Eva Mendes Drops Hollywood To Build Her Cleaning Empire | Forbes - video Dailymotion

Forbes

Eva Mendes put Hollywood on hold a decade ago to raise a family with Ryan Gosling. Now the 50-year-old actress is reemerging as a cleaning-supplies entrepreneur, and dishes on why doing dishes is her happy place.   To get to this blissful place in her life—where she spends most evenings finding happiness over the kitchen sink in her Southern California home, where she lives with 43-year-old actor Ryan Gosling and their two daughters—took years of hard work, a gene she says she got from her Cuban immigrant mother. From the time Mendes was a little girl, her mom would explain that freedom is when you make your own money.  Since performing in her last movie, 2014’s “Lost River,” Mendes has become a mother, fashion designer, children’s book author and the co-owner of a successful home cleaning goods startup, Skura Style. After taking an ownership stake in 2022, Mendes has helped Skura—which was founded in 2017 by Linda Sawyer and Alison Matz—expand its marketing reach and has even dabbled in product design. Forbes estimates the business brought in $7 million in revenue last year and is on track for $20 million in 2024.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/  0:00 Introduction 0:31 “Freedom is Making Your Own Money” 1:59 Becoming an Actress 3:13 Hollywood: Expectation vs. Reality 5:14 Business Isn’t Personal 6:10 Working With Ryan Gosling 6:41 Eva’s Most Challenging Role 8:10 Taking a Break from Hollywood 10:08 Motherhood is Creativity 11:19 Joining Skura Style 14:01 The Female Founder Space 15:44 What Makes Skura Style Special 18:20 Eva’s Newest Role: Co-Owner 19:26 Eva Mendes X Skura Style Collection 22:00 What’s Next for Skura Style 23:20 Eva’s Legacy  Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00We are here with Ava Mendez, actress, businesswoman, and so many other things.

00:12Thank you so much for joining me today.

00:14Thank you, Alex.

00:15So, you've done so many things in your career, from film to more traditional forms of entrepreneurship,

00:19but I want to start kind of at the beginning.

00:22You were born in Miami, grew up in LA.

00:24What about being in those spaces and growing up in those places impacted you, your interests,

00:29and ultimately your career in Hollywood?

00:32I don't know.

00:33I think it was my mom, really, who was very, very lower middle class background.

00:38My mom struggled a lot.

00:40She wasn't a single mom, but, you know, she could have had a little more help.

00:45And she always told me, she said, freedom is when you make your own money.

00:51She said, that's what you have to do.

00:54You have to figure out how to make your own money.

00:57And ever since I was little, I've just been hearing that.

01:01And I also, I saw kind of the trap she was in, in a way, with my father.

01:09I love my dad, too.

01:10I don't want to, you know, but he was the breadwinner of the family.

01:13And her not being that for a while, she just always encouraged me to do that.

01:19And then she started working.

01:20So, she spent my childhood with me, thankfully.

01:23I was home with her a lot, but she would always do, like, odd, like, really cool side

01:28hustle jobs.

01:29Like, if it was, like, Easter, she'd make Easter baskets and sell them to, like, you

01:32know, the block.

01:33And, you know, she would do amazing little things like that.

01:36So, she was always showing me, like, the value of working and having your hustle on until

01:41she actually started, you know, she started working at a bank when I was, like, 11.

01:45It's just been her support, I think.

01:47You were discovered in your 20s and you started acting around that time.

01:52Can you tell me about those early experiences?

01:55Was acting something you had always wanted to do?

01:57Was it a surprise to you to get into that?

01:59No.

02:00I really just, I mean, to sound crude, I just wanted to make money and be financially independent.

02:06And I realized at a certain point that certain people reacted to me in a certain way.

02:11And I was like, huh.

02:12You know, I wasn't, I wasn't, like, big enough of a ham to just go for anything.

02:16And I feel like I wasn't even aware that I could even make money as an actress.

02:22And then that failing was even an option.

02:24Like, I didn't even care about it.

