Well, it all started during Covid. I was given a sewing machine years ago and never had the time to use it. So one day, I decided to take it out and teach myself how to sew, as I wanted to make a dog beg for my lovely rescue dogs, Ginger and Coco. I had this idea in my head for months. I wanted to create a dog bed that looked great with my decor, that was practical and easy to clean. So I thought, now is the perfect time to do it! I watched lots of YouTube videos and started my first project. Once I finally mastered the stitches and pattern making, I sewed my first dog bed. The design was unique as it had interchangeable tops and was made of high-performance fabric ( the one you use on a couch) to ensure it was durable and easy to clean. The design was great and practical, so I decided to start an online business called The Pouchkies. The only issue I had is since I used top-of-the-line fabric ($50 a yard), the bed was a little too pricey, especially during covid. Although everyone was adopting a pet, no one was willing to spend $300-$400 on a dog bed. No matter how durable and functional it was. So one day, my BFF asked me: Why don’t you make bags? You have been working in high-end retail ( Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, Oilily, Shinola Detroit) your entire career selling handbags. Plus, because of Covid, we all are looking for hand-free bags. So I took her advice, put The Poochkies on the side, and started designing my first bag. A crossbody bag named Tina that was light, durable, easy to maintain, and named after her. The customers loved the design, especially the Blush waterproof fabric, the peek-a-boo camouflage lining and camouflage strap, and the bulky black hardware.

The combination was an immediate hit. I made sure I picked a fabric that was durable, easy to maintain, and, most of all, when you touched it, you could immediately feel the quality. Customers instantly knew they were buying a high-end craftsmanship product and loved that! I have worked in luxury retail my entire career, so it was essential to me that the quality was there not only in the fabric/materials but as well in the manufacturing of it. I launched it in Blush and Black colorway with a camouflage lining, and Mustkies ( your next must-have!) was born. The hardest part of this process was learning how to fix the sewing machine when it broke and me being so critical of my stitching. Attention to detail is extremely important to me, but sometimes it can also set me back.

Sure! We all have many stories about resilience while opening a small business or any business. The first one that comes to mind with Mustkies is a story about communication and trust.

When I first started Mustkies, there was one thing I knew right away. I wasn’t great at Social Media and needed someone to help me. During COVID, I watched a friend of a friend grow her social media platform tremendously in no time. I was very impressed and reached out to her to see if she would be willing to help me. Lucky for me, she said yes, and we set a verbal agreement that she would be responsible for growing the social media account and would get a % on every sale she generated from the platform or by simply selling bags. Everything was going as planned. The social media accounts grew fast, and business was flourishing. I decided it was time to order business cards and ordered hers with the title of Marketing / Sales Director and mine as the Founder, Designer, and Managing Director.

Our next step was to branch out and get featured in a magazine. Since she had worked in the publishing business years prior, she contacted her old colleague, and lucky for us; they were on board! We were so excited; Mustkies was going to be in a magazine – Amazing!!! Everything was going so well. We sent the magazine one or two paragraphs about Mustkies and each other’s role and waited to hear back. Since the publisher’s contact was her old colleague, and we had a good relationship, I let her be the primary contact for the magazine. After several weeks, I found it odd that the magazine did not get back to us with the article to review. I thought it was very strange but again trusted her and our business relationship. I had no reason otherwise. A couple of days later, I finally got her call saying the article was published online. I quickly checked and was so excited to read it and didn’t realize how it was written. I congratulated her on getting exposure and was ready to have her post it on Social Media. Before doing so, I reread it and saw that the article stated she was one of Mustkies’s cofounders when she was, in fact, contracted for sales and social media and I was the sole proprietor and Founder Her name was front and center when my name and business idea were barely mentioned and recognized. The issue was a bitter experience as I spent hours building my business, learning to sew, and developing the design. Even though it was a bad experience, it was also a tremendous business-learning opportunity. I started questioning myself and wondering where I lacked clear communication.

After realizing all this, I immediately called the magazine and asked them to take it off the internet. As for my friend of a friend, unfortunately, this incident broke the trust and immediately ended our work and friendship. In a matter of seconds, I lost my social media content creator and salesperson and had to start from scratch again.

I learned a big lesson from the story above. Even though you think you are all on the same page, sometimes you are not. It is important to be clear with your direction and each other’s scope of work! Make sure you write everything down, have contracts with anyone helping you, and learn every part of your business. If something like this happens, it will be easy for you to pick back up. Sometimes, getting the job done without being an expert is okay. The most important thing is to put one step forward and get yourself out there.

Remember, you can do anything you set your mind to because nothing is impossible; the word itself says you’re possible!