From Saks to self-care: Barrière co-founder Cleo Davis-Urman’s career in retail

Before starting the wellness brand Barrière, Cleo Davis-Urman worked her way up the corporate ladder at companies such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Moda Operandi. 

Inside Retail connected with the entrepreneur to learn more about her inspiration behind launching Barrière and how her previous experience in luxury retail has aided her in running the brand. 

Inside Retail: How did you get your initial start in the world of retail?

Cleo Davis-Urman: Coming from an editorial and fashion styling background in my early career, I first got started in the fashion retail industry when I entered Moda Operandi in 2011 and later on at Saks Fifth Avenue in 2015. 

In these two roles that spanned almost a decade, I honed my skill sets in leading brand strategy and marketing/e-commerce efforts for some of the biggest fashion retailers in the world. It is this experience in retail, that I gained from an early stage in my career, that has helped me as Alexa Adams and I branched out to create our own wellness-oriented DTC brand, Barrière, in 2020. 

While entrepreneurship and the direct-to-consumer wellness category present new challenges, I am grateful for the foundation I built in corporate fashion retail that has helped me hone the professional skills to successfully bring Barrière to the growing brand it is today. 

IR: Prior to launching Barrière, you worked for corporations like Saks Fifth Avenue as director of special projects and Moda Operandi as the brand manager. How have these roles prepared you to launch and run this company?

CDU: Fashion has been my first love and my profession for my entire life, starting with internships at Vogue, Rachel Zoe, and Diane von Furstenberg, and then with positions at Moda Operandi and Saks Fifth Avenue. I always saw fashion as the art of self-expression. If I looked good, I felt good! 

My focus changed at the beginning of the pandemic when, like most people, I became obsessed with self-protection. I searched for masks and discovered that the stylish ones were ineffective and the medical masks were unsightly. 

With my partner, Alexa Adams, who had a background in technical design and healthcare supply chain, we created Barrière to provide products that are both protective and pretty. Masks were our first product, but our pandemic project evolved into a broader self-care and wellness mission when we realised that our customers wanted their beauty arsenal to include protection against everyday threats to their well-being – and they wanted these solutions to be safe, easy to use and yes, stylish. 

While building Barrière I relied heavily on my prior professional experiences and applied my existing skills just in new ways and from a different perspective. As a fashion director and later as the director of special projects for Saks, I was a part of ideating and executing brand launches, editorial, marketing and influencer campaigns, and partnerships. 

These experiences and learnings were what I relied on and informed everything, from developing the brand identity and marketing strategy to designing our packaging and website to forming strategic partnerships with brands, influencers, and wholesale partners. 

IR: If you could go back in time to the first day of running Barrière, what piece of advice would you give yourself?

CDU: Be patient, persistent, and gentle with yourself. 

Perceive every obstacle as an opportunity. There is always a positive spin or lesson to be found in every “no” you will hear and every stumbling block you come across. I would also tell her that expectations are a thief and that just because something doesn’t happen right away or the way you think it will, doesn’t mean it won’t or can’t happen. 

IR: A significant portion of your life has been dedicated to the retail industry. What drives your passion?

CDU: I’m an extremely curious person who loves to be well-informed and a fast learner, and I’m always searching for synergy and ways to connect the dots. It is this passion for various industries, from fashion to wellness, and general curiosity to learn and make the world a better place that drives the work I do every day. 

IR: What does a day in your life look like?

CDU: No two days are the same, but a typical day starts with an Energy Boost patch and an early morning walk with my husband and dog. 

Before the chaos of the day [begins], I like to go through our customer care emails and our reviews. 

This exercise is really my motivation and helps me to focus on areas for improvement, but also allows me to reflect on how far we have come and how many people our products have helped. I spend a lot of time testing new formulations and so I start and end my days by writing down any feedback, results and feelings I might have so that I have a record to reference when we review with our lab. 

The rest of the morning is normally spent on Zoom having touchbases with our social media, marketing and email content teams to finalise content for the day and week ahead. In the afternoon, my partner and I spend time reviewing our upcoming launches, inventory positions, and general business issues, and then I typically spend the rest of the afternoon in meetings with new or existing strategic and wholesale partners- I joke I am either pitching or patching!

 If I am lucky, I get off email and Slack by 8 pm so I can be in bed with a good book before 10 pm. 

IR: What is your approach to trying to maintain a work-life balance?

CDU: I try not to keep score. I feel really lucky to get to do what I do every day. There isn’t really much balance between work and life right now, but that is ok because I am so passionate about what we are building. 

Because my health journey was the reason for starting the brand and developing our patches in the first place, it feels even more personal. 

IR: The items in my toolbox that make me feel prepared are…

CDU: Barrière patches, notebook and pen, phone charger, Kindle, a Kazuko crystal, Listerine strips, and plain M&Ms.  

IR: My best advice for those starting their entrepreneurial journey is to… 

CDU: Never let perfect be the enemy of good. Also, remember that nothing is perfect. 

IR: The most unconventional piece of advice I ever received was…

CDU: Failure is actually a good thing. This world is full of second chances and opportunities, so learn from your mistakes and don’t be afraid to try again.

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