Launching plan

Emily Hikade didn't plan on running a fast-growing startup. After a near-death experience, one thing just led to another. A case officer working undercover for the Central Intelligence Agency, Hikade's job had taken her family to nine countries on three continents, and she wanted a safer life for her children. During a flight over the Indian Ocean to meet an affiliate of a known terrorist group, Hikade's plane started to nosedive. "The lights went out and people were screaming," Hikade told Inc. 's What I Know podcast . "I had three little boys at home, and my youngest one wasn't even a year old. I could see them so clearly in my head, and I felt really profoundly sad that they were going to grow up without a mother." While aspiring entrepreneurs can feel like there's no ideal time to start a company, as the plane righted itself, Hikade thought, well, this is as good a time as any. In 2015, while working in East Africa, Hikade launched Petite Plume, a high-end … [Read more...] about She Worked Undercover for the CIA. Now, Her Apparel Company Tops $10 Million in Annual Sales

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline Billionaire GOP megadonor and onetime ally to former President Donald Trump Ronald Lauder, met with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently as the likely 2024 GOP presidential candidate pitches himself as the adult in the room to wealthy donors amid increasingly incendiary rhetoric from Trump. Key Facts Lauder met with DeSantis, who is widely expected to announce a run for president in early summer, at his Long Island estate several months ago, Politico reported , citing two unnamed sources familiar with the meeting. The reported meeting comes after Lauder—heir to Estée Lauder who has known Trump for decades and helped fund his 2020 reelection bid—said through a spokesperson in November that he will not donate to Trump’s 2024 campaign, though he did not say whom he would support in 2024 and did not comment to Politico on the recent DeSantis meeting. DeSantis is reportedly targeting wealthy New … [Read more...] about Billionaire Ex-Trump Ally Ronald Lauder Met With Ron DeSantis As He Courts Wealthy Execs On Trump’s Turf, Report Says

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) launched a personal attack against President Joe Biden on Thursday, as negotiations between the White House and GOP lawmakers surrounding two high-stakes fiscal issues—the debt ceiling and the federal budget—are deadlocked. Key Facts McCarthy offered Thursday to meet with Biden “tonight” to discuss increasing the U.S.’ federal borrowing limit, offering to bring “soft foods” to a White House lunch if Biden would agree to a sit-down, in what appears to be a ham-fisted attempt to ridicule the president about his age. (At 80, Biden is the oldest president in history.) The offer is a non-starter, however, as the White House has repeatedly called on Congress to pass a debt ceiling increase with no strings attached and said it will not negotiate with Republicans on increasing the borrowing limit, which the federal government is expected to reach some time in late summer. … [Read more...] about McCarthy Mocks Biden Amid Debt Ceiling Standoff—Offering To Bring ‘Soft Foods’ To Negotiating Table