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How to Build a Goddamn Empire: Advice on Creating Your Brand with High-Tech Smarts, Elbow Grease, Infinite Hustle, and a Whole Lotta Heart

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From the cofounder of the revolutionary brand Bulletin, a business book that demystifies the world of entrepreneurship in real-time, from Day One through Acquisition.

Filled with heart and humor,  How to Build a Goddamn Empire  shares the real-world, hard-earned business wisdom of one female entrepreneur who takes readers from Day One through Acquisition. Kriegsman transformed a part-time side hustle into a massive, category-disrupting brand that after six long, hard years, successfully exited to a public company (EEX, NYSE).

As a first-time and inexperienced founder, Ali Kriegsman felt like she couldn't relate to the glossy, glamorous entrepreneurs crowding her Instagram feed. In reality, Kriegsman learned, building something from nothing is a daily fight with your imposter syndrome, a crash course in venture-capitalist speak, and, as she learned in 2020, a constant battle to weather the storm of an ever-changing marketplace. While in the thick of scaling her business, making a stressful pivot, and managing a team of employees through an unprecedented global pandemic, Kriegsman decided to write about her experience, in the hopes that it will act as a guidepost to future founders.

With chapters ranging from "The Business You Start Isn't the Business You'll Run" to "Press ≠
Success," Ali Kriegsman demystifies the world of entrepreneurship in real time, from the trenches. In "Hard Decisions" Kriegsman shares her experiences of managing the company through the COVID-19 crisis with heart and searing honesty.
 
How to Build a Goddamn Empire also features words of wisdom from some of Kriegsman's fellow female founders who have built successful companies of radically different stages and sizes. By using the questions she's most frequently asked as her blueprint, Kriegsman offers candid insights into the nuts and bolts of building a brand from scratch—discussing early failures, picking the right cofounder, securing press, finding funding, and even staying afloat during a crisis—to give women the tools that will help take their ideas to the next level.

288 pages, Hardcover

Published April 6, 2021

88 people are currently reading
1456 people want to read

About the author

Ali Kriegsman

2 books39 followers
Ali Kriegsman is a founder, marketing consultant and author based in NYC who is unhealthily obsessed with ambition and the way women contort themselves to get ahead. Her company sold for eight figures in 2022 and she has been consulting for other businesses ever since. Her non-fiction book, "How to Build a Goddamn Empire," was published by Abrams in 2021 to acclaim from The Information, The Today Show, Forbes and Entrepreneur Magazine. A recipient of "Forbes 30 Under 30" and named one of Fast Company’s "Most Creative People in Business," you can read Ali's weekly hot takes via her Substack, "New Motives," and follow her on Instagram @alikriegs or on Tik Tok @ohmygoodnezz_.

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5 stars
104 (48%)
4 stars
60 (28%)
3 stars
42 (19%)
2 stars
6 (2%)
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1 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
Profile Image for Aarthy.
185 reviews2 followers
May 23, 2022
I really wish in an alternative universe Ali Kriegsman is a famous novelist, because seriously- her book was laugh out loud hilarious. Her writing is so creative and witty and I just know she must be a totally cool person irl.

