Create & Cultivate 2025: Where Business Gets Personal

This year’s Create & Cultivate wasn’t just about panels and pretty activations—it was about power, partnerships, and the unexpected ways love shows up in business. From fangirl moments to brand discoveries, The QRTLY had a front-row seat to the chaos and charm that makes this conference more than just a networking playground.

Let’s start with our guilty pleasure moment: running into Tori Deal (yes, that Tori—from MTV’s Are You the One? and The Challenge). A reminder that reality TV roots don’t fade, they just evolve—and seeing her in this new era was a nostalgic thrill.

Meanwhile, Carolyn Moore of Joe Millionaire fame woke us all up with Lion & Loki, her skincare brand serving not only glow but also branded espressos and lemonade. Honestly, our editorial game was not ready. These ladies came to C&C with dual agendas: build empires and keep the spark alive.

Speaking of sparks—few moments hit harder than the swarm (literally) around Beatrice Dixon of The Honey Pot. Bees flock to honey, and founders flocked to Beatrice as she broke down the intimate ties between love and entrepreneurship. A gospel for any founder trying to sustain passion beyond the bottom line.

On the beauty front, Desi Perkins and her husband-turned-marketing-genius proved that the best partnerships start at home. Watching them spot-test shades together was relationship goals in motion. More couple energy arrived via Ayesha & Steph Curry, who stepped into the mix repping Sweet July. Their team handed out fruit and popsicles like the MVPs of brand hospitality, blending family values with market presence.

And if we’re talking about making things happen, we have to shout out Mz Skittlez—the quiet architect behind so many of the activations and speaker lineups that set this year apart. Without her, Create & Cultivate wouldn’t have hit this level of cultural pulse.

The finale? Doechii. Only Mz Skittlez could bring a breakout star of her caliber to close out the weekend, sending us off not with a whisper but with a roar.

Create & Cultivate 2025 reminded us that business is never just business. It’s about who stands beside you, who inspires you, and how love—whether romantic, platonic, or self-directed—fuels the grind.