Interview by Kelly Postiglione
Meet Kymberly Robinson, Esq., a local Westchester mom, entrepreneur, and lawyer who is passionate about helping founders build strong, sustainable businesses. She combines her legal expertise with real-world business experience to support entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey. From guiding startups to founding her own networking community, she’s all about empowering women to grow with confidence.
Where are you originally from, where do you live now? Can you tell us about your kids and their ages?
I grew up in New Rochelle, NY and live in Scarsdale, NY now. I have three children: a daughter (age 11); a son (age 9); and a son (age 4).
What inspired you to become a lawyer, and what led you to focus your practice on working with entrepreneurs and small business owners?
I was a psychology major and wanted to “help” people in an impactful way. The law, despite its reputation, is truly a helping profession at its core. Focusing on entrepreneurs allows me to combine legal knowledge with practical business strategy. I like to say I’m a holistic lawyer in the sense that I don’t just see clients as cases or view their challenges as isolated legal issues—I see them as visionaries building legacies and keep that in mind as I build a legal strategy. My goal is for clients to feel that I’m someone who understands their business model, their team dynamics, and their growth plans, while being mindful of how each legal decision affects their operations, brand, finances, and relationships. A strong legal plan should be part of your core strategy as a founder and an offensive legal plan can strengthen every part of your business. My role is to protect what they’re creating, anticipate risks before they become problems, and provide clear, actionable guidance so they can move forward with confidence. When entrepreneurs are empowered with the right legal foundation, they can build stronger, more sustainable businesses.
Can you walk us through the types of legal services you offer?
I offer legal services that sustain you throughout your entrepreneurial journey. Some of these include legal guidance on the right business structure; the relationship between owners, including proactively diffusing problems; hiring and retaining the right people whether that be crafting the right employment relationship or providing strategy on incentive plans; protecting and enforcing your IP through trademarks and copyright; and planning for eventual founder-exit. There are also some clients where I serve as General Counsel, meaning that I am their head of legal.
You work with many women and mom-owned businesses. What are some of the most common legal questions or concerns you hear from clients who are just getting started?
For clients just getting started, I’m often asked for referrals of other professionals who support entrepreneurs, as well as what other services are available to entrepreneurs. I passionately believe in the power of networking and enthusiastically recommend accountants, marketers, bankers, estate and financial planners who I believe have similar professional values that align with mine.
When helping a client form a business entity, what are the most important decisions they need to make early on, and how do you help guide them through that process?
Early on, you have to figure out what your role will look like. You should ask yourself who is ultimately going to help manage the day to day operations of your business. I would say this is a crucial first step. Next, I would focus on what strategic partnerships you can make early on. Lastly, for those seeking to fundraise or take on investors, I would say don’t be too eager to give away equity. Sometimes having an advisory board is a great decision.
As both a lawyer and an entrepreneur yourself, how does your firsthand experience running businesses shape the way you support your clients?
I realize how important the client experience is and how much weight a good review can hold. These are things you don’t think about when you’re an associate at a law firm and a partner is feeding you clients. Not to speak in a double-negative, but I try my best to never give another person a reason to hesitate before recommending me to their friend, client, neighbor, or on any mom groups. Don’t underestimate the power of a facebook group recommendation!
What advice would you give to moms who are thinking about starting a business but feel intimidated by the legal side of things?
Do some research. Find out what businesses succeed here and why some don’t make it. See if there is a market fit. I have seen women poll the facebook groups for this reason.
You’re also the founder of Speed Networking Collaborative, LLC. What inspired you to create this networking space?
I founded Speed Networking, LLC with a partner back in 2023. We felt like the networking events we were attending left us bored and uninspired. We decided what we wanted from a networking event and created the perfect networking event so that we could attend. Luckily, many people felt the same way and it was a success.
Recently, I formed Speed Networking Collaborative, LLC and expanded upon what we built to make this experience accessible to more individuals in the entrepreneur ecosystem. With Speed Networking Collaborative, LLC, I still plan to host speed networking events, but also plan to collaborate with more community builders. There are so many wonderful professional networking organizations in our area and I’m looking forward to exploring how we can support each other. For example, I’m speaking on a panel with the LinkedIn Local Hudson Valley group, and two months ago spoke at an event in Times Square with The Fourth Effect.
Beyond business connections, what do you hope women walk away with after attending a Speed Networking event?
I hope entrepreneurs leave feeling like the evening was productive. That can be unique to everyone, but for me it means knowing I will definitely be following up with the people I met in the next day or two via email, text, or even social media message. The best is seeing clients or past attendees (or both!) collaborate and support each other in their business growth.
To wrap things up, tell us your local favorites for self-care, eating out, and fun activities to do with your kids!
I love serving wellness and beauty clients and personally use Melissa at Beyond Beautiful by Melissa, Maria at Skin Clinic NY, Samantha at hair by Sam Lams, and Kat at Aesthetics by KM for all things self-care. I also love Lifetime Gym in Harrison. Bar Taco in Rye is always a great meal, as is Smallcakes in Scarsdale for a sweet treat. We also spend a lot of time at Scoop Shop in Scarsdale.
With the kids, we like to support the Westchester Children’s Museum, the Bronx Zoo, Camp Hillard for summer day camp, Shake It Off, and Westchester Gymnastics and Cheer.
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