The day kicked off with four panels that set the tone fast: no empty “follow your dreams” pep talks, no sugarcoating. Just founders and leaders talking plainly about what it actually takes to build something that lasts—financially, personally, and everything in between. The conversations felt rooted in reality, speaking to where most people in the room actually are: growing their businesses, juggling identity and legacy, and trying to figure out what success even looks like in a market that changes every five minutes.

Beauty & Wellness Panel
Moderated by Babble on Brooke, this conversation pulled together Anastasia Love (Studio Queen Hair), Dr. Sundar Natarajan (Beauty Within Med Spa), Dr. Natasha Weems, Makuyo (SIIKA Herb + Honey Co.), and Yoona So (Sokit Beauty). What struck me most was how seamlessly they connected outer beauty with inner wellbeing—less about quick fixes, more about the deeper needs that drive why people invest in these products in the first place.

Fashion & Lifestyle Panel
This one felt especially aligned with TrooRa’s lens, since TrooRa Founder, Creative Director and Executive Editor in Chief Trystanne Cunningham moderated. True to form, she cut past surface trends and steered the panel into bigger questions: what does it mean to build a brand that lasts? How do you keep ethics front‑and‑center while still staying relevant? The panel— Eve Oon DeMartine (Popilush), Anika McKelvey (LAS Loungewear), Reneta Jain (Foren), and Kelly Martin (Epoch Lasers)—talked candidly about balancing aesthetics with responsibility, a conversation that mirrored the ethos we try to bring to TrooRa’s own storytelling.

Business & Entrepreneurship Panel
Moderated by Lauren Sturman of Angeleno Magazine, this was probably the most “no‑nonsense” panel of the day. Speakers like Samantha Senia (Elite Home Staging), Nicole Lahmani, Esq. (Lahmani Law), Lisa Thomas (Epigenetics for Global Impact), Eme Aqua (Emes Baked Goods), Jessica Hawley (PeachTree Legal), and Kate Starr (Aligned with Kate) didn’t sugarcoat the realities of growth. They talked about risk, burnout, funding headaches, and how to stay grounded when everyone around you is chasing scale at all costs. It wasn’t performative transparency—it was useful.

Business & Innovation Panel
The final panel, curated by Rhonda Swan of The Unstoppable Branding Agency, looked ahead. Stephanie Aristei (2nd Wind Pulse), Ashleigh Ignelzi (NassifMD), Bill Wiedemann (Lumara), Cherese Denny, CARA, and Nicole Slone (Drink Above Board) explored where tech, wellness, and community meet—and why solving real problems for real people is still the smartest growth strategy there is. It was the kind of forward‑looking conversation that made you want to take notes, not just clap politely.