Posted on 6/5/2013

Go out and start a business based on your passion. Good advice, but for most of us that’s easier said than done. But that’s exactly what Kara Goldin did when she launched her beverage company Hint Water, Inc. in 2004. Sick of looking for a flavored bottled water with zero calories, she decided to create her own. Goldin quit her job in the tech industry and launched her company, hiring her husband as her COO along the way.  Hint Water is a zero-calorie, non-sweetened soda alternative that comes in a variety of flavors. Today, it’s a 30 million dollar company that’s expanding rapidly. Goldin answered a few questions for us about her journey with Hint and her experience as an entrepreneur.

How is working for yourself different than working for a big tech company?
It’s completely different and completely the same. At hint I don’t feel like I’m working for myself. I feel like I am creating something new and big. I have a vision of what I want hint to be, and am constantly working to grow and mold my company to bring that vision to life. It’s almost like having a kid. As VP at AOL I was executing a vision that was partially inherited and a component of a bigger corporate strategy. I was exhilarated by the growth my group achieved, but I wasn’t creating something to stand on its own. With hint I am creating a whole entity. Hint and big tech are similar in that both are on the leading edge of rethinking how we live of our lives, and are trying to provide tools to make it easier to achieve what we would like to achieve.

What inspired you to leave tech and start Hint?
I really enjoyed my position as Vice President of Shopping and E-commerce Partnerships at AOL. I was working long hours and wanted to make sure I was making healthy decisions even if I didn’t have the time to take a one-hour hike everyday. One day I decided that I wanted to stop my diet drink habit. So I went to the store in search of something that was flavored (since I find water plain), had zero calories (I’d rather eat calories than drink them), and didn’t have any diet sweeteners. There were hundreds of drinks but none that had no calories and no diet sweeteners. So I went home and started creating my own by adding slices of fruit to water. I’d serve it to friends when they came over and soon people were asking where they could buy my blackberry water. That was my “aha” moment. I realized that I wasn’t the only one trying to cut down on diet sweetened drinks. So I decided to start hint. Compared to tech, it felt like I was doing something that could truly help make it easier for Americans to lead a healthier lifestyle.

Hint is more than a water company; it’s a lifestyle. How have you seen your own life change after starting Hint?
My life has definitely changed since starting hint and living the hint lifestyle. Kicking my diet drink habit and drinking hint water was the first step. Over the past eight years I’ve really seen first hand that what you put in and on your body impacts how you feel and how well your mind and body perform. I read ingredient lists – not just for my beverages, but also for my food, my skin care products, and my home cleaning products. I rarely get sick and I feel much more vibrant than I used to. You’d think the reverse would be true given the hours and energy I put towards running hint!

What tips and tricks do you use to manage your schedule? Do you have any hard and fast rules that you stick with to make sure everything gets done?
Here are my secrets to staying sane when traveling while running a company and raising a family at the same time:
o Simplify the wardrobe – Packing only the essentials makes it easier to plan your look. I stick to black, blue, and white.
o Calling home, stay consistent – No matter what, I talk to my kids at 7AM and 7PM. There is not one day that they wake up or go to sleep without talking to me or my husband
o Local time is real time – No matter the time zone, I always wake up at the same time.
o Fly with Wi-Fi – Being able to connect while you travel is very important. If not, flying coast-to-coast will cost you over 6hrs out of your day.
o Fly early or late – Take the first flight in the AM or the red-eye, this way you can take a meeting in the afternoon and not lose a day when you travel back
o Avoid energy drinks – One cup of coffee in the morning and that’s it. People who tend to drink a lot of coffee have a hard time falling asleep at night.

Hint is really a family company. What has it been like partnering with your husband?
Partnering with Theo to launch and run hint has been a blast. You’re never “off” when you’re creating and running a company, so partnering with your husband actually may be easier than not; he’s part of the conversation rather than on the side lines. We also have different backgrounds and work styles which are complementary. I’m go-go-go while Theo is thorough. I’m certain hint would not have been as successful if we hadn’t brought our two styles together.

What tips do you have for other women looking to start a company?
Have a vision you are passionate about, and get after it. Surround yourself with smart, passionate people. Always be on the lookout for the next great opportunity to grow your company in a way that is different than others have before.

What’s your favorite app?
For traveling, Uber. For personal, Saks Fifth Avenue. They have GREAT shoes. Just don’t tell Theo.

Meet Kara

Kara Goldin is Founder & CEO of HINT Inc. HINT is available at leading retailers and is one of the top beverages at Google, Facebook and other forward-thinking companies.  Kara’s prior work experience includes roles at AOL, CNN and Time magazine. She currently lives near San Francisco, with her husband, four children and two Labradors.

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