In this episode of How They Scaled It, I sit down with Corina Pfeffer, co-founder and COO of Pipa Skin Care, to unpack how a Venezuelan trio of moms turned a gap in the skincare market into a viral, best-selling DTC brand for tweens.
With almost no paid ads, zero outside funding, and hands-on everything from fulfillment to customer service, Pipa is proving that thoughtful branding, organic growth, and a deep understanding of your customer can beat big budgets.
Corina shares the scrappy strategies, operational lessons, and brand-building mindset that have powered their rapid rise—and what’s next as they scale.
00:00:13 – Why customer experience is a core value at Pipa
00:00:40 – Meet Corina Pfeffer and the founding story behind Pipa Skincare
00:01:41 – How three childhood friends built a brand from a parenting problem
00:02:52 – The moment they realized there was a real market gap
00:04:27 – How each co-founder’s strengths shaped their success
00:05:43 – The surprisingly sentimental story behind the name “Pipa”
00:07:03 – Corina’s career path: from math to entrepreneurship
00:09:18 – Lessons from a failed startup that shaped Pipa’s strategy
00:10:59 – Why they insist on doing everything themselves—at first
00:13:29 – How a focus on delight drives their customer experience
00:15:31 – Their biggest challenge: explosive, unpredictable growth
00:18:24 – Why they ran out of stock during their first holiday season
00:19:12 – How they grew entirely through organic influencer buzz
00:21:30 – The role of PR and how British Vogue found them
00:23:17 – Pivotal moments that made them realize Pipa was taking off
00:25:32 – New products, sunscreen success, and what’s coming next
00:27:59 – Preparing for retail and what’s driving that shift
00:28:59 – Selling out on Amazon—even without optimization
00:30:23 – How living with their target customer (tweens!) helps
00:32:44 – Navigating international demand (and expensive shipping)
00:35:10 – Why they’re staying scrappy and bootstrapped
00:37:55 – The surprising power of email marketing for DTC
00:40:12 – Advice for career-changers and lifelong learners
00:44:15 – What Corina would tell herself when starting out
