Building Community With Susie Levitt

Last Updated on November 16, 2020

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About Susie Levitt

Susie Levitt is the Co-founder of Simple Satch, a female owned and operated company that makes safety stylish with their hands-free infection prevention kits and bespoke non-medical grade masks.

Like everyone, the pandemic has presented challenges, but for Susie it meant having her wedding cancelled the night before while at her own rehearsal dinner. A bride jilted by the virus, Susie knew she needed to take this pandemic setback and turn it into a comeback by turning her business idea of making safety stylish into a reality.

An innovative founder with a patent-pending design, Levitt is reimagining the personal hygiene industry and empowering women everywhere to embrace life in the new normal with confidence. This entrepreneur believes hygienic essentials, giving back, and being an inspirational businesswoman, will never go out of style

A strategic business executive, Levitt has a decade of experience in the fashion industry. Simple Satch marks Levitt’s second start up she has founded. Her first company, City Slips, launched in 2009. Levitt has been recognized as one of the “Top 100 entrepreneurs under 40 in the country” by President Obama, as well as “The top 25 under 25” by Bloomberg Businessweek, Inc. Magazine, Forbes and more

About Simple Satch

With a mission of creating stylish hygiene bags that positively impact those in need, female entrepreneur Susie Levitt, along with her Co-Founders Corinne Daniels, a registered nurse, and Chaiah Delouya, a fashion designer and mom of three – launched Simple Satch, a stylish hands-free infection control kit that gives back.

Susie came up with the concept of creating bags with the purpose for cleanliness and hygiene. Her and her co-founder Corinne realized the “gal on-the-go” needed a stylish bag to stash her personal items and proper hygienic essentials. Like everyone, the pandemic has presented challenges, but for Susie it meant having her wedding cancelled the night before while at her own rehearsal dinner. A bride jilted by the virus, Susie knew she needed to take this pandemic setback and turn it into a comeback by turning her business idea into a reality.

While managing through these uncertain times, Susie and her Co-Founders quickly developed the Simple Satch Starter Kit – a ultimate hands-free infection control package – that encompasses a patent-pending belt bag, hand sanitizer, antibacterial wipes, a non-medical grade face mask and filters. With safe and hands-free hygiene her top priority, Susie wanted to create an innovative product that women could use every day no matter if you are on the frontlines, in the boardroom, or a parent raising kids.

Dedicated to positively impacting those in need, 10 percent of sales on simplesatch.com go directly to charity. Simple Satch is also uniting their products with purpose driven people to create charitable events to raise money for those in need.

Susie and the Simple Satch team believes that hygienic essentials, and giving back, will never go out of style.

Contents

How Did You Get Your First Several Customers Or Users? How Many Users Or Customers Do You Have Now?

Building a community, not just customers, is part of Simple Satch’s mission. We knew early on being authentic and transparent about both our products and charitable causes would be key to acquiring our foundational members of our girl gang.

The most effective way of building our tribe has been through social media. More than 50 percent of our direct to consumer purchases come from Instagram alone. Our approach to building relationships with micro-influencers that align with our company values has proved successful. The authentic content developed by these creative gurus have helped fuel our growth by providing us additional exposure. We have also worked with stylists who have uniquely incorporated our product into gift guides and fashion lists. Other ways of growing include targeted e-mail marking campaigns, engaged retail partners, and traditional earned media, among others.

Additionally, customizing the giving experience at the end of checkout was key to us. We want our customers to confidentially know what their gift of gratitude is supporting. By teaming with Givz, a company that simplifies the giving experience, customers have a turnkey option at the end of checkout to donate 10 percent of their purchase to more than 1.6 million charities

We have a 25% customer return rate and our research shows that it is a testament not only to our high-quality product, but also the customer experience. Our elevating packaging, which features inspirational messages, provides a unique unboxing experience and makes everyone who purchases our product feel special. Empowering women and building an authentic community is what makes first-time buyers, repeat customers.

How Does Your Company Grow And Acquire New Customers?

Building a diverse and engaged community is core to Simple Satch. We leverage a variety of technique attract new customers or as we like to call it, invite new people to join our girl gang!

Positively impacting those in need is part of the fabric of our company and one of the ways we are authentically growing our customer base. 10 percent of all sales on SimpleSatch.com go directly to a customer’s charity of choice. We are also uniting our products with purpose driven people who are enriching our communities nationwide to create virtual events to positively help those in need. From yoga classes and makeup tutorials, to cooking lessons and skincare advice sessions, these virtual events all benefit notable causes. This interactive and conversational approach helps us authentically connect with customers and build a tribe of empowering women verses just having a transactional experience.

