An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Be scrappy. You don’t need a polished prototype to start testing. Hack materials that are readily available to create a mockup. Share this with customers. Don’t be shy if it’s not perfect. I lovingly call the first Lunnie bra prototype a “Frankenstein bra” because it was a mashup of all sorts of materials but it enabled moms to see my vision.
As a part of our series called “Making Something From Nothing”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Sarah Kallile.
Sarah Kallile, founder of Lunnie, is a mom of three who went through postpartum and was frustrated by the frumpy, impractical nursing bras that all moms deal with post pregnancy. With the help from other moms who are now a part of Lunnie Hive, the first-ever community led brand for postpartum moms, they tested and created the perfect postpartum nursing bras for a pretty and powerful postpartum. Sarah’s leakproof, patent-pending nursing bra sold-out at first launch and is now back and restocked!
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a bit about your “childhood backstory”?
I was born and raised in the suburbs of San Francisco with my parents and older sister. As a kid, my favorite activity was playing “Sarah’s Stores”. I created an elaborate pretend franchise in my family room that consisted of a grocery store, bookstore, video rental, etc. My favorite part was making ClipArt graphics and receipts on my family’s computer (nerd alert!).
In high school, I loved English, history, and theater classes. In college, I took my love of storytelling and majored in broadcast journalism. But I discovered I didn’t want to just tell the story. I wanted to be part of the story. My first job out of college was a marketing position at an early-stage health-tech startup in San Francisco that grew from 30 to 300 employees. I loved the speed and intensity of startup life, and ended up working for several other VC-backed, health-tech startups.
I met my now-husband in San Francisco and we got married a couple years later. His job moved us to Seattle in 2013 and then to Dayton, OH in 2017. A California girl living in the middle of Ohio — believe me, I never would have guessed that for myself! I gave birth to my three beautiful daughters here (ages 4, 2, and 5 months). It was through my own experience becoming a mom that inspired me to start Lunnie in 2021.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“There will never be a perfect time. Just start where you are” When I had my idea to create Lunnie’s leakproof nursing bra in January 2021, the timing couldn’t have been more challenging. The pandemic was wearing on and I was a stay at home mom to a 2.5-year-old and 5-month-old with no outside help. I was in the throes of postpartum emotions myself and the pandemic compounded the feeling of isolation.
But those circumstances gave me the idea to form Lunnie as a community-led brand because I was craving meaningful interactions with other moms more than anything else. I spent my nights and weekends cranking away at my idea because I was so passionate about it.
In October 2021, I found out the surprising and happy news that I was pregnant with my third daughter! However, this pregnancy was my absolute hardest physically and I was drained everyday caring for my older two daughters and growing my business.
I continued to push, launched my business, won a major pitch competition and $50k grant, filed for two patents, and had a baby — all within four months.
There’s no denying that motherhood and being an entrepreneur is exhausting. But for me, motherhood is my superpower as an entrepreneur. My three daughters keep me motivated and put things in perspective. I’ve become a master at ruthless prioritization, being efficient, and committing to decisions. My girls are my world and I love sharing this entrepreneurship journey with them.
If you have an idea you’re passionate about, my advice is go for it. Life will always be messy and complicated. Just take the first step and see where it leads you. Then take a couple more. It will be better and more rewarding then you could have imagined.
Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
NPR’s “How I Built This” podcast has had the biggest impact on my mindset as an entrepreneur. Host Guy Raz does an amazing job interviewing diverse entrepreneurs and uncovering all the twists and turns in their journeys. Building a business is never a straight line and there’s no one way to do it.
I’ve listened to hundreds of episodes, some favorites being from Sara Blakely of Spanx and Whitney Wolfe Herd of Bumble. The common thread amongst entrepreneurs is everyone is figuring it out as they go. You don’t need (nor should have) a full-fledged 5-year-business plan to start a company. You just need the confidence to take the first step, the curiosity to learn, and the passion to keep moving forward.
Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. There is no shortage of good ideas out there. Many people have good ideas all the time. But people seem to struggle in taking a good idea and translating it into an actual business. Can you share a few ideas from your experience about how to overcome this challenge?
My idea for a leakproof nursing bra came from my own experience as a breastfeeding mom. I was frustrated with my leaky, frumpy, beige nursing bra and the lack of innovative yet fashionable options available in the market. I wanted a solution that was chic yet functional. I asked friends and searched online, but I couldn’t find what I was looking for. That’s when I put on my tech marketer hat and decided to gather more data points around this problem.
I sent a survey to a diverse cohort of postpartum moms to gather their insights on nursing bras. Within two days, I received over 300 responses! 84% of moms are dissatisfied with their nursing bra and want something better. This was my lightbulb moment to build what was clearly missing in the market.
