Eureka! Part II: An Idea Is Born

Continued from Part I: Eureka!

So by now I knew what I needed: a cropped cami to wear under my low cut dresses that were oh-so-popular, yet oh-so-ill-fitting for a busty gal. The long ones had just annoyed me and rode up all day.

I walked to my nearest Gap and picked up their “Essential Basic Bra” which is a yoga type sports bra. The size chart will tell you that’s the XL is for D-DD, but I’m here to tell you, I don’t know who this is for. Not only is it not nearly enough support for a girl of that size, but it’s way too low cut to cover any cleavage. In fact, it was so compressing that it gave me more cleavage. It was also thick, so now we were losing on all fronts. I decided to try a regular sports bra, and in terms of coverage it worked. But again, even with a bra underneath for separation, I was compressed, and the only thing sporting was a mono-boob, which gave me the most unflattering contour imaginable. Boobs are like martinis: One is not enough, and three are far too many. I’d like two boobs, please!

After a while I wondered if I was asking for too much. I googled and found nothing but some matronly bras with a built-in lace panel. I decided that I was going to seriously consider this venture, and I would need to know for sure what I was up against.

MAGIC is a trade show in Las Vegas that happens twice a year. Lots of manufacturers exhibit there to sell their products to stores worldwide. I drove there from LA, checked into the Hard Rock Hotel, and paid $100 to walk the show. I discovered that I wasn’t the only one in search of a cleavage-coverage solution.

I found:

Chic Peeks : Their slogan is, “Burn Your Dickies!” Do you remember those turtleneck bibs Cousin Eddie wore in Christmas Vacation? They’re common for hunters, to provide warmth like a scarf, because it’s just the upper part of a turtleneck. That’s a dicky. In this case, it’s a square of fabric that tapes to the inside of your top. I was happy to see that other people were solving the same problem I wanted to solve, but in a different way. It seemed like a great by-the-cash-register impulse buy.

Camiflauge : This is a unique idea. I don’t really know what to compare it to. Camiflauge hooks onto your bra in three places to cover your cleavage. Again, it fell in between the categories of accessory and garment just like Chic Peeks. Also, it retails for $20-25, so I was confident that if people were buying this, they would buy a half cami for a bit more.

The Boob Tube : The Boob Tube is a tube top. At MAGIC in August 2008, it was a one-size product that was definitely too small for me to try on. I liked that they took something that already existed (a tube top) and put it into cute packaging. What I personally don’t like is the uni-boob an elastic tube top gives me, and also often cut into my underarms. Still, I heard it was doing pretty well, so I was pumped about that, and excited that they were taking off.

After seeing the main players in the game, I knew that what would make Second Base (yet to be named at that time) stand out, was that it would be a clothing collection.

My original Second Base sketch

I’m so glad that these companies exist, because their existence proved a need for my products. I hesitate to call them competitors. It’s like calling a regular camisole company a competitor. You could find tons of outfits/body types that would be ideal for each of these different products. For example, some people like a cami with shapewear, some like a cami without it. Some women (like me) prefer a long cami for wearing under sheer blouses. But for wearing under dresses, I wanted something for just that purpose: A fitted, cropped cami that would cover my cleavage and bra.

It was my first idea in years that was really ripe for the picking. When friends tell me their big ideas, I ask them, is it doable? I had only an inkling of how much I would end up learning and struggling with and yes, spending, to make it a reality, but I knew that the time was right to go for it.

Eureka!

I used to work at an unnamed furniture showroom. It had a name, but that’s not important. What’s important is that it was in conservative Chicago, and run by conservative owners who employed conservative sales managers. We had to train for 8 weeks before we were ready to sell their very heavy, often stuffy, and wildly overpriced furniture.

In week two of training, we were introduced to the dress code. I wish I saved my paperwork so I could share it here, but I don’t need a lawsuit on my hands anyway. Suffice to say that rules were presented. Stipulations about tattoos, blouse sheerness, tank top strap width, and male jewelry quickly ensued. We ladies were required to wear PANTYHOSE from October to May. With pants even! After some time, I figured out where to get the best pantyhose (Talbots), and which color nail polish would get me in trouble (Lincoln Park After Dark).

This was 2007, year of the v-neck kimono dress. If it wasn’t kimono, it was wrap-around, or some other sort of empire waisted dress. My size 8 frame did not always match the manufacturers’ idea of a size 8 girl’s boobs. In other words, if I wanted the waistline to be below my bustline, there was not enough fabric in the “boob area” for a dinner out, much less for The Dress Code.

Every single morning I found myself standing in front of my arsenal of camisoles. Cotton, spandex, rayon, silk, whatever. None of them worked for this purpose, which was to make my scandalous cleavage work-appropriate. I didn’t need or want the bulk of a long camisole. I had to tuck them into my pantyhose, and re-adjust a few times throughout my shift. As soon as work was over, I would lose the pantyhose. But often, I didn’t want to lose the cami underneath. Sometimes cleavage looks great, but what people tend to forget is you can’t control who looks. A lot of times I wanted to just keep an outfit pulled together, but not have the middle aged bartender in Wrigleyville (or his drunken clientele) ogling me.

I simply had to make the layering cami better. For me, and for all womankind!

(To be continued)

Entre-vous

What is an entrepreneur? Sometimes, I feel silly referring to myself as one. I have trouble even pronouncing it. Entrepre-nore? Entrepre-newer? It doesn’t roll off the tongue.

Since I was little, so many entrepreneurial ideas swam around in my head. Some I’ve squirreled away in secret, some I’ve told to anyone who would listen: “Isn’t that SO great? Wouldn’t you totally use that?” I always pondered whether to go for it, but the situation was never right.

One day in April of 2007, I found it. The One. It was lying in the unlikeliest of places. Nobody was doing it. It was a SIMPLE product. It would be EASY to make. It would FLY off the shelves.

At least, that is what I told myself.

As the French say, welcome to my blog. Cue the piano: