At 19, Lauren V. Davis said yes to helping build a record store from scratch. Sixteen years later, after floods, a divorce, and walking away from the business she loved, her personal brand is what carried her forward. In this episode, Lauren and I talk about why people buy from people, why you already have a personal brand (whether you’ve worked on it or not), and the five steps to make it work harder for your business.

Lauren V. Davis is the founder of Lauren Davis Creative, where she helps experts establish memorable personal brands, confident sales, and aligned, sustainable offers. She built a nonprofit serving 1,000 business owners and operators, and owned a popular brick-and-mortar record store for 16 years. She’s been featured in Reader’s Digest and HuffPost and is the host of the Real Personal Branding Podcast (where I was recently a guest!).

In this episode, we cover:

• How Lauren went from a 19-year-old helping build an empty storefront to running a record store with lines out the door at every event
• Surviving a flood that destroyed 70% of their inventory, and how community trust (and gift cards) kept the store alive
• Why customers were more connected to the founders’ story and values than to the products on the shelves
• Why Lauren kept building her personal brand alongside the store, and how that saved her when she stepped away
• The one sentence from Nick Unsworth at Life on Fire that had me launching a Jessica Rhodes business page that same day
• Why “build your personal brand” can feel like one more item on the to-do list, and Lauren’s permission slip to take a deep breath
• Lauren’s five steps: Can people find you? How will they experience you? How will you build a relationship? Are your systems and processes ready? Is it referable and repeatable?
• Why sustainability (and slow growth) is sexy

Resources mentioned:

• The Real Personal Branding Podcast, hosted by Lauren V. Davis
• Connect with Lauren on all social platforms: @ldaviscreative
• Lauren Davis Creative: laurendaviscreative.com

A strong personal brand gets people talking about you when you’re not in the room, and podcast interviews are one of the fastest ways to get your story in front of the right audience. Join me at the free Podcast Guesting Masterclass to learn how to land interviews on podcasts your ideal clients are already listening to. Register here: interviewconnections.com/masterclass-2026