Molly Stillman // Can I Laugh On Your Shoulder?'s video: Pivoting in the Pandemic EP 225: Marissa Goldstein Rafi Nova

The word for 2020 has been PIVOT. Especially when it comes to sustaining a business during an economy in the middle of a global pandemic. My guest today is living this idea of pivoting out. Her story about launching a business at the beginning of a pandemic and them completely pivoting is incredibly inspiring and you are going to love this conversation. Marissa Goldstein is a proud mother of two sets of twins. Yes, you heard that right – two sets of twins. She’s also the CEO of the leading sustainable travel accessory brand Rafi Nova. As an avid traveler, Marissa founded Rafi Nova to encourage families to travel while creating meaningful connections with global communities. While the pandemic shifted her company’s production to face masks, it expanded the company’s ability to connect and protect communities and support social causes committed to inclusivity. Under Marissa’s leadership, Rafi Nova will have donated more than 150,000 masks to organizations in need and workers on the front lines by the end of the year. This was such an incredible conversation and Marissa is such a leader in this area. Grab a warm, cozy, festive drink and Join me as I chat with Marissa. 4:42 - The Marissa 101 Marissa is the co-founder and CEO of Rafi Nova. Rafi Nova is a social enterprise on a mission to create great products that meet the ever-changing needs of families and communities, and serves to connect, inspire, and encourage others to get out there and go. She and her husband are parents to TWO sets of twins. Marissa’s family lives life on the go (or certainly before the pandemic). For the last 3-4 years, they spent half the year living in Vietnam, and the other half living right outside of Boston, MA. After Marissa finished her MBA in 2015, she joined her husband working at his manufacturing business helping consumer products companies in the US make products overseas in Vietnam. They’ve always had a wanderlust, and quickly fell in love with Southeast Asia on an around the world trip. They settled in Vietnam, creating their own supply chain and amazing community of friends. Their niche was bags, backpacks, duffel bags, luggage, etc. Every weekend they traveled to other Southeast Asia countries to meet with different ethnic women and tribes. In Northern Vietnam four years ago, they met women trying to sell their trinkets with a colorful textile wrapped around then. They discovered the women’s stories as well as the story behind the artform that has been passed down from generation to generation. It started to disappear because of technology and younger generations choosing different career paths in cities. Marissa and her husband wanted to find a way to use that textile traditional art form and put them on meaningful products in the US while also supporting the women, telling their stories, and preserving the art form. They started their own brand, Rafi Nova, which is named after their two sets of twins. They goal was to create useful products and accessories that people can wear when they’re on the go. All of the Rafi Nova products use upcycled textiles that have a story. Marissa and her husband spent a year building the company in Vietnam and came back to Boston to officially start the company. It was right as Covid-19 started spreading in the US, before anyone knew what was coming. They launched the day after the product arrived on February 16th and two weeks later received their town’s stay-at-home orders before Rafi Nova even had a shot at thriving. They knew they needed to put their factory to good use to help during the pandemic as well as keep their factory opening as product orders began plummeting. It was actually their four-year-old who suggested they start making masks. In Vietnam, people wear masks every day because of the air pollution, which gave Marissa and her family a unique perspective on masks that most Americans don’t have. They know what it takes to make a comfortable, safe, and effective mask. They called up their factory and decided they were going to make 10,000 makes to donate to front-line workers. Word caught on quickly and people were asking if Rafi Nova would sell the masks for their own personal use. It was in March, when there was a lot of dialogue about masks but nowhere to buy them. They put the masks on their website, and 24 hours later they’d done over $25,000 in sales with a gratitude for the opportunity and the need for a plan to fulfill the orders! Since that day, Rafi Nova has sold over 2 million masks, and donated over 125,000 masks and have more than 30 employees in a 7500 sq ft fulfillment center. Marissa credits her experience as a mom of two twins for preparing her for this endeavor. 19:22 – Empowering Artisans Through Partnership After discovering the traditional handicrafts in Northern Vietnam, Rafi Nova wanted to find a way to connect with local communities and communities around the world. They would stay in the communities in a very...