interview: Emily Soloby of Juno Jones Work Boots
Ever dream of a pair of good looking women work boots to go on job site?
For the past few years, I’ve been in and out of the job site every week.
And I always felt a little sadness in me when I put on my gigantic construction boots that never go with my outfits.
Seriously - why do they always look like a monster truck?
Until one day I saw this on Juno Jones Shoes Instagram account:
With a mission “to help normalize and empower women in nontraditional fields”, I knew I had to follow along.
Emily Soloby, the CEO of Juno Jones Shoes launched their first product on Kickstarter and within a day she got fully funded!
In fact, she’s been so successful that Kickstarter featured her work boots.
So I asked Emily if she’d be up to answer some questions about her journey to represent women in non-traditional fields.
How she had the courage to take an idea into a real company.
What it’s like to balance work, raising kids, and starting a second company.
The biggest tip the founder of Ugg boots personally gave her.
And a lot more.
I’m sure you’ll find this interview as inspiring as I did.
So let’s get right into it.
From Women Rights to Women Work Boots
Joann: Women’s rights advocate, lawyer, transportation executive and now creating shoes for women in nontraditional jobs.
Take us through the journey of how you got here.
Emily:
I loved Women’s Studies in college, and I knew whatever my career was, it would somehow include empowering women.
During undergrad I volunteered as a domestic violence advocate, helping women in the courtroom.
That experience led me to want to go to law school.
While in law school I continued to work on women’s issues, and then after graduating, I served as a legal aid lawyer, focusing on family law and abuse cases.
After a few years, I needed a break from that, so I went back to graduate school for my Masters.
That’s where I met my husband Ryan.
Ryan and I were on separate career paths from each other, but then an opportunity came up to buy a family business.
It was a small truck driving school.
We decided to go for it, and we loved it.
We found we could help people by working with government agencies to get unemployed people trained and placed in jobs.
Over ten years we grew that company into a national consulting firm and it’s still going strong.
As an executive in the transportation industry, I would be running from my office to work sites and I never had the right footwear.
My traditional safety boots didn’t fit well or look good with my professional clothing, or even with my jeans.
I made it my mission to create Juno Jones, and to bring women options in safe, beautiful footwear while helping to empower and normalize women in hazardous fields.
Where Did the Juno Jones Shoes Idea Come From?
Joann: How’d you come up with the Juno Jones shoe?
Do you remember when you decided you’d actually make things happen rather than just keeping it an idea?
Going from “on paper” to actually studying shoemaking is a big leap!
What was the catalyst to actually get started?
Emily:
I’ve always loved boots, and I had taken shoemaking classes over the years, as a hobby.
Because I was so interested in shoes, I would constantly notice gaps in the market.
Stylish safety boots was one of the gaps I noticed, and it was probably the one that drove me the most crazy, because I really needed them myself!
I started talking to other women not just in my industry but in many other fields, and that’s when I realized what a pervasive problem it was.
The excitement was palpable, and I knew I had to take action and make it happen.
How to Balance Life and Work as a Mom and Entrepreneur
Joann: Not only are you starting up Juno Jones, but you also have another business, AAA School of Trucking - which had its 10-year anniversary last year - congrats!
Not to mention… a Mom of two kids.
Lots of women struggle with balancing between work and family, but how do you prioritize and manage your time?
Emily:
Thank you!
It was the 10th anniversary of our Philadelphia campus, but the business itself has been around for 23 years.
Thankfully we have an amazing staff and are able to step away when we need to.
We are also fortunate to have the kids’ grandparents close by.
Finding a balance between work and family life is always a challenge, especially when things get busy.
We have a great routine, which we try hard to stick to.
We both spend time with the kids in the morning.
One of us takes them to school and the other one picks them up, so we each get some time with them then.
We have dinner together as a family almost every night, even if it’s frozen pizza, and we put our phones away.
We alternate days spending individual time with each child at bedtime so that they get one-on-one time with each parent.
We don’t do any sports or activities after 5pm, because evenings are our family time.
Starting Businesses with Your Husband
Joann: What’s it like running (two) companies with your spouse? Are there any unique challenges you face?
Emily:
Ryan and I love working together, and we always have.
