About this episode
Vicky Tsai founded her skincare company, Tatcha, with the goal of helping heal people’s skin and soul. But while Vicky’s a major player in the beauty space now, it took years of trial and error to find work that matched her values. She first began her career on Wall Street as a derivatives trader at Merrill Lynch in New York City, but after witnessing 9/11 firsthand, she left her job to attend Harvard Business School for a fresh start. She interned at SK-II, then took a job at Starbucks in China, and later joined a tech startup focused on sustainability. Even with a successful career, Vicky still struggled to find her purpose, while simultaneously dealing with acute dermatitis on her skin. Then, 10 years into her corporate position, she decided to choose her own happiness. With no plan and a mountain of debt, she quit her job and began traveling. While visiting Kyoto, she learned about the beauty practices of geisha, and soon afterward, her skin was healed. She knew she had to find a way to bring her learnings to the masses, and with the help of geisha and cultural advisors, Tatcha was born.