Writing aside, this book was is everything you need to learn all things start up building. She takes topics and breaks them down for any non technical and business person to understand. Paired with stories from other founders and her journey into creating Bulletin, I highly recommend this book!
Profile Image for Bertram Leonard.
52 reviews6 followers
June 4, 2023
I’m building a bubble empire so this book was made for me.
Helpful advice, actionable, and easy to read. Great read for any current or future entrepreneurs.
Profile Image for Emily Drewry.
16 reviews3 followers
May 2, 2021
Ali is the real deal. She’s authentic and funny as hell - both elements that come through in this book. When I started reading it, I was not thinking I’d ever be an entrepreneur, and I still think that’s true. BUT - it inspired the hell out of me. In fact, she boosted my confidence enough to start a newsletter I’ve been hiding in my box of dreams for some time. Everyone’s empire looks different, I guess. So grateful for the chapter on how women leaders are treated differently- could read a whole book so it that! More, please!
Profile Image for Darya.
752 reviews19 followers
October 28, 2020
Of you are looking for an interesting and challenging story of building a company with a real truth behind the curtains, you should choose this book. Pretty much on every page I have recognized the steps and situations we went or go through. Love what you do and challenges will be less meaningful because you will be focused on your goal.
Profile Image for Dale Erdmier.
279 reviews15 followers
August 3, 2021
I really enjoyed this -- a book I will come back to again and again. Thank you, Ali!
4 reviews
March 24, 2025
For the first book of 2025 I wanted to harness the motivation of the New Year and choose a non-fiction book that would get us focussed on our resolutions. CY and I are both entrepreneurial minded, with of our goals for the year centring around business and financial development. Therefore, I felt How to Build a Goddamn Empire by Ali Kriegsman would be an apt choice to help us make the most of the start to the new year.



The book provides a how-to guide on building and running a successful business and covers many areas: from obtaining funding, choosing a partner, and building a brand, to making hard decisions and deciding when to pivot. Kriegsman provides advice garnered from her own journey of building Bulletin, an e-commerce business which she co-founded in her mid-to-late 20's. She also collects answers to questions from other female entrepreneurs, providing an insight into how they started and built their businesses also.



The Good Stuff



I have to say, the title for this one struck me immediately. I saw it and was like hell-yeah I want to learn how to do that. I was specifically looking to read something that would leave me feeing motivated, teach me something useful, and help me set some more focussed goals to develop my business ideas. Overall, I’d say this book succeeded in at least the first and second of these areas, and helped me to identify the areas on which I need to focus my goals.



I particularly liked that this book covered a range of areas of business, whilst still providing quite a bit of detail that can be useful for new business owners. I feel a lot of business books I’ve read either focus on one particular area, or skirt over a broad range of topics, without giving any specifics or useful how to information. This one struck a good balance between the two areas, which is not easy to accomplish.



I also liked that it was female focused. All of the business owners interviewed were female, as are Kriegsman and her co-founder, with their business having a particular focus on female creators. I found this very relatable and refreshing to hear from a female in what has historically been a male-dominated space. I also felt this female narrative didn’t dominate the book or overshadow its essence as a business book. Rather than taking over, it complemented the book and put it into the female perspective. It was particularly refreshing that she kept her tone light and feminine, and didn’t feel the need to adopt a masculine persona to be taken seriously.



I also liked that the book was encouraging, whilst not sugar-coating how difficult it is to build a successful business. I’ve read quite a few business books that either hammer home how difficult business is until you almost feel it will be impossible to succeed, or provide platitudes of encouragement without actually helping at all. Again, Kriegsman struck a good balance between the two. My key takeaway in this respect is to start treating and talking about your businesses as though you are serious about them. I feel that Kriegsman really shone a spotlight onto how imposter syndrome operates in the business space, and how important it is to take yourself and your business seriously.



The Not So Good Stuff



Although I liked the detail in which Kriegsman delved into most areas, in some chapter I felt it was a little overdone and repetitive. I particularly struggled to get through the chapter on branding. Whilst I appreciate the importance of branding in business, I feel that Kriegsman made the chapter unnecessarily long by repeating a lot of previous content and giving too many examples. This made the information given less potent for me as I was struggling to separate what was important from the anecdotes and repetitive messaging.



I also found she talked a lot about Bulletin, which I knew nothing about and hadn’t heard of prior to reading this book. This may be a bit harsh, because I understand that Bulletin was the business which Kriegsman had built and the source of her knowledge and information. But I’ll be honest, by the end of the book I was pretty fed up of hearing about Bulletin. I think it was a good idea for Kriegsman to include content from other entrepreneurs and maybe some more examples could have been given by them instead of focussing so much on her own business. Or maybe I’m just being picky there.



