Hey everyone! Welcome to the latest episode of Halfstack
Highlights. I am Jen Lezan – the Editor in Chief of Halfstack Magazine and host
of this podcast where we explore the business of creativity and inspiring
individuals who are trying to create magic while following their dreams. In
this episode – I had the opportunity to talk with: Dana Donofree - the founder
of Ana Ono – a lingerie and loungewear company that launched in 2014 with the
mission to design specifically for those who have had breast reconstruction,
breast surgery mastectomy or are living with other conditions that cause pain
or discomfort. Dana launched the brand
after her own battle with cancer. She was diagnosed with infiltrative Ductal
Carcinoma at 27.
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| Images courtesy of anaono.com |
Dana Donofree founded AnaOno out of her own necessity and
desire for pretty, sexy, beautiful lingerie. After a bilateral mastectomy with
implant reconstruction her own bras no longer fit and she was certain there
must be more than just sports bras and camisoles (as nothing in the traditional
lingerie market fit her surgically-altered body any more). With a degree in
fashion design from Savannah College of Art and Design, and a quite successful
fashion industry career, she took her ten plus years experience and put it
toward designing, launching and growing AnaOno.
In this episode we talk about Dana’s amazing journey through this all. We specifically look at her experiences in the design world before Ana Ono, launching a brand from start to finish and her experiences at New York Fashion week. We get personal and discuss her battle with cancer and how that experience changed the trajectory of her life. We also talk about the realities of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the truth behind where some of the major foundations put their funds vs. smaller grassroots organizations that are working towards actually finding a cure. She shares her thoughts on why breast cancer isn’t about the color pink or cheesy taglines, but the people who are fighting day in and day out. She goes into more detail about some of the non profits she partners with and some of the incredibly inspirational figures who have touched her life along the way. You can put a face to the voice in this incredibly touching video from an interview with SELF.
If you are a woman or man who want’s to support other women, someone who has battled breast cancer, someone who wants to find out where the donated funds for breast cancer awareness go to OR someone interested in learning more about launching a brand and gaining some entrepreneurial insight, this episode is for you. Click below to listen the full interview.
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I hope you all enjoyed this episode. I want to send a huge shout out to Dana for taking the time to share her journey and her experiences with us. Her story is an inspiration and she’s a true testament to the inner strength all women have. If you want to learn more about Dana or shop her collection, please visit: www.anaono.com You can also keep up with the brand on twitter, facebook and instagram @AnaOnoIntimates –while you’re online make sure you stop by halfstackmag.com and you can always keep up with us on all social media channels with the handle @halfstackmag. If you like what we are doing with this show please take a moment and leave us an honest review on iTunes. It’ll help us reach new listeners, grow the show and enable the Halfstack team to keep putting out the content that we get to share with all of you.
If you are interested in learning more about organizations you can donate to during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, make sure to check out the following suggestions from Dana:
Metavivor: http://metavivor.org
Living with Breast Cancer: http://www.lbbc.org
Project Cancerland: http://www.projectcancerland.org
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