02:25I was just like, wait, is this an avenue I could potentially go down?

02:29And I did.

02:30I started…

02:31I'm making it sound simple.

02:32It is not.

02:33It's very difficult.

02:34I mean, it's simple, but it's difficult.

02:35It's not easy.

02:36But anyway, I started studying acting and then I started getting great opportunities.

02:40But I started creating a love of the craft, but I still never, like, loved being in front

02:45of the camera.

02:47I loved studying about, you know, the background of the character and what they want in a scene

02:53and breaking down a scene.

02:54That's all still exciting to me.

02:56But once I got in front of the camera, I never, I mean, to this day, it's like I never really

03:01loved anything.

03:02Yeah.

03:03In your first, you know, few roles and your first experiences being on set, being in front

03:07of the camera, what were some expectations versus reality of what it meant to be an actor?

03:13I don't know.

03:15It's a great question because I really just went back to one of my first big jobs and

03:19I had to be like 26 and I was on a big set.

03:22And I thought, why are they just so nice to only the actors?

03:27I thought it was kind of like bullshit and there was kind of this, like, I don't know,

03:31this hierarchy on set that I never quite understood.

03:34So I thought it would be more of like a camaraderie and it is, but I… and I still don't like

03:40the kind of like, I don't know if hierarchy is the right word, but I just don't feel

03:45like, you know, actors should be treated any more special or not.

03:49I mean, I guess it's, you know, anyway.

03:51So that was my big thing.

03:52I was like, why is everyone so nice to me?

03:54Why can I be like a little late, but that person can't be here, you know?

03:58Yeah.

03:59So.

04:00When you started acting and you were getting, you know, many starring roles and you were

04:03really building your career, did you envision yourself acting for the rest of your life?

04:07Was it like a means to an end?

04:09Was it to get other opportunities?

04:10What was kind of your future goal when you really started thriving in this industry?

04:15My future goal was to buy my mother a house, to buy myself a house once I started acting

04:21and to just put money into the bank.

04:27And it was one of those things that, like, I just…

04:30I had an overall, like, idea, but I didn't share it with anybody.

04:34Like, I didn't talk about my goals.

04:36I didn't talk about, like, my objectives.

04:38I was just like, this is what I want to do and I want to make sure that I not only knock

04:45on every door, but, like, peek through every door, like, bang down some doors, like, what

04:49else can I do?

04:50I was never just like, oh, I'm this actress and I'm now this.

04:54No, I was just like, what else?

04:55What can I do?

04:56What, you know?

04:57Yeah.

04:58I'm here now.

04:59So what else can I do?

05:00So I was always looking for opportunity.

05:02What were some lessons that you learned in those early parts of your career that you

05:05feel like have served you through both acting, through things like design, through things

05:09like being a co-owner of a business?

05:11What are some of those lessons that you feel like have served you?

05:14Some of the lessons…

05:15First of all, a great lesson I learned early on was, like, nothing's personal.

05:19Like, if you're… if they don't want you for the role, it's not that they don't want

05:23you for it.

05:24You're not right for it.

05:25There's so many other, like, different…

05:27There's so many variables that go into, like, hiring somebody for a role.

05:31And at first, you know, the first couple of years, you know, I was young and I took

05:35it very personally.

05:36And then I was like, okay, if I'm going to do this, I can't drive myself crazy.

05:39And I have to just know that it's not personal.

05:42So that really freed me.

05:44Because once I felt like it's not personal, that's when the, like, I didn't have a fear

05:48of failing.

05:49And I don't have a fear of failing.

05:50I have a fear of not trying.

05:53And that's my fear is like, ugh, I hate regret.

05:57I'd rather sit and like, oh, well, that didn't work out than like, oh, I wonder if that would

06:01have worked out.

06:03You have had success in many genres in the acting space.

06:07What would you say has been your favorite role that you have ever played?

06:10Working with Ryan Gosling as an actor, like, when we worked together, he was just so giving

06:22as an actor.

06:23And I realized that if you work with the right, such a great talent, that it gives, it gave

06:31me like less to do in a way.