There was one important thing that I did find to be lacking considering that this was a business book, and that was credibility of the author and the sources. Again, this could just be my own ignorance in not having heard of Bulletin, but I wasn’t sure I trusted Kriegsman enough to take her advice on business. I think perhaps it was the informal tone of the book, and the way in which Kriegsman talked about her approach to some of the issues that left the impression that she wasn’t yet a successful businesswoman. Instead, I had the feeling that she was just someone who happened to build a business and was still in the process of building it. I felt the same about the other entrepreneurs that were interviewed, which on one hand was nice as it left me with the feeling of “if they can do it, so can I”. But on the other hand, I feel the book failed to nail home that these are successful women who should be trusted and relied on for advice. That’s not to say that they aren’t, or that Kriegsman herself isn’t. But I think the lack of information given about the businesses just didn’t give them enough credit. Again, this could have been solved by talking a bit less about Bulletin, and a bit more about the other businesses that were featured. Although, at the risk of contradicting myself (oops), I did quite like the informal and friendly tone in which the book was written. It made it easy to read, relatable and presented the information in a way which was easy to digest for anyone.



One small thing I found a bit strange was this line, “Or the fact that all these venture-backed women – myself included – are ourselves white, able-bodied, and conventionally beautiful.” Ok, so it probably sounds a bit stranger since I have taken it out of context. I do get what the author was trying to do here, and the point she was making is a valid one. But I’m not sure that this reads the way she intended it to. I just found it an odd line, and wasn’t really convinced that the reference to being conventionally beautiful should have been included alongside a reference to the imbalance between the venture funding given to women, minority ethnicities and disabled people.



Rating



CY - It was inspiring at times, but as a business book it didn’t stand out to me. So I’ll give it a 3/5.



Kay - I did enjoy reading this book, it was motivational and I made quite a few notes of useful information. It was refreshing to hear a female take, that wasn’t adopting a masculine voice. 4 /5.



If you are a new business owner or someone looking to start your own business I'd recommend this book as it could have some useful content for you.

For more book reviews and recommendations visit https://www.theshameshelf.com/
Profile Image for Kat Fio.
224 reviews3 followers
April 5, 2021
This book is filled with all the advice I give my friends and all the words of wisdom I needed as I embrace a big life and career change. Ali writes like your most successful friend, sitting down and giving you personal and real advice on how to achieve all your dreams.

You don’t have to be starting a business to get a lot out of this book. There are big chunks that really only apply to business owners (like the financial aspects, or growing a business into an empire) but the vast majority of it can be applied to anyone who has a big, scary goal, dream, or aspiration. For me, so much of this book was a reminder that our dreams are achievable as long as we work hard AND smart and don’t give up on ourselves.

My favorite part was when she addressed imposter syndrome. It’s so easy to fear what we want and let that fear take you over. I’m going to keep this book close to remind me to keep going when setbacks make me want to quit. She also has really cool Q+A sections with other business owners so you can get more than just one account or perspective.

This is a necessity for small business owners but it’s really fantastic for anyone who has been thinking about their dreams and needs a little push to go after them. I truly loved all the messages in this book.

Thank you so much to Ali, Abram Books, and Morgan Bullock for the early copy! I am obsessed with the pink vibes alone.
Profile Image for Ioana.
576 reviews31 followers
April 18, 2021
Wow!
After finishing this book I have so many mixed feelings! The good kind, I guess, but so many!

Ali and Alana started Bulletin, a business similar to Etsy who kept changing, got a funding with Y Combinator and kept on changing some more. The book is Ali's story of their journey, sprinkled with a lot of knowledge and pieces of advice on what gearing for a funding means, how to pivot, how to advocate for your business and so much more.

In a nutshell this book is like talking to a friend about how she built her company. Honest talk, swear words, the happy moments, the incredible hard work, industry biases and making the hard decisions, they are all here.

This book started as a nice story, though it features her not so happy childhood, kept becoming this sunny millennial successful story and ended in such a mood that can only be described if you mix together the hard lessons of being a young business owner and the Covid 19 pandemic. So more than anything I appreciate the level of honesty and vulnerability the author shares. I also appreciate greatly the business lessons Ali offers, they are so diverse, and putting in the spotlight the challenges of being a woman founder. I do believe this book is incredibly valuable for any woman in this position, no matter the level. This book is a true gift.

