Events

Inside Bala: Building (and Bootstrapping) a $100M Brand Without a Traditional Startup Playbook

In this conversation, we’re sitting down with Natalie Holloway, cofounder and CEO of Bala, the design-led fitness company behind the viral Bala Bangles.

Date

Thursday, April 23, 2026, 10:00 AM PDT

URL

RSVP HERE - REQUIRED TO ATTEND

In the world of consumer brands, the dominant narrative often centers around venture capital, rapid fundraising, and hyper-growth. But some of the most enduring brands are built differently, through discipline, creative positioning, and founders who learn to turn limited resources into real momentum.

In this conversation, we’re sitting down with Natalie Holloway, cofounder and CEO of Bala, the design-led fitness company behind the viral Bala Bangles. Since launching in 2018 with just $5,000, Natalie has helped grow Bala into a global brand with more than $100 million in sales. Along the way, the company landed a deal on Shark Tank with Mark Cuban and Maria Sharapova, expanded into major retailers, and built a devoted community around modern movement and wellness.

For founders building consumer brands today, Natalie’s journey offers a different kind of blueprint. One rooted in thoughtful product design, early brand clarity, disciplined growth, and the willingness to bootstrap long enough to build real leverage.

In this LinkedIn Live conversation, we’ll unpack what it actually takes to build a breakout consumer brand without following the traditional startup playbook. Natalie will share the practical lessons behind Bala’s growth, including how to launch with limited capital, how to create early momentum around a product, how to make smart hiring decisions as the business grows, and how founders can think about scaling a brand without losing control of the vision that made it work in the first place.

Whether you’re in the earliest stages of launching a product or already navigating the messy middle of growth, this session will offer a candid look at the systems, mindset, and decisions behind building a brand from the ground up.

About Natalie Holloway

Natalie Holloway is the co-founder of Bala, the cult-favorite fitness brand known for redefining the movement category. Since launching in 2018, she has helped grow Bala into a household name in wellness, landing a deal on Shark Tank with Mark Cuban and Maria Sharapova, generating well over $150 million in sales, and building a devoted global community along the way. She is also an angel investor and the author of Bootstrap Empire (Wiley, 2026), a practical guide to building a brand from the ground up. A mother of three, Natalie shares the real highs and lows of entrepreneurship on her podcast Hot Takes, Big Stakes, where she interviews successful founders and operators to inspire and guide the next generation of business leaders.

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Mar

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{NEW YORK, NY} Member Mingle

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LinkedIn Live

Inside Bala: Building (and Bootstrapping) a $100M Brand Without a Traditional Startup Playbook

Thursday, April 23, 2026, 10:00 AM PDT

In this conversation, we’re sitting down with Natalie Holloway, cofounder and CEO of Bala, the design-led fitness company behind the viral Bala Bangles.

Apr

City Sessions

{CHICAGO, IL} Member Mingle

Thursday, April 23, 2026, 12:30 PM CDT

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Events

Inside Bala: Building (and Bootstrapping) a $100M Brand Without a Traditional Startup Playbook

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