19 Manufacturer and Benefits of Sharing A Brand Story Solemate Inventor – Becca Brown

In the 1950s, Roger Vivier and Andre Perugia popularized the stiletto. The high heel shoe quickly spread across Europe and the United States.
Heels have been a fashion statement over the years, but some struggles have come with wearing heels. High heels are not ideal when walking through grass, bricks, sidewalks, or wooden decks. These types of material on the ground can damage your heels and cause instability as you walk.
The founders of Solemates invented a product to prevent your heels from being damaged and help you walk comfortably on any surface. The heel-protector is clear and increases the surface area on the bottom of the heel. The larger surface area of the heel-protector allows the heel to maintain itself above uneven ground so that heels are not stuck or jammed.
With any new business, you have to come up with a plan. Becca and Monica wrote a business plan for Solemates while they were in business school at Columbia University. Eighteen months later, they started to sell the product. During this time, they worked on Solemates part-time to discover what the business needed to become successful in the marketplace.
To move forward with Solemates, Monica and Becca had to take the first step to protect their ideas. While the founders were in school, they became familiar with provisional patents and decided that this was the best route to protect their vision.
Becca found an excellent patent lawyer who could educate her on the patent search and felt confident throughout the process. Her nerves started to kick in when she had to wait two years to receive an official patent, but luckily her patent was granted, and it assured her Solemates could compete in the marketplace.
There are many obstacles that come with developing an idea. Becca discusses the difficulties that entrepreneurs face in the product development stage in our live webinar. Although she faced barriers, the idea of someone else coming up with her invention motivated her to continue.
As a female entrepreneur, Becca faced the male-dominated engineer, design, and manufacturing industry. At times, it was frustrating when engineers didn’t understand Solemates’ benefit and dismissed her idea. Despite that, Becca wanted to work with people who recognized the value of Solemates.
Becca also overcame the strenuous process of finding a material that did not compromise her products’ aesthetics in the manufacturing stage. She wanted her product to be transparent and flexible, but it wasn’t easy finding the right material that wouldn’t break.
After the manufacturing and design stage, Becca and Monica had to think about marketing. One of the most significant advantages that they have is being a female-operated brand. Their first product, the heel-protector, was targeted at women consumers who had the same problem. Since the founders launched a business based on an issue they had, it allows them to connect with consumers authentically.
Before the rise of social media, founders were reluctant to share their stories because they fear it made their brand appear small. Becca encourages founders to talk about their brand stories. Today, consumers enjoy knowing a brand story and are more likely to buy a product when they are familiar with a brand story, especially if they have an innovative solution in the market.
You may have an idea that will resonate with a specific target audience. Like, Becca and Monica, many inventors and entrepreneurs will face barriers when bringing a new invention