We Both Lost Our Jobs. so We Started a Company.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Marina and Ricardo Larroudé, cofounders of Larroudé. It has been edited for length and clarity.

My husband and I both had successful careers, me in fashion and Ricardo in finance. Yet living in New York with our two kids — who are now 12 and 16 — was incredibly expensive. We were never able to acquire wealth, and we didn’t own our home. So when we were both laid off in the early days of the pandemic, our financial security disappeared.

At the time, it felt like there was no option for finding new work, so we decided we had to try to create something ourselves. We were in a unique position to be at home together, and although there was a lot of economic uncertainty in 2020, we had hope. Ricardo and I had both come into the workforce during the 2008 financial crisis, and working through that recession taught us that better days always followed.

If we knew what we know now, we might not have started our shoe company, Larroudé. But we didn’t know a thing at the time, which probably helped us. Soon, our kids were wearing sweatshirts with the brand’s name — our last name — and there was no going back.

We ran the business from home, with our kids watching

Although we launched the company together, Ricardo and I have always had distinct roles. I’m the creative director, and he’s the CEO. We joke that he’s the boss at work, and I’m the boss at home. Although I wear many hats, it’s important for the business that there’s one ultimate boss.

For the first two years of the company, our office was our home. The kids got to see every step of the process. When we got an order, the Shopify app used to make a little “cha-ching” noise. Some days, we only had five orders, and hearing that notification was a thrill.

Then, my son said, “Isn’t it going to be amazing when you have to turn off that sound?” He was right — today the noise would be constantly playing if we heard it for each sale. Larroudé now has about 600 employees (most of them in Brazil) and generates millions in revenue.

I’m proud that we’ve provided security to other families

Over the past five years, the company has been growing almost faster than we can keep up. Larroudé is like our third child. We maintain our relationship, but there’s no life outside work. If we’re on a dinner date, we’re talking about the company. It’s very efficient for the business.

The one time we stop talking about the company is if the kids ask us to. For us, it’s our passion, so it’s natural to be constantly working. We can’t help ourselves, because we have a sense of mission. I was collecting unemployment when we first started the company (Ricardo found another job temporarily), so providing jobs to hundreds of families is one of my biggest accomplishments.

I don’t want my kids to take over the business

Despite running Larroudé together, Ricardo and I don’t see it as a family business. The people running it after us won’t be our children — they’ll be the people most qualified to bring the company where it needs to go. Sometimes our daughter will say, “If I don’t get another job, can I work at Larroudé?” and we tell her no, we won’t just give her a job.

Although we’re not raising our kids to run the company, we’re raising them to work hard. They’ve watched the business from the beginning, and we’ve talked to them about what happens when things go wrong.

Most of all, I want them to know they have a choice in how they respond when difficult things happen. Ricardo and I didn’t panic when we both lost our jobs — instead, we created something amazing. I want my children to have that grit and resilience. That’s the most important thing, at the end of the day.