Lindsay Meyer, Founder and CEO @ Batch
Lindsay Meyer is the Founder and CEO of Batch, a shoppable home staging startup that works with high-end residential realtors, developers, and builders to create beautiful, bespoke spaces. Her career has spanned a diverse set of industries, ranging from venture capital to biotech to retail, and she was honored as a 2017 TIME Person of the Year.
In this episode, we spoke with Lindsay about:
Growing up in the Midwest as a Korean adoptee and taking on a transracial identity
How her inner narrative differed from how others would perceive her and expect her to act based on her outward appearance
Why she made the decision to speak on the record, as part of the #MeToo movement, about being harassed while raising capital
… and so much more!
We were struck by her authenticity in this conversation, and at times, struggled to find words to comprehend her experience. We know you’ll enjoy this episode as much as we did recording it. You can listen to her on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you get to your podcasts.
On the transracial identity of being Korean American
“Over the course of my life, I have taken on this trans-racial identity where I often think like a White American because I was raised by White Americans. I mean my last name is not Lee or Kim, it is Meyer.
I remember this one funny story. Maybe 10 years ago I was flying to a conference and had arranged for a chauffeur to pick me up from the airport. When I arrived, the chauffeur was holding a sign that said ‘Lindsay Meyer’. So I strolled up and said hi good evening, nice to meet you, I’m Lindsay Meyer and I got such a quizzical look from him!
Most of these drivers were used to picking up powerful white male executives. He assumed immediately that my last name must be Meyer because I was married. I think that’s an interesting example of just how sometimes having an outward Asian appearance meant so many different things to so many different people.
Oftentimes in my career, I’ll hit choppy water and start recovering really quickly, but then I’ll also fatigue quickly. I think this is a product of having this confidence that comes from having an identity of a pseudo-White American, but then running into roadblocks that minorities and Asian people in American society face.”
How Lindsay worked through a sexual harassment allegation while raising money for her start-up
“When I was raising money for the first company I met an investor which brought me into this long series of events that led to harassment. I think that was a banner example of me not being able to read the room well enough. Instead of understanding what was happening to me and getting myself out of a bad situation, I sort of leaned into this instinct to push through what felt like average, normal bullshit Asian women have to deal with.
So much of that behavior was based on a racist assumption about Asian women. We are supposed to be timid, submissive, pleasant, well-groomed and mild-mannered. We are supposed to be these petite porcelain dolls. You mix this in with the elite circle of people that work in finance and write checks to startups like mine, who tend to be overrepresented as white and male, it doesn’t lead to a good outcome. Unfortunately, they typecast people like me. A Korean woman, who by the way, does not really feel that Korean, but looks the part.”
Lindsay's reflections on the decision to move into entrepreneurship
“I have such a mosaic of different professional experiences that at this point if I think too hard about what that means or what I’m supposed to with all of that, I end up really doubting myself. The first part of my career was anchored in biotech and healthcare investing. After working in the space for years, I felt like I had really groomed this sterling CV for myself. I’d spent time in drug development, medical devices, but I just knew that I wasn’t leveraging my personal interests which were more creative and consumer-focused. This is when I knew I wanted to take a sharp left turn and become an entrepreneur.
When making this decision I thought about my parents. I wanted to honor them. I wanted to pave this path for myself that would align my interests and things that gave me energy. My education and early professional experiences gave me an opportunity to do that, which neither of my parents had.”
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Until next time,
Angie and Jay