Using Crowdfunding to Start a Company With a Cause

Courtesy of braGGs Kara Gorski (left) and Kristin Gembala, sisters.

Two sisters, Kara Gorski and Kristin Gembala, have developed a bra designed to help breast cancer survivors who have had mastectomies and reconstructive surgery. So far, the sisters, who invested $25,000 from their savings, have designed and patented two styles and built a Web site. Currently, they are trying to raise money to begin manufacturing through a new crowdfunding platform.

For Ms. Gorski, a Ph.D. in economics with two children who works for a consulting firm in the Washington area, and Ms. Gembala, a stay-at-home mother with four children, the business - known as braGGs -
is persona l. Their mother died of breast cancer at age 39, when the sisters were just 7 and 12 years old. Twenty-eight years later, at age 35, Ms. Gorski discovered her own breast cancer. Soon, both sisters were found to carry the BRCA1 genetic mutation, which the National Institutes of Health says means an 87 percent chance of developing breast cancer and a 45 percent chance of developing ovarian cancer.

Both sisters elected to have surgery - Ms. Gembala prophylactically, since she had never been diagnosed with cancer. After hysterectomies and double mastectomies with reconstruction, the sisters expected to be able to wear regular bras. When they learned this was not possible, they set about designing and creating a reconstruction bra specifically for women like them. “So many women have told us about the serious problems with trying to find a functional and beautiful bra after such a difficult journey,” Ms. Gorski said.

Once they had pro totypes, they needed capital to start manufacturing. They started out pitching themselves to Kickstarter for a crowdfunding campaign and were turned down. Determined not to give up, the sisters reached out to a niche crowdfunding site, MedStartr, that specializes in projects and start-ups that involve health care. It was started by Mike Pence, who helped develop Kickstarter, and Alex Fair, an entrepreneur and health care advocate.

Mr. Fair said MedStartr was trying to do crowdfunding differently. “Kickstarter and Indiegogo are self-service for great ideas looking for funding,” he said. “Our customers need more help. They didn't go to business school or design school. They went to med school or graduate school. If they need marketing, we have P.R. people. If they need a video, we have video people. If they need help figuring out how their business model should work, we help them with that, too.” For now, MedStartr takes 5 percent of what is raised and offers the mentoring and marketing support free of charge.

The site helped Ms. Gorski and Ms. Gembala with promotion and partnership aspects of their project. Mr. Fair took them to make a presentation at the Department of Health and Human Services and connected them with a breast cancer support group, TalkAboutHealth. Ms. Gorski and Ms. Gembala were also provided with assistance in drafting press releases and driving daily traffic to the site, which resulted in more than 7,000 people watching braGG's pitch video.

Before posting their pitch on MedStartr, Ms. Gorski and Ms. Gembala considered how much money they would need to begin manufacturing. “We struggled a lot actually in deciding how much to ask for, teetering between $5,000 and $10,000,” Ms. Gorski said. “We did the math and knew financially we needed the $10,000 to get us through a first manufacturing round, so decided to go for it.” Their goal was to raise $10,000 by Oct. 1, which they did, but MedStartr is allowing them to continue their campaign until the end of October because it is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

For those interested in trying crowdfunding, Ms. Gorski and Ms. Gembala offered the following advice:

Use social media: Get your audience involved and invested. Ms. Gorski explained how they got Facebook fans and Twitter followers involved: “BraGGs bras have hidden messages of inspiration inside to make women feel special and confident through their day - a little hug from us to them. When we were deciding on which messages to include, we put up four options on Facebook and Twitter and had everyone vote.”

Video is crucial: Explain what problem you are solving and how you will do it. Ms. Gorski said it is critical to explain how much you are asking for and how the money will be used.

Tell a story: Being passionate about your story will make others passionate about it as well. “They will want to become invested in being a part of someth ing great,” Ms. Gorski said.

Melinda Emerson is founder and chief executive of Quintessence Multimedia, a social media strategy and content development firm. You can follow her on Twitter.