Startup founders often hit a wall. Their companies show potential, but growth stalls. Many follow a familiar path: they hire experienced C-level executives, hoping new leadership will speed things up. Months later, despite big salaries and promises, the same problems persist.
Raquel Braun and Lagen Nash saw this pattern repeatedly in their own careers. As C-level executives themselves, they noticed companies bringing in new leadership without addressing the real issues underneath: teams working in silos, unclear goals, and poor communication between departments.
“So many companies, especially in the start-up world, were relying heavily on new C-level hires to solve their business-critical needs,” Braun and Nash explain. “But the problems that needed solving needed more than one executive. They needed to optimize their current team, build proper strategies, and create ways for different departments to work together.”
Spotting the Market Gap
What if they could help companies build stronger foundations instead of just adding more executives? Their combined experience made them uniquely qualified to spot these gaps.
Braun’s 18 years in sports industry leadership included serving as Chief Business Officer of the Women’s Sports Network, launching new verticals at EA Sports, and negotiating high-profile rights agreements at FOX Sports. She also brings an academic perspective as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University Law Center.
Nash’s 15 years across sports, media, and technology as Chief Revenue Officer at Silver Tribe Media and Chief Commercial Officer at Misfits Gaming Group gave her firsthand experience with these challenges.
Before starting their own company, they did their research. They talked with CEOs and founders about their struggles with:
- Getting teams to work well together
- Building strategies everyone understands
- Improving communication across departments
- Growing their audience
- Increasing revenue
- Getting their name out there
“We kept seeing and hearing the same issues over and over again,” they note. These conversations showed them they could help.”
That’s when they launched Mulier Fortis, their boutique strategic consulting firm. They work differently than other consultants, focusing on what companies need right now while building long-term solutions. Their client list spans from new women’s sports leagues to major sports and entertainment companies, plus private equity firms investing in these industries.
“We dive deep with our clients,” they share. “We help fill gaps in the short-term while teaching teams how to succeed on their own.”
From Concept to Clients
The path from concept to paying customers moved quickly for Braun and Nash. It took them just three months to land their first client after forming their initial business idea.
“We launched Mulier Fortis very confident in our thesis–that there was a strong need for a different approach to consulting that was attainable for startups, small and medium-size companies, and allowed for us to dig deep with our clients to drive meaningful change and success.”
At first, they relied solely on their professional networks to find clients. “We are fortunate to have worked at phenomenal companies, and with the biggest and best leagues and brands in sports,” they explain. Once they secured their first few clients and were ready to grow, they partnered with a PR agency to help build and roll out their announcement strategy.
Pricing is often tricky for new business owners. Braun and Nash drew on their past experiences working with consultants to develop their approach.
“We have both worked with consultants in prior roles, so have seen variations on consulting prices. The key for us was to build a model that was sustainable for our business, but also approachable for our clients.”
They created flexible engagement options, using both retainer and project-based models. “While we typically require a retainer, some clients have a very specific need for a short period of time, in which a project-based fee makes more sense,” they explain. “Ultimately, we tailor our engagements to our clients, their needs, and the type of services we are providing them.”
Navigating the Business Owner Life
Leaving steady corporate paychecks wasn’t a decision they took lightly. When asked how they handled the financial uncertainty, they joke, “You should ask our husbands!”
“In all seriousness,” they explain, “it is absolutely a risk transitioning from a predictable corporate job to launching your own company. We are both fortunate to have been in a position to take that risk.”
Their confidence in their business model helped them push through the initial uncertainty. “We were very confident in our business proposition and knew that if we dedicated ourselves to this company, stuck to our launch plan and approach, and had a bit of patience in the first handful of months, it would pay off. Luckily, it did!”
Braun and Nash chose to self-fund their business rather than seek outside investment. This decision stemmed from their belief in their concept and the nature of their business model.
“We felt confident in ourselves and the business we were creating, and knew that if we could get it off the ground and bring in our first couple clients early on, we’d be in a great spot to continue growing our business.”
The consulting business model also worked in their favor. “Fortunately, the type of work we do doesn’t require a significant amount of overhead or investment to build out the business, which allowed us to approach launching in this way.”
Moving from corporate jobs to running their own business brought new challenges. “One of the biggest changes is not having all the resources we used to have at our fingertips,” they note. “We wear all of the hats now! There’s no ‘off day’ when running your own business.”
When asked what surprised them most about running their own business compared to being C-level executives, they replied, “It’s just us! We serve every role in the company, which requires a balance between time invested in our clients, maintaining the business, and bringing on new business.”
But they gained something valuable in return. “We can make our own decisions about who we work with, how we want to work, and when we want to be working,” they explain.
Surprisingly, they’ve found better work-life balance as business owners than in their corporate roles. “We both came from corporate roles where we were regularly putting in 60-hour work weeks, so in many ways, we have found it easier to find balance running our own company.”
Their approach to balance remains practical and flexible: “Some days we are fully present and involved in our young children’s school and related activities, other days we are traveling or in wall-to-wall meetings, and some days we have a mix of the two. We are patient with ourselves and very grateful to be in a position where we have control of the work we’re doing, the types of clients we bring on board, and the way in which we run our company.”
Startup Stories
Lessons for Your Business Journey
Their story offers practical lessons for anyone thinking about starting a business:
- Watch for repeated problems in your industry – they saw companies trying to hire executives to fix issues that needed deeper solutions
- Talk to potential customers before launching – they spoke with CEOs and founders to understand their needs
- Start with people you know – their first clients came from their professional networks
- Be ready for tradeoffs – they swapped corporate resources for independence
- Trust your expertise – they built a pricing model based on their experience with consultants
Braun and Nash didn’t invent something new. Instead, they noticed a problem they could solve. They used their savings to get started. They talked to potential customers to test their idea. They built on their years of experience instead of waiting for perfect timing.
You might spot similar opportunities in your own work. What problems do you see that others have missed? What solutions could you offer? Consider reaching out to people in your network to test your ideas – just like Braun and Nash did when they started their business.
To learn more about Mulier Fortis, visit their website wearemulierfortis.com/
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