Rising Above Expectations

The place where Lily Xu first developed a passion for entrepreneurship was perhaps all the way back in her father’s Chinese restaurant in Savannah, Georgia (US). Growing up, she saw him approach his own entrepreneurial journey with a philosophy that would shape her entire career. “He didn't want to regret not taking enough risks in life,” Xu recalls. “He taught me that, emotionally, success and failure are two sides of the same coin, and they’re both necessary for personal growth and career development.” Later, time would show that her calling wasn’t just entrepreneurship, but one where she would become a champion of equal opportunity.

After earning her Bachelor’s degree in Political Economics from UC Berkeley (US), Xu spent years working as a brand consultant. Meanwhile, she was nurturing her dream of starting her own venture and considering her next steps. When she enrolled in the Full-time MBA at Booth School of Business, she wasn’t simply looking for a qualification. She was searching for an opportunity to work on her vision and turn it into reality.

“Booth provided me with a strong foundation in business theory and practice,” she reflects. “As a founder, you have to wear a lot of different hats – you have to be a visionary, a strategist, a salesperson, an accountant, and sometimes even a janitor.” Armed with this understanding, Xu cofounded Dotfully, a beauty-technology platform designed to help people exchange cosmetics. Though the venture demonstrated strong initial growth, securing investment was challenging. Many potential investors couldn’t connect with or relate to her vision. Yet rather than view this as failure, Xu recognised it as invaluable education and a message that meant she had more to offer.

The experience became transformative when Sephora recruited her to lead an accelerator programme for female beauty founders. The Chicago Booth MBA alumna worked directly with entrepreneurs and conducted in-depth interviews to understand their needs and pain points. She developed curricula around funding, mentorship, and self-promotion. “The way you’re perceived in the room changes the way you show up,” she realised. Over five years, she grew the programme from its foundation to support 66 companies across 10 countries, helping launch 20 brands.

Today: Creating Global Change

In 2021, Xu joined Amazon Web Services as global programme lead for the underrepresented founders startup team, expanding her mission to supporting entrepreneurs of a various backgrounds and cultures.

One of her first initiatives drew on research demonstrating that male founders are asked growth-oriented questions while female founders face questions more focused on risk. Xu developed workshops teaching founders to recognise these patterns and reframe questions through a different lens. Last year alone, she trained more than 500 founders and investors on these concepts.

Her multilingual abilities also enable her to connect authentically with diverse global communities. Recently, she has expanded programming to India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Singapore, and Vietnam.

“Regardless of gender, race, and socioeconomic status, founders should have equal opportunities to pursue their dream,” Xu explains. Her journey shows that we can embrace our heritage while staying open to possibility. We can learn from others while reshaping industries and making a positive impact.