Today we’d like to introduce you to Melissa Lockhart

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?

Melda Moda began as a passion project driven by my desire to find home clothes with prints I couldn’t find in stores. There came a point where I was struggling with burnout and needed to establish some work-life balance. I decided that once I put my pajamas on, I would turn off work notifications. That’s when Melda Moda truly became a mission.

My professional background is in HR for tech startups, so launching an apparel brand was entirely new to me. However, one of the key lessons I learned from those startups was to start with your MVP—minimum viable product—and iterate later. So that’s exactly what I did. Instead of launching with the six silhouettes and four prints I had envisioned, we began with just one pajama set and one robe, offering the same print in two colorways. I credit my tech startup experience for knowing that we could iterate and release new products over time. With our second release, we introduced the hibiscus collection and expanded our offerings to include accessories like silk bonnets and sleep masks. The sorrel print from this collection is the one I’m most proud of; it was inspired by my Caribbean heritage and has resonated deeply with many customers who share a similar background.

As the brand grew, I started hearing from customers who loved the pajamas and looked forward to putting them on as a signal to wind down. However, some shared that while their bodies were ready to rest, their minds were still racing. That’s when the idea for Slumber Sounds came to life. These are customized guided meditations and calming melodies designed to help women truly unwind and make rest a ritual. It feels fitting that there would be a tech component to this brand, given my years of experience in that space.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

It has definitely not been a smooth road, and sometimes I just have to laugh to keep from bawling my eyes out. The first factory I had a production agreement with tried to raise our minimums by something like 600% before our launch. When you’re self-funding, an increase like that is scary! Thankfully, they honored our original agreement for the first run.

Then, production delays resulted in our launch being delayed by five months. Luckily, our social media community stuck with me through those “sorry, we’re pushing this back again” videos.

We did a few pop-up markets where we didn’t even make back our booth fee, and sometimes, we didn’t make a single sale. This January was my first month in business, and in those weeks after the holidays, instead of hearing the “cha-ching” of sales, I was hearing crickets. Silence, actually. It was startling, especially because I’m bootstrapping the brand, and everything we want to research, develop, or release depends on incoming sales.

When I went to restock one of our most popular products, I found out that the factory we worked with had gone out of business.

It’s always something! But like I tell my mentees, “count it all joy,” because each of those setbacks has taught me something. Whether it’s the importance of having multiple factories, the seasonal nature of this business, or to simply ask more questions or say no to some opportunities.

As you know, we’re big fans of Melda Moda. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?

There’s so much I’m proud of brand-wise. My parents are from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, but I’m going to borrow a phrase from another Caribbean island—shout out to Jamaica—”we likkle but we tallawah!” which means “we are small but mighty.” Yes, we’re a sleepwear brand, but we’re so much more than that.

When I started Melda Moda, I had a vision: to create beautiful, colorful, and comfortable home clothes with prints representing cultures that weren’t visible in the current market. But even more importantly, I wanted women to look forward to changing into our pieces the way they might change for a date. Instead of going out with someone else, they’d be making a date with themselves—to relax, take a warm bath, sip tea, light a candle, diffuse an essential oil, or do anything else that puts them at ease.

When we released our second collection, which featured the sorrel and bissap prints, I had the chance to tell a story that was personal to me but resonated with many of our followers. My parents migrated to Brooklyn, NY, from St. Vincent. My mother learned to make sorrel—a drink made from dried hibiscus, cinnamon, ginger, and other spices—from her own mother, and it was a tradition she continued when she came to the States. Every holiday season, I’d help her bottle gallon after gallon, and friends and family would come to collect theirs. Years later, when I visited Ghana for Christmas, I realized they had a similar drink called bissap. So, our second collection featured the sorrel and bissap prints, which felt like a love letter to my parents and the island they called home. The reaction was bigger than I’d expected—people began sharing their own memories of sorrel at Christmastime and how it reminded them of home. I love that we could be a beacon for people to revisit those happy memories.

One customer shared that she wore her pajamas after surgery and “felt so beautiful, and most importantly, comfortable.” She said she received so many compliments as she left the hospital. Recovering from surgery can often be a time when people may feel vulnerable or in pain, so it means so much to know we helped her feel beautiful. I’ve heard from mothers and daughters who wore matching pieces on spa days, and brides who created memories with their bridesmaids in our robes as they got ready for the wedding. A new mom, who woke to nurse her newborn every few hours, used our guided meditation to unwind while her baby slept. These moments mean everything! I always stop and say “thank you” when I hear these stories because they make the lows we’ve faced in the business worth it and remind me to keep going.

If there’s one thing I want people to think of when they think of Melda Moda, yes, I want them to remember the products—pajamas, robes, silk bonnets, and sleep masks—but I also want them to remember the times they spent unwinding, creating new memories with loved ones, or caring for their mental health while wearing it. We’re here to inspire women to make rest a ritual, to honor and care for themselves the way they would for anyone else.

How do you think about happiness?

Putting on a pair of Melda Moda pajamas and jumping into bed at the end of the day is one of the best moments. Listening to our Slumber Sound in the shower gives me the same thrill—it’s like, “My brand made this!”

But above all, hearing from our customers, receiving their emails or DMs about how Melda Moda makes them feel, brings me immense joy. Dealing with burnout was rough. Knowing I’m spreading a message that resonates and is providing women with tools to hopefully avoid reaching that same low point makes my experience feel meaningful. It’s a reminder that my journey wasn’t for nothing.

Pricing:

• Long pajamas: $170
• Short Pajamas: $150
• Robes: $110
• Silk Bonnets: $24
• Silk Sleep Masks: $14

Contact Info:

• Website: https://meldamoda.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/meldamoda
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/meldamoda

Image Credits

Marta Skovro