Teja Urankar isn't sure anyone ever really deserves a list like this. She only knows that for the last several years she has given everything she has to building a company she truly believes in.
Butter Be Kind began with her own struggle with dermatitis. She was frustrated by a choice that shouldn't have existed: products that were natural but ineffective, or effective but full of ingredients she didn't want on her skin. As a biotechnologist, she knew there had to be a better way — so she started creating it herself.
What she didn't anticipate was that developing great products would be the easy part. Building a company tested her in every possible way. Manufacturing delays. Fundraising challenges. Cash flow pressure. Moments when things fell apart at the last minute, and plenty of days when quitting would have been the simpler option.
What motivates her isn't only building a successful business. It's proving that compromise isn't required — that products can be 100% natural, backed by science, genuinely effective, and better for both people and the planet.
But every setback made her a better founder. She learned to adapt quickly, to make difficult decisions, and to keep moving even without any certainty about what tomorrow would look like.
Asked what she's most proud of, she doesn't name the revenue or the partnerships. She names the fact that every obstacle strengthened her conviction rather than weakening it. She still wakes up excited to build, to learn, and to create something that genuinely improves people's lives. To her, that's what being a founder is.