Do you have that entrepreneurial spirit but can’t figure out how to turn it into an actual product-based business? It can be overwhelming and confusing to decide which idea to move forward with and how to actually have your product ideas made.

On today’s episode, I share my journey from a perpetual creator and business dreamer into real life CEO and business owner. I’m excited to share my journey going from corporate employee to CEO of my own bag company, Bodomint. My hope is that hearing how I got to where I am, will give you some answers and ideas for how you can start your own product-based business!

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Early Days

Growing up in the Newport Beach Area of Southern California in Orange County, I was always excited about the surf lifestyle and dreamed of working in that industry someday as a fashion designer. After college, I got that opportunity when I landed a job at La Jolla Group, which is the parent company of O’Neill. At the time, in 2007, it was the parent company for Lost…, Rusty, and Metal Mulisha as well. I started as the receptionist and I worked my way up in the company until I was eventually an Accessories Designer.

My Pivotal Moment

I was so excited when my first-ever design came in the mail. It was a design that I had imagined. I drew a picture and sent the tech pack to the manufacturer. When the sample came in the mail… I. Was. Astounded. I put the bag on and skipped around the office and showed all my coworkers. They were less amused than I was because this was something they had experienced but for me… I still remember that feeling. It was amazing.

That Entrepreneurial Drive

I had that job for a few years. Then I got married and my husband and I moved to Hawaii, where I had actually lived before. But I couldn’t find a job designing in the surf industry and I had a really hard time finding a job in general. It was hard to go from my dream job designing to not finding a job.

I had this moment where I realized if I wanted to have a creative outlet, it would have to be my own business. So like many entrepreneurs, I tried lots of things. I did some things on Etsy. I sewed aprons and little tote bags. I did graphic design and wedding invitations.

I also helped a few people that were launching product businesses. I made tech packs for them to send to their manufacturers to have their products made. But mostly…

“I just felt kind of unfulfilled. I had this entrepreneurial spirit, drive, and this creativity that I needed to get out, but I didn’t really have an outlet. I was always thinking of ideas, but I just couldn’t find my niche or a product that I felt was really needed in the market.”

I think this is where a lot of people have a hard time if you’re anything like me. You probably also have that entrepreneurial spirit and you always have ideas. You’re kind of going through that cycle of like, does this idea work? Is there a need in the market? And I went through that for a long time before it finally hit.

Finally… The Perfect Idea

That perfect idea finally arrived after I had my first son while we were living in Hawaii. We really needed a diaper bag that looked cool and didn’t look like it was for the baby. I didn’t want it to have the little kid/baby print. I also wanted it to have all the extra functions that you need in a diaper bag, like the changing pad and all the pockets for the bottles etc. And then I wanted it to be a backpack, but also could be worn messenger style over the shoulder. Most importantly, I wanted my husband and me to both feel like it was our style. That we could both feel confident wearing it.

I bought so many bags at that time and just could not find one that was a fit. Then I finally had that light bulb moment…like, “Oh yeah! I’m a designer. I’m always looking for a creative outlet. This could be my thing. This could be my business!”

How Do I Do This?

So I spent a long time drawing up different designs to get it perfect. After I finally had the idea that I thought was perfect, I needed to find a manufacturer.

Finding a manufacturer can be a barrier to entry that a lot of people face. You think,

“Okay, I have this idea, but what in the world do I do to have that product made? And how do I find a manufacturer?”

There are other articles here that go more in-depth about where and how to find a manufacturer, but I was lucky. I had a friend who was making camera bags and I asked her if she would share her manufacturer’s information with me. Since we weren’t doing competing items, she was happy to share that with me.

I sent my tech pack (basically a product blueprint) to them and the sample came back and it was great. This doesn’t always happen this way. I usually recommend that you send your design to several manufacturers and have several samples made. So you can compare quality and get quotes for pricing. But in this circumstance I was new and it worked out for me, but it doesn’t always work that way.

So I had my first prototype and at that time we also moved back to California and I started working at Hurley designing and developing t-shirts.

The Product Development Process

Now I was in the process of product development. I would get the samples and then I would give them back what’s called “comments”. Comments are essentially a document or email where you lay out specifically what you like and what needs to be changed for the next sample. You usually include photos or arrows pointing to images of what needs to change.

So there was a lot of back and forth and this honestly took me about a year. I felt like I was really trying to get that product right. I just was so nervous about it not being perfect, but I think there is such a thing as overdevelopment. Some people get stuck doing this process for too long and I got stuck in that phase.

