When Katia Beauchamp and Hayley Barna launched Birchbox from business school in 2010, they set out to disrupt the beauty industry by delivering monthly samples in a box.

Even though people told them the idea would never work, Birchbox attracted hundreds of thousands of subscribers and enthusiastic buzz as a subscription pioneer.

But the speedy success was overwhelming for Katia; over the years the company endured plenty of growing pains as it found its distinctive voice in the beauty industry.

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