S2. Ep. 123 Test, Research and Prove Your Concept before you Scale with the Co-Founders of Dagne Dover
“We needed to make sure we had product market fit from day one,” says Melissa Mash, Co-Founder with Jessy Dover and Deepa Gandhi of Dagne Dover, the third fastest growing handbag company at Nordstrom. They saw a need in the market for a durable, all-purpose handbag that could adapt to all areas of life. From the beginning, research–through focus groups, surveys and observing the world around them—was key in getting the product just right, before finally launching in 2013. Social media was starting to gain momentum, and the brand benefited from the word-of-mouth element of the platform at a time when it was much less crowded. The trio shares the mistake they made early on that forever changed the way they approach the business, as well as their efforts to incorporate sustainability into the bags’ design and production.
Key takeaways from today’s episode include:
Research is key
Test the product to make sure you have the concept down before you scale
Leverage word of mouth and build community
Quotes
• “You get attached to everything that you make cuz you've worked so hard on it. Sometimes people won't like it because it's not a good solution and you have to be willing to drop it, let it go,and just navigate towards the things that are working and solving people's problems. (9:50-10:07 | Jessy)
• “In terms of hurdles, I think the first would be product, and then second would be marketing and growth.” (28:16-28:21 | Deepa)
Connect with Melissa Mash, Deepa Gandhi and Jessy Dover:
Website | http://www.dagnedover.com
Dagne Dover Instagram | http://www.instagram.com/dagnedover
Jessy Instagram | http://www.instagram.com/jessydover
Melissa Instagram | http://www.instagram.com/melissashinmash
Deepa Instagram | http://www.instagram.com/deepagandhi
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