Drop shipping is another way to acquire new customers. The beauty of the drop shipping selling method is the retailer does not need to buy inventory upfront, so they can test your product and see if their customers will buy. Retailers can add your product to their site as the drop shipping software pulls imagery and copy directly your homepage. It is a turnkey way to scale and have increase reach without a ton of investment or labor. Topline – drop shipping is an efficient way to increase sales, and quickly gain exposure.

Customization is so important to businesses and end consumers. We have enabled options for these consumers to customize our product, so it fits their brand and feels unique to them! For example, when someone purchases our Simple Satch Starter Kit, they can select the non-medical grade face mask design of their choice. Additionally, customizing the giving experience at the end of checkout was key to us. We want our customers to confidentially know what their gift of gratitude is supporting. By teaming with Givz, a company that simplifies the giving experience, customers have a turnkey option at the end of checkout to donate 10 percent of their purchase to more than 1.6 million charities.

Another tactic is growing your retail partnerships. At Simple Satch, we have built a team of 10 independent reps who sell our products to local boutiques, med spas, department stores and more allowing for additional reach and distribution.

What Actionable Tips And Tricks Do You Have For New Founders Who Are Looking To Get Their First Thousand Users Or Dollars?

My three key tips for new founders are to tap your network, do your research and leverage drop shipping.

When launching your company, brand exposure is key. Traditional e-mail marketing and social media campaigns are foundational points in the business, but do not forget to tap your own network of friends, family and co-workers! The personal connection to those foundational customers creates a loyal base that will grow with your company. Another way to maximize visibility is leveraging Cision’s HARO (Help A Reporter Out) – a site which connects journalist seeking expertise. The best part about all these tips for getting warm leads to new customers, they are free!

Another tip for first-time entrepreneurs is to do your research and development through scouring online sources and taking surveys of potential customers – it is so important! Making sure your product is priced right and is competitive in the marketplace is key. At Simple Satch, we did an extensive survey in April which informed us of customer buying decisions, preferred purchase price and the type of products people wanted to buy. Take time to also research keywords so you can ensure your site is easily found. As startups, we are all budget conscience and data can help everyone make informed decisions. Leverage your research to attract new customers by smartly select key words to increase ‘SEO’ on both social advertising and google ad words.

Lastly, approach retailers about drop shipping. The beauty of this selling method is the retailer does not need to buy inventory upfront, so they can test your product and see if their customers will buy. Drop shipping is an efficient way to increase sales, and quickly gain exposure.

What Is Something You’ve Learned That Would Not Be Obvious To Somebody Who Hasn’t Worked In Your Space Before?

Every company faces challenges, yet the mindset in which the organization embraces them can ultimately determine its success. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in challenging times for all businesses, yet as an entrepreneur and the Co-Founder of Simple Satch, I refuse to let it stop our company from making safety stylish and positively impacting those in need. A core part of my leadership style is a positive, solutions-oriented mindset. For every impossible element we are facing, there is a possible solution, but sometimes it takes innovative thinking mixed with being resourceful to generate it.

As a wholesaler and product-based company, interfacing with customers is a critical component of our business. During this time of social distancing, we pivoted from a traditional in-person showroom to a digital one so our retail partners could still access our products. Our ability to quickly find a solution proved successful. We were able to schedule customer appointments and showcase our entire collection, a surprising benefit as we were not always able to carry all our products to physical appointments.

A solutions-based mindset is everything – instead of seeing complexities, see possibilities, and then you will see results.

What’s The Craziest Thing That’s Happened To You (Good Or Bad) On Your Founder Journey?

In the wake of a pandemic, when everyone else pulled back, my female Co-Founders and I pushed forward. We developed prototypes, built a virtual infrastructure, sourced materials, designed a virtual showroom, created a brand, and successfully launched a company – all while in quarantine! We made the impossible, possible. The pandemic challenged us to be resourceful, but it also made us realize the possibilities that are at our fingertips and how to leverage various tools from the comfort of our own home. Utilizing a variety of platforms like Alibaba, Zoom, Shopify, and Canva, among others, allowed us to virtually interface with contractors around the world, review detailed sales analytics, customize our website, and more.