Birdies, marketed as “the stylish flat that’s secretly a slipper,” has not only adapted during the 2020 pandemic, but is thriving. How have the cofounders of this shoe company pivoted to build on their success during an economic downturn? The two attribute their success this year largely to listening to customer feedback. Bianca Gates, Cofounder and CEO and Marisa Sharkey, Cofounder and President talked about adapting, failures, and growing during Covid-19.
Birdies
Julia Wuench: Tell me the story behind creating Birdies.
Bianca Gates
Bianca Gates: Marisa and I are two busy moms who love to entertain friends and family at home, but we were tired of having guests over and being barefoot, in socks, or frumpy PJ slippers. We decided there must be a better solution to footwear in the entertaining space at home. So we took the existing components of shoes and bridged them together to invent this new, unique category of footwear — an easy to slip on loafer style that goes with everything. We then created a proprietary 7-layer technology to give our flats that extra support, so you can bounce around as if you are in a sneaker. The end result was this perfectly versatile shoe that our customers could wear both in and out of the home.
Marisa Sharkey
Marisa Sharkey: Soon after launch, we learned that our customers loved their Birdies for more than the home. They wanted a combination of a comfortable and stylish shoe that took them everywhere. Because they were so busy doing so many different things, the role Birdies could play in different parts of their lives was very important to us and we have worked to make sure Birdies can be worn indoors and out, wherever they would like.
Wuench: Tell me about a time when something went horribly wrong in your business. What did you learn from it?
Gates: There are always so many ups and downs with starting a business. For us, the biggest challenge we faced was on the supply chain side. Footwear is an industry where the big factories want to partner with big brands, and there are specific factories for particular models of shoe: if you’re making sneakers there is a sneaker factory, or if you’re making slippers there is a slipper factory, and so on. So, for a small startup with this idea of a hybrid indoor/outdoor shoe, it was hard to get traction initially. Nobody could work with us at first because the factories weren’t equipped with the components they needed; this model just didn’t exist in the supply chain. Eventually we produced the style we had in mind, but it wasn’t the quality we wanted. As we continued to design different styles and learn from the process, the quality of the shoes we were making got better and better. Even today, we are always learning and continuing to make Birdies the best shoe we possibly can.
How did you adjust your product and marketing strategies during COVID?
Gates: Consistent with what we have always done, but even more so during COVID, we prioritized listening to our customers’ feedback through social media and surveys. We are constantly surveying our community to see what they want from us, what they need from us, what is working and what is not working. As a result of this listening, we immediately pivoted our social strategy to create content that was relatable to what our community was going through but also that kept them inspired during this time. We also adapted our product strategy to better fit our customers’ at home lifestyles. When we found they were gravitating more toward slide styles, we quickly introduced a new slide collection and brought back a favorite discontinued style. Our slide business grew over 200% during COVID which is a reflection of us being hyper focused on our customers and listening to what they want.
Wuench: This year, you’ve collaborated with a roster of female entrepreneurs and brands including Minted and Leftys Right Mind for your VOTE Collection. Can you tell me why you chose these particular partners?
Gates: At Birdies, our mission is to create stylish and comfortable shoes while serving as a champion for women to live their lives with passion and purpose. As the Birdies platform continues to grow, we want to use it to lift up other women and cast a spotlight on them through collaborations and messages like voting. Danielle Stern of Leftys Right Mind is a graphic designer in New York and we wanted to highlight her amazing work at a larger scale. Similarly with Minted, they are a platform of creative female artists around the world that we wanted to celebrate through this collaboration.
Wuench: What advice do you have for aspiring female entrepreneurs?
Gates: Just start. If you’re thinking about starting a business, just take the first step.
When we started Birdies, we did not have the highest quality manufacturing team or an immediate knowledge of the footwear industry by any means. It was important that we did not let any of those things limit us. We had to prove ourselves in order to continue to grow. And so I tell everybody who wants to be an entrepreneur: start with the things that you have at your disposal, and don’t worry about the things that you don’t, because you will work your way toward getting those resources later.
Wuench: What is the most important lesson that you’ve learned this year?
Sharkey: This year really highlighted that we are leaders in an organization of people who have their own lives and priorities. As leaders, we have to make decisions about the company that can affect the lives of the people we work with. We had to make decisions about when our employees should come to the office, how they are going to work from home, and the best ways to collaborate.
Gates: Patience. This year, the world is in crisis mode so we cannot be thinking about 6 months or 5 years from now. We need to put all of our energy into how we can protect our team, our culture, our company, and our community day to day.
About Birdies: Combining elevated style with ultimate comfort, Birdies has invented a new category of footwear, designed for indoor-outdoor wear with their exclusive 7-layer comfort technology. Founded by and dedicated to serving women in 2015, their signature styles combine the support of a sneaker, the softness of a slipper, and the style of a designer flat – making them the perfect versatile shoe for every day.