06:33Like I just was, I was so present.

06:35I've never been more present in a role than that role.

06:38What would you say has been your most challenging role that you've played?

06:41The roles I found most challenging was when I was like involved in a very male heavy cast.

06:48I found that to be challenging because I'm such a girl's girl and I need that female

06:54like energy around me.

06:56So those were the most challenging one.

06:58It really wasn't about what I was doing in a scene.

07:01It was more about like who I was surrounded with because like I walk away from a film

07:07or a project having my own experiences of it, right?

07:11I was six months and, you know, wherever I was.

07:15So I see the film as its own thing and then I have my own memory of it, experience of

07:20it.

07:21So that's obviously invaluable.

07:24So hasn't always been as pleasant as I've wanted it to be, but I've been really lucky

07:29that I haven't had it bad.

07:31I haven't had it in that way.

07:32I've just, I just need women around me.

07:35So.

07:36Yeah.

07:37It makes a big difference who you're surrounded by on the day to day.

07:39Yes.

07:40It's such a vulnerable position, whether it's getting dressed in costume or hair and makeup.

07:45I'm just like women around.

07:47Yeah, I totally understand that.

07:49I want to ask about your decision to step away from Hollywood and from the acting industry.

07:54You played your last role in 2014.

07:58When you decided to take a break, was that an intentional decision to stop for an extended

08:04period of time?

08:05Was it going to be just a short break?

08:08Where was your mind when you decided to take a step back?

08:10I don't really remember exactly where it was, but I do feel like that I got, you know, I

08:17got pregnant around that time.

08:19My ambition was still there.

08:21It just was suddenly directed like to some, towards something else.

08:25Like, oh my gosh, this is where all my focus became my home.

08:29It was just like my kids, Ryan, the home.

08:33And just that's where I derived my joy.

08:35And it also is where, you know, I just naturally went into.

08:39So that's when I started searching for things I could do really from home.

08:45And this is where I think my mom's like early years of like hustling, making the Easter

08:49baskets for everybody or, you know, decorating tiny Christmas trees to sell around the block.

08:53Like I think that's where I just started doing my version of that.

08:58And it was before like remote, like, you know, before Zooms or anything like that.

09:04But I was now looking back, especially looking back now, that's when, you know, I started

09:09designing for a New Yorking company, which was really just a great time.

09:13I did that for about seven years and through my two pregnancies.

09:19And that was incredible.

09:20I would design from home, be on the, you know, computer, meet up every, you know, a few days

09:25a month.

09:26And it was just a really ideal job for me because I stayed creative and I love connecting

09:32with women.

09:33I love it.

09:34It's just like making something that a woman can enjoy, specifically a woman, like a dress,

09:39a pantsuit, whatever it is.

09:41I was really fulfilled while I was doing that.

09:44I want to talk a bit about your experience as a mother and kind of how you found those

09:49other creative outlets or other things that you became passionate about.

09:53I heard in another interview, you mentioned that becoming a mother was the most creative

09:56thing that you had ever done.

09:58Can you talk a bit about that?

09:59I think that's such a new and interesting concept.

10:02I think that many people don't think about motherhood as being creative, but you have

10:06to be.

10:07So I'd love to know more about that experience.

10:08It's so creative.

10:09It's literally the most creative thing you could do.

10:12You're creating a life.

10:14And it doesn't stop with just creating the life and then they're here.

10:18It's like every day you create, you create together, you create for them, whether it's

10:23what you're going to make them to eat, whether it's how you're going to entertain them or,

10:28you know, while you're working and, you know, what you're going to do.

10:33And then obviously those are the little things.

10:34And then it's like, well, creating a life together.

10:37I also think that, you know, relationships, I mean, that's just like, it's so beautiful

10:44to be able to create with a partner.

10:47You know, I find the whole process just so innately creative.

10:52And I love too that you mentioned that you really got inspired and interested in what

10:56you were doing around the house, which is very related to the company that you are now

10:59co-owner of Skrostyle.

