We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Billie Asmus a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Billie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the toughest things about entrepreneurship is that there is almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

As I was building my company and launching my product into the market, I faced numerous unexpected challenges that I wish I would’ve had more knowledge around when first starting out.
For example, when I first started Repaint Studios, I decided to partner with some business advisors that had experience in the product industry, manufacturing, wholesale, etc. They wanted 10% equity in my company and in exchange they’d be a part of the team helping me execute, build relationships, manage sales, and so forth. However that was a lie. They rarely executed, didn’t help me boost my sales, and then demanded a cut of the revenue. I later discovered they were skimming money from the company and it broke me. So I then had a legal battle to terminate the partnership and somehow recoup my costs and lost revenue. Looking back, I wish I would’ve negotiated harder on the advisory paperwork and also asked more questions with my attorney on what this should look like. Throughout this process, my husband lost his job, tariffs skyrocketed so it made it near impossible to get inventory, we had to move to a new fulfillment center and the new company caused us significant loss in revenue while damaging inventory in the process. Everything felt like it was falling apart and this was only my second year in business. I had to make quick decisions on my feet and figure out how to navigate these major changes and challenges as a new and growing entrepreneur. So I hired my husband, we navigated the tariffs to the best of our ability without raising our prices to the end consumer, and moved our fulfillment in house to regain our quality control, and boost our sales again. It has been an insane year to say the least and it seemed the universe threw everything at me, but I’m hopeful for 2026 now that we have regained some control and dreaming toward the future. If anything these challenges have taught me some very expensive, yet valuable lessons in business.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My life has always been surrounded by family business and entrepreneurship. I worked in a corporate company for 8 months and that was enough for me. I saw the value that small businesses and family businesses provided to communities and individuals and I knew I would be a part of that someday. So, as a second generation entrepreneur, I knew my career would pull me in that direction at some point.

I’ve always had a love for home improvement and DIY and flipped my first piece of furniture when I was in highschool and continued to do it on the side wherever life took me. So in 2021, I decided to quit my full-time job and flip/restore furniture. My husband was able to hold us financially while I pursued my creative endeavors, however two months in to restoring furniture, I became frustrated with the plastic paint tray liners and not having an adequate way to save my paint for extended periods. The short term “hacks” like using a garbage bag, saran wrap, or foil didn’t work for me, and I worried about my environmental impact, so I searched for a reusable option and nothing showed up, so that was how I had the idea for the Repaint Tray. It’s the first reusable, silicone, paint tray liner with an air-tight lid that can keep your paint fresh for up to 21 days. Since creating it, people all over the world now have the convenience to start and stop painting and work with their lifestyle and not against it. It makes clean-up easy because you let the paint dry in the tray liner, and then peel it out, then you wash the liner and lid with soap and water and you can use it again.

It’s been a wild ride to say the least. I don’t have a background in manufacturing, retail, product development, etc. I prototyped the product myself and had to be as frugal as possible being on one income and supporting two young children at home. Since launching in 2024, I’ve been able to launch in Lowes, Home Depot, Ace Hardware, and soon to be Tractor Supply. Then at the end of 2025, I debuted on Shark Tank season 17, and secured a deal with Barbara Corcoran, and guest Sharks, Chip & Joanna Gaines from Fixer Upper. I’m only two years into building my company and I look back in awe at times and still wonder how I did it.

Every day is a challenge, navigating avenues as a leader and professional in a very male dominated industry I never had experience in. But, I’m proud of myself for not giving up and continuing to move forward despite the setbacks, despite the negative people, despite the unknowns. Amazing things can happen and doors open in unexpected ways when you truly follow your passion.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Since we were a one income household, I had to be as lean as possible. It wasn’t realistic to take on an angel investor early on, so I liquidated my 401k, I sold furniture that I had restored and flipped, sold items we didn’t use frequently on facebook marketplace, and I signed up for every pitch competition I could find. I wanted to be able to practice my pitch and get feedback, but also win money in the process to put toward my company. Early on, I won smaller competitions ranging from $500 up to $4,000, but I kept practicing and getting better. Later on I went to win a $40,000 pitch competition and then a few months later, won a $100,000 pitch competition. These helped me greatly in the early stages. In addition to pitch competitions, I received a CDFI loan for $50,000 to go toward manufacturing, and another small loan from my parents for $30,000 for my first run of inventory. Since launching, I’ve been able to secure a couple of investors to keep things growing.

Do you have any stories of times when you almost missed payroll or any other near death experiences for your business?

At the end of 2025 to today actually. With tariffs, the setbacks we saw from my former business partners, and fulfillment partners, we lost so much revenue and cut into our cash flow severely. There were several weeks I didn’t pay myself to make payroll for my team and only paid the essentials to keep the lights on, pay rent, etc. I thought it was going to be the death of me and the company. It felt as if everything I had been fighting for was suddenly pulled away in almost an instant, and it spiraled me into severe depression. But I had to keep fighting because I have kids at home who need their mom, and a team and community that looked up to me. I had been able to accomplish the impossible in two short years that some people strive for, for years and sometimes I forget to stop and appreciate how far I have come.

Luckily I was able to secure a loan to consolidate some start-up debt and keep pursuing the growth of the company, but the instability and unknowns are terrifying. I’ve never been one to let go and give up when my back is against the wall. If anything, that is where my best work happens. I’ve had advisors in business and leaders growing up tell me I’m not capable and wouldn’t amount to anything, or devalue who I was as a leader and professional for being a woman and a mom. The words and judgement stung, yes, but if anything it just added fuel to my fire to look back and say, “watch me.”
If you’ve seen the movie, Pretty Woman, I often think about the scene where Vivian returns to the upscale clothing boutique that initially rejected her and judged her for her outward appearance even though she had every right to be there. She returns with her hands full of shopping bags in a nice dress, and tells the sales clerks, “Big mistake. Huge!”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://repaintstudios.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/repaint_tray/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RepaintTray
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billieasmus/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RepaintStudios