Women’s Business Mastermind Feature: Paola LaManna, founder of Compass Star Distribution
“Everything is figureoutable.” - Marie Forleo
There’s a distinct mindset I notice in some of the best women business owners I know: “I’ll figure it out.”
As in… “I’m not sure how to do that, but I’ll figure it out.”
It’s this mindset that allows us to be flexible and pivot as entrepreneurship demands. It’s how I started my virtual assisting business that morphed into data and analytics, ultimately scouring through clients’ data to help them understand where they’re leaving money on the table. “I’ll figure it out.”
It’s embracing the fear of the unknown and leaning into the continuous process of up-skilling.
Confidence that comes with the propensity to solve problems is precious and profitable.
After all, as business owners, we create value by solving a problem people are willing to pay for. It’s this same mindset that lends to one of my favorite sayings: “We don’t sell products or services; we sell transformation.”
Women who understand this tend to be lightyears ahead at running businesses.
When I think of the women in my life who speak the language of problem-solving best, I think of my friend, Paola, one of our OG Founding Females® Mastermind members, who quoted this:
“My previous corporate experience made me feel like I was just a cog in a big wheel. Now I feel more like an engineer, a creator and guide, and I love helping my clients find solutions to their challenges.”
Before I introduce you to Paola, let’s talk about what a women’s business mastermind really is.
What is a women’s business mastermind?
The Founding Females® women business mastermind group is a female entrepreneur space online away from social media where members find support and belonging in a community full of ideas about how to grow their businesses.
Inside the women’s Mastermind community is a buzzing conversation about business topics that help women up-skill while running their businesses. Inside, we talk through topics important to female entrepreneurs like:
how create policies and procedures to grow your team,
how to analyze your finances to know whether or not your business is ready to grow,
mental health for female entrepreneurs, and
how to build your business into an asset, not a paycheck.
Each month, Founding Females® Mastermind members access a transformative one-hour Mastermind call where all members share their best business wisdom on a specific business topic. Outside of that call, women engage daily through posts, comments, and direct messages. It’s the dialogue and connection that fuels growth.
Paola is a wealth of wisdom and good energy and I can’t wait to introduce you!
Friends, Meet Paola LaManna
What I love about Paola is how she’s a figure-outer. Then, she turns around and shares that wisdom with our community in an uplifting, selfless way. I’ve seen it time and time again.
For example, Paola took the initiative to set up a mentoring session in her business with SCORE, an organization that helps small business owners. There, she gained access to a valuable spreadsheet that helped her run the numbers in her business. She learned the process, gained insight, and turned around to teach the rest of us. That transfer of knowledge only happens in rooms focused on community over competition.
This is why intentionally choosing your room is critical. The people you choose to surround yourself have a direct impact on your success and I’m so glad to be in the same room with Paola.
Let’s dive into more of Paola’s business journey.
Founding Females®: Paola, let’s hear more about your company, Compass Star Distribution.
Paola: At Compass Star Distribution, we provide distribution and warehousing support to growing businesses.
We help brands organize their inventory and streamline their order fulfillment process.
We cater to wholesale B2B (business-to-business) businesses as well as D2C (direct-to-consumer) / e-commerce businesses.
We also provide sourcing, kitting, and retail prep services as needed.
Founding Females®: Tell us about how Compass Star Distribution came to be a small business.
Paola: My personal career has spanned over 20 years in manufacturing and logistics for major consumer brands around the world.
I left corporate in 2015 to be a full-time mom, but started getting calls from entrepreneur friends asking for help with their logistics. They would refer me to their friends and so on.
I quickly realized that these smaller companies were severely underserved and many didn't even know what kinds of questions to ask when looking for solutions.
I did a lot of consulting for the next few years. In 2023 I decided to get my own warehouse and Compass Star was officially born.
Founding Females®: What kind of client are you best fit to serve?
Paola: I love working with smaller brands that have been DIYing their distribution, but have outgrown their basement or garage.
They have a good business base, but are overwhelmed or frustrated with managing their logistics. We can take that load off their shoulders so they can focus on growing their business.
I know letting go at this stage can feel like leaving your baby with an unfamiliar sitter, but I work closely with my clients to ensure that we are fully transparent and consistent in delivering quality service to their end clients.
Founding Females® Women’s Business Mastermind
We’re in open enrollment! Be part of something special by joining Paola and the strong female founder community inside the Founding Females® Mastermind.
Founding Females®: Share a client success story!
Paola: One of my clients is an importer of premium chocolate from South America. She does a lot of corporate gifting for high end corporate clients like financial advisors, insurance agents, etc.
