Podcast 277: Meet the beauty entrepreneur who bootstrapped her way into 1,000 Walmart stores

What does success really look like for a beauty entrepreneur?

In an industry that often celebrates rapid growth, aggressive fundraising, and influencer-heavy marketing, there’s a quieter, more sustainable path – one that values creative control, profitability, and long-term impact over flashy headlines.

In this episode of Green Beauty Conversations, Lorraine Dallmeier – Chartered Environmentalist, Biologist and CEO of Formula Botanica – is joined by Chinelo Chidozie, co-founder of Bolden, and a beauty entrepreneur who bootstrapped her brand into over 1,000 Walmart stores across the United States.

Chinelo shares how she and her sister-in-law, Ndidi, walked away from high-powered finance careers to build a purpose-driven beauty brand – without any external funding. Their story is one of resilience, strategy, and focusing on what really matters: creating exceptional products that genuinely serve their community.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you need venture capital to scale your beauty business or whether it’s possible to grow without compromising your values, this episode is for you.

“The doing is the most important part. You can spend years thinking and planning, but it’s the starting that anchors you – and that’s how you make progress.” — Chinelo Chidozie

In this episode with Chinelo Chidozie, you will hear:

• The spark that started it all: How a frustrating sunscreen experience on holiday led Chinelo and her sister-in-law, Ndidi, to create Bolden – a skincare brand focused on gentle, high-performance products for melanin-rich skin.
• Building a beauty brand from scratch: Chinelo shares how they developed their bestselling SPF 30 sunscreen, navigated the complex world of FDA regulations, and worked with a lab to bring their vision to life, without any prior industry experience.
• Bootstrapping to major retail success: How Bolden grew into over 1,000 Walmart stores, starting with a cold email from a Walmart buyer. Chinelo explains how they managed this huge step without outside investment by using smart cash flow strategies and supplier relationships.
• Choosing sustainable growth over fast funding: Chinelo explains why they deliberately turned down venture capital and how bootstrapping allowed them to stay in control of their brand, grow at their own pace, and prioritise family life alongside building the business.
• The power of social media and starting where you are: Hear why social media was key to Bolden’s retail success and why Chinelo believes every beauty entrepreneur should just start, even if they don’t feel ready, because action is the best way to learn, grow, and succeed.

Key takeouts include:

• Slow, sustainable growth can be a winning strategy: Chinelo and Ndidi built Bolden by focusing on community, product effectiveness, and customer loyalty. Their impressive 70% customer retention rate shows that building long-term relationships is often more valuable than chasing rapid expansion.
• Retail partnerships require preparation and resilience: Securing a place in over 1,000 Walmart stores was a game-changer, but it also required smart negotiation, such as securing favourable payment terms and ensuring their manufacturer could handle large-scale orders efficiently.
• Bootstrapping gives you freedom, but it demands discipline: By self-funding, Chinelo and Ndidi retained complete control over their brand and growth pace. This approach meant they had to be highly selective about product launches and marketing spend, ensuring every investment directly supported the brand’s core mission.
• The hidden costs of external funding: Chinelo highlights that venture capital often comes with pressures founders may not expect, from aggressive growth targets to the potential loss of creative control. She encourages beauty entrepreneurs to think carefully about whether those trade-offs align with their personal goals.
• The importance of starting and learning along the way: Chinelo’s biggest lesson is the power of starting. Waiting for the perfect moment can lead to endless delays, but taking action – even if the first version isn’t perfect – gives you the foundation to learn, adapt, and grow your business with real-world feedback.

Meet our guest: Chinelo Chidozie, co-founder of Bolden

Chinelo is the co-founder of Bolden, a skincare brand dedicated to developing highly effective products that address hyperpigmentation.

After working in finance for several years as a bond ratings analyst in NYC, she yearned for more meaningful work. Following her lifelong passion for beauty, she partnered with her sister-in-law, Ndidi, to launch Bolden. She traded Excel spreadsheets for formulation labs and now spends her days helping people feel confident in their own skin.

Based in Texas with her husband and two sons, Chinelo has grown Bolden from an online startup into a brand available in over 1,000 Walmart locations and on Amazon.com.

Find out more about Chinelo and Bolden:

• Website: boldenusa.com
• Amazon: Bolden on Amazon
• Walmart: Bolden at Walmart
• Instagram: @boldenusa

 Special offer for listeners: Get 20% off your Bolden order with the code Botanica20 (limited-time offer).

Related episodes:

• Episode 128: Indie beauty can change your life
• Episode 251: From Kitchen Formulator to Global Icon – The Story of Elizabeth Arden

Thank you for joining us for this episode of the Formula Botanica Green Beauty Conversations podcast. If you enjoyed listening, please share, subscribe and review this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Youtube so that more people can enjoy the show. Don’t forget to follow and connect with us on Facebook and Instagram.

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Lorraine Dallmeier

Lorraine Dallmeier is a Biologist, Chartered Environmentalist and the CEO of Formula Botanica, the award-winning online organic cosmetic science school. Read more about Lorraine and the Formula Botanica Team.