Good to Great: Secrets of Success from a Savvy Business Woman
This past teleclass was recorded and transcribed for your convenience. Listen to the recorded audio or read the written transcript:
- Audio File (MP3: 15 MB) (1:06 hour)
- Class Summary (PDF: 37 KB)
Class Overview
The best way to take your company from good to great is through the advice of someone who has accomplished this goal. Katrina Markoff, owner and creator of Vosges Haut-Chocolat, turned a boutique specialty chocolate shop into a multi-million dollar international enterprise. April 24 she will share tips on how to grow your business with other women business owners during The Principal Financial Groups' April teleclass, "Good to Great: Secrets of Success from a Savvy Business Woman."
Our Speaker
Katrina Markoff began her career in the gourmet food industry after graduating from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. She noticed a shortage of creativity in the chocolate market, so she took an idea and turned it into a multi-million dollar success story. She opened her first retail shop in Chicago in 1998 with a loan backed by the Small Business Administration and started selling chocolates at specialty food stores and Neiman Marcus one year later. Vosges Haut-Chocolat, now with locations in New York City and Las Vegas specializes in creating a luxury chocolate with influences and ingredients from all points of the globe. Her inspiration comes from her extensive travels to France, Spain, Italy, Southeast Asia and Australia.
Vosges Haut-Chocolat, a $9 million dollar company, with 115 employees and a large e-commerce business. The company is certified as a women's business enterprise through the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
For her accomplishments, Markoff has been featured in a number of prestigious outlets, including: Chicago Sun-Times, Good Housekeeping, O Magazine, Time, Vogue, The Food Networks "Iron Chef," and was named one of Inc. magazine's "26 Most Fascinating Entreprenuers" and Crain's Chicago Business "40 under 40," which showcases 40 entreprenuers under the age 40 making a splash in their industry.