I received a free copy of Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
2 reviews
January 31, 2024
In "How to Build a Goddamn Empire," Ali Kriegsman, co-founder of the revolutionary brand Bulletin, offers more than just a memoir of her entrepreneurial journey. This book stands out as a real-time, in-the-trenches guide to building a business, demystifying the world of entrepreneurship with a blend of candid stories and practical advice.

What makes Kriegsman's narrative so compelling is her relatable, honest approach. She doesn't shy away from discussing her wins and losses, making her advice feel grounded and genuine. Her journey, filled with trials and errors, serves as a testament to the resilience and adaptability required in the business world.

But Kriegsman's story is not the only one highlighted in this book. She brings in the experiences of other female CEOs, providing a diverse range of perspectives on building successful enterprises. This inclusion enriches the book, offering readers a broader understanding of the challenges and triumphs in the world of female entrepreneurship.

The book is not just a story; it's a resource. Kriegsman uses frequently asked questions as a blueprint to delve into the nuts and bolts of brand building. From discussing early failures to picking the right co-founder, securing press, finding funding, and even navigating crises, she provides a toolkit for aspiring entrepreneurs, especially women, to build their empires.
1 review
May 8, 2021
This book is a Goddamn winner, belonging on a polished shelf of its own with a spotlight accentuating its striking cover. It’s colloquial yet articulate and funny yet insightful. If you feel suffocated by the oftentimes highbrow, dense, condescending nature of the “how-to” genre, this is a Goddamn breath of fresh air. Ali’s writing style is enjoyable (and addictive) to read in large doses; she sprinkles anecdotes with a personable delivery, rhythmically pleasant prose, and unapologetic wittiness, all of which uniquely characterize Ali’s writing style. At the sake of sounding like an informercial, if you are tired of buying highly-anticipated books only to be lugging and exasperating through the third page in hopes of finding a nugget of wisdom that is applicable as a starting point to your life, look no further, as Ali’s book is a Goddamn treasure. What are you waiting for? Just purchase this. It takes a couple Goddamn seconds. And in retrospect you’d just be amused for Goddamn hours while finding advice to be applicable for a Goddamn lifetime.
Profile Image for Amy Larson.
148 reviews2 followers
September 9, 2021
I didn’t read this right when it came out because to be honest I was a little turned off by the aggressive title. But I’m so glad I did decide to read it because it was enormously helpful. the Q&A’s with other founders were so affirming. they didn’t necessarily teach me anything brand new but they made me feel seen. this book helped me really reflect on where I am going while also celebrating where I have been. such a good business book that tells it like it is and doesn’t paint a glossy picture of entrepreneurship. It does a great job of speaking to all different types of business owners, whether you’re trying to keep your side hustle a small side hustle or you’re trying to raise millions in venture capital for a product launch. I really recommend this one!
1 review
April 11, 2021
This guide is everything we KNEW we needed but hadn't existed before. Ali helps pull back the curtain on various phases of brand building and brings in other business owners at different stages for insights into starting and scaling your business (touching on the all-too-relatable topic of imposter syndrome along the way). Through Bulletin's early stages as the it-store in New York City, to its revolutionary transition as a premium wholesale community, co-founder Ali Kriegsman has helped a multitude of founders launch and expand their businesses, making her a true expert in the topic of how to build a goddamn empire!
3 reviews
April 7, 2024
Really fun! It gives out lots of tips for incoming entrepreneurs such as networking, investing, and planning. It discusses the author’s personal journey on starting her own business and different milestones they’ve reached, and for each main chapter they have a recap and some examples of other entrepreneurs introducing us their businesses and their advice. I don’t want to spoil anything but this book was overall simple yet it brought so much value to me as the way the chapters and subtopics were divided made each “lesson” very clear, would definitely recommend!
1 review
May 10, 2021
Ali is a true inspiration! Her authenticity and honestly about being a founder is so refreshing and inspiring. This book is a must read for anyone looking to make a change or start a business. It was so great hearing from other founders within her book as well. I love how she took different perspectives and stories and brought those to life in a way that gave me a reader, a kick in the butt to go out and just go for it. Love love love this book!!!! A 2021 must read for sure.
1 review
September 29, 2022
I feel soooooooooo inspired!!!

