Stay Papier wasn't meant to be Stay Papier.

Coming from the fashion and consumer tech industries, I never expected that I would end up here, but oddly both industries gave me the tools to build this.

Stay Papier wasn't meant to be Stay Papier. It started as Stay Supply Co - a short term rental supply kit.  A round of layoffs at my previous job gave me the kickstart that I needed to do what I've always wanted to do - build my own business.  As I watched colleagues that I've worked with for 15 years suddenly stop coming to work, I realized corporate life isn't for me. What exactly was I building?

I had intended to sell kits to AirBNB guests that filled the usual gaps when they checked in - not enough trash bags, toilet paper, paper towels, dish soap etc. For 4 months no one made any sales.

Then one day, I got my first sale - a single paper towel roll. Wrapped in a decorate tissue paper, the tissue served more as a packaging than selling point. I just didn't want the paper towels to toss around in the box unprotected. But could I have actually hit something here? I followed the money and launched Stay Papier with two prints.  

Within 10 days, I had 25 orders. Quite a big contrast to Stay Supply = 0 kits. This seemed to be the market disruptor the papergoods industry was looking for.

And that is how I ended up here.  Scratching my creative itch, using the tools I learned from the fashion industry, consumer tech in product assortment, marketing, advertising and sales.  

While its not the glamor of the fashion industry or the spectacle that is CES, somehow this because my passion project and it couldn't have arrived at a better time.