Heather Schuck
Meet Heather Schuck, mother of three and CEO of Glamajama, a company she founded shortly after her first son had been born. You will enjoy reading how her hobby of making clothes for him led to a eureka experience igniting the idea for her business. You will be inspired by her unrelenting desire to prioritize her children, which serves as a model to all women entrepreneurs.
1. Before founding Glamajama, you worked as a
stock broker. How, when, and why did you decide to launch your own company?
It was one of those things where you have laid the best plans in the world,
but life seems to have other ones for you. I was in the finance industry
looking forward to developing my career and becoming successful. But I became
pregnant with my first son two years into my job. Initially, I thought I would
take maternity leave after having my son, then return to work, picking up my
career where I had left it.
But once I held him in my arms, those plans immediately changed. I realized
that I could not return to my eighty-hour-a-week career in the highly competitive
finance industry. As you know, the industry is not family friendly, especially
to mothers with newborns. For this reason, I began to seriously re-evaluate my
goals.
While I was trying to determine my new life mission and decide where I wanted
to end up professionally, I enjoyed making clothes for my son. It was a hobby I
had started. When I would take my son to the park, other mothers would remark
how cute the clothes were, inquiring where I bought his outfits. When I
explained that I made his clothes, their next question was, “Can you make them
for my child?”
Eventually, I found myself selling my hand-sewn baby clothes from the trunk
of my car at the playground. As my trunk continued to fill with clothes, I had
a eureka moment. I thought to myself, “I have been searching for my life
mission not realizing it’s here right in front of my eyes!” That’s when I
started a grass-roots effort to enter the world of apparel production,
convinced it was something I would be able to do. I have not looked back since
taking that first step.
2. Could you explain the meaning of your company name Glamajama
to Japanese audiences? How did you conceive of it? What alternatives had you
considered?
The company name is a play on the words glamour
and another word intended to be a little edgy. I use glittery elements and lots
of black colors, so the clothes are somewhat glamorous. But they also have a
playful, fun side. In a wordy, they are edgy. Glamazama was the leading
contender for quite a while, but I felt the name sounded too much like a
comic-book superhero. Then, Glamajama came to mind, and it sounded like the
perfect fit. In the end, it stuck.
3. I have read that Glamajama began as a failed eBay
hobby. How can a hobby fail? How did you turn that failure into such a huge success?
Is your method generalizable, that is, can others who dream of launching their own
businesses successfully replicate it? How could they do so?
I felt I had failed in my hobby because my clothes were not selling on
eBay. No one bought them. Needless to say, my hobby quickly stopped being fun. Though
I experimented with a variety of strategies, I was not generating any interest.
I was not making any sales. Through this experience, I eventually learned a
valuable lesson about business: You need to know who your customer is.
My customers were not browsing eBay sites. They were shopping in boutiques.
At that point, I realized that I needed to get in front of the right people,
explain what the clothes were all about, and convert them into supporters and
customers. To this end, I created a simple website and began reaching out directly
to local boutiques to market my clothing line. Once I did so, I began to get
traction. The key was clearly identifying my target customers and pursuing
them.
I started locally, of course. I would literally knock on doors at the baby
boutiques. Introducing myself, I left samples and some information packets. In
the early days, I offered to go to the shop daily to merchandise the line
directly, and I would help shops sell during the weekends. This process allowed
me to learn how to craft the brand. As much as my free services helped the
shop, being in the stores also helped me. I was able to see how people reacted
to the clothing, to the brand. I saw which items they picked up first. I was
able to conduct a lot of free market research. This feedback formed the core of
my design for the brand.
4. You have been a guest on several blogtalk radio
programs. Can you tell us about this internet social medium and why you believe
it is so powerful? What other social media resources do you employ to promote
your company, products and brand? More generally, what is your marketing
strategy?
We use Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, all platforms I think
are extremely valuable for connecting with our customers. I love being able to develop
one-to-one, personal relationships with people thousands of miles away. Even at
a distance, I can still keep my finger on the pulse of my customers and the
market. Social media has broken down some boundaries. For this reason, social
media has always been and continues to be important to me and to my company
brand strategy.
As far back as 2003, I began blogging and video blogging. Early bloggers
really helped me develop the support base that has built my business. They knew
Glamajama and what I aimed to accomplish, and they wrote about it. A lot of
those bloggers were mothers as well. Many were entrepreneurs like me, and we supported
each other. Even today, we support each other through social media. For
example, we will re-tweet messages from others. We inspire one other and also
provide feedback. Because many of these women live in different States, we cannot
go out for coffee. But thanks to technology, I am able to talk with them using
Skype the way I am with you now. These connections are a great way to build a
support network.
5. How were you able to convince national retailers
like Nordstrom and JC Penney to carry your line of products? With which other
companies’ products do yours compete in these retail outlets? What do you feel
differentiates your offering from competitors’?
The large retailers actually came to me. I had a big celebrity following.
