Alexandra Rodrigues Exclusive Interview - Lead Fearlessly, Even Without Guarantees

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Alexandra Rodrigues is a business strategist and co-founder of Arcallon, an innovative production management platform powering major film and television productions, including Oppenheimer and Barbie. Before entering the tech world, she built Swarovski North America’s Entertainment division from the ground up, forging high-profile partnerships with globally recognised artists and entertainment brands. Driven by resilience, commercial vision, and an entrepreneurial mindset, Rodrigues has consistently created opportunities where none existed, proving that determination can outweigh privilege or traditional pathways. Today, she continues to expand Arcallon’s global impact while inspiring others—especially women in business—to lead boldly, embrace uncertainty, and build their own path to success.

Here is the Q&A session we had with Alexandra Rodrigues.

Alexandra Rodrigues As Cover Story Interview – July 2026 Magazine Edition

How do you introduce yourself?

I am Alexandra Rodrigues, co-founder of Arcallon, a production management platform for film and television that has been used on major productions including Oppenheimer and Barbie across Netflix, Disney, and Lionsgate. Before building Arcallon, I spent six years at Swarovski North America where I built the company’s B2B Entertainment pilot from the ground up and closed the first brand and touring partnerships with Mariah Carey and Sarah Brightman through Live Nation and UTA. My background is in brand partnerships and business development across luxury, entertainment, and technology, and I have been featured in WWD for my career across those worlds.

Struggle – What hardships have you gone through in life?

I grew up having to work harder than most people around me to get to the same place. Going to school in New York City meant being in rooms with people who came from a lot more than I did, people with networks already built, resources already in place, and doors already open. I did not have that. What I had was a sharp mind and the willingness to outwork everyone around me. I built relationships from scratch, proved myself deal by deal, and figured out early that the only thing I could control was how prepared I was and how hard I worked. That shaped everything. Swarovski’s B2B division, working with the Entertainment industry, did not exist before I built it. Arcallon did not exist before I helped build it. Neither came easy. But I learned young that the path forward is not handed to you, and I stopped waiting for it to be.

What do people usually not know about you?

That I am not technical at all and I co-founded a technology company. Most people assume that because Arcallon is a software platform, I must have a tech background. I do not. I came from luxury brand partnerships and enterprise sales. What I brought to Arcallon was an understanding of who would buy the product, how they make purchasing decisions, and what it would take to price and position something that a major studio would trust. The product is built by my co-founder. The business model is mine. I am also deeply involved with Advocates for Children of New York and Family Promise, which is a side of my life that does not always come up in professional conversations but matters a great deal to me.

What sets you apart from others?

I have sat on both sides of the table in almost every deal I have been part of. At Swarovski I was the brand making decisions about where to invest in entertainment partnerships. I evaluated packages from AEG, Live Nation, and Coachella and decided what was worth doing. Then I went and built the partnerships myself, from the pitch through the activation. At Arcallon I helped to build a company from scratch in an industry I was not from and placed it on some of the biggest productions in the world without outside funding. The combination of commercial instincts, creative thinking, and the ability to close is not common. Most people are strong at one of those things. I do all three.

What are your upcoming major events?

I have submitted to speak at SXSW 2027 on two topics: how I built Swarovski’s brand and touring partnerships from scratch, and what non-technical co-founders bring to product development that technical founders cannot replicate. I am also in the process of considering the NYU Stern Executive MBA program, which feels like a significant next chapter. And Arcallon continues to grow. We are active on major productions and building toward the next phase of the company’s development.

What expert advice would you like to give?

Stop waiting for someone to hand you the playbook. The most important things I have built in my career, the Swarovski Entertainment division, Arcallon, did not come with instructions. I had to figure out what the opportunity was, make the case for it, and then go execute it with no guarantee it would work. The people who get ahead are not always the most talented or the most connected. They are the ones who keep moving when the room is not sure yet. And if you are a woman building something in a space that was not made for you, the most powerful thing you can do is refuse to let that be the reason you stop.

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