Moving away from home for the first time can be a stressful experience for many people, and I, for one, am both excited and nervous to go to college in a new city. One particularly fun thing about moving away is having the ability to decorate your own space. As incoming freshman know, however, purchasing everything you need can be a daunting task.
Amanda Zuckerman, who graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2013, experienced a similar dilemma when shopping for her own dorm room, and to solve this issue, she co-founded Dormify, an online one-stop-shop that sells everything incoming college students need for their rooms.
Amanda was featured on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list earlier this year, and Dormify has amassed an Instagram following of over 130,000 followers. The company has also established a style advisor program called Dormifam, which allows students across the country to participate in Dormify’s product development, have opportunities to be featured on Dormify’s social media accounts, and have access to exclusive sales and discounts.
As soon as I discovered the gem that is Dormify, I reached out to Amanda to interview her for The Zeitgeist, and we were able to chat over the phone last week. It is an honor to feature such an inspiring female entrepreneur on The Zeitgeist, and I am thrilled to introduce you all to Dormify– trust me, you will want to purchase everything on the site!
As part of our interview, Dormify created a personalized discount code for readers of The Zeitgeist. To receive 15% off your order, please use the code ZEITGEIST at checkout.
When did you realize you wanted to launch Dormify? What inspired you?
I launched Dormify during my freshman year of college, so I was pretty much in your exact position. As I was shopping for my dorm room with my mom, we realized that creating your first home away from home is a really big deal. However, the problem we noticed during our shopping trip was that it wasn’t easy to do at all. At the time, there was nothing like Instagram or Pinterest, and while it’s hard to imagine a world like that, it existed. *laughs* I was the first one in my family going off to college, so I had no idea what I needed for my dorm room. I didn’t know where to go, and everywhere I went wasn’t an exact match for what I was looking for. I was trying to find bedding and decor that were comfortable yet affordable, and I wanted the items in my room to represent my personal style. All of the things available on the market at the time were solutions that didn’t allow for any self-expression— basically twin XL sheets in a plastic bag. It was during this shopping trip that the idea of Dormify was really born, and my mom and I first focused on creating our own line of bedding. Along with that, we also wanted to create a shopping destination that carries everything that students need to easily and effectively style their small spaces. There are so many retailers out there that can sell products for a dorm room, but in order to differentiate ourselves from these huge retailers, we wanted Dormify to become a big sister to our customers. My mom and I aimed not only to provide our customers with the products they need to style a small space but also all of the tips, advice, and guidance people are looking for during this pivotal time in their lives.
Dormify also has a blog component. Could you elaborate a bit on this and discuss your style advisor program?
We actually launched the business as a blog at first so we could discuss college life and dorm decor, since no one was talking about it at the time. Dormify began as a blog because we wanted to see if [finding stylish and affordable dorm decor] was a problem that other people were facing. The blog portion of Dormify is truly in the DNA of the brand. Over time, I also had friends of mine become style advisors for Dormify— it’s like the first iteration of a brand ambassador program– and they would invite friends of friends, and the Dormify community grew really organically.
Like you, I have a very close relationship with my mom. What has it been like working with your mom in a business setting?
I grew up in a very entrepreneurial family, and my parents started an advertising agency together before I was born. I’ve been so inspired by my mom’s passion and drive when creating her own business as well as launching brands for her clients, so I’ve had a great mentor in my life. When it came time to start Dormify, we realized that my understanding of our audience, since I was in college at the time, along with my mom’s advertising background, would make the perfect partnership. It was also helpful having the perspective of the parent for our strategic initiatives since in most cases, parents are the ones paying for the students’ dorm decor. Something that’s both beneficial and tricky in working with my mom is that we don’t have to set boundaries— there are no limits when it comes to discussing work and life outside of the office. There’s not really a separation there, which sometimes can be difficult, but mostly, it allows for some of our best ideas to blossom. They might even come from a casual conversation on vacation or something like that.
How did you manage to balance your studies and personal life while working on Dormify?
In school, it was really important to me to ensure that I had that quintessential college experience. I knew that it was the only time in my life that I was going to be able to live in that type of environment, take classes that didn’t necessarily matter to my future, make tons of amazing friends, be in a sorority, and all of the other things I wanted to do. I very much had this in mind when we were launching Dormify. While I was in school, we took the time to learn about manufacturing, which we knew nothing about prior to starting the company and exploring other aspects of the business. We weren’t just throwing money into it; we were working on it slowly and building the brand gradually so when I graduated I could really hit the ground running. I double majored in graphic design and marketing, and just balancing that in itself was really hard, but it’s all part of life, having to balance things.