Because these survey respondents were so passionate, I knew they would be valuable in my product development process. I formed a group called the “Lunnie Hive” and invited surveyed moms to join. I recruited my own mom to help sew the very first leakproof nursing bra prototype. It was scrappy but it gave moms an idea for my vision.
I then messaged local moms and asked if they would be willing to test the bra, share photos, and provide honest critical feedback. I would drop a little pink bag containing the Lunnie bra prototype on a neighbor’s doorstep for a new mom to test. At first, it felt very odd asking neighbors for such an intimate favor. But I was blown away by how willing — and excited — moms were to be a part of the process.
A couple months into working on my idea, I was selected as a finalist in The Female Founder Collective Big Pitcher competition. I pitched my idea to some of the biggest female CEOs in the country, including Rebecca Minkoff, and won the grand prize $10k grant. Receiving this outside validation early on was the motivation I needed to keep going.
The grant money enabled me to partner with a small-batch manufacturer in Columbus, OH. Over the course of a year, I iterated and tested six prototypes before nailing the final design. By the time I launched my nursing bra in March 2022, I created an organic, loyal following of moms. This enabled me to sell out my first production run with $0 marketing spend.
In April 2022, I achieved another major business milestone by winning the University of Dayton Flyer Pitch competition and a $50k grant. This pitch competition was the culmination of 7 months, 3 rounds, and a final 30-minute presentation in front of judges (at 30 weeks pregnant, whew). This opened up more opportunities for my business to continue forward.
My Lunnie bras were completely out-of-stock over the summer which wasn’t ideal after building up so much momentum. However, it allowed for a perfectly-timed maternity leave as I gave birth to my third daughter in June. (If you want to call it that, solo entrepreneurs never really stop working!).
I restocked the Lunnie bras in October and I’m so excited for more mamas to experience the magic of a leakproof and beautiful nursing bra!
Often when people think of a new idea, they dismiss it saying someone else must have thought of it before. How would you recommend that someone go about researching whether or not their idea has already been created?
When I first had an idea for a leakproof nursing bra, I did heavy research. I discovered two leakproof bras already on the market, but their designs were very different from my own. I searched the USPTO website to see if there were any existing patents that contained my idea. I consulted a patent attorney to make sure I truly had a unique product idea before moving forward.
Once I was confident I had a unique design, I created a compelling brand and built an authentic community. Lunnie is named after my daughters and is the first brand for postpartum mothers. There’s so much emphasis on maternity and the first nine months, but there are no brands focused solely on the unique and challenging postpartum experience. Combining a unique product and one-of-a-kind brand is Lunnie’s super power.
For the benefit of our readers, can you outline the steps one has to go through, from when they think of the idea, until it finally lands in a customer’s hands? In particular, we’d love to hear about how to file a patent, how to source a good manufacturer, and how to find a retailer to distribute it.
Absolutely! I did not have a design, intimates, or manufacturing background prior to starting Lunnie. It was very daunting trying to figure out how to go from point A to point B. But I took it one step at a time and asked others for advice when I didn’t know what to do. I asked people in my network and cold reached out to other female founders who had similar products/brands.
As mentioned, I created the first prototype with the help of my mom and a couple months into working on my idea, I won the pitch competition and $10k grant. I used this money to partner with a local, small-batch manufacturer to take my prototype to a real product. It took a couple months to source the right manufacturer as most turned me away because bras are incredibly complex to make.
A year and six prototypes later, we nailed the final design. I decided to use the same small-batch manufacturer to produce my first and second production runs. Producing small-batch means the cost per unit is higher, but you’re not on the hook for producing large quantities as you are with a larger manufacturer. From a risk analysis standpoint, I decided I’d rather break even and test my product-market fit rather than invest in a huge amount of inventory upfront.
I launched my nursing bra in March 2022 and sold out with $0 marketing spend. I did this by cultivating my Lunnie Hive community over the course of a year and building up an organic following on social media. Due to the nature of breastfeeding, many of my followers no longer needed a nursing bra. However, they bought nursing bras and gift cards for friends who were expecting. Sales continued to snowball until I completely sold out of inventory.
I worked behind the scenes with a local patent lawyer to file for both utility and design patents. I received grant funding through Dayton’s Entrepreneurs’ Center to cover my legal fees. It was a very lengthy process and I ended up filing in June 2022 the same week my third daughter was born! I surprised my mom by listing both of our names on the patents as inventors. Her help creating the initial prototype was critical.
I currently sell exclusively DTC but am looking to expand to wholesale in 2023. I’m also in the process of working with a larger manufacturer to produce my third production at the same high quality but better margins. In addition, I’m working on exciting new products to add next year too!
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Started Leading My Company” and why?
These are perhaps 5 things I would advise others considering entrepreneurship to think about.
