We recently connected with Nicole Berger and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nicole, thanks for joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

After years of dealing with extreme bloating and stomach pain, I wanted to wear comfortable outfits (NOT sweatpants) that would help me regain my confidence. I knew I couldn’t be the only one struggling with this, so I started sharing bloat-friendly outfits on social media.

After months of posting, everyone kept asking, “What jeans do you wear?” My answer? None. That’s when I realized that not only I, but the world, also wanted bloat-friendly jeans. I knew designing and manufacturing jeans was a complicated process, so I needed a really good team.

I wanted to find the BEST denim designer. Having managed a recruiting department in my previous life, this was my time to shine. It was crucial for me to find a designer who truly understood the problem so we could solve it authentically.

After interviewing several designers, I met Christine Rucci, one of the top NYC-based denim designers with nearly 40 years of experience, along with her right-hand pattern maker, Luis. She had personally dealt with bloating and knew exactly what was needed to create bloat-friendly jeans. Such a win!

Over the next 9 months, getting the business off the ground was an exciting challenge, filled with things I had no experience in—from researching sales tax to shipping logistics, building a website, creating social media content and not to mention manufacturing jeans.

I wanted these jeans to be perfect. Right from the start, we designed a unique solution to the uncomfortable waistband problem. From there, it was all about achieving the perfect fit. I was the fit model, and somehow, I was always bloated during our fittings (shocker). After our last prototype fitting, we went out to lunch. Before wearing the prototype, if I was wearing jeans, I’d secretly unbutton my jeans under the table. This time was different. Before AND after eating, my jeans were so comfortable on my tummy. That had never happened before. It was such a big deal and we were SO excited. I called the design Tummy Technology, and it became the heart and soul of ginger + dandelion jeans.

Our first factory in New York didn’t work out, so we had to switch gears and move production to LA halfway through prototyping. Thankfully, the new factory helped us bring our jeans to life. Manufacturing takes a while—so while that was happening, I focused on marketing. I created and posted content, wrote blogs, and started building excitement for our launch. Also, it’s not the most comfortable thing in the world to take videos of yourself and put them on the internet, but as a business owner, it’s critical. I watched a Masterclass with Sara Blakely and she said something along the lines of ‘it was her butt on QVC’ and I knew it had to be my tummy on Instagram. After a few rounds of prototypes (and lots of hardwork), we designed and manufactured the world’s first bloat-friendly jeans and launched them in the US.

Nicole, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’ve always loved jeans. I still remember saving up for my first pair of designer jeans—the Dojo Sevens. I wore them until they were full of holes (not the cool ones) and had to let them go.

Not long after, I was diagnosed with IBS-C and celiac disease, among other issues that caused bloating. Bloating made wearing jeans unbearable. No matter how much I loved how they looked, the pressure on my stomach was too much and I started to hate them.

Living in sweatpants every day was really getting to me. I searched the internet for bloat-friendly outfits, but there wasn’t much out there. That’s when I started sharing outfit ideas on social media, assuming other women were dealing with the same struggle. Turns out, they were! Everyone wanted to know what jeans I wore when I was bloated, but none existed. That’s when I knew I had to bring them to life. Bloated women should be able to wear jeans too!

Then, while we were in production, I got pregnant! Little did I know that bloat-friendly jeans would also be a game-changer for postpartum moms. Even before I could wear them myself, postpartum moms were raving about how these jeans fit perfectly, felt comfortable and made them feel like themselves again after pregnancy. When I finally got back into jeans after having my son, I fell in love with them even more. They’re the only jeans I wear—whether I’m at my son’s music class, out to eat, or cooking dinner.

Hearing from customers about how our jeans have transformed their lives warms my heart beyond words. We’ve received handwritten cards thanking us because they are so happy they can wear denim again. Wearing g+d jeans is part of their journey in regaining confidence and I know firsthand how that feels. It’s about jeans, but it’s also so much more than that—it’s about the feeling you get when you’re wearing jeans. When you wake up, brush your teeth, and put on your jeans, you’re setting the tone for the day: how you feel and how you show up to the world. We are so honored to be a part of that.

It’s also about our community that bonds us together. Our community—whether they are at the onset of perimenopause, battling endometriosis, recently giving birth to a beautiful baby, struggling with IBS, etc.—consists of women who embody the strength and resilience needed to navigate body changes. We are here to help them reclaim their confidence through their jeans.

Jeans are personal—they fit everyone differently, and when they fit just right, the feeling of confidence is unmatched. The journey our bodies go through as women is tough enough, and we all deserve a pair of jeans that makes us feel comfortable, stylish, and confident.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Before ginger + dandelion, I started a brand called simply stitchd, focused on creating sustainable t-shirts in LA. At the time, I assumed the growing sustainability movement would automatically attract customers. I thought if I made a great product and ran ads on social, people would come.

But I quickly learned I wasn’t solving a specific problem. Sustainability wasn’t enough of a hook on its own to drive sales. People weren’t connecting with the product in the way I had hoped.

It feels really sh*tty when your company isn’t doing well. And honestly, I didn’t like how broad the problem I was trying to solve was. I thought long and hard about the issues that mattered to me, and since I’ve been battling stomach issues my entire life, I wanted to do something related to that. Building a company is hard enough, and I wanted to do something that mattered to me. The first question I needed an answer to was “is this problem only for me”. I needed to make sure there was an audience for bloat-friendly jeans.

The pivot from simply stitchd to ginger + dandelion took a lot of planning and time. I have a great marketing partner, Alyssa, who helped guide me while I changed the narrative. It was so hard to see email subscribers drop, Instagram followers drop, but I focused on the end goal and eventually built back up and sales started coming.

I learned it’s not just about making a good product—it’s about solving a problem in the market that you are passionate about. I’m so happy I pivoted to something that matters to me and so many women out there.

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

Sales shapes marketing and marketing drives sales. When I started posting videos about bloat-friendly outfits, I had duplicates of a dress and decided to give them away for free because I wanted other people to feel as good in this dress as I did! I posted, “If you want one of these dresses for free, DM me, and I’ll send it to you.” Someone responded, so I shipped it off.

A month later, the woman messaged me saying she never received it. Long story short the package is in post office heaven. I didn’t know that was a thing but it is.

I felt so bad and really wanted to get this dress to her, luckily I had another one in her size and sent it off to her, again. Months later, when I launched my brand, she became one of my first customers and bought both styles of jeans. She later messaged me, saying the jeans had changed her life—they were exactly what she’d been searching for over the years, and no other jeans made her stomach feel as comfortable as ginger + dandelion jeans. She was so happy to be able to wear jeans again, comfortably and confidently! Hearing that was absolutely amazing—what a win!

She asked if I had an affiliate program, and I was more than happy to send her a sales code. Curious, I looked up her Instagram account and realized she had a solid following. That was cool, but I didn’t think much of it.

A month later, I was sitting in the OB-GYN waiting room for a scan, and my phone started dinging with sales (those of you who know the Shopify alert when you make a sale, it’s an amazing sound!) It turns out she had a massive YouTube following and had posted about how much she loved the jeans.

The orders kept rolling in, even during the week I delivered my son. She became one of my biggest sources of sales last year and even inspired us to launch one of our fits in black. I am forever grateful for her and became even more excited about the product.

Every interaction between people and your business matters. I started this business to help people feel comfortable, stylish, and confident. I’ve always believed that when you work hard, put people first, and make them happy, happiness grows—and that drives business growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gingeranddandelion.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gingeranddandelion/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-berger-stelluti-4562b98

Image Credits

Sarah Bove Photography
& Carley Storm Photography