You might recognize those words from Grey’s Anatomy; powerful. 

Since starting Hot Mama Gowns in 2006 it’s been my mantra (before I knew it was my mantra); you see in 2006 when I gave birth to our first child, our daughter and I had the idea for Hot Mama Gowns, the FIRST thing I did the day after her birth was to start researching if something like this existed.  I Googled my heart out using every phrase I could think of to describe my vision of the perfect hospital maternity gown; and actually found only one company that was doing anything remotely close to what my vision was.  The company is named Dear Johnnies and they were a brand new company as well.  You might be taken aback by me actually TALKING about my “competition” and not only talking about them but *gasp* linking to them.  I’ll break it all down for you later…hang tight!  This company was making hospital maternity gowns but they were not my vision of the ideal hospital gown, so I felt very comfortable bringing my business and idea to life, and plus, what fun is only 1 hospital maternity gown company!

So let’s fast-forward a bit…designing, I mean ACTUALLY designing the ideal hospital maternity gown (Hot Mama Gowns!) takes time…I had the idea in May of 2006 and it wasn’t until February 2008 that I had a website and product to sell.  It was during that time I designed the gowns, had numerous fittings on LOTS of real women to ensure I really was taking into account every size and shape Mommy and bump, and then had the gowns manufactured in the sizes XS(2-4) – XXL(22-24) and let’s not forget all the other administrative stuff that had to be accomplished; logo development, branding, custom boxes designed, website built, organic fabric printed in bulk, etc.  So by 2008 there were several other “competitors” who entered the market, did it bother me; YES.  But it didn’t bother me for the reasons you’re probably thinking, I LOVE competition…bring it; but the fact that some people had the resources to bring their idea to market before mine upset me.  And a huge compliment to Dear Johnnies was everyone was copying their idea and gowns; even down to the ribbon detail around the neck and along the back closures.  So to think I was upset about the new entries into this niche market; Dear Johnnies must have been upset to the fourth degree because they were original in their design and execution and now they were being copied.

I was working a full time job while building Hot Mama Gowns and putting all my money into the company to get things accomplished as fast as possible…but still, there were companies who “beat me” to market…and that is something I had no control of, yet still bothered me.  It’s interesting though, even NOW, in 2011..NO ONE is doing what I’ve done, no one TRULY redesigned the hospital maternity gown to make it a garment that is thoughtfully designed for a laboring woman, for a breastfeeding Mom, and no one is committed to using only 100% Organic Cotton, all while being manufactured in the United States.  Almost every company that sprung up since I started in 2006 is basing their gowns on the generic hospital gown pattern but using cute prints, ribbons as an empire waist, or other details to adorn the generic hospital gown.  My goal from the beginning was to DESIGN a hospital maternity gown that celebrated Mom, made her feel comfortable and confident and gave her all the function she would need from birthing, to breastfeeding, to bonding and beyond.

So why the Pick Me, Choose Me, Love Me?  I WANT to be validated as a person and a business, I think it’s only natural when you have a passion for what you do that you want others to seek you out and pick you, choose you, LOVE you.  In the beginning our gowns were $149 (now we retail starting at $59!!); we still had sales but OBVIOUSLY during a recession not a lot of women are splurging on 100% Organic Hospital Maternity Gowns, they are just trying to make their mortgages.  At that time we were the most expensive on the market and least known because we didn’t have the money to put into advertising or brand awareness.  So I had to watch the other companies get recognition and grow while we kept our slow and steady pace.

Another extremely aggravating thing was watching these other companies change or add verbiage once Hot Mama Gowns entered the market; companies that had no mention of breastfeeding before now proudly displayed it, companies that never offered sizes to accommodate plus-size women were now adding them to their lines, companies that never mentioned skin-to-skin contact now had it in their descriptions; now this, this upset me.  Here I was the “little” guy, with ORIGINALITY and the bigger companies were just cherry-picking from me.  Companies that never tweeted or Facebooked were now springing up after seeing the amazing followers and fans I had and watching the “little guy” harness the power of social media in lieu of the cash they had.  But, after all, competition is GOOD.  Because at the end of the day, Hot Mama Gowns might not be right for one Mama, but another brand such as Dear Johnnies, Gownies, BYOG, or Annie & Isabel might be.  Do I want Hot Mama Gowns to be the #1 gown of choice for all pregnant Mamas…YEP, is that reality, no!  So it’s a good thing there are other companies out there making gowns that enhance the birth experience and make Mom feel special; and as a Mom I LOVE that!  So whether you choose Hot Mama Gowns or another brand; Mom will have a better experience and feel less like an ill hospital patient…and THAT is winning!

But…my thought process and integrity is NOT shared across this small niche market.  Over the years I have dealt with so many low blows; copyright infringement, companies sending private Facebook messages to MY Facebook fans  letting them know their gowns are available for cheaper after stalking my FB page, commenting on my Hot Mama blog (makes me laugh they ACTUALLY subscribe to my blog!) with the professionalism of a 12 year old for no other reason than being scared of Hot Mama Gowns and the level of competition we bring, having promotions and contests using my EXACT verbiage or using the exact name I created for the promotion, companies attempting to take legal action against me for LAUGHABLE claims, and my favorite were those companies who tried (are trying) to ride my Shark Tank fame by buying Google AdWords so when you type in “Shark Tank” or “Hot Mama Gowns” THEIR ads were shown..NOT JOKING!  Oh, oh…don’t let me forget to mention I LOVE when they order my gowns; yes, I know who “they” are! LOL!

This brand recognition, paired with a truly unique product that IS thoughtfully and originally designed by me, made in the USA of 100% Organic Cotton and now, NOW they are available for $59…it just made some CEO’s heads explode!!!  And through all this, it has ALWAYS been; pick me, choose me, love me.  Because there IS choice, and this is not a monopoly, and the customer has the right to buy whichever product they want…and I always hope it’s HMG, but I understand when it isn’t.  And again, I am THANKFUL that a Mom is allowed to feel beautiful and celebrated on her special day, regardless if she’s wearing a Hot Mama Gown made of 100% Organic Cotton manufactured in the USA or a gown made in India which retails for $29.

I welcome competition; the customer wins when there is competition.  What I don’t welcome is the petty high school drama that comes with some of this competition.  It’s a side of business that you as the customer rarely see, and I’m grateful for that because SO many Mom-owned businesses are run by AMAZING women and I wouldn’t want those select few bad apples to ruin it for the rest of us!  So PLEASE, keep shopping and support small business and woman and Mom-owned!  And know, you HAVE a choice when it comes to hospital maternity gowns…but I will still ask that you pick me, choose me, love me

PS. I don’t think any of my “competition” will be sharing this on their Facebook page or Tweeting it; and certainly not linking to Hot Mama Gowns in any way shape or form, and that’s okay!

Tags: competition, hot mama gowns, SHARK TANK