1. Ask for advice. If you don’t have people in your network who can advise you, cold reach out to other founders of aligned products/brands. Do your research. Have a specific ask. You’ll be blown away by the generosity of this community. Lunnie would not exist if it weren’t for the kindness of others sharing their advice, particularly female founders.
2. Don’t create your product in a silo.Even if you’re the consumer of your own product, you must talk to other customers. Have them test the product, give feedback on the brand, ask what could be improved. Truly LISTEN. I created the Lunnie Hive for this exact reason.
3. Be scrappy. You don’t need a polished prototype to start testing. Hack materials that are readily available to create a mockup. Share this with customers. Don’t be shy if it’s not perfect. I lovingly call the first Lunnie bra prototype a “Frankenstein bra” because it was a mashup of all sorts of materials but it enabled moms to see my vision.
4. Seek out grant opportunities. Apply for local business grant funding and enter pitch competitions. Even if you don’t win, it’s an invaluable experience to present your company and get better. Thanks to winning two major pitch competitions and funding through local entrepreneur organizations, I’ve received $100k in grants and in-kind services. These opportunities didn’t just appear — I sought them out and worked very hard to earn them.
5. Be a cheerleader for other entrepreneurs. One of the best things about being an entrepreneur is meeting other passionate entrepreneurs. I love supporting fellow small businesses and startups, whether it’s being a consumer, sharing with my networks, helping make a business connection, etc. We’re all in this together.
Let’s imagine that a reader reading this interview has an idea for a product that they would like to invent. What are the first few steps that you would recommend that they take?
- Talk to potential customers: Send surveys, have 1:1 open-ended phone interviews, understand how your product can fill a void in the market.
- Create a prototype: It can be super scrappy but put it out for feedback to validate or invalidate your assumptions.
- Implement feedback quickly: Move quickly, make mistakes, keep testing and iterating until your product is ready for launch.
There are many invention development consultants. Would you recommend that a person with a new idea hire such a consultant, or should they try to strike out on their own?
No, I would recommend an entrepreneur to keep the idea to themselves and try a scrappy approach. It’s tempting to have an “expert” come in, but it is costly and no one understands the product as much as the entrepreneur.
Instead of looking for development consultants, consider seeking trusted business advisors instead. My advisor Anusha Mohan, an e-commerce/apparel expert and former high school classmate of mine, has been integral to Lunnie’s success. She’s helped navigate the early stages of building the company and been my biggest cheerleader. Through my relationship with my local Dayton Entrepreneurs’ Center, I gained another amazing advisor in Katie Hill. A successful startup founder x2 herself, she has advised the infrastructure of my company and seeks grant funding. Having a solid sounding board has been crucial for my decision making and success.
What are your thoughts about bootstrapping vs looking for venture capital? What is the best way to decide if you should do either one?
I’ve been able to fund my company through grant money and bootstrapping. I’ve been approached by venture capitalists but am self-funding for as long as possible. Having outside capital can be a huge distraction and puts pressure on fast growth and achieving other “sexy metrics” while overlooking the fundamentals of running a sustainable business. As a founder and mother, I want to run my company — not the other way around.
It can be daunting as a founder on how much it costs to start a business. Product development, legal, branding, running a website, the list goes on. I’ve been super scrappy in finding grant opportunities and working hard to secure funding. It’s taken a ton of effort, but it allows me to retain control of my company.
Ok. We are nearly done. Here are our final questions. How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
Lunnie is reclaiming postpartum as pretty + powerful, starting with the nursing bra. There is nothing more beautiful and strong than a mother and she deserves to feel that way inside and out.
My goal for Lunnie is to provide postpartum moms with better support through thoughtfully made products with a supportive community so she doesn’t feel alone. Much of the postpartum experience comes as a surprise for new moms and it doesn’t need to be that way. Talking about postpartum — the good and the bad — needs to be normalized. I strive for Lunnie to be an authentic and supportive voice for moms.
You are an inspiration to a great many people. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
As a mom of three, it always bothered me how much attention is given to pregnancy yet after a mom gives birth she often is forgotten. Postpartum is a very challenging time physically, mentally, and emotionally. Moms are the real MVPs of society but they’re not treated that way. We see it play out in many facets: A one-time 6 week appointment covered by insurance post-birth, postpartum depression on the rise, a failed paid maternity leave bill, etc.
Lunnie is not only making products. We’re launching a movement to support moms who have been underserved. The stigma around postpartum and breastfeeding is stifling innovation. This leaves moms in the shadows and unprepared. The time for change is now.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
I’ve always admired Sara Blakely and how she built Spanx from the ground up. She calls herself “half Einstein, half Lucille Ball” and I love that she leads her company as herself, not a stuffy corporate CEO. She is a huge inspiration to so many female founders like myself who are building solutions for women, by women. It would be a dream come true to meet her!
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
Making Something From Nothing: Sarah Kallile Of Lunnie On How To Go From Idea To Launch was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
