What happens when health challenges in your 40s become the catalyst for a complete career reinvention? In this episode, Kimberle Lau shares her journey from 20-year beauty industry executive to founder of Bake Me Healthy, an allergen-free, plant-based baking company. After pregnancy-induced food intolerances and a breast cancer risk diagnosis, Kimberle left corporate America at 44 to build a mission-driven business serving people with food allergies and intolerances.
She opens up about being a self-described "risk-averse" founder, discovering that the average founder age is actually 45 (not 25), and learning to focus on "the next three steps" instead of needing the entire roadmap mapped out. We talk about balancing business building with raising teenagers approaching college age, why she tracks sleep like a KPI, and how "micro-wins" serve as signals to keep going when progress feels slow.
This is an honest conversation about midlife entrepreneurship women over 40, starting a business during perimenopause, women changing careers in their 40s, and building something meaningful when everyone's asking "but when will you break even?"
What You'll Learn:
How to change careers after 40 with purpose — Kimberle shares how 20 years of beauty industry expertise transferred to food entrepreneurship and what made her finally take the leap at 44
Starting a business during midlife with family responsibilities — Navigating the reality of building a company while raising teenagers, managing mortgage payments, and planning for college tuition
Perimenopause motivation for women entrepreneurs — How health challenges became the catalyst for purpose-driven work and why midlife is actually the right time to start
Women over 40 starting businesses — Why the average founder age is 45, not 25, and what advantages decades of experience bring to entrepreneurship
Building confidence after 40 as a female founder — Overcoming the "am I ready?" question and learning to trust your next three steps instead of needing the full plan
Midlife transformation through purpose — From corporate burnout in beauty to creating inclusive, allergen-free products that serve an underserved community
Second act career success strategies — Practical wisdom about evaluating micro-wins, managing risk strategically, and making self-care non-negotiable
Key Timestamps:
0:00 - Introduction
4:00 - From beauty industry executive to food entrepreneur—the health crisis that changed everything
12:00 - "Am I too risk-averse to be a founder?" and discovering the average founder age is 45
18:30 - Managing the anxiety of building a business as a mom with college tuition looming
24:00 - The "next three steps" approach: why you don't need the full roadmap to start
28:00 - Listening to micro-wins as signals to keep going
33:00 - The sleep habit tracker: treating self-care like a business KPI
39:00 - Building a family business: working with her mother and involving her kids
Key Takeaways:
For midlife career changers: The average founder age is 45—your decades of expertise are an asset, not a liability. Starting "late" often means starting with more resources, networks, and pattern recognition than younger founders have.
For women over 40 seeking purpose: Health challenges and body changes in midlife can become catalysts for meaningful work. What starts as solving your own problem can become a mission serving thousands of others.
For perimenopause entrepreneurs: Risk-aversion doesn't disqualify you from founding something. Strategic risk management—having financial cushion, supportive partners, and clear-eyed assessment—is actually smarter than reckless leaping.
Featured Quote:
"When I first started, I was like, oh gosh, can I do this? Aren't founders like in their twenties, working out of their garage? Like how many people in their forties, let alone moms or females, are starting businesses? And I started Googling and I found that actually the average age is 45 for becoming a founder. So I was like, all right, well maybe I can do this." — Kimberle Lau
Lift Her Up
Visit Join The Tryb to explore Kimberle’s allergen-free baking mixes and cookies. Use code uplifters20 for 20% off of your order! Follow @bakemehealthylove on Instagram to see what she’s creating and where you can find her products.
If you loved this story...
Start with Jenny Jing Zhu’s episode about building a $100M company after immigrating from a small village in China, then explore our conversations with women who turned personal health challenges into businesses: Konika Ray Wong’s episode (founder of Girl Power Science addressing puberty education), Sarah Krasley’s episode (transforming manufacturing education for women globally), and Kerry Brodie’s episode (founder of Emma’s Torch, training refugees in culinary arts).
About Kimberle Lau:
Kimberle Lau is the founder and CEO of Bake Me Healthy, an allergen-free, plant-based baking company launched in May 2023. After nearly 20 years in product innovation and marketing for major beauty companies, Kimberle experienced pregnancy-induced food intolerances and was later diagnosed as high risk for breast cancer, leading her to completely reimagine her diet. In 2020, she left corporate America to focus on her physical and mental health, eventually launching Bake Me Healthy to create inclusive, top-nine allergen-free baking solutions. A self-described "geriatric founder" who started her company at 44, Kimberle brings decades of consumer insights and product development expertise to the mission of making baking accessible for everyone, regardless of dietary restrictions. She lives with her husband and two children (ages 14 and 11) and works alongside her mother, who taught her to bake.
About Your Host:
Aransas Savas is a wellbeing and leadership coach specializing in helping women over 40 navigate midlife transitions, career changes, and second-act reinvention. With 20+ years of behavioral research experience partnering with companies like Disney, Weight Watchers, and Best Buy, she hosts The Uplifters Podcast, featuring women doing transformative work in the second half of their lives. Aransas brings both research rigor and personal experience to conversations about courage capital, midlife transformation, and building meaningful second acts.
Connect with Aransas:
Instagram: @aransas_savas
Podcast Instagram: @the_uplifters_podcast
TikTok: @theuplifterspodcast
Facebook: Aransas Savas
Website: theuplifterspodcast.com
YouTube: @theuplifterspodcast
LinkedIn: Aransas Savas
Keywords:
midlife entrepreneurship women, women over 40 career change, starting business during perimenopause, menopause second act, perimenopause motivation women, women 40s new career, midlife reinvention female founders, allergen-free food entrepreneurs, mission-driven business midlife, beauty industry to food entrepreneur, starting over at 44, women changing careers 40s, building confidence after 40, second act career women, midlife transformation purpose, geriatric founders, average founder age 45, food allergy entrepreneurship, plant-based business women, midlife health catalyst business, women entrepreneurs over 40, female founders midlife journey, balancing family and entrepreneurship