I just had the best behind the scenes with Bulletin - the founders, the idea, the ups and downs, branding, lessons learned, hard decisions, tips, anecdotes, and more!

Ali showed me how to build a GODDAMN EMPIRE and I’m ready to become the next success story!

Thank you Ali!
4 reviews
August 7, 2025
This book is the real-deal for entrepreneurs! A behind-the-scenes tour of kicking and scratching to the top. I was so impressed with Kriegsman’s persistence and desire to assist other female bosses. Many cut their teeth trying, but Kriegsman gives us the road map and inspiration to go for it! If you need a kick in the ass, read this book!
Profile Image for Rachel.
1 review8 followers
May 10, 2021
Empowering and insightful! Ali's lays out how to turn your passion and side-hustle into a thriving business with some solid key steps, reality-checks, and humbling facts you'll need along the way. Her honest, in-the-trenches views are better than any inspo board I've created!
1 review
May 11, 2021
Amazing advice from a huge selection of founders in different sectors. Ali does an incredible job of presenting the challenges and successes of owning a business. Her writing style is witty, realistic and sharp. You will want to rabbit ear and highlight your way through this one.
Profile Image for thebakedbook.
448 reviews13 followers
August 17, 2021
Decent, but not super... groundbreaking for me.
Lots of info about raising capital and such, which has never been a direction I've been interested in.
Its nice to have a femme voice speak about all that jazz.
Profile Image for Breanna.
2 reviews2 followers
November 24, 2021
I’m only on chapter 3 and this book has already filled me with confidence, good advice and real helpful resources. Highly recommend if you are in the midst of a big career change, thinking or working on a side project and/or starting a business.
1 review
January 14, 2022
goal is to read 2 business- building, Mindset training books a month… starting with this gem.
East to Read, totally touchable, humorous look, into the mind and heart of a bad-ass female entrepreneur! Diving deep into it, so inspired so far, And absolutely recommend!
Profile Image for Anna.
47 reviews5 followers
January 29, 2022
Really great book, full of practical actionable advice.
I really loved how Ali didn't sugar coat the experience of building a business - it made the book relatable. I had a ton of 'ah ha' moments and took LOADS of notes!
1 review
March 22, 2022
Ali is wise, witty & feels like your best mate talking to you… giving you really good advice!! Really helpful and inspiring for anyone who is doubting themselves or is not sure where to start! Great read 🙌🏼
1 review
April 18, 2023
Loved reading this book. I am a beginner entrepreneur, and I find this book to be so helpful. Is full of information for those who are just starting out in the industry and want to improve themselves!
1 review1 follower
June 14, 2023
Is a speciall book, a great content with a lot of value, its fun to read, its real, its shows the ways you can start from scratch, do not hesitate on buy it, it is worthy, and powerfull at the same time. :)
Profile Image for Opal.
20 reviews1 follower
June 28, 2023
There was so much useful information in this book and Ali made it easy for me to understand certain things I would have spend hours on the internet and probably be still left confused.
I loved the chapter on branding!
Profile Image for Julie.
41 reviews2 followers
July 29, 2021
I felt like I was on a journey with her. And I enjoyed the interviews with other women entrepreneurs.
Profile Image for Samantha Linn.
1 review
August 20, 2021
Easy read, super informative! No BS, just great honest advice. Perfect for a biz owner or someone with big dreams!
Profile Image for Megan Umansky.
3 reviews1 follower
January 27, 2022
Really good entrepreneur book for women! Loved all the steps throughout the book, super motivating to get my business together and make it a reality.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews

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