Executive Affiliate leader Judy Machado-Duque dreamed for years about how to inspire and empower women. Born in Portugal, Judy came to Canada as a child and was raised amidst the multicultural thrill of Toronto. With no money for college, Judy discovered personal development at age 18, launching her forward into a rewarding and diverse career. After becoming a prominent corporate manager and successful business owner, Judy discovered Vemma and subsequently founded the Ladies In Power (LIP) movement with new friends Fabiana Bacchini and Marnie Kay. “The fact that I can combine my passion to inspire women with my Vemma businesses is fabulous,” says Judy. “Thanks to Vemma, we can put together crazy awesome events now where women share their stories of courage and determination. We find speakers, arrange the venue, throw in a dash of Vemma and it all comes together.”
Three Women, Four Continents
“Marnie, Fabi and I have all had experiences where someone’s impacted and inspired us,” says Judy. “As Canadian immigrants, all three of us could have led ordinary, even meager lives, but someone inspired us and made a profound difference. That’s what we want to do for other women.” Fabiana is originally from Brazil; she’s a journalist, life coach and mother of two children. Marnie is a twenty-something world traveler and former retail manager from Australia. “Since we come from three different continents, and live on a fourth, we call ourselves the United Nations,” laughs Judy.
They may never have realized their shared dream of inspiring women if hadn’t been for Fabi’s husband, Dr. Stelios Nikolkakais. All three women happened to be in the same Vemma organization and had all spoken with Dr. Nikolkakais about what they wanted to do in life. “Stelios told me one day, you should connect with these other two women because you have a lot in common,” shares Fabi. So they got together and the Ladies In Power movement began. This past fall, Judy, Marnie and Fabi announced the first official LIP event in Toronto. The response was overwhelming, with tickets selling out and national radio interview invitations coming in.
Judy says the secret to success lies in finding your driving force and making the decisions to create positive change. “Whatever your dream is, wherever your passion is, that is where you start,” Judy says. “At the LIP events, we let women know that Vemma is how we’ve achieved success, but we make the events mostly about empowering women and don’t push the compensation plan.”
Meet Fabi Bacchini, Co-Founder of LIP
Fabi Bacchini says that when she talks to women, she notices that most don’t feel successful or beautiful. Fabi is a licensed life coach and says that every time she gets a new client, one of the questions she asks them is how beautiful they feel. “In over ten years of consulting, only about four percent of women say they feel beautiful,” says Fabi. “What a tragedy!”
At the Ladies In Power events (which are now held monthly), Judy, Fabi, Marnie, and their troupe of volunteers empower women to do whatever it is they dream of doing. “Maybe that’s singing in front of a group, raising money for African children or running a profitable Vemma business from home,” she says. Fabi loves the way her Vemma business allows her to stay at home with her two young children and inspire women at the same time.* “For many years now I had this dream of empowering women,” Fabi shares, “but I thought, how am I going to do it? I have an accent, and working as a journalist in my non-native language was difficult. I saw Vemma as an opportunity to help women.”
Meet Marnie Kay, Co-Founder of LIP
Star Platinum Affiliate Marnie Kay, who heads the social media side of LIP, came from the testosterone-driven corporate world and loves the freedom of running her own business. “I’ve seen women create their whole lives comparing themselves to men,” says Marnie. “We naturally tend to compare ourselves. I became a district manager at an early age and I was really out to prove myself but it didn’t really get me anywhere.” Marnie had a wakeup call a few years ago when her mother unexpectedly died at the age of 50. “We had no idea she had health problems,” says Marnie. “It made me realize how important health is. Most people my age are into partying and eating whatever they want. I’m focused on being healthy, which is what attracted me to Vemma.”
Shortly after her mother’s death, Marnie learned about Vemma from Chris Messenger. She joined mostly off Chris’s enthusiasm but didn’t know where to go with it at first. “For weeks, I was scared of those orange boxes in my hallway. But when I saw the scale of this thing, and what it could do for women, I got excited. My favorite thing about my former career was training managers, and with Vemma I get to train new leaders.” Marnie is now full time with Vemma, having quit her corporate job this year. For the first time since moving to Canada, Marnie’s spending Christmas back in Australia with her family. “With Vemma, you can create the time freedom that so many women need.* I love how portable this business is! I can do it from anywhere. And the fabulous thing about it is that anyone can do this. Look at the founders of LIP. We didn’t come from royalty!”
Helping Women Achieve with LIP
As co-founders of LIP, Judy, Marnie and Fabi are making a difference in the world by helping women make positive decisions and engineer their own success. “I believe we’re all here on earth to help each other,” Judy says. “Something amazing happens when a story aligns with a message of change.” Those messages of inspiration are going out every hour now thanks to Ladies In Power. Their latest LIP event, held at a huge Toronto nightclub, sold out weeks in advance and has received rave reviews. “Thanks to the Vemma opportunity, we’ve created a community of strength, wisdom and empowerment in LIP,” says Judy. “Women leave these events changed for life, and that’s so exciting!”