When we met we were in graduate school, so we would work on projects together.
Also during grad school, Ryan was a DJ and I joined him as a VJ, projecting video onto the wall at a weekly dance night.
So it’s totally natural for us to work together, and we have lots of adventures.
Another thing about us is that we have different strengths, which really complement each other.
When we started Juno Jones, we decided together that I would step away from AAA, so that I could focus full time on creating the Juno Jones boots and brand.
But now that Juno Jones is growing, Ryan is dividing his time between both companies.
As for challenges, any partnership has them.
Ours is remembering when to step back, stop working, and take a break.
We both love working so that can be tricky, but we have a standing date night, as well as nights out with our friends.
Finding Mentorship
Joann: Did you have any mentors or communities along the way?
You’ve said that your great-great Italian grandfather was a shoemaker.
Maybe things really do pass through the generations!
Emily:
That is true!
My great-great-grandfather was a shoemaker in Sicily.
We have a portrait of him hanging in my mom’s house.
My mother is one of my biggest influences.
She always encouraged me to do work that I loved and to consider where I’d be spending my day, rather than just the job itself.
She also taught me everything I know about fashion.
She used to make a lot of my clothes, and everything we wore growing up had to be well-fitted, timeless, and made of the best quality fabric.
How to be a Confident Women in the Workplace
Joann: We asked the nearly 2,000 members of the Women Architects Collective Facebook group what their #1 biggest struggle is: the result?
Feeling confident & being taken seriously at work.
As a woman starting her own business from scratch, how do you find the confidence to get over any of your own self-doubts?
Emily:
I don’t let myself wallow in any kind of doubt.
My mantra is, just keep moving forward.
I surround myself with an amazing support network, including my family, my friends in Philadelphia, where I live, friends I’ve met over the years and still keep in touch with, and the incredible community of women we’ve grown around Juno Jones (Hazard Girls).
That has really been what has kept me grounded and focused on my mission.
Safety Boots for Women that Looks Good
Joann: You’ve mentioned that your mission is to “help normalize and empower women in nontraditional fields.”
Can you speak to this and tell me why this is important to you personally?
Emily:
I think women in all nontraditional fields have learned to put up with small indignities along the way.
When I was starting out in the legal profession, I had to deal with much of what we now recognize as almost a cliché:
Getting talked over in meetings, having someone else repeat the exact idea you just said as their own, being told “you don’t look like a lawyer.”
(Spoiler alert: not a compliment).
But when I entered the trucking industry I began to see how these indignities are not just minor insults to women, but can actually put them in danger.
Everything from vehicle safety testing to gear is designed with men’s bodies in mind.
Creating beautiful safety boots that women would feel good in, and that would actually fit their feet, became something I just knew I had to do.
For women, having gear, including footwear, that is created for us, gives us a sense of belonging and legitimacy.
Work Boots for Women are Taking Off
Joann: Your Kickstarter reached 100% of its funding goal in just over 24 hours. It seems lots of women really want female work boots. Why do you think this is?
Emily:
These are beautiful, classic boots with a steel toe, puncture-resistant midsole, and heavy tread.
I think our mission resonates with a lot of women, but mostly I just think people want these boots!
Women and Manufacturing Podcast
Joann: You’ve got a lot of momentum going with your women’s safety boots… what’s next?
Emily:
We are strong believers in committing to one type of product, and doing it well, rather than trying to spread too thin.
Brian Smith (creator of UGGS) gave me personal advice to focus only on our boots for now.
I’d say he knows what he’s doing!
But as far as the brand and our mission, we will continue to nurture our community, including our Facebook group Hazard Girls.
One bit of exciting news is that we just signed on to do a monthly Hazard Girls show on the Women and Manufacturing Podcast!
I will be hosting the show, and interviewing Hazard Girls about their careers, challenges, and aspirations.
Where to Find Juno Jones Work Boots for Women?
Joann: How can our readers keep in contact with you and find out more?
Emily:
First, go to our Kickstarter page and pre-order the Juno Jones Meti Boot!
Then, go to our webpage, www.junojonesshoes.com, and sign up for our email list.
Also be sure to join us on social media (@junojonesshoes) and join our Facebook group Hazard Girls.
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