Korri Wright just wanted to make her life a bit easier. Necessity is the mother of invention fits her entrepreneurial style. The businesswoman behind Blade Butler and Unlimiscent shared her story with us in this Q&A.
- Tell us about the inspiration behind your businesses. Both of your products address pain points. What was your thought process for finding solutions to these problems?
The inspiration behind Blade Butler and Unlimiscent is to simply make life a little easier! By containing the dirt/dust/allergens/debris in the bag, the Blade Butler spares the additional cleaning of it falling on the floor, the pole reduces the risk of injury from falling off of a ladder. For me, it was such a filthy chore, yet was necessary because I despised dirty fans and they were located over beds, couches and I even had them in my kitchen. I was seeking a simpler way to keep my fans clean and the Blade Butler was the solution! Unlimiscent came to fruition really because I had 1,000 fragrance emitters and yet somehow lacked the ones I needed! I simply wanted to go to the store and be able to buy any scent I wanted without having to worry about what brand emitters I had.
- When you first envisioned your products, what changed in their development?
Blade Butler has changed a few times during its development, but the core inspiration of the product has remained the same: a bag attached to a pole that encompassed the blades of a ceiling fan for ease of cleaning. Unlimiscent has really not changed too much. I wanted them to look clean and be easy to use!
- What was your marketing strategy?
Our marketing strategy comprises a healthy mix of PR, digital ads on Google and a robust social media campaign; we are also going to be on the Amazon platform in the summer and will be doing ads surrounding the Amazon store.
- Explain how you overcame an obstacle and what it can teach other entrepreneurs.
When we were finally ready to shop the product to the U.S., we were hit with huge shipping costs. They were about triple from what we were quoted and originally budgeted for. We docked the product and waited for an opportunity to ship at a lower cost. Eventually, we were able to ship the product over for thousands of dollars less, but it was still over budget. It was a few months of waiting. Patience is a virtue.
- What is a surprising thing you’ve learned from being an entrepreneur?
One surprising thing that I learned is that people are interested in my entrepreneur story, how we got here, what are the steps and what kept me going. I hope that by sharing that it pushes someone else to keep going and never give up on themselves or an idea!
- What book or podcast has influenced your entrepreneurial strategy or mindset?
I have taken something from every podcast I have done so far. Whether it’s advice or ideas on marketing or insight about my products, I value the feedback and others’ perspectives.