She was struggling with how to fulfill her chocolate gift boxes during warmer summer months.
I helped her to source some thermal insulated shipping pouches to protect her chocolate from melting in transit, and then worked with FedEx to get her flat rate 2-day shipping anywhere in the US at a reduced price.
Her chocolates are now guaranteed to arrive at the right temperature in 2 days to any destination at an affordable price.
Founding Females®: How would you describe your own personal growth journey through entrepreneurship?
Paola: Entrepreneurship always has its challenges from staffing to cash flow and planning. It can feel overwhelming and lonely at times. But I really enjoy being able to collaborate and brainstorm with my clients.
My previous corporate experience made me feel like I was just a cog in a big wheel.
I got orders from a higher power and had to execute, whether I agreed with them or not. Now I feel more like an engineer, a creator and guide, and I love helping my clients find solutions to their challenges.
I try to include my staff in this as well, and will include them in briefings, brainstorming sessions, etc. I want them to feel like they are contributing and are a vital part of the process.
Founding Females®: Paola, tell us about your favorite business topics.
Paola: I'm a total nerd and LOVE learning about what leaders and innovators are doing in other industries. I think there is so much we can learn from others with different mindsets and problem-solving skills and apply to our own situations.
You can usually find me listening to TED talks, reading Dan Sullivan books, and geeking out with Neil deGrasse Tyson on his StarTalk Podcast.
I am also a big fan of the Small Business Development Center and the SCORE mentor group. I watch their webinars regularly.
Founding Females®: Why did you decide to join the Founding Females® Mastermind?
Paola: Entrepreneurship is challenging for everyone, but I think women have the added burden of family management, which has to co-exist with your business life cycles.
My industry is especially male-dominated, so I wanted to plug into a community of women business owners who understand the added struggles of planning dinners, finding that work-life balance, working from home when kids are sick, etc.
I love the encouragement and the accountability I have found with the other amazing women in this group.
Founding Females®: What else should readers know about your small business journey?
Fear kept me from stepping out on my own for many years. Plugging into groups like Founding Females® has given me the courage to take those leaps of faith and surpass my expectations for growth. Like the proverb says: “If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together.”
Founding Females®: Let’s get connected! Share with us where you’re spending time.
Paola on Alignable: Paola on Alignable
Connect on LinkedIn: Paola LaManna
Conclusion to Our Compass Start Distribution Female Founder Feature
Paola’s logistics services help clients get products from one place to another, but her value is rooted in problem solving. She’s a figure-outer, but she doesn’t stop there. She carves the path for the community around her to help the rest of us learn to run a better business.
The feeling I continually experience whenever I leave a conversation with Paola: Endless gratitude I decided to take the journey with a community.
Join the Women’s Business Mastermind
Join Paola, Krystal Stegmaier, Taylor Leontios Bre Henderson, Katrina Howard, Kayla Miller, Janelle Reeb, Lindsey the Ladysmith, Heidi the Joyologist, Lindsay Wineinger, and the rest of the Founding Females® family inside the Founding Females® women business mastermind.
We’re currently offering a free trial, so peek inside and see what it’s like!
P.S. Here are some of my top favorite female small business resources:
Dream, Build, Grow Free Resource Suite - free business templates for your business plan, marketing plan, ideal client persona, financial statements, and more!
Founding Females Community - an online female mastermind space for entrepreneurs to connect, support, and get inspired
Dream, Build, Grow: A Female’s Step-by-Step Guide for How to Start a Business - a guided how-to handbook including everything you need to know from business idea to launch to profiting and scaling your business.
Free Downloads for Female Entrepreneurs
Free PDF Download: 25 Ways to Market Your Business (Aside from Social Media)
Free PDF Download: 33 keys to Business Success
Free PDF Download: SEO Tips for Entrepreneurs
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About Founding Females®
The mission of Founding Females® is to help women build thriving businesses. We create safe spaces for women to share business challenges and receive peer support.
In addition, Founding Females® offers an online female business mastermind, a how-to guidebook for female entrepreneurs called Dream, Build, Grow: A Female’s Step-by-Step Guide for How to Start a Business, and in-person events, like an annual women’s business conference and local Founding Females® Meet Ups.
Founding Females® was founded by small business educator, Francie Hinrichsen. She believes anyone with a dream on their heart can pull up a seat to change the world through entrepreneurship. Click to learn more about working with Francie.
As business owners, we create value by solving a problem people are willing to pay for. Women who understand this tend to be lightyears ahead at running businesses. When I think of the women in my life who speak the language of problem-solving best, I think of my friend, Paola…