It’s been recommended that you get your products to be about 80% the way you want them. Otherwise, you can be stuck in this cycle for too long. So I had probably four or five samples sent to me until I felt like it was the way I wanted it. And mind you each time you get a sample, you have to either pay for it, or you have to at least pay for them to ship it to you which can be expensive.

Crowd Funding

Once I felt like my bag was exactly how I wanted it, I wanted to order two colorways (aka two color options) for my customers to choose from. I was ready to launch my bags, but I needed money! I chose to raise these funds via crowdfunding and I went with the platform Kickstarter. On Kickstarter essentially, I offered the ability for people to help me start my business by pre-ordering my bags or they could show support by purchasing other reward levels. Like if they gave $5, I’d send them a key chain or a t-shirt. In this process, I found it was important to have various reward levels so people could support me as much or as little as they wanted while also receiving something in return.

For example, I had a lot of family and friends that wanted to help me out but maybe weren’t in the market for a diaper bag. So I had lower donation amounts for them and higher donation amounts for people that really wanted to just support me. I had one reward level that was 4 diaper bags, as well as a few t-shirts and keychains and I was surprised that I did have people that purchased that level.

One thing with Kickstarter is that it’s an all-or-nothing method of raising funds. So if you don’t reach your goal amount then you don’t get any of the money and nobody’s card gets charged. I set my goal at $5,000, which was not enough for what I needed to order the bags. I was nervous to set the goal too high and not be able to receive the funds. Luckily I was able to pass my goal and received about $14,000, which was enough for me to purchase the bags and have them shipped to me.

There are other crowdfunding platforms out there, including Indiegogo as well as some others that have different rules and regulations. So do your research if you’re interested in going that route.

Product Validation

One benefit of launching your product via crowdfunding is that you are able to get a feel in the market for whether or not people were interested in your product. It is a validation of sorts and I highly recommend doing some sort of product validation whether you do it through crowdfunding or not.

I always recommend that people take their idea and talk to people about it, especially those that are in your target market. You want to get their feedback.

Say they like it, but they want padded straps or they want this, or they want that. It’s always great to get that feedback. This way you can estimate how much interest there is out there before you go and have so many of them made.

Bulk Production

When I ordered my bulk production I put 50% down to cover half of the cost, which is pretty typical. Then they manufactured it. Once they send it, then you pay the other half. However, if it’s a really small or low-value manufacturing order, then you may pay for all of it upfront.

Of course, some issues came up, which is pretty expected. One of the issues for me was that there was a protest at the port. So my products were sitting in the port, but we just couldn’t get them because the workers were protesting at that point. I had to tell my Kickstarter backers sorry for the delay, there’s a protest going on. So make sure you build in extra time for unexpected delays. You want to underpromise and over-deliver, as the saying goes.

Adding New Products

After I launched Bodomint on Kickstarter, I was able to continue to grow my company. Some of this I did while I was working at Hurley and then some of it I did while I was teaching fashion classes at Orange Coast College. Then I was able to quit those jobs and do Bodomint as my job while raising my three kids.

I continue to add products like different varieties of bags and straps. It is important to get returning customers because my product was something that you don’t necessarily purchase more than one time. If you buy one of these diaper bags it lasts a long time, so you’re not necessarily going to buy another one unless it’s a gift for someone else. So now I offer a different style of diaper bag that’s vegan leather, as well as a small cross-body/fanny pack bag and lots of different patterned straps that you can interchange with your bags. Having that variety of styles and price points is important for attracting new customers or getting repeat buyers.

Sales and Marketing

I was finally able recently to hire a social media manager, which has been so helpful and such a weight off my shoulders. Marketing and sales are such a huge part of starting a business. I didn’t realize that going in because I’m a designer my background is in design. But, If you’re wanting to launch a product-based business, just know that sales is going to be a big part of it. Unfortunately, you can’t just design a great product and people will come running. They have to know about it. You constantly have to be finding new customers and selling to people.

I hope that learning about how I started my bag company helps you as you’re dreaming of starting or growing your own product line!

Free Product Business Launch Guide

If you found it helpful to learn about how I started my own business, then you will LOVE my free Product Business Launch Guide where I provide 5 clear phases of how to start or scale your own product Business.

Links Mentioned:

My first design job at La Jolla Group

Freelance work on Etsy

Designing t-shirts for Hurley

My project on Kickstarter

How Kickstarter works

How Indiegogo works

The amazing Fashion Program at Orange Coast College

My business Bodomint

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