The Win

The Walkout | Part 4

“Aren’t you concerned about just throwing more junk out into the world? Like, contributing to toxic consumerism?”

In my Jeep, Shannon and I sat in the Old Navy parking lot while it rained, discussing the effects of Amazon on the world of immediate gratification. 

“I mean, most things I get from Amazon are junk. That’s why we are sitting here in the first place, shopping in person for things that aren’t… junk.” Shannon shared many of the same concerns as me. In fact, I had asked Stephen point blank the same question. Why is what I make any different from the crap that already spews its consumerism impossibility all over the internet? 

“Well, the hope is that I make something that isn’t that. Not junk. The idea behind product research is finding a product that people need or want that doesn’t already exist, or to make something that we have deemed junk, but needed, better.” Even then, I was explaining away my own hesitations with memorized and theoretical assumptions about why this was a good idea. 

“With bamboo baby washcloths? Nicole, is that really what you want to make?” 

My answer was, no, it wasn’t. But it fit the mold of what a product needed to be: 

• Inexpensive to make overseas

• Lightweight and small

• Demand in the marketplace

• Not many other sellers with a similar product

• Room to improve quality and value

I had already decided I wanted to be in the baby product space. Having a one year old and hoping for more, I was already making headway in the mommy blogger world and working on a new digital idea in the same realm. It fit my MO, and had huge potential to grow. 

The baby industry was going crazy. Brands like Kyte, Snoo, 4Moms, Freshly Picked, WildBird and Ollie were brand new and taking full advantage of the new and untapped power of social media. My background in marketing and design gave me a huge advantage here, and I had every intention of joining those names. And in a hurry. 

The hiccup was money.

We had virtually no capital for this kind of business in our lives. Until our Amazon journey, Adam and I had done everything without acquiring debt. The first thing we ever put on a credit card was the course from Stephen. I was just a week in, headed through the course, and dead-set on having a product idea and in manufacturing before my first credit card payment was due. 

Lofty goal, yes, I know.