We recently connected with Bernadette Finnerty and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Bernadette, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.
If I had listened to those “voices in my head” telling me I was too old to start a business at 53, I would not have gotten onto QVC. I did a pop-up at my friend’s store – Goodness Bowls – right when I started my business in September 2020. This was a Saturday. I had a table on the sidewalk, alongside two very young girls – one selling jewelry and the other selling tye-dye clothes. Both were very popular at the time. I felt like an old lady. I had to keep explaining what my product was. I didn’t like selling on the street from behind a table. I was totally out of my comfort zone. We sold a good number of Shavestix, but I didn’t want to go back on Sunday.
My husband convinced me that I wasn’t too old, and that I had made a commitment and I should go. So I did. About an hour into the day, a woman came over to me and bought a Shavestix for her daughter. She was really nice. We just started chatting and she eventually said … This would be a good product for QVC. I agreed! I told her that I’d love to get onto QVC some day. She said “I’m on QVC … I’ll connect you with the people I work with there.” And she did!!!
I hadn’t even realized who I was talking to – she had been biking and was wearing sunglasses – totally out of context. This was Maria McCool – Founder of Calista Tools, one of QVC’s biggest, longest running and successful brands. I was floored! LONG story short – If I had not gotten out of my own head, out of my own way and showed up that day, We may never have gotten into QVC. The decision to show up that day set my business ahead by about 5 years. I had to figure out how to scale up from producing about 10-20 Shavestix at a time to producing 10,000! And that’s just one of the 10,000 things I’ve learned since then! Just do it. Just show up.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I created Shavestix in 2020, as a solution to a problem. I hated shaving my legs in the shower and figured out how to make it easier. Everyone loved it, so we started selling it. A few months later, we got picked up by QVC. I had to figure out how to scale production from ten to 10,000! We launched on QVC in 2022. We made it to Round 2 for Shark Tank in 2023. We’ve built our Amazon presence and a strong wholesale business all along we’re continuing to grow.
The problem:
I had always hated shaving my legs in the shower, especially with shaving cream. It was messy, globs of foam would fall onto the shower floor and wash right down the drain. So I started shaving with coconut oil. I loved the way it made my skin feel, but it was also messy, and hard to get out of the jar.
So one day … I’m digging it out with a tiny little scoop and the jar slips out of my hands and shatters onto the tile floor. After screaming some expletives …I truly had a lightbulb moment. Why was this so hard? This should be in a stick!
I kept thinking about how I could get coconut oil into a stick that would be stable I the shower. I knew I hadn’t seen one on the market … I would have bought it already.
I started researching how to do it. I was obsessed. I ordered some ingredients and a dozen containers – I thought a deodorant container would be perfect – from Amazon. After some trial an error, I landed on a formula that I liked. It worked!! I showed it to my then 17 year old … and she loved it. I gave it to my sisters and nieces and everyone loved it. Even my husband and son loved using it on their faces.
My husband said, “there’s your business. Try to sell it.” We decided on Shavestix for the name. We filed the trademark, and started selling. I put a website together. I work in Marketing for a large utility, so was able to create the website, design the branding and labels, etc. I did some basic social media promotion, signed up for a wholesale platform and tried to figure out how to market and sell it. It started selling!!!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Full disclosure – I knew I wanted to start a business, but I hadn’t yet landed on the product. I working on another idea at the time, so when the “lightbulb moment” happened … I was ready. As far as skills and areas of knowledge – the only ones I can claim come from my marketing background. I knew that if I started a business, I would want it to be a mass-market kind of product. So when it came to designing a logo and labels, I could do that. I’m not a designer, but I knew I could create something and make it look good.
As far as advice, it’s very simple. Just do it.
I can’t tell you how many people have related to me that they’ve had ideas, but never acted on them. Either they lacked the confidence or they didn’t have time, didn’t know where to start or something else. I didn’t know anything about shaving cream, consumer packaging, selling or any of it. I just plowed ahead and kept my mind open. We started in 2020. So I did have time. And I had just sent my two kids off to college. It was the right time for me, but I knew it would be a small window. So I decided to just go for it. It was the first time I have felt truly open-minded in my life. It took a long time for me to get there, so I would suggest not waiting until you’re 53! LOL.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
It’s not a book, but a podcast. I have listened to every single episode of How I Built This with Guy Raz – some of them twice or three times. Raz interviews entrepreneurs who have built businesses from nothing to billions in some cases. I love to hear about how they started, the obstacles they faced, how they dealt with highs and lows. There are so many relatable stories, so much inspiration. I often listen to one of my favorites, like Sarah Blakely (Spanx), Kate Spade (RIP), Chicken Salad Chick, Sw’ell, Five Guys – when I feel defeated or down and need to remind myself that I can do this.
Valuable nuggets of wisdom. They may seem cliche – but they guide me every day.
Don’t worry about what anyone else is doing.
The simplest approach is usually the best.
Sometimes hitting the “bottom” is a good thing – you have to get scrappy and get back up.
Keep your eyes an ears open and say “yes” even when you’re not sure.
Consistency, diligence and effort can lead to success.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://shavestix.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/shavestix
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/shavestix
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/shavestix
Image Credits
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