Connect with Ladies In Power
You can learn more about the Ladies In Power movement by visiting their website and following them on Twitter or Facebook.
- See more at: http://news.vemma.com/2014/01/24/empowering-women-vemma-ladies-power/#sthash.pBTmglgB.dpuf
Three Women, Four Continents
“Marnie, Fabi and I have all had experiences where someone’s impacted and inspired us,” says Judy. “As Canadian immigrants, all three of us could have led ordinary, even meager lives, but someone inspired us and made a profound difference. That’s what we want to do for other women.” Fabiana is originally from Brazil; she’s a journalist, life coach and mother of two children. Marnie is a twenty-something world traveler and former retail manager from Australia. “Since we come from three different continents, and live on a fourth, we call ourselves the United Nations,” laughs Judy.
They may never have realized their shared dream of inspiring women if hadn’t been for Fabi’s husband, Dr. Stelios Nikolkakais. All three women happened to be in the same Vemma organization and had all spoken with Dr. Nikolkakais about what they wanted to do in life. “Stelios told me one day, you should connect with these other two women because you have a lot in common,” shares Fabi. So they got together and the Ladies In Power movement began. This past fall, Judy, Marnie and Fabi announced the first official LIP event in Toronto. The response was overwhelming, with tickets selling out and national radio interview invitations coming in.
Judy says the secret to success lies in finding your driving force and making the decisions to create positive change. “Whatever your dream is, wherever your passion is, that is where you start,” Judy says. “At the LIP events, we let women know that Vemma is how we’ve achieved success, but we make the events mostly about empowering women and don’t push the compensation plan.”
Meet Fabi Bacchini, Co-Founder of LIP
Fabi Bacchini says that when she talks to women, she notices that most don’t feel successful or beautiful. Fabi is a licensed life coach and says that every time she gets a new client, one of the questions she asks them is how beautiful they feel. “In over ten years of consulting, only about four percent of women say they feel beautiful,” says Fabi. “What a tragedy!”
At the Ladies In Power events (which are now held monthly), Judy, Fabi, Marnie, and their troupe of volunteers empower women to do whatever it is they dream of doing. “Maybe that’s singing in front of a group, raising money for African children or running a profitable Vemma business from home,” she says. Fabi loves the way her Vemma business allows her to stay at home with her two young children and inspire women at the same time.* “For many years now I had this dream of empowering women,” Fabi shares, “but I thought, how am I going to do it? I have an accent, and working as a journalist in my non-native language was difficult. I saw Vemma as an opportunity to help women.”
Meet Marnie Kay, Co-Founder of LIP
Star Platinum Affiliate Marnie Kay, who heads the social media side of LIP, came from the testosterone-driven corporate world and loves the freedom of running her own business. “I’ve seen women create their whole lives comparing themselves to men,” says Marnie. “We naturally tend to compare ourselves. I became a district manager at an early age and I was really out to prove myself but it didn’t really get me anywhere.” Marnie had a wakeup call a few years ago when her mother unexpectedly died at the age of 50. “We had no idea she had health problems,” says Marnie. “It made me realize how important health is. Most people my age are into partying and eating whatever they want. I’m focused on being healthy, which is what attracted me to Vemma.”
Shortly after her mother’s death, Marnie learned about Vemma from Chris Messenger. She joined mostly off Chris’s enthusiasm but didn’t know where to go with it at first. “For weeks, I was scared of those orange boxes in my hallway. But when I saw the scale of this thing, and what it could do for women, I got excited. My favorite thing about my former career was training managers, and with Vemma I get to train new leaders.” Marnie is now full time with Vemma, having quit her corporate job this year. For the first time since moving to Canada, Marnie’s spending Christmas back in Australia with her family. “With Vemma, you can create the time freedom that so many women need.* I love how portable this business is! I can do it from anywhere. And the fabulous thing about it is that anyone can do this. Look at the founders of LIP. We didn’t come from royalty!”
Helping Women Achieve with LIP
As co-founders of LIP, Judy, Marnie and Fabi are making a difference in the world by helping women make positive decisions and engineer their own success. “I believe we’re all here on earth to help each other,” Judy says. “Something amazing happens when a story aligns with a message of change.” Those messages of inspiration are going out every hour now thanks to Ladies In Power. Their latest LIP event, held at a huge Toronto nightclub, sold out weeks in advance and has received rave reviews. “Thanks to the Vemma opportunity, we’ve created a community of strength, wisdom and empowerment in LIP,” says Judy. “Women leave these events changed for life, and that’s so exciting!”
Connect with Ladies In Power
You can learn more about the Ladies In Power movement by visiting their website and following them on Twitter or Facebook.
- See more at: http://news.vemma.com/2014/01/24/empowering-women-vemma-ladies-power/#sthash.pBTmglgB.dpuf