Meet Jess, COO and Co-Founder of The Rescue Kit Company

Hi Rescue Kit Family!

Risa here. For all of our new readers, welcome! We are so happy you are joining us! I'm the CEO and co-founder of The Rescue Kit Company. If you read our last blog post, you got a chance to see Jess, our COO and co-founder, interview me. Now it's my turn....enjoy, and stay tuned for our how-to series coming up, where I break down all of the amazing items in our kit with my pro tips, tricks, and how-to's. You won't want to miss it!

RISA: Ok, now it's my turn. Tell me a little bit about your background, work-wise.

JESS: Hi Sister! Well, I went to school for Occupational Therapy, and that's what I did for work until I had kids. I took some off....about twelve years to be exact....but I've spent the past few years volunteering my time at my kids' bilingual school and for a non-profit organization in Boulder, Colorado.

RISA: Um...remind me again what an Occupational Therapist does?

JESS: I worked in a hospital with patients of all kinds, problem solving ways to make them independent before they left for their home environment.

RISA: How does that translate to your new venture with The Rescue Kit Company?

JESS: As you know, our parents raised us to be problem solvers. It's actually amazing that even in such different occupations, when you really break it down, both of our jobs revolved around solving problems to increase the quality of people's lives and experiences. So in a way, I've been training for this job since college! [laughs]. Also, when you work in a hospital everything is moving so quickly. Organization is key, so I think it's been a natural transition to the position of COO.

RISA: That is so true! What is your biggest strength? What is your biggest struggle?

JESS: Weirdly enough I think they are the opposite sides of the same thing. I have the ability to really focus on a task at hand, and I really love to learn and go deep on just about everything. Unfortunately, the flip side of that is a complete inability to multi-task. Ask anyone who's tried to talk to me while I'm reading a menu and they will totally agree! Unfortunately as entrepreneurs we don't have the luxury of choosing just one thing to focus on- there's too much to do, all the time! So I struggle and probably just look distracted all the time.

RISA: What do you do for fun?

Jess: I'm actually pretty boring. I really love to read. I will never turn down a conversation about what I just read, or what's on my reading list. Running, spinning, and CrossFit keep me sane. I also have to keep up with two boys which is always a balance of physical fitness and mental fortitude! They take up a lot of my time but they are super fun to hang out with and pretty cool little humans, so I'm definitely not complaining. I love hiking with my dog, Birdie, and Boulder has a pretty legit restaurant scene, so my husband and I spend a lot of our time together checking out new spots and revisiting favorites.

RISA: What's your favorite product in the Bride Kit?

JESS: Hands down, the makeup face protector. I rarely have time for makeup but when I do, it's the product that I find invaluable. I guess I wear a lot of white clothes that pull over my head or something. Also my sunscreen is tinted, I'm always in a rush, and I'm a little uncoordinated! So if I don't use it, my clothes always get some color transfer on them. I know it's supposed to be a single use product, but I use mine over and over! 

RISA: What future products are you most excited about?

JESS: Well, you know the answer to this! But for everyone else out there, The Closet Kit is going to be amazing. A serious staple for anyone who gets dressed. And we have a number of new products in the works, some products that don't exist at all....it's so much fun being part of the creative process to bring things to life!

RISA: Amazing. Thanks, Sister!

JESS: Love ya!

The Rescue Kit Company Co-Founder Jess and her goofball crew, hiking in Boulder CO