds of trash. they salvaged 800,000 pounds from the oceans so far. >> flood light. straws are terrible. >> straws, plastic water bottles. >> reporter: now, from two 20-somethings, a business

solution. maybe. is it offensive to call you garbage person? >> no. >> reporter: kerry sands, off the coast of florida. >> we have the top two tips you need to know to help you grow your business. let's introduce the panel. dottie is the ceo of the oldest and largest real estate brokerage firm. andrew is the ceo of berlin packaging in chicago, a global supplier of metal containers. dottie, let's start with you. you have had great success in this career, this one and the one before. what is something you learned along the way? >> to build a great company, the assets are the people and if you involve them, if you make them part of it, of course it's not profit, but there's also a purpose to your company. i think you get brand

ambassadors and people want that brand and that company to win. >> how do you do that? it's easy to say you want to get people involved. sometimes, as the ceo, you want people to do what is right. how do you balance that? >> we do a lot of things off site. people getting to know each other better and outside work. they really get this, i think the leadership has to paint the vision -- we are all a big family. i think we will root for each other. >> it's interesting to create a culture of, we are in this together. by the way, i interviewed

someone from zillow. they have a card on the desk of how many years you have been there. >> you bought this company when you were 27 years old chl. >> leverage buyout. now worth billions of dollars. you have been through the full gamut. >> taking care of people is important. anyone that's had a shower had a good idea. there's plenty of good ideas in a company. the problem is how to get the ideas off the paper and into action. for us, billing the company and the lessons i learned early on, we have to have a core competency of recruiting for traits, not just skills. somebody with the enerly, the ambition, the intelligence. imagination that is clever, a fire in the belly, a glint in the eye. you can't teach those things, you can only recruit those things. i can teach packaging or operations, but not the kind of person they are.

recruiting for traits is something we got very, very good at. training in skill development, we invested a great deal in that and retention. most pay attention to employees that are problem. we pay attention to those folks, but those that are stars. that kind of loyalty really is -- >> that's what i was going to say. once you recruit great people, then they are in. if they happen to be in the wrong place or if they don't have a great manager, you have to address that, right? it's not just about getting the great people in the door. >> it's keeping them. >> it's about keeping them. >> we do, at radio city hall, we do an awards ceremony where you walk and the rockets and walk on that stage as a top producer, i have to tell you, you get a feeling that is great. you want to be there. we award our team players, rookies of the year. i have a veterans club that people that are over 21 years in

the business, we recognize them, also. i think that's part of what builds retention. >> right. if you are hiring them for traits, not skills, you can move them around, right? don't give up on them if they don't fit in this job, which is much easier said than done. s >> it is. if you create a company around this, we owe our employees results and a chance to grow a sense of family in the company, great leadership. people usually leave leaders, not companies. >> absolutely. >> there has to be training for the leaders, the supervisors. there has to be a sense of job security. you can't guarantee it. i don't think people today work under a veil of fear. >> you said ideas are a dime a dozen. it's execution. you cannot execute without a great team and a team that

believes in your vision. congratulations to both of you who have been executing quite well for a number of years. great to see you both. this week's yourbizselfie is from lec fitness in washington, d.c. your health is our business. he is a certified personal trainer, fitness coach and they offer training, injury prevention and wellness programs. pick up your cell phone. take a selfie of you and your company and send it to us at yourbusiness@msnbc.com. please do not forget to include your name, the name of your company and where you are. thank you so much for joining us. we love hearing from you. if you want to get in touch, e-mail yourbusiness@msnbc.com. i promise you, we read every e-mail we get. if you want more of the show, head over to our website,

msnbc.com/yourbusiness. we put up everything from today's show and more. do not forget to catch up with us on social and digital platforms as well. check out our podcast, been there, built that. you can download it for free from tune in. we look forward to seeing you next time. i'm j.j. ramberg. remember, we make your business our business. don't forget that the past can speak to the future. ♪ ♪ i'm going to be your substitute teacher. don't assume the substitute teacher has nothing to offer... same goes for a neighborhood. don't forget that friendships last longer than any broadway run. mr. president. (laughing)

don't settle for your first draft. or your 10th draft. ♪ ♪ you get to create the room where it happens. ♪ ♪ just don't think you have to do it alone. ♪ ♪ the powerful backing of american express. don't live life without it. good morning. welcome to "politics nation." a uniquely dramatic week in washington and in just a few minutes i'll ask massachusetts senator elizabeth warren what this week meant for the nation now, in november and of course in 2020. we start with the top story. the fbi now has a