We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Deborah McIncrow a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Deborah, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?
I believe it takes an enormous amount of grit and dedication to create a successful product and business. It takes day after day diligence, no quitting, no taking days off until the work gets done. Let’s face it, nobody will work as hard as you do on your own business.
Deborah, 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?
Travel is one of the things my husband and I love; being comfortable while traveling is at the top of the list and that’s why my pillow travels everywhere with me. It was on a trip when my pillow was ruined that I decided to make a difference when traveling with my pillow. I came home and said to myself… there just has to be a better way to travel with my pillow. When there wasn’t anything on the market that even came close to what I wanted, I took matters into my own hands and PillowSak was born. PillowSak is a protective cover for your pillow while you travel so when you get to your destination and it’s bedtime you know your pillow is nice and clean. PillowSak comes with an adjustable strap for shoulder or crossbody wear and a suitcase sleeve for ease of travel. PillowSak comes in a variety of colors and patterns, is machine washable and allows you to travel in style. PillowSak keeps dirt, grime and germs off your pillow so when it is bedtime you have peace of mind knowing your pillow is clean. No more naked pillow, no more traveling with a garage bag, no more stuffing your pillow in your suitcase. PillowSak is your pillows BFF. There is nothing on the market that even compares to PillowSak. My number one competitor is a garbage bag; welcome to your PillowSak upgrade. I am super proud of all the hard work that has been dedicated towards PillowSak and put forth 110% effort each and every day.
Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?
When I first came up with the idea for a product that protected your pillow while traveling I had no earthly idea how to sew. If I wanted to produce my products, which I did, I had to start at square one, and I approached a local sewing store, and had Miss Mary start from scratch, how to thread a machine, use the machine and so forth. I had never sewn anything in my life and I took it one step at a time and each lesson at a time. I began to realize that I could be a sewer and I could be successful and I could be the producer of my product. They were many nights, late-late nights that I wanted to throw the sewing machine through the window. The stitches were messy, the length wasn’t right, I couldn’t sew a straight line, I had forgotten how to thread the machine. Day after day, week after week and month after month I got better and better and better. I remember one day specifically going in for a lesson and telling my teacher that I did not like how the inside of my PillowSak looked using pinking shears, and a zigzag stitch. Miss Mary informed me that the only way for that to look any better was to purchase a sergering machine, I had never heard of it in my life. Needless to say, I bought one and then almost fell apart, threading four needles, adjusting four tensions, and if one thing was off, the entire stitch was ruined. There were many 2am work mornings where I spent 45 minutes, attempting to thread the machine and finally had to throw in the towel and go to bed because I could barely focus anymore. It never failed, I got up the next morning and bingo, I threaded it right. I got all the tension correct and the stitch was perfect. It wasn’t easy, but I didn’t quit and persevered and now have a beautiful product to show for it.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
One thing that comes to mind about rising from the ashes is early on in the journey where the straps and me fell apart. I had just began selling PillowSaks to the general public. I remember being at a farmers market one evening and getting an email saying that one of the straps on the PillowSak had broken and the customer was not a happy camper. I remember driving home that evening from the farmers market and shedding tears because my product gone onto the market and it wasn’t 100% perfect. I got home that evening and had a little break down with my husband because of the strapping situation. I took a shower and during that time I said to myself I have two choices, one I quit or two I fix the problem. I realize that I am not Mercedes-Benz and this is not a detrimental issue like brakes failing. I got out of the shower, pulled myself together and went back to the drawing board to see how I could adjust the strapping situation to make them stronger. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger and you absolutely learn from your mistakes just like I did.
Contact Info:
- Website: PillowSak.com
- Instagram: theoriginalpillowsak
- Facebook: theoriginalpillowsak