What are some of the challenges you encountered when starting your company, and how did you overcome them?
My mom and I have zero background in manufacturing, let alone overseas manufacturing and working with factories whose employees might speak a different language. However, we didn’t let people stop us or turn us down. When we were first looking for partners to help us create our first bedding line, we actually went to one of the textile buildings in New York City and knocked on every door until someone said they would work with us. We didn’t even have a website! *laughs* We only had business cards, and we just had to sell them on the basic idea, us as people, and our overarching vision for Dormify. People would often tell us, “You’re crazy for going up against Target, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Walmart,” but we didn’t let that hold us back. We really overcame that because once my mom and I found a partner who was willing to walk us through the process and help us grow as a brand, we’ve only gone up from there.
What does a typical day look like for you? Is there such thing?
I laugh every time someone asks me this, because, as cliché as this sounds, there’s no such thing as a typical day. This keeps things exciting, and everyone on the team has great energy and enthusiasm because each day is truly unique. I look at our business in a seasonal sense, and at different times of the year, I focus on different things. The great part about my job as the Creative Director of Dormify is that I spend the majority of my time with the products. I’m involved in each step from trend forecasting to making the actual products to deciding on the final designs. I’m also involved in the photography and merchandising of the products that we end up selling, as well as the ultimate end goal of reaching the customers. I’m there for the entire product life cycle, and having a full 360-view of what’s going on at Dormify really helps in all other aspects of the business too.
I, as well as many of my readers, am headed off to college this fall. What are some dorm room essentials that everyone should have?
This is a loaded question! *laughs* You need a lot of things, but some of the necessities are things for your bed because you’ll spend a lot of time there, whether you’re sleeping, reading, studying, watching TV, or just hanging out with your roommate. It’s great to invest in cozy bedding that will last the whole year and make you happy. Good lighting is also important for a dorm, since the lighting in the room is usually pretty dim. I’d also recommend a desk lamp, floor lamp, and even some decorative string lights.
Out of all the products you’ve created, which one is your favorite?
I particularly love our collapsible ottoman, which serves as a seat, step stool, and shoe storage box all in one! In order to maximize the small space that a dorm room offers, you need to have multi-purpose furniture like this. It comes in three different colors, and it’s an ottoman that has a shoe storage insert within it. It can go under your bed, especially if it’s lofted, and you can use this piece as a stool to reach your bed, and friends can also sit on it when they come over.
That ottoman sounds amazing! I’ll definitely be ordering that!
It’s my favorite thing! We had a really small quantity of them last year and they sold like crazy, so we brought it back in even more colors this year.
What piece of advice do you have to offer aspiring entrepreneurs?
Establishing a personal brand is crucial, whether it’s a blog like yours, or an Instagram account, or a Visco page. Having a presence online that shows what you’re interested in and reveals more about you as an individual is important, especially when trying to secure internships and jobs. It’s great to cultivate your personal voice, and having an online presence is an easy way for someone to get to know you without meeting you in person. Networking is also important, as well as staying in touch with people that you’ve perhaps worked with at an internship or met at an event. Going beyond shaking someone’s hand and going the extra mile to nurture these relationships could lead to something that will benefit you in the future. It’s only going to help you in the long-run. Also, stay humble and know that it’s okay not to know everything. This is the time to listen to others, learn things, and ask questions.
Finally, if you could go back and tell your freshman year-self one thing, what would it be?
*laughs* I think some general advice for incoming freshman is to take advantage of the four summers you have to try out different types of jobs. When you graduate, finding a job will definitely be on your mind, and a lot of people don’t know what they want to do after college. You’re really doing yourself a favor by testing out different experiences during these summers during which you have no obligations to anyone— you’re just there to learn about yourself, about the company, and about different things you can do with your life. Even if it’s a terrible internship experience, at least you will walk away knowing what you don’t want to do. *laughs* It’s just a really special, unique time, and if you prove yourself to be an amazing asset during your internship, you’re so much more likely to get a full-time job offer at that company or one you hope to work for. I’ve actually hired two interns myself! I love hiring people who are passionate about Dormify’s mission.
Featured image courtesy of Zuckerman.