Missy Reukema means business. What started out as an idea on a hot day transformed into two successful brands: Brilli Baby, a baby product line featuring the cupcatcher to help keep cups clean on the go, and HotSips, a reusable, eco-friendly straw. She didn’t intend to create her own company, but she saw a need in the market and filled it.
I AM A... germophobe. I admit it. My son loved to throw his sippy cup. We were at the zoo when he was probably 10 months old, and it was a super hot day. He threw his cup and it went into the gravel. There really wasn’t a bathroom nearby, and you can’t withhold hydration, so I just kind of wiped it with my shirt and handed it back to him. After that, we made the first rudimentary cup- catcher.
WE INVENTED... the cupcatcher and Brilli Baby out of need. Becoming a mom and really not seeing a lot of products made in the USA, I felt there weren’t a lot of quality products out there. We really wanted to make something that was safe and something we were really proud of.
THE FIRST STEP... was drawing it out, building it and then we started using it. We went to Chick-fil-A in Southlake, and it was a dad that stopped us and said, ‘What is that?’ We said, ‘Oh, this is a cupcatcher: It catches his sippy cup so it stays clean,’ and he said, ‘When can I buy it?’ It was that little bit of encouragement that made us realize there was a need for something like this.
WE JUST KEPT ON... making it better. We originally had this idea in 2004, but back then, the only way to make a prototype was to make a mold, which cost about $25,000 to $30,000. You didn’t really know if what you were going to make was going to work. We always knew we wanted it to be one piece; we didn’t want it to break; we wanted it to be as safe as possible. It was finally our 17th rendition that we got patented for safety. It has a zigzag shape so you don’t have a risk of your child wrapping it around their arm. I then took my bonus from my job, and I made the mold and made enough of the cupcatchers just to break even. After that, we launched at the New York Toy Fair in 2014.
IT WAS ONLY... my husband and I, and we met the VP of Sesame Street. She came by our booth and loved it. Every night we would go out to dinner and we were exhausted. And we were like, ‘Did that actually just happen?’ It was complete affirmation that we were on the right track. Immediately after the show we got into BabySteals, and then we got into Zulily. We went to another show, and we got into Buy Buy Baby. It truly is the hustle.
WHAT’S EXCITING IS... we work with all local factories in Dallas and Fort Worth. So we can meet with our factories and our material manufacturers and sit down in a conference room to ensure the quality, the consistency and the price point.
SOMETHING THAT WAS EYE OPENING... to me was in the baby industry, some people will just straight up try to steal our product. A major baby manufacturer tried to take our product and I just had to go to them and say we are patented and I will sue you. I just won’t back down. I’m 100 pounds, 5’3” but if you are going to steal my baby, I’m going to come after you. I’ve been placated as, ‘Oh, you are just a mom.’ And to that, I’m like, ‘Oh no.’
EVERYTHING WE DO... we take in stride. We take an order and get to work. And then you build your next product. You keep building creative, innovative products. Our next product came out of a need. I had my teeth whitened, and I wanted a straw so I could keep the coffee and tea off my teeth. After doing research and not finding anything, I came home and told my husband. What we saw was a need. We were able to make our first HotSips straw in a day, find the right factories, meet with them to produce it and pick our colors.
ONCE YOU MAKE YOUR FIRST PRODUCT... you think ‘I can do this.’ Our product, HotSips, was featured on the CBS Sunday Morning Show as a top tech gift of 2018, and we sold out in a matter of minutes. We actually got a fraud alert because there were so many sales. I am making a new product, which is an immediate HotSips and today I worked on my fourth product – we have another product coming out next year.
I REALLY BELIEVE... we can achieve a lot together as a community. There is so much brilliance here, and there is no reason why we can’t do it together. When I use local businesses here, no one does each other wrong. We all respect each other.
I WOULD TELL OTHER ENTREPRENEURS... to fight for what you believe in, and you can achieve anything you want. Just believe in yourself and choose the right partners.
