In partnership with The Modern Day Wife (MDW), W Hotels Los Angeles presented a captivating edition of their widely celebrated What She Said panel series, focusing on celebrating visionary women pioneers in health, beauty and beyond. At the event, NewBeauty set up an engaging Make Your Own Testtube table where attendees got to pick from our favorite beauty products and signed up for a BeautyPass membership.
What Is MDW?
Founded by Meagan Elieff and Meghan Fialkoff, The Modern Day Wife is a global membership and lifestyle company that provides community and resources to its members who are looking to thrive in their career and relationships, as well as home life. Through partnerships like the What She Said event at W Los Angeles, founders bring together powerful women whose stories inspire others and introduce attendees to products that solve problems, enhance lifestyles, and achieve results.
Launched in 2016 by W Hotels globally, the What She said panel series is one of MDW’s passion projects. The events celebrate women who inspire those in their local communities. The panels give featured speakers a platform that amplifies their voices, providing a safe space to share their experiences and obstacles they faced while building their careers and businesses.
Nestled on the border of Beverly Hills and just minutes from the Santa Monica beaches, W Los Angeles in West Beverly Hills was the perfect stylish escape this event needed. The hotel, its lush grounds, and elegant lounge spaces create the urban retreat feel perfect for the attendees to discover the brands featured at the event, enjoy the food and beverages provided by STK Los Angeles and mingle after listening to the panelists.
Along with NewBeauty’s Make Your Own Testtube station, and brand activations from Revive Med Spa and AcARRE, attendees took advantage of tasting cocktails by Delola, a photobooth experience with Diamond Mirror, and listened to the beats spun by DJ L Rock The Party.
The What She Said panel was moderated by Jennifer Chan, a beauty editor with almost 18 years of experience globally, and a frequent style expert host and guest with on-air appearances on HSN, Access Hollywood, Extra, KTLA , MSNC and Sky News. Chan is also a widely published journalist who has collaborated with major retailers including Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s and Nordstrom.
The impressive roster of panelists included:
Tracey Kearse, a chemical engineer, and founder of AcARRE, a skin and hair care company that was launched in 2018 on the foundation of utilizing plant biodiversity to create innovative multi-use bioactive treatment products that bring balance to the microbiome.
While working for another company, Tracey was approached by a friend looking for a scalp product. Soon after, Kearse had developed a product with multiple uses for skin and hair. Coming from a family of entrepreneurs, product development didn’t stop there. Shortly after starting AcARRE, Tracey discovered she was expecting her first child and decided to develop multi-use bioactive products made from natural ingredients that would provide the desired solutions for the beauty minimalist.
Andrea Speir, cofounder, and chief creative officer of Speir Pilates, as well as a leader in the fitness industry for the past 18 years.
Speir’s goal had always been to make the Pilates community more accessible and inclusive, so she focused her efforts on creating educational fitness content across many mediums, while still building her retail studios in Los Angeles. Over the years, Speir developed a style and method of teaching Pilates that incorporates modern cardio aerobics with lengthening and sculpting movements that deliver visible results, which has attracted an impressive roster of celebrities and private clientele.
Mary Lai, a multifaceted Korean-American artist based in Los Angeles.
A 2023 W Los Angeles Artist in Residence and an award-winning designer, Lai’s outlook is “Art is a universal language that can speak to anyone” and her dreamer mindset is reflected in her vibrant contemporary artwork that aims to uplift and evoke emotion. Her scope of work includes mixed media art, painting, digital art to large-scale murals and sculpture. Lai built over a decade-long career in New York as a fashion accessories designer, including an award-winning namesake handbag collection, before moving to California to pursue her art full time. She has since worked with notable brands like HBO Max, American Express, SXSW and Snapchat while continuing to exhibit at leading art fairs & galleries worldwide.
Aishwarya Iyer, founder and CEO of Brightland, a California-made cult-favorite pantry essentials brand best known for producing the freshest and highest-quality olive oils, honeys and vinegars on the market.
Since its inception, Brightland has been featured in many nationally recognized publications. Iyer also hosts a podcast, Recent Eats, where she speaks with prominent and intriguing guests about what they’ve been eating lately. “Gathering over meals is one of my very favorite things,” Iyer says. “As far back as I can remember, my family’s conversations revolved around what we were eating (or what we were eating next) and that’s still true to this day. It’s how we connect, how we express love.”
Celeste Rodrigues, trusted and sought-after celebrity skin expert, aesthetician and founder of Celeste Rodrigues Beverly Hills.
NewBeauty readers are not new to Celeste Rodrigues, a frequently quoted skin care expert loved not only by celebrities but also by editors, bloggers, and skin care obsessives everywhere. As a licensed medical aesthetician trained by some of the best plastic surgeons in Beverly Hills, she brings her 14 years of experience while working on her top celebrity clients such as Jada Pinkett Smith.
NewBeauty’s next collaboration with The Modern Day Wife will be on June 28 at the annual Soiree en Blanc celebration held at the stunning Sofitel Los Angeles in Beverly Hills. Make sure to buy tickets ahead of time to get a chance to hear from our editor-at-large Sarah Eggenberger who will moderate the event’s Beauty & Wellness Panel.
