Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin

From Kim Kardashian, J.Lo, and Ariana Grande, Chris Appleton has styled the biggest names in Hollywood, but his journey getting there was not easy. Today, Chris opens up about the hustle it took to go from a small-town salon in the UK to red carpets, and the bumps in the road along the way.

Chris shares the financial trauma, internal battles, and deep personal work it took to get to the top—and stay there. He gets vulnerable about the struggles behind the success: coming out after being in a heterosexual relationship, the breakthrough moment with Christina Aguilera that allowed him to beat his imposter syndrome, and why the word “fine” isn’t in his vocabulary.

Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Resources

Find video clips from the pod on Money Rehab’s Instagram and Nicole Lapin’s Instagram

Check Out Chris’ Book Your Roots Don’t Define You

Find a Financial Advisor or Financial Coach from Nicole’s company Private Wealth Collective

Here’s what Nicole talks about with Chris:

00:00 Money Rehab Presents: Chris Appleton

03:01 Childhood Struggles and Financial Trauma

06:53 Telling the Hater Inside to Quiet Down

10:54 Navigating a Scarcity Mindset

13:44 Chris’ Erewhon Smoothie

16:27 Chris’ Early Hustle Days and Evading Train Conductors 

21:52 Moving to LA and Chris’ Big Break with Christina Aguilera

26:07 Chris’ Coming Out Story and Hitting Rock Bottom

32:05 Why “Fine” Isn’t Fine

34:52 Why the Hair Salon Feels Like Therapy

38:01 How Chris Built His Reputation and How to Sell the Sizzle

41:46 Lessons from Kim Kardashian

44:42 Chris’ Take on Marriage, Relationships and Self Love

45:01 The Importance of Self-Love and Selectivity

48:46 Chris’ Tip Listeners Can Take Straight to the Bank

Is kindness an asset or a liability in business? Daniel Lubetsky—founder of Kind Snacks—makes a strong case for kindness as a competitive edge. He joins Nicole to share the behind-the-scenes story of buying out a private equity firm for $220 million to preserve his direction, the difference between being nice and being kind, and why values-driven leadership isn’t just idealistic—it’s strategic. Plus, how he’s helping the next generation of founders build principled, profitable businesses through Camino Partners and Shark Tank.

Keep up with Daniel on Instagram

Learn more about Camino Partners

Read Daniel's Op Ed

Today, Nicole rips the veil off one of the most costly mistakes you're probably making with your money—and no, it's not skipping some secret tax loophole. It's way more basic than that: leveraging how tax brackets work. And avoiding tax talk? It’s bleeding your paycheck dry. Nicole breaks down how the system really messes with you if you’re not paying attention, and how a few strategic (and totally legal) moves can stop the IRS from taking more than its fair share. Bottom line: this episode could be the difference between donating thousands to the government... or keeping it in your wallet.

Today, Jonathan Aguilera who we're calling the “Robinhood of life insurance”—pulls back the curtain on how certain life insurance policies, especially Indexed Universal Life (IUL), are often misunderstood, aggressively sold— or even predatory.

Jonathan has gone viral for helping policyholders get refunds on problematic policies, and today, you get to be a fly on the wall during a live call with a policyholder and the insurer, as Nicole and Jonathan work to help this policyholder get back $100K.

Every New Year, the same tired money resolutions rear their heads: “Make a budget,” “Save more,” “Track spending.” While those tips aren’t wrong, they’re also not going to change your financial life unless they’re backed by a strategy that actually works with your brain—not against it. In this episode, Nicole cuts through the noise and shares three New Year’s money resolutions that are rooted in behavioral science, psychology, and real research on human behavior. These aren’t just feel-good goals—they’re practical, proven shifts that will help you create lasting financial change without relying on willpower alone.