11:02Walk me through your decision to join the cleaning industry and to be part of a product

11:07company.

11:08When I was talking with the co-founders, they mentioned that you got in touch with them

11:12after being a customer yourself.

11:13So I'd love to know more about why you decided to reach out and what made you interested

11:17in joining this company in the first place.

11:19Yeah.

11:20Well, first of all, I love the product.

11:22I found a product that I love, which is their Fade to Change sponge.

11:27Cleaning, for me and for my family, my sisters, my mom, it's not just cleaning.

11:33It's a really like, it's an emotional bonding experience.

11:38Like my mother will come to my house, till this day she can barely walk.

11:41She goes straight to the sink, bless her heart.

11:44And even if there's like one cup, she'll start, you know.

11:47And I didn't know if that was a Cuban thing or a Latin thing.

11:50I wasn't sure.

11:51But, you know, it's just such a thing for us.

11:54And we bond over it, especially in the kitchen, especially doing the dishes.

11:59During the pandemic, you know, I was probably like most people going crazy and I was like

12:04washing my fruit, which I'm sure I did more harm than good.

12:11But I was going through a bunch of different cleaning products and I came across this sponge,

12:16this Skira style sponge.

12:17And I was like, oh, that's cool for a sponge.

12:20It just looked different.

12:21It wasn't like some like horrible looking thing.

12:24It was pretty.

12:25So that caught my eye because I love design and I love anything.

12:28I love making anything beautiful.

12:30But yeah, I started using it and I loved it.

12:35So I got in contact with the founders and I loved their story.

12:41They've been best friends.

12:42Linda and Allison, I'm sure they told you, have been best friends since they've been

12:45kids.

12:46They like, I mean, they're still best friends.

12:49Their kids are the same age.

12:50I mean, they're just their BFF dreams.

12:54And I really feel like I, I don't, I connected with them, obviously.

12:59And I just thought there's something here, like there's something I'm, you know, I love

13:06this product and I just see, I see something here like, I don't know, I didn't, I just

13:13saw, I'm trying to describe what it is, but it's that feeling of like, I'm not sure what

13:18it is, but let's keep in touch, you know?

13:21And then it just kind of progressed and it just became obvious that I was like, I have

13:26so many ideas.

13:27I love this product.

13:28And, you know, I started realizing that I was talking about product development and,

13:33you know, all these different things and marketing.

13:35And I was like, okay, let's do this.

13:38I need to be involved.

13:39And again, women, two women.

13:41So I felt very, very comfortable.

13:43That's what I was going to ask you.

13:44They are two female co-founders and speaking, you know, from your acting experience, really

13:49loving being involved in female led sets or, you know, those sorts of things.

13:54How would you describe your relationship with the two of them and with the Skira team?

13:58What does that like female founder space mean to you?

14:02Female founder space.

14:03It is just, not only is it fun, you know, because it's just fun.

14:08I love, you know, connecting with them and talking.

14:13But like, it's the little things.

14:17Like when I make a Zoom and I'm a few minutes late, but I'm calling them from my mobile

14:23office in my car and I just have like, you know, and my kids in class and I'm trying

14:29to make it happen and I'm a disaster.

14:31But I know what I have, you know, I did the work I have.

14:35You know what I mean?

14:36It's hard to explain, but it's those moments where I become very like frazzled and really

14:41stressed out and, you know, the kid and here and this and then the other, you know, and

14:46they're just like, totally get it.

14:48There's no question.

14:50There's no doubt on their end that, you know, it's just like, wow, to not to have to explain

14:55yourself.

14:56I don't know.

14:57I feel like that's great.

14:59They know exactly what I'm talking about when I was like, you know, or like all I have to

15:04say is, hey, guys, you know, my little one's sick right now.

15:06And they're just like, oh, my God, do we not we know about that, you know, and those things

15:11make make for a more supportive workplace.

15:14I just I'm the kind of person that I need to feel supported or through love or else

15:20I tend to like, I don't know.

