I recently went one-on-one with Jack Jia, founder and CEO of Musely.
Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?
Jack: Believe it or not, I never planned to end up in skincare – or healthcare at all. My background is in internet technology. Musely actually started as a lifestyle tips app called Trusper, where millions of women shared advice on everything from recipes to DIY. The most popular category? Beauty and skincare. That surprised me, but it also opened my eyes.
The real turning point came when my wife, Cherry, opened up about her years-long struggle with melasma. We had access to hundreds of skincare brands (900+, to be exact), yet nothing worked. Even the most expensive creams and laser treatments failed her. That’s when we met Dr. Marie Jhin, who prescribed a custom formula that changed everything. Cherry’s melasma disappeared in two months. That moment became our mission.
Looking back, the setbacks have been constant, but each one shaped us. You need those moments of despair to break through. The only way out is through. As many may have heard, the Chinese phrase for “crisis” is made up of two words: danger & opportunity. They do go in tandem.
Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?
Jack: The best ideas come from deep frustration or major impasses. Ours came from watching Cherry, and millions like her, spend a fortune on skincare that didn’t work. After learning from dermatologists that over-the-counter skincare legally can’t do much besides moisturize, we had our “aha” moment. If prescription medication works (and technology can make it accessible), why not build a platform that does both?
My advice: find a real pain point. Listen, don’t guess. Great ideas aren’t born from whiteboards or brainstorms. They come from observing people struggle and asking, Why is no one solving this better?
Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?
Jack: We knew it was worth pursuing when we saw the results – not just in Cherry, but in patient after patient. People who had tried everything were suddenly sending in photos with tears of joy and saying, “This is the holy grail.”
To test an idea: don’t wait. Build the simplest version that can prove the outcome, then give it to real users. Skip the bells and whistles. Focus on: does it work? Does it matter? Will they tell their friends?
Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?
Jack: We didn’t chase unicorn status or raise huge rounds just to burn cash on growth. From day one, we focused on building a real business that was profitable, sustainable, and obsessed with outcomes. That meant staying lean, vertically integrating our entire system – from compounding pharmacy to teledermatology. This allowed us to control the patient journey end to end and deliver unmatched efficacy at a fraction of the cost.
But maybe the most important thing we did was commit to failing fast and iterating faster. Every part of our business – our treatment formulas, refill flows, even our eNurse check-ins – came from relentless experimentation. Many things didn’t work. Others worked better than we could’ve imagined. But we tested, we listened, we improved – and then we did it all over again.
If you want to grow, solve a painful problem no one else wants to touch. Then build a system that gets better with every patient, every data point, and every version. Growth isn’t about chasing hype. It’s about staying in the trenches long enough to build something that actually works, and making it work better every day.
Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?
Jack: The best leaders I’ve met are humble learners. They listen more than they talk. They simplify what’s complex. And they never hide from hard truths. They go back to the basics or common sense, which is the first principle of innovation anyway!
To level up as a leader, you need to be okay with being wrong and be willing to course-correct fast. Build trust by being transparent, even when it’s uncomfortable. And most importantly, never stop evolving. What worked yesterday won’t get you through tomorrow.
Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams?
Jack: Hire “A” players – not just for talent, but for passion and purpose. We look for entrepreneurial people who care deeply about solving problems, not just executing tasks. Then we give them a clear mission and the freedom to get there creatively.
At Musely, some of our most impactful leaders started in entry-level roles. Watching them grow into executives has been one of the greatest joys of building this company. That’s only possible because we keep the organization flat, fast-moving, and data-driven. Every idea gets tested. Feedback loops are short. And no title is above rolling up their sleeves.
We also believe breakthroughs happen when disciplines collide. Engineers sit with pharmacists. Designers work alongside medical directors. Customer support brings real-time patient feedback directly to R&D. That kind of cross-functional collaboration is baked into how we operate.
At Musely, innovation isn’t just a department – it’s a mindset. And the best teams don’t wait to be told what to do. They’re already asking, “What can we improve next?”
Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders?
Jack:
- Never stop experimenting. Failures will outnumber your wins – so fail fast, measure, and iterate faster.
- Play in an ocean, not a pond. Build in a big market where your impact can scale.
- Remember why you started. When things get hard (and they will), that mission will carry you through.
Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?
Jack: “Entrepreneurship is fundamentally inhumane.” We’re pack animals by nature, so building something from scratch – leaving the pack, alone, uncertain, and uphill – goes against our instincts. But if you can accept that and stay the course, there’s nothing more rewarding. It’s a zigzag path, not a straight one. But if you keep going, you’ll be grateful for every twist and turn.
