Startup co-founder was afraid to be CEO; until she took over and sparked a 10x revenue boom
Jacqueline Tatelman
co-founded
State Bags
in 2013 with her husband Scot, she wasn't ready to call herself a CEO. The brand, built not just on fashion but on social impact—providing for American families in need—had passion at its heart, but not yet structure. So instead of stepping into the driver's seat, Tatelman took charge of product and creativity, trusting outside consultants and eventually a hired
CEO
to manage the business.
For a while, that seemed to work. But when cracks started to show in the company's foundations—overreliance on wholesale partnerships, unmanageable budgets, and sluggish sales—Tatelman found herself watching the dream she helped build slide into instability.
When the Crisis Hit, She Put On Her Bathrobe and Picked Up the Pieces
By 2020, State Bags was in dire straits. The company's second CEO, a former CFO who had helped implement much-needed reforms, suddenly stepped down—right in the middle of a global pandemic. With no one left to steer the ship, Jacqueline stepped in, quite literally from her living room, to take control of the business.
'I spent all of COVID in my fuzzy bathrobe,' she told Inc., recalling how she hustled to keep production running in China and scraped together just enough to keep the lights on. The team was furloughed, the office shut down, and every dollar counted. 'If we had a $1,000 day, we were celebrating,' she said of those early moments.
But that personal plunge into leadership changed everything.
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She Was Scared to Be CEO; But It Changed Everything
Her decision to stay in command wasn't immediate. But after her back-to-school hustle paid off and a kids' luggage collection she designed pre-pandemic turned into a runaway hit, Tatelman realized something profound: she didn't just have to lead the company—she could.
'Right now, I am the person to lead us,' she said. 'I have all of the tools, and I have all of the determination. I am fully equipped to be our leader. I love being our leader.'
And the numbers backed her up. Since she took over in 2020, State Bags has seen a tenfold increase in revenue—reaching eight figures and earning a spot at No. 1,198 on the Inc. 5000 list. In 2021, the company raised $2 million in seed funding, validating not just the product, but the person steering it.
The Gut Knows Before the World Does
Looking back, Jacqueline admits the only thing ever holding her back was fear. 'My intuition was always like, I should just step into this, but I'm too afraid,' she said. Today, her story is not just about building a successful brand—it's about reclaiming confidence, listening to your inner voice, and embracing leadership when the world least expects it.
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In the end, Tatelman's biggest business breakthrough came from what she once considered her biggest weakness. As she puts it: 'Listening to yourself, tapping into your gut, trusting yourself—it's so powerful.'
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