Women Who Exit Interview
Felena Hanson “virtually” sat down with Kimberly Caccavo and Kate Nowlan, to discuss the sale of their business, GRACEDBYGRIT, in San Diego, California.
Kimberly Caccavo and Kate Nowlan founded GRACEDBYGRIT, the first community-driven, direct-to-consumer premium athletic apparel brand for women. They made clothes that made women look and feel fantastic. Their combination of skills and passion made them an unstoppable team.
Kimberly Caccavo brought technology and business experience to GRACEDBYGRIT. She received her BS in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley and an MBA from UCLA. She has had a rich and varied career during which she designed metals used in the space shuttle; did research on ceramic heat engines; ran a telephone directory business; helped privatize a Latin American phone company; started a cable company; worked in Hollywood and had her own consultancy helping to launch businesses. Kate brought coaching experience and product knowledge specific to female athletes to GRACEDBYGRIT. She received her BA in Sociology and Psychology from UMass Amherst. As an entrepreneur, she owned her own company organizing small businesses and homes. She launched, coached and grew a youth and masters swim program, was an executive for a nonprofit in which she planned and ran events, coordinated fundraisers, ran the day-to-day office operations and launched new revenue-driven community programs. Upon the sale of GRACEDBYGRIT, Kate joined HYLETE as the VP of Strategic initiatives and now serves as the company’s sole female board member.
Kate and Kimberly also serve on the board of directors for the GRACEDBYGRIT Foundation which provides scholarships for female athletes entering college with the mission of creating strong women leaders. Kate and Kimberly also co-authored GRACEDBYGRIT The Entrepreneurial Women’s Guide to Starting a Business With Power, Passion and Purpose. In addition, their advocacy for female entrepreneurs and their spokesmanship on implicit bias within the investing community highlights them as thought leaders and mentors.