15:22You know, some people like a great challenge and I like a challenge, of course, but I still

15:27need it rooted in like love and support if that makes sense.

15:31It totally does.

15:32Yeah.

15:33So on the product development side of things, what makes Kira so different from what exists

15:37on the market today?

15:38I mean, you mentioned earlier that design is something that most sponges aren't pretty,

15:42but what else makes these products so special?

15:44Well, specifically the sponge, there's nothing like it.

15:47The fade to change technology is just it's incredible.

15:50The fact that we have, you know, the actual monogram fade as the sponge reaches its, you

15:59know, its limit lets you know that, OK, it's time to to throw out and change out your sponge

16:05because, you know, sponges are 200,000 times dirtier than our toilet seats.

16:10I'm sure you've heard that.

16:11Everyone's heard that.

16:13And it's true.

16:14And it's obviously disgusting.

16:15So you're, you know, you're cleaning with something filthy.

16:18So anyway, it lets you know it does the thinking for you.

16:20It lets you know when it's time to throw out.

16:22So that to me was so, so genius.

16:24And I was that was huge for me.

16:27And again, I do I love beautiful things.

16:30So the fact that it was, you know, something pretty and it wasn't your usual like it's

16:33not your mama sponge, you know.

16:35And then also obviously loving the other products, the scouring pad, the drying towel.

16:42I'm big with drying towels because I still lay out my towel.

16:45Oh, I only do dishes by hand, by the way.

16:47I don't I have very the dishwasher.

16:50I could store toilet paper in there.

16:52I never use it.

16:53But anyway, I fell in love with all the products and I just I saw so much potential.

16:58And again, trying to link fashion, style, beauty, color and trying to elevate the kitchen

17:05and bring joy because that's a place where I derive so much joy from.

17:10So much joy.

17:12Just when my when my kitchen is clean, when my sink is clean, there is something I don't

17:18know.

17:19There's got to be other people.

17:20It sounds like you feel this, too.

17:21And it's just like, oh, it's just can breathe.

17:24You can breathe and it feels so good, of course, when my house is clean and I just get so much

17:30joy from it.

17:31So, again, I have such an emotional connection to the product and the product is just a superior

17:37product than what's on the market today.

17:40The other thing that I found really exciting was that right now before us, there hasn't

17:47been a woman in the aisle.

17:49There's Mr. Clean and there's Sponge Daddy.

17:53And I'm just like, how how has it gone on this long that there hasn't been a woman in

17:58the aisle?

17:59So that also was a huge driving force.

18:01I was like, I've got to be a part of this and yeah, this next level.

18:05That is super special.

18:06You came on as a co-owner in twenty twenty two.

18:09And now in your relationship with the co-founders, what really is your role in the company?

18:15What are the things that you are offering?

18:16Why were you a good fit for them as they were for you?

18:20My role in the company, it varies, but mostly it's about product development, connecting

18:27to the customer, really listening to the customer, bringing in my love of design, bringing in

18:33my love of trying to elevate spaces.

18:38And, you know, I feel like it's one of those things like I feel like I'm part of a like

18:44a Broadway show where it's anything.

18:46Like sometimes if you're part of a cast or part of a show, whether you need to get someone

18:51coffee or you need to actually like help paint something like that's what I feel like, you

18:56know, in this beautiful collaboration, because we're such a small company and we kind of

19:02like do it all.

19:05And I find that really exciting because we're in it and we're we're still building it, which

19:10is really, really fun.

19:12Yeah.

19:13And I know that you have a collection coming out with the company that you designed yourself.

19:18Can you walk me through that process a bit?

19:20What was the behind the scenes of coming up with that idea and then really bringing it

19:23into tangible products?

19:25Well, I just I love color.

19:27I just I love, love color.

19:28I love pattern.

19:29And, you know, I have these beautiful images of Cuba in my house.

19:34I'm Cuban.

19:35I'm first generation.

19:36My parents are Cuban.

19:38And I have these beautiful images of the of the buildings.

