Drawing on more than 13 years of experience across Italy and the United States, Lagomarsino reflected on a career spanning higher education, tourism, healthcare, and corporate operations. A former president of AUR's Business Club, she credited her university experience with helping develop the skills and international perspective that continue to inform her work.
Despite building a successful corporate career, Lagomarsino began questioning whether traditional measures of professional achievement aligned with her personal ambitions. This reassessment ultimately led her to establish Cusp of Something, a brand development and personal growth business supporting women entrepreneurs.
She described how the venture emerged organically through collaborations with friends, helping them develop business ideas, launch products, and establish brands in the beauty and wellness sectors. These experiences revealed an opportunity to combine her professional expertise with a personal commitment to supporting other women in business.
Central to her lecture were seven principles of entrepreneurial success: clarity, identity, alignment, differentiation, adaptability, relationships, and courage. Through an interactive exercise, she invited students to identify their own priorities and consider how individual values influence career decisions. She also explored the growing role of artificial intelligence in business, arguing that authenticity, creativity, and human connection remain essential to building distinctive and trusted brands.
Rather than measuring success solely through financial growth or professional status, Lagomarsino encouraged students to ask themselves a more fundamental question: “What kind of life do I want my work to create?”
During the Q&A, she offered practical advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, emphasizing the importance of starting small, building strong professional relationships, and taking consistent steps toward long-term goals. She also spoke candidly about balancing the development of Cusp of Something with her continuing corporate career, illustrating that entrepreneurship need not follow a single, predetermined path.
Reflecting on her time at AUR, Lagomarsino highlighted the lasting influence of an international education on her personal and professional development. Her return to campus offered students both practical insights into building a business and a broader perspective on defining success on their own terms.
AUR student Elena Franco contributed to this article.