As seen on Today Show with Kathie Lee Gifford & Hoda, Rachael Ray Show,and CNBC, The Flip Flop Bitch bag is the "tote-ally" chic, lightweight, multi-functional fold up tote created by mother-daughter entrepreneurial team Cindy and Laura Massari that allows you to fashionably carry flats in your purse and save your feet after a long night in heels. Handmade in the United States and available for purchase online and in select NYC boutiques in a variety of colors/prints and vegan faux leather ($45-$85), The Flip Flop Bitch bag is perfect for travel, everyday essentials, and makes the ultimate gift for any occasion including: birthdays, bridal shower, Mother's Day, graduation, etc. Designed for the everyday fashionista, the matching pouch can even be used as a clutch to carry small items, like your phone or lipstick.
The innovative totes were created by the mother-daughter entrepreneurial team Cindy and Laura Massari after countless nights of going out in heels and having their feet screaming for release by the end of the night. As they were leaving a spot to go home one night, Cindy decided to pull a pair of flip flops out of her tote and switched shoes. Her friends had one of two choices, staying in their pain-inducing heels or walk barefoot down the dirty streets of Manhattan. Her friends chose the latter and were so jealous of Cindy for thinking to bring a spare pare of flip flops that they started calling her the "Flip Flop Bitch." It was at that point Cindy realized there was a need for all women to save their feet and look good doing it. With her daughter's business and financial advising background, Cindy and Laura created their company.
I had a chance to interview them to learn more.
- How do you maintain a healthy relationship while working together?
We are mother / daughter (30 years apart!) and we have been working together for several years now & our business relationship has only made our lives better and more fun. We attribute this to the fact that we have strengths that complement one another.. Cindy is the creative force behind the business and does much of her own modeling, while Laura has a career in finance and runs the day to day operations of the website, social media & accounting. We take on such different roles that we really count on each other to make it work. - What has been the biggest surprise about your entrepreneurial journey?
The biggest surprise for us was when we got our totes featured on the TODAY Show by Kathie Lee Gifford simply by gifting it to her at a meet & greet. We had no prior connections or contacts and we were watching the show one morning and there was our Flip Flop BItch ® Tote as one of her "Favorite Things". It was one of the most amazing moments for us and no one told us it was going to be featured in advance! We talk about this experience in detail in a book that we co-authored,"Passionistas: Tips, Tales & Tweetables from Women Pursuing their Dreams" - What advice would you give to someone else who has a unique product idea?
Be bold! Dare to dream big that your product is special and never be afraid to promote yourself. Being an entrepreneur really is a 24 hour job, so be prepared to work tirelessly and make sure you are ready to face a lot of rejection - because it will happen! But don't be discouraged, it's just part of the journey. Also, be aware that people may not respond to your emails and solicitations and that can be very frustrating, but you just have to keep at it and keep trying different angles until something works. - Where can people find your totes?
Our totes can be found on our website www.theflipflopbitch.com , our Etsy Page and Amazon Handmade . - What is next for the Flip Flop Bitch?
We are always looking for new fabrics to keep our chic totes on trend. This Spring / Summer we introduced a beautiful floral collection of vegan leather totes that are also reversible (as all of our vegan leather totes are). Cindy has a lot of ideas for future product lines, so stay tuned!
Photos courtesy of Cindy and Lauren Massari
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