Joanna Track, founder and CEO of eLUXE, is an entrepreneur, visionary and successful business woman with a great sense of style to boot. She seems to have an intuitive knack for delivering Canadian women what they want at exactly the right time.

At the very moment when we all started bitching about shipping fees and return policies from US and overseas online shopping companies, she gave us eLUXE: a slick and well curated site where we can shop the latest trends and designers we love without the fuss. The layout and editorial features make online shopping feel more like diving into Vogue. She’s created a dreamy way to shop online, and even better, eLUXE strives to promote Canadian designers. Simply put, it’s a joy to surf, whether you are shopping or just reading.

Prior to eLUXE, Joanna gained notoriety as the founder of Sweetspot.ca. In 2004, the concept of subscribing to an e-newsletter that delivered all the best local goods, from fashion to beauty to just plain cool, right to your inbox, was novel. As always, she was ahead of the curve; when Sweetspot launched, the response was phenomenal. Women were ecstatic. I know, because I was one of them. 

Sweetspot felt like a secret society and everyone wanted in, including Rogers. The media mogul bought a stake in the company and the site thrived for nearly a decade. Last spring, Rogers pulled the plug; we’re all still a bit boggled as to why.

People often ask me why I started Shedoesthecity, there are many reasons but I can tell you for certain that my initial inspiration came from Joanna. She’s brilliant, ballsy and knows what moves to make on the chess board; learn from her.

What does a typical Thursday look like, from waking up to going to bed? 

5:30am – Alarm goes off (yuck). Just enough time to throw on the Lululemon’s, down a Guru (energy drink) and get to the gym in time for spin.
6:15am – Spin @ Track Fitness
7:15am – Home/shower/eat/dress
9:00am – Drop the little guy, Teddy, at nursery school (hopefully without a fuss!)
9:15 am – It’s off to work we go!
9:30-noon-ish: Meetings, meetings, meetings
Noon – I always break for lunch.  Sometimes business, sometimes pleasure, but almost always at a restaurant in the neighbourhood. 
Then more meetings (with breaks to catch up on emails along the way) till around 5pm.
6:00pm – Home.  This is more hang time with Teddy and my husband.  Then, if it’s the first Thursday of the month, it is Girls’ Night!  That is dinner with my oldest besties from University.  I countdown for these nights.  Otherwise, it’s a quiet dinner at home, which isn’t too bad either!
9:00pm – Back at the computer for a final email review and response.  It’s also a great time to do my projects that require thinking (aka quiet).
10pm – In bed.  I’ll either squeeze in The National or The Good Wife, a few pages of a book, and then call it a night. 

What was your first job out of school?

My first job out of school was doing data entry at the Club Monaco head office (not glamorous! But I learned a lot). 

What are the 3 skills you require most to do your job well?

a. Organizational skills – I have too much going on.  It would never work if I was not organized!
b. Analytical skills  – at the end of the day business is about the numbers, and ongoing analysis allows us to make good decisions.
c. Listening – as a leader what I hear is even more important than what I say.

What do you love most about your career?

What I love most about my career is that I can immerse my self in a subject matter that I love, which is fashion!  In the early days of my career, I was working up the finance track and I realized quickly that stocks and bonds did not keep me motivated.  I need to work in an industry that I have a personal interest in.

Do you have any warnings?

My warning is that the fashion business is much more numbers oriented than most people appreciate.  If you’re looking to get into a fashion related career you will do better if you have analytical skills.

If you could try a different career on for a year, what would it be?

If I could have a different career, I would definitely be a travel journalist!