People like Demi Moore would wear my clothes. One day, she was photographed by
the paparazzi while she was walking her dogs wearing a dog T shirt from my
website. After the photos were published in
US Weekly, which credited me as the shirt designer, the phone was ringing
off the hook, and the orders were piling up. That was my first brush with the
power of celebrity.
Once I recognized this power, I started more actively leveraging it, making
more frequent trips to LA. I would also use contacts that I had. Finding
celebrities, I would gift them with some of my products and ensure they knew
about my company. Fortunately, many liked the line, and they were receptive to
my approaches. The celebrities knew the goal I was striving to achieve, and
they wanted to support me. A lot of them would send notes to me, and they would
mention the clothes when they were on TV.
For example, Tia Carerre, who had been on Dancing with the Stars, called me after she had been invited to
appear on Oprah. She said, “I am
going to bring my daughter, and I want her to wear your clothes. Can you send
me some of your fashions?” “Absolutely,” I replied. Of course, Oprah asked
where she had bought her daughter’s outfits, and after Tia told them they were
Glamajama products, retailers like Nordstrum and Barney’s began calling me!
My greatest competitor in the retail space these days is private label.
Feeling the cash crunch over the past several years, many retailers have been
looking for ways to reduce expenses. For this reason, they are not investing as
much in branded merchandise, opting to do some of the design in-house. These
private labels have been more of a competitor than other boutique brands. I
battle this competition with the brand. The product is a person and a
philosophy that stand behind the product. That’s my stategy for differentiating
Glamajama. Sometimes it works, but other times the choice simply comes down to
a matter of cost. I simply cannot compete with a retailer that produces
in-house.
6. Have you ever received an acquisition offer from
another firm? If so, how did you respond? If not, how inclined would you be to
accept such an offer? What factors would be significant in making the decision?
Strangely enough, I received an acquisition offer when the business was
only about two years old. Sales were increasing considerably, and we were
attracting attention, but we were still starting out. At that time, I received
an offer from a business broker that turned out to be a turning point for me. Initially,
I thought. “This is crazy! The business is my hobby. Why would anyone want to ‘buy’
my hobby?” The offer really did not make any sense to me, but driven by
curiosity, I agreed to a meeting.
When I arrived, about eight gentlemen in suits were punching away at
spreadsheets. Sitting on the other end of the boardroom table with my home-made
business cards, I felt like a fish out of water. As they continued to ask me
questions and discuss among themselves, I was dumbfounded by how serious the
atmosphere had become. I realized then that everyone in the room was taking my
business seriously. Everyone except me, that is! They saw the value in it, even
though I had not. The whole experience was an eye opener for me.
I realized that I needed to develop a concrete business plan. Up until
then, I was an accidental entrepreneur taking one day at a time. I did not have
a strategic plan. I did not have any source of funding. I was basically jumping
from one opportunity to the next. That was a huge turning point for the
business where I realized that I needed to build out the strategy and begin
systematically considering the longer term. Observing the brokers’ interest in
my contacts and relationships, I became aware of the importance of building out
the brand, clearly defining what Glamajama represented.
A business lesson fashion people learn early on is that good products are
quickly and easily knocked off. If your only asset is your product, it will not
have much value once it is knocked off. That’s why building the brand as your
key asset is vital. No matter what products you have, the brand still has value
of its own. The brand also facilitates diversity. You can offer a range of
products rather than being tied to one that can be easily copied. The brokers’
offer helped me shift my focus.
Recently, I have shifted my focus yet again, this time to really growing
and maximizing the business. Till now, I have held back, opting to spend most
of my time with my children. Now that I have more time, I do not feel the need
to hold the business closely. I am prepared to take the next big leap. I find
it difficult to imagine Glamajama without me, so I want to remain involved. If
that means being bought out, but staying on board autonomously like a
subsidiary siloed under a large parent corporation, I would certainly consider
the option. I am open minded about the opportunities at this point.
7. Here in Japan, Studio-Alice, a company that
photographs babies and toddlers dressed in gorgeous rental clothes, is very
popular among parents and grandparents, exemplary of a “six-pockets” strategy
permitting access to two sets of grandparents’ pocket books in addition to
those of parents. Does Glamajama currently enjoy the benefits of such a six-pockets
strategy? If not, to what extent do you think this strategy could be employed
in the U.S.? Who are the major “pockets” currently purchasing Glamajama
products?
The parents are the major pockets. But the gifts are also popular for baby
showers and new births. That’s where the grandparents become involved. Aunts,
often referred to as “the other-hood,” are also major purchasers. The term, coined
by author Melanie Notkin, refers to women who have chosen not to have children
of their own, but are very involved with their sisters’ kids. They are not
spending quite as much money as grandparents, but they are definitely a
significant customer segment. Lots of career women want to spoil their sisters’
kids rotten. By doing so, they can enjoy motherhood vicariously.
8. Tell us about your book The Working Mom Manifesto
published in May 2013. What motivated you to write it? What are the key
messages you hope to communicate through your book?
