continued. . . 

I love the company name. Where’d that come from?

I wanted people to go, What’s that? What’s Red Vanilla? It immediately gets people thinking. I was going for a red and white look. I always liked vanilla and the name Red Vanilla just came to me. It intrigues people and makes them smile.

You opened in 2004. What were the main challenges?

There were financial struggles. It’s a big commitment buying inventory and not getting it quickly placed. I was more naive about the market than I realized. I thought I’d be able to build the business with independents right away which was presumptuous. If you don’t have contacts and relationships with Federated or May, for instance, a new business can be a challenge to get off the ground. I really thought it would be 1-2-3, but it hasn’t been like that at all. Even though I had a good product assortment, retailers didn’t know Red Vanilla or what we were about. It’s taken three years to get my foundation solid and now I’m going forward with a viable business.

You established Red Vanilla as a lifestyle company, with a mixed bag of home furnishings, including furniture.

That’s right. The cohesive factor is a feeling, a feeling with furnishings that are fun and hip and young and exciting. When we develop new product, we always ask, Does it have a Red Vanilla feeling? If we stick to those parameters, we’ll be successful. I love developing product, bringing them to market, and seeing retailers get excited about them. There’s nothing like that.

What’s been the biggest ongoing nut to crack?

It’s been fairly easy getting meetings with customers, but getting set up with them – getting into their system – is hard. Then there’s cash flow. You have to be shrewd in day-to-day operations which is not a strength of mine. Fortunately, we have a great CFO who handles that.

Does your dad have a role in Red Vanilla?

He’s kind of our ambassador, and has helped steer me toward good decisions. He can look at numbers and very quickly tell me how I’m doing. He’s got an acute business sense. He’s definitely gotten more interested in what I’m doing because I think he’s surprised I’m still around.

What’s the greatest lesson you’ve taken from him?

One lesson I’ve learned well is that the product is king. More importantly, I have a really good work ethic which I learned from him. The key is to love what you do. Not a day goes by that I don’t look forward to work. I’m excited about the future of this industry and the opportunities available. People want product that sells and helps them be successful. If you give them the right product they’ll work with you. That’s a simple lesson and I’m committed to delivering on it.

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