Business Highlight:

A Profile of Michelle Madhok, president, SheFinds.com, New York, N.Y.

By Mia Katz

In recent months, media-recognized fashion expert and Company Connection member Michelle Madhok has been doing something a bit different for women facing the daily “what-to-wear” dilemma.

Since January, Michelle, the one-time director of entertainment marketing for CBS New Media and America Online’s creative development director and beauty advisor, has offered women an easier way to shop online through creation of her New York-based Web site, SheFinds.com (www.shefinds.com.).

For Michelle, the transition from former high-profile positions that have included being women’s programming director for America Online, to launching SheFinds, her own online publication helping fashion-conscious women shop for the latest beauty and fashion products online, was a natural one.

“I spent five years overseeing the women’s audience for AOL, which at the time had 35 million subscribers, 50 percent of which were women,” Michelle says, reflecting on what would be the roots of her decision to launch SheFinds. “I sat through numerous focus groups where women told us they want to look nice, know about the hottest trends and where to find the best bargain. Unfortunately, most of these women are ‘time-starved’ due to family, work and personal obligations,” Michelle says. “What emerged was that a woman sees herself as two people – The Woman as the CEO of the home (work, bills, errands, carpool) and the Woman as Me (fashion, style entertainment.)” Michelle continues, explaining that unfortunately, for women, “As life gets busier, there’s less time for ‘Me.’”

“I frequently watched girlfriends lose their sense of self and I noticed the huge success of beauty and fashion features on AOL,” Michelle continues. “What was missing was the link between an expert suggestion and fulfillment.” As a site that offers both services, “SheFinds aims to make being fashionable easy,” Michelle says. The colorful, eye-catching site, which offers links to trendy sites and archived related articles, also offers the opportunity to subscribe to the SheFinds newsletter, which offers links to Michelle’s picks for the current “best items” on the Web, or sign up for personal shopping services. “Because of my experience at AOL, I really understand how women think and what they want,” Michelle says. “I don’t waste their time.”

Neither is Michelle’s efforts working for SheFinds wasted: A typical day involves a 7 a.m. checkup on her e-mail, with a SheFinds newsletter (listing the latest trends) scheduled to be e-mailed at 8 a.m. “I spend the rest of the day working on cross promotions, sales and networking,” Michelle, whose goal is to get SheFinds up to 100,000 subscribers to help sponsors sell merchandise, says. “I usually write the next day’s e-mail in the evening.”

Not surprisingly, time limitations resulting from her new job has resulted in Michelle’s own reliance on the convenience of online shopping – something in which she is not only expert, but is also particularly fond.

“I buy almost everything online,” Michelle admits, explaining that in general, however, she may not as frequently be the recipient of purchases made. “Now that I’m a financially prudent entrepreneur, I’ve been having to cut back on my own shopping,” she says, “so I have to live through my reader’s shopping!”