Models and Joja founders Josephine Skriver and Jasmine Tookes: We learned the business 'from the ground up'
The Glossy Podcast · with Josephine Skriver and Jasmine Tookes · March 2, 2022 · 37 min
Summary
Former supermodels Josephine Skriver and Jasmine Tookes share their journey of building Joja from a passion project Instagram account to a burgeoning activewear brand. They detail how leveraging an engaged community of over 700,000 followers directly fueled product demand, offering a unique playbook for brand founders on transforming authentic connections into a thriving business, with plans to expand into a full "Joja universe" of health and wellness products.
Key takeaways
Cultivate an authentic community around a shared passion before launching products; Joja built a 700k+ follower base on Instagram sharing workout content before introducing merchandise.
Leverage existing audience demand to validate product-market fit; Joja transitioned from content to commerce based on community requests for "merch."
Start with a niche and plan for broader brand expansion; Joja began with activewear but has a vision for a comprehensive health and wellness "universe" including drinks and equipment.
Embrace a "learn from the ground up" mentality, even with significant public profiles; the founders emphasized their hands-on approach to understanding business operations.
Transform personal passions into a unique brand identity; Joja originated from the founders' genuine love for fitness and accountability, which resonated with their audience.
Both Josephine Skriver and Jasmine Tookes have been modeling for more than a decade for brands from Victoria’s Secret to Tom Ford. Now, they’re focused on building a brand of their own.
Named Joja – derived using the first two letters of their first names – Skriver and Tookes’s activewear brand launched in February. It bears the same name as the Instagram account the pair launched in 2016, which unexpectedly gained a large following. “It really just developed over our passion and love for fitness and staying healthy, and holding each other accountable in the gym,” said Tookes. “We started posting our workouts on Instagram, and it was really just for us to share our journey in the gym with each other. And out of nowhere, girls from all over the world started sharing their workouts with each other and holding each other accountable.”
Today, the Instagram account has more than 700,000 followers. And that community’s demand for Joja “merch” is what drove the launch of the brand – which the founders plan to expand far beyond activewear.
“Hopefully, we can build an entire Joja universe,” Tookes said. “We have so many ideas we want to do. Joja is really a fun opportunity for us to build an entire umbrella around health and wellness, whether that includes protein drinks or beauty waters or workout equipment. The opportunities are endless.”
What does this episode say about influencer & creator?
Cultivate an authentic community around a shared passion before launching products; Joja built a 700k+ follower base on Instagram sharing workout content before introducing merchandise.
What does this episode say about brand & content?
Leverage existing audience demand to validate product-market fit; Joja transitioned from content to commerce based on community requests for "merch."
What does this episode say about dtc strategy?
Start with a niche and plan for broader brand expansion; Joja began with activewear but has a vision for a comprehensive health and wellness "universe" including drinks and equipment.
What does this episode say about founder & leadership?
Embrace a "learn from the ground up" mentality, even with significant public profiles; the founders emphasized their hands-on approach to understanding business operations.
What does this episode say about influencer & creator?
Transform personal passions into a unique brand identity; Joja originated from the founders' genuine love for fitness and accountability, which resonated with their audience.
