Ideas for new products come easy to Julie Ruditzky. Bringing them to market is another matter.
Four months ago, she conceived of a decorative tie that clips to the back of a blazer to cinch it to a woman’s waistline.
The idea was a product of her work environment. At WLNE (ABC) Channel 6 in Providence, where Ruditzky works as a broadcast news reporter, the 28-year-old saw the need for an alternative to the potato-chip clip (used to help clothing fit better for on-camera personnel). The only problem was, it would only appeal to a small population.
Ruditzky was thinking bigger.
“So many of us have these knee-high boots,” she said, explaining the genesis of her latest idea. “I hate shoe shopping and buying new pairs of boots, so I thought it would be cool if I could get a print – it’s like a border … or a wrap around, a scrunchy for the top of a boot.”
The first step Ruditzky took was finding the right fabric. She wanted something stretchy that wouldn’t slip, so she chose a material with Spandex and picked patterns and colors she thought would sell, such as a zebra print, a pink leopard print, a cheetah print, camouflage and others.
Next, she made a prototype and started calling manufacturers to find out who could make the boot wrappers. After calling several, she realized she would not be able to find a local manufacturer to do the work; they don’t actually cut and sew anymore. But if she were to look overseas for manufacturing, she would need to order far more wrappers than she could guarantee selling, thus taking on too much risk.
Rachel Araz, head of promotions at the Pawtucket-based Rhode Island Textile Co., a manufacturer of elastic, cords and lanyards, agreed to offer Ruditzky advice at no charge – because “I like to help people out,” Araz said.
She also liked Ruditzky’s drive and personality, she said, as well as the fact that Ruditzky is a broadcast news reporter, which gives her an advantage in promoting her idea.
Ruditzky said being resourceful is one skill she’s learned as a reporter that has helped her in making her idea come to fruition. “I know I can find an answer,” she said. “Everyone is accessible.”
Ruditzky also sent several boot wrappers to broadcast reporters she knows in the state and around the country. “They can wear them on air,” she said. “It’s instant exposure.”
Ruditzky’s drive and determination will help her, but they don’t guarantee success, said Araz.
“I’ve been doing this for 10 years,” she said. “I’ve helped a lot of small projects but nothing has really taken off yet. It’s hard to mass-produce a new idea. People like the same old things. And it costs a lot for the person creating the item. It’s kind of a chance.”
Araz suggested that Ruditzky start small, since she is going to first try to sell the boot wrappers in small boutiques in Rhode Island. In that case, Ruditzky only needs a couple hundred to get started, Araz said.
So Ruditzky found a local seamstress willing to make her first, small run of wrappers. When she starts getting orders she can then outsource – but only if she is going to order in the thousands, Araz explained.
“I don’t import anything unless it’s 5,000 pieces or more,” Araz said, because duties are less and so are the air-shipping fees. For 10,000 pieces or more, the cost is much less because they can be shipped in containers by boat.
After taking some courses at the Center for Women & Enterprise in Providence, Ruditzky found a lawyer and an accountant. She has registered her trademarked company Freckles n’ Fran as a sole proprietorship. She named the company after her mother, who has been very supportive, she said, and because freckles are a family trait.
Ruditzky found professional friends to help her with photographs, graphic design and development of her Web site, www.frecklesnfran.com. She developed and printed packaging for the 60 boot wrappers she has in inventory.
And last month Ruditzky started visiting boutique and shoe-store owners in Providence and Wickford with the intention of selling her product on consignment.
Berk’s Shoes and Details, two businesses on Thayer Street in Providence, and Gossip, in Wickford, have agreed to carry a test run of the boot wrappers to see if they sell, she said.
Cathy Levitt, owner of Details, an accessory boutique, thinks it’s a cute idea but suggested making boot wrappers out of black velvet or a metallic because those materials are “in” for the holidays, and could be a good accessory for bags of the same material.
She also suggested changing the packaging, which encases the boot wrapper in cellophane, because she has found that customers want to feel the material.
“Sure I’ll try them out,” Levitt said. “We’ll put them behind the counter so people can see them.”
But Levitt warned selling the item at $20 might be troublesome because women already spend a lot of money on their boots. She said getting the price down to $12 or $15 would sell more.
For now, that’s an issue, because Ruditzky pays $1.50 for material, $6 for manufacturing and 30 cents for packaging per boot wrapper. That means if a boot wrapper sells for $15 in the boutique, the owner makes $7.50 and Ruditzky makes $7.50, which leaves her in the hole 30 cents.
At $20 Ruditzky will make $2.20 profit per boot wrapper, hence the need for outsourcing, she said, because it would improve the profit margin.
For now Ruditzky said she’s just having fun with it. She’s invested about $3,500 in the venture and has talked to many people who have been able to help her.
“I’m pretty confident,” she said. But “it’s a wait-and-see approach.” •
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