19:41And I know it's a bittersweet thing because the conditions in Cuba are just we obviously

19:46won't go into that.

19:47But there is a beauty in the in the the colors.

19:51And I just have these images in my head and I see them around.

19:54And I was just like, I need a new I need a color palette.

19:58I need something that reflects what brings me joy.

20:01And the colors in this new and the design in my new collection is exactly that.

20:06It's exactly what brings me joy and things that I have in my home, colors.

20:11And there's a specific like design I found just very, I don't know, beautiful.

20:17And I was like, yeah, I want to make a beautiful sponge.

20:21Why not?

20:22Like, if you can make a sponge beautiful, I think, you know, everything else I mean,

20:27I don't know.

20:28Elevates the whole kitchen.

20:29It does.

20:30And I like to keep my sponge out.

20:31I'm not one I don't hide her.

20:33I don't put her anywhere else.

20:35So I don't know.

20:36I like to see her because she's always so always there for me.

20:39Yeah, definitely.

20:40Who are you trying to reach with this brand?

20:43Is it moms that are at home cleaning?

20:45Is it a different demographic?

20:46Who are you really trying to target with these products?

20:50I don't know who I'm trying to target because I don't in that sense.

20:53I'm not going after like anyone specifically or any demo.

20:57I just feel like if you have a home, if you have an apartment, whether it's a studio apartment,

21:03it's your first thing, it's one room, you've got to do the dishes.

21:06Like you're if you're not doing them, who's doing them for you?

21:10And so who's ever doing the dishes needs this product.

21:14So it's one of those things that's like, you know, it's an everybody thing.

21:19So yeah, I'm having a lot of fun also just reading the reviews.

21:24That's been really interesting for me because I've never read reviews before and although

21:29I do read some of my comments on like social media and stuff, it's different because you're

21:33kind of trained not to.

21:35But with reviews, with anything having to do with Skira style, it's been really connective.

21:42How do you determine based on those reviews what's going to be next for the company?

21:46I know you guys are talking about other products that are coming up and, you know, different

21:49expansions and many facets of the brand.

21:52How much do those comments and the, you know, customer reviews and the customer engagement,

21:57how much does that impact what's next for you guys and the company?

22:01Customer reviews are everything for me.

22:03And I read their comments.

22:05I read what they want.

22:06I read what they don't like.

22:07I love hearing how I can improve upon something, how it's actually getting to you, the box

22:13it's getting to you and whatever it is.

22:15I love reading things that people would like improved or that they need.

22:20So that means it's pretty amazing to have like just your customer right there asking

22:26you because obviously you want to make them happy.

22:28I want to make them happy.

22:30I'm excited about this product.

22:32It brings me joy.

22:33So it's like, yes, please get it.

22:35I'll get so happy off a review like, you know, it can really put me in a really great mood.

22:42And we win all these really super fun like awards and stuff like that.

22:47And I joke around, that's like, you know, like winning a good housekeeping award is

22:53like my version of the Oscar, you know, so definitely it's really fun.

22:58What is next for the company?

22:59I know you guys have some retail expansion coming up.

23:02What can you tell us about like where we're going to be able to find Skira Style and what

23:05else is on the horizon for the brand?

23:07Well, we're going to be in selected stores at Target very soon.

23:11And then we're deciding on some other big box retailers.

23:15It's just everything and the kitchen sink, basically, yeah, definitely.

23:19My last question for you is, as a mother, an actress, a company co-owner, you are impacting

23:25so many people, but what do you want your legacy to be?

23:29Oh shit, I haven't really thought about it because hopefully by doing right by my family

23:36and working as hard as I can to be the best mom I could be, the best, you know, partner,

23:43the best daughter, I kind of like try my best at everything and then let the chips fall

23:47as they may.

23:50Yes.

23:51Well, thank you so much for chatting about all this with me today.

23:52I really appreciate you taking the time to chat.

23:53Thanks, Alex.

23:54It was really fun.

Eva Mendes Drops Hollywood To Build Her Cleaning Empire | Forbes

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