Writing the book was a cathartic experience. I had gone through quite a
journey developing the business, and I was transitioning. After enduring a lot
of growing pains, I felt like I had matured. As such, it is an open memoir of
myself and other women on the single mother’s struggle to achieve work-life
balance. It took me a long time to learn how to shut things down, not work
80-hour weeks; how to be fully present with my kids without checking my phone
every few seconds. As with many people, a health crisis triggered this
transition.
I started experiencing symptoms of a stroke. Every few days, I would lose
feeling in half my body and face. I could not see. I could not hear. I saw
countless neurologists and took many terrifying tests to identify the problem. Initially,
the doctors thought I had a brain tumor. They did not find one, and they could
not determine the cause of my symptoms. At that point, a physician friend
suggested alternative medicine.
Through her, I was introduced to an amazing acupuncturist. During my first
visit, she spent two hours just asking me many questions not asked by the
doctors. At the end of the session, the doctor indicated that the cause of the
symptoms was stress: The tremendous physical, psychological, physiological and
hormonal stress I had been under was causing parts of my body to shut down.
Taking some time to reflect, I realized how much I had been pushing myself.
But I was not happy. I was not enjoying my work. I was not enjoying being Mom. I
felt tremendously guilty about not being completely present with them, and at
work, I kept thinking I have to clear just one more task. I realized that
pushing myself this way was affecting my life, that I had to better balance it.
This experience was another turning point for me.
Our sales had dropped to about half a million. I was going through a
divorce. Even working eighty hours a week to juggle all the demands was not
working. At that point, I moved away to a new home on a lake, shut down a
number of activities, and drafted a plan. Then, I started writing my manifesto,
a description of what really mattered to me and what I wanted my life and my
business to be like.
Fast forwarding, a year later, my sales had mushroomed to $5 million even
though I was working only about 20 hours per week. I was amazed to realize what
I could accomplish by implementing a strategy rather than working tirelessly
without a plan.
9. Do you think the next President of the United
States will be female? How do you think a female President would be different?
I hope the next President will be female. I think we are long overdue for a
female in the Oval Office. Hillary Clinton is well known, but she is plagued by
a variety of unflattering associations. I believe that if we have a female
President, she will be more moderate, command the public’s attention, and will
come out of left field. I do not think the candidate will be a woman who has
been in the political machine for years. I think, rather, the woman will have
to be a bit of an unknown who has the resume and experience to lead successfully.
The optimist in me feels a woman President would be supportive of women in
the work place and work-life balance. However, I have been disappointed by a
number of women who have recently risen to positions of leadership. Marissa
Meyers was greeted with fanfare when she assumed the role of Yahoo! CEO. She
was pregnant at the time, and when her child was born, she had a nursery built
next to her office to bring him with her to work.
At the same time, she announced to all other employees that they could no
longer work from home, that child-care assistance would no longer be provided
for working mothers, and that they would have to make a choice between their
jobs and becoming babysitters. Before she removed it, Yahoo! had an effective
telecommuting policy that gave mothers flexibility and maintained productivity.
In a word, Marissa Meyers behaved like a hypocrite when she had the perfect
opportunity to both model and promote work-life balance.
Cheryl Sandberg, author of Lean In,
also disappoints me. While I agree with her premise that women need to be more
passionate about moving ahead and taking their seat at the table, I do not like
the methods she suggests for doing so. I do not agree with her talks about how
women should marry for economic benefits, how females should look for men who
will take care of them, allowing them to further their careers. I get the sense
that she uses her family, her husband and children, as pawns for developing her
career and improving her resume. I sense she has a cold attitude about family
relationships. For this reason, I do not think she is a suitable role model,
either.
As mentioned, I hope that we elect a female president who will do good
things for women, someone who will promote work-life balance. But I have been
disappointed so far, so I don’t know. We’ll see. Time will tell.
Why this series on entrepreneurs?
Contrary to the impression given by the hype and hoopla surrounding many recent tech start ups, research indicates that innovation is declining in the United States. To facilitate reversal of this trend, I decided to interview successful, young entrepreneurs to learn about their struggles, triumphs, and success secrets. I am hoping their stories will inspire you to pursue your entrepreneurial dreams the way I currently am.
In 2016, I will officially incorporate Play-Ed (Playful-Education), an educational company that will furnish after-school programs aimed to teach S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) with an emphasis on digital technology; cross-cultural communication, and life management skills. To view the site where my headquarters and flagship-school will be established, click the link below.
During the summer of 2016, I will offer three, week-along, intensive, camp-style workshops for international students and professionals:
1. English + Coding = Future Success
2. Navigating the U.S. undergraduate and MBA application Process
3. Selling to Westerners
In addition to facilitating all workshops, I will provide individual coaching to each participant. For further details, contact me.
1. English + Coding = Future Success
2. Navigating the U.S. undergraduate and MBA application Process
3. Selling to Westerners
In addition to facilitating all workshops, I will provide individual coaching to each participant. For further details, contact me.
