Bethenny Frankel on business and relationships: 'You have to go with your gut'

Bethenny Frankel is the ultimate Skinnygirl. “It’s about how you feel; it’s about being confident,” she explained of her company’s moniker during a visit to CNBC’s Squawk Box on Tuesday. “It’s about indulging, not depriving.”

And as for why she picked the name of her company that started as a cocktail brand, “I like things to be straightforward,” she shared with hosts Joe Kernen, Rebecca Quick and Andrew Ross Sorkin. “I don’t like things to be ambiguous. I felt it. You have to go with your gut in business.”

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It's also a sentiment that Bethenny, 44, wishes more women would follow when it comes to relationships. She mentioned: “I used to suck at business and here we are, and I learned from my mistakes. The big lesson is that women don’t go with their gut in relationships. They use their mind and heart... They don’t go with their gut like men do. I think if we used our truth rather than fear in relationships, we’d be better off.”

As Bethenny continues to grow her Skinnygirl franchise into nonalcoholic drinks, shapewear and appliances, she is learning along the way and not afraid to admit it. “This is my MBA,” the mother of adorable 5-year-old Bryn said. “I feel like I am the consumer, and I am looking for value. What I don’t know, I ask other people. I know what I’m good at and not good at.”

Photo: Getty Images

Representing Skinnygirl is where she knows she thrives. “It’s a lot about gossip and my marriage and my relationships and what I ate and what I wore, but this is where I enjoy being.” After leaving the Real Housewives of New York City in 2010, she has also made her way back to her Bravo home for this season of the show.

“Being on Bravo — it is the influencers, they are the purchasers, they are the women that buy for the household and that moves the brand,” she admitted about her return. “That is how this whole thing started, that is why I’m here.”

Well, that and following her gut.

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