Last week, SoGal hosted the twelfth and final round of its Her Startup competition series in Los Angeles.
The series aims to celebrate and empower diversity in tech, and all contestants had either a woman founding member, or a product/service that has a positive impact on women.
As the winners head to Silicon Valley for a week-long bootcamp, with accommodations provided by 500 Startups and Draper University, we were able to catch up with the winners of the Los Angeles round.
Los Angeles-based Kitterly, founded by Mari Bower, sells knitting & crochet kits for knitting enthusiasts.
How did Kitterly come to be?
Kitterly was born out of my personal frustrations with getting the RIGHT supplies for my craft projects. I had too many problem projects where I either used the wrong yarn and had a project not turn out (which was a total waste of money), or I just couldn’t find the right materials for the pattern I wanted to make. Elizabeth, my co-founder, owned my go-to local yarn shop (Knit Culture Studio), and we both shared the same vision on how to transform how people shop for their crafting projects. We started working on the idea in 2014, and we launched the business in January 2015.
What has the Her Startup process been like?
It’s been great so far! I really like what SoGal is doing for female entrepreneurs, and Her Startup is an excellent program to help change the dynamic in tech here in LA, but also globally. I was so impressed with the wide range of businesses that came to the pitch event, and felt the whole process was inspiring.
How did you prepare for your pitch?
I am fortunate that I have had a ton of practice pitching with a time limit thanks to 500 Startups! With that, I took the two minute script I used for demo day and expanded it. I started the process of writing out a basic script, and then just started practicing it over and over with a stop watch and refining it. I try to be prepared for anything and have the pitch memorized, as you never know when technology will fail you.
What do organizations like Her Startup and SoGal mean to you?
I think they are crucial to support and encourage diversity and empowerment for female founders. Starting your own business can be very lonely at times, and surrounding ourselves with others that are going through the same experiences has been life saving and inspiring.
What’s next?
For us, we want to really nail what we are doing with knitting/crochet, which means providing the best possible experience to our customers. We are constantly looking for new amazing designs and new products to kit out. We are also working on improvements to our platform that include video and photo tutorials, community elements and more. Our ultimate goal is to take our learnings and successes with knitting/crochet and expand to several new crafting verticals. We will become the ultimate home for the crafter across multiple disciplines!
Though not based in Los Angeles, Babyation was accepted to the competition and promptly had their ticket to the boot camp punched. Founded by Samantha Rudolph in 2015, the St. Louis-based company creates products designed to help families with young children.
How did Babyation come to be?
In March 2014, I read an article in The New York Times. The piece lamented that breast pumps hadn’t advanced in years and that if men used them, the pumps would be “as elegant as an iPhone and as quiet as a Prius.” That concept resonated with me, and I shared it with my husband (and now business partner), Jared, while we were on vacation. He replied, “I can build that.” On the drive home, we held an impromptu brainstorming session, and the desire to build a better breast pump was born!
This happened long before I got pregnant. I had always tried to plan ahead for balancing a career and a baby, and I always knew I wanted to breastfeed. What I didn’t know was how outdated the breast pumps were until I read the article, and that spurred me into action!
What has the Her Startup process been like?
It’s been a whirlwind! I found out on Monday that we were selected, and I immediately booked a flight to Los Angeles for the event on Thursday! I was in L.A. for the grand total of 12 hours! But, it was definitely worth it, and the celebratory pancakes I ate after the redeye flight have never tasted so delicious!
How did you prepare for your pitch?
Practice, practice, practice! There’s a fine line between knowing what you’re going to say and sounding over-rehearsed. I try to slightly change up the pitch every time I practice so that it still sounds a little spontaneous and natural, while at the same time staying on message and trying to tell a compelling story. I also try to practice while doing other things so that it really sinks into my brain!
What do organizations like Her Startup and SoGal mean to you?
I’m so grateful to Her Startup and SoGal for this opportunity. It was so inspiring to be in a room of amazing, accomplished women building fantastic companies. I can’t stop thinking about how wonderful the pitches were and how proud I am to be in the company of such incredible founders.
What's next?
San Francisco! I’m so excited for bootcamp! Between now and then, Babyation has a lot going on. We’re hitting some key deadlines in our product development, and it’s so rewarding to watch everything come together!
Submissions edited for length and clarity.
Images via Facebook
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