Reese Witherspoon shares her experiences and lessons learned while creating and running Hello Sunshine, her successful media company dedicated to empowering women.
- Oct 7, 2024
AceShowbiz - At the second annual Shine Away conference, Reese Witherspoon recalled a defining moment in her career that led her to make a crucial business decision. Despite the critical acclaim her projects had received, her production company, Hello Sunshine, was struggling financially.
Witherspoon realized she needed to ask for help. "I remember the accountant calling me going, 'You didn't make enough money producing those three things to keep four employees,' " she said. "I was like, 'I'm doing something wrong. I don't have a business plan. I need help.'"
She brought on Sarah Harden as CEO, who helped her build an infrastructure and hire executives. Witherspoon emphasized the importance of being vulnerable and asking for help in order to succeed. "I'm sure she was like, 'Oh my God.' She'd go home and I'd be like, 'My business partner's an idiot.' Like how did she not know? But she was so patient with me and let me be vulnerable," Witherspoon said of Harden.
Witherspoon also discussed how her early days of hustle in Hollywood, where she focused on getting jobs rather than the business side, led her to start Hello Sunshine at 34. "I didn't know if I was going to get my money back. Every day I woke up thinking, 'Oh my god, I'm not gonna get my money back.' But I would rather bet on myself and lose that money trying hard. I woke up every single day and I was like, 'I am my own lottery ticket.' "
Witherspoon emphasized that consumers can support female creators by using streaming services and indicating their support for their content. "When there's a show on Netflix or whatever, just push the 'like' button - You don't know how important that 'like' button is. Just 'like it,' because that actually affects the salaries of the women who made it," she said.
The Shine Away conference featured conversations with Witherspoon and fellow actresses Laura Dern and Octavia Spencer, who discussed the importance of female-centered environments and the power of financial literacy for women. Witherspoon also participated in a discussion with Spanx founder Sara Blakely about the challenges and rewards of running female-led businesses.