Today we’d like to introduce you to Rosie Mangiarotti.
Hi Rosie, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
With my own frustrating experiences with sticky bras, and after watching my friends and sisters have similar frustrating experiences, I thought there must be a solution to this, and if there isn’t, I am going to create one. Sticky bras lose adhesion easily, get dirty, and fall of when you least expect it. To combat these issues, I thought to create a sticky bra with replaceable adhesives. I thought of this idea in High School and it wasn’t until my junior year in college (Spring 2017) when it resurfaced. I studied Business & Entrepreneurship at Brown and took a class called “The Entrepreneurial Process”. Through this class, we learned all about starting a company through doing close readings on entrepreneurial case studies. As part of the class, we were split into teams to come up with an idea- a product or service that solves a customer pain point- and to create a full-fledged business plan. I pitched this idea and my team was on board. I worked alongside my classmates in a business team of six to transform the idea of the “Reliabra” (now, Perkies) into an opportunity, an opportunity that is now a commercial reality. After I graduated, with some wind behind my back through pitch competition success, I decided to bring this idea to life!
Today, Perkies creates innovative undergarments and activewear for women to wear. Perkies’ signature product is the Perkies Sticky bra, the only sticky bra (backless/strapless bra that sticks on) with replacement adhesives! Perkies also sells Perkies Petals: reusable nipple covers as well as Perkies Nips: Reusable nipple enhancers to provide a consistent perky look – aligned with the pop culture trend and also serving a purpose for women who have had mastectomies and no longer have nipples. Perkies is dedicated to sustainability, inclusivity, and empowering women to feel confident, while also donating 5% of website sales to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation®.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The toughest part of this journey has been the product development of the Perkies Sticky Bra. It was difficult to raise money without a working product, and incredibly difficult to create an entirely new, adhesive-based product without money. In order to bring this to life, I had to invest three years of time to R&D.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am an entrepreneur! Ever since I graduated college in 2018, I decided to pursue bringing Perkies to life full-time – I am known to be a diligent worker with an eye for products/systems that can be improved upon.
I am most proud of my perseverance throughout the R&D process of creating the sticky bra. There were so many times I’d come to dead ends and hear the words “not possible”, but when there’s a will, there’s a way, and I wasn’t going to stop until I got the Perkies Sticky Bra in the hands of all the women who told me how excited they were to finally wear a sticky bra that works.
I believe it’s important to take your ego out your entrepreneurial journey, and that’s something I learned to do early on, especially once I moved home with my parents for a full four years to bring this product to life!
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
If you’re interested in learning more about our products, our website is: perkies.com and our Instagram is @myperkies. If you have any ideas for a collaboration, please email hello@perkies!
Pricing:
- $25 Nipple Covers
- $35 Nipple Enhancers
- $48 Sticky Bra
Contact Info:
- Website: https://perkies.com/
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/myperkies
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/perkies/
