“Everything I do is very intentional, even down to the tags,’’ she says. She has a technical designer now and is looking to grow her team. Phillips is already sourcing suppliers and deciding whether to manufacture in the United States or in Europe. By April, she had won CCEI’s Get Seeded competition and a $5,000, first-place prize. After mulling over the business idea for a few years, Phillips began to seriously explore her interest in the $80 billion lingerie business in February. Her company will be very committed to advocating for feminine wellness. Puure lingerie will be made of organic and non-toxic material, but Phillips is also creating garments that are comfortable, well-fitting and stylish. And I appreciated that all the other entrepreneurs were so like-minded and supportive.’’Ĭompany to Offer Comfort, Style-and Wellness Advocacy I learned how to organize the company financially. “The program mentors were great and welcomed us to bounce ideas off them. “I needed a foundation, including developing a core strategy and defining my competitive advantage,’’ she says. What they lacked was a solid foundation in building a business, and that’s something that Phillips gained through Summer Fellowship. “We didn’t know what we were doing initially, but we learned a lot about entrepreneurship, business development, and manufacturing practices,’’ says Phillips, a native of Westchester, N.Y. She and her sister also had a special-occasion clothing line for six years and became knowledgeable about clothing and manufacturing. She went on to work in retail for a table linens/kitchen company, and then for a company that made sunglasses and optical frames. There she became familiar with fabrics, natural fibers, and sustainability issues. Phillips started her career in sales for a home textiles company that sold bedding and bath products. In fact, this is not her first business venture. In addition to her MBA degree, which she plans to complete in spring 2025, Phillips brings a strong background in textiles and retail experience to her startup. Puure will compete for a share of $50,000 in business funding. Sponsored by the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CCEI), the program helps UConn-affiliated entrepreneurs with everything from legal concerns to finding financing sources.Īt the conclusion of the program, Puure was one of six startups selected to compete in the Wolff New Venture Competition, the School of Business’ pinnacle entrepreneurship challenge, in October. Phillips recently participated in an eight-week business accelerator, called Summer Fellowship. Phillips Brings a Wealth of Knowledge, Experience to Her Company Fibroids are benign tumors in the muscle wall that can be painful and cause a host of health problems, including interfering with fertility. Nearly a quarter of young Black women have uterine fibroid tumors, as compared to just 6 percent of white women. Her target customer is health-conscious Black women between the ages of 25 and 45, who are trying to optimize their reproductive health. They seek brands that share the values that they do.’’ They want to make healthy decisions about their bodies. “I think millennial women are enlightened about healthy eating and healthy living and they’re concerned about environmental toxins. It is a huge problem that scares me,’’ Phillips says. “There’s a silent threat beneath our clothing. Phillips, a UConn MBA candidate, is setting out to change that with her lingerie startup called “Puure.’’ She hopes to have her line of organic, non-toxic underwear available in the marketplace in 2024. Who would suspect that formaldehyde, pesticides, petroleum, dyes, parabens and “forever chemicals’’ are found in the creation of most popular brands of lingerie? Christina Phillips was horrified when she discovered that toxic and dangerous chemicals are used to manufacture women’s bras and underwear.
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