Featured Entrepreneur: Romy Taormina of PSI Bands

by smallbizbee · 4 comments

Sometimes in business we can make things too difficult. Our latest featured entrepreneur should demonstrate to us all that successful businesses boil down to seeing a need and filling it. Romy Taormin of Psi Bands has done just that. Finding a solution for symptoms affecting 1/2 of all women during pregnancy is not just good for your health and wellness, it's good for business too.

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Extremely generous offer: Romy has agreed to give away one pair of Psi bands to a lucky Smallbizbee.com reader...keep reading to find out how you can win some FREE product!

What are Psi Bands?

Psi Bands are acupressure wrist bands for the relief of nausea due to morning sickness (pregnancy), motion sickness/travel, anesthesia, and chemotherapy. They are drug free, waterproof (no more soggy wrist bands), adjustable around the wrist and at the acupressure point for personalized comfort, reusable, affordable, and stylish!

When did you start the business?

Psi Bands launched in October 2007.

How did you get the idea?

We suffered from terrible morning sickness during our pregnancies. We found relief from wrist acupressure but were dissatisfied with existing products on the market. We wanted something “more” for others who suffer from nausea, so we created Psi Bands.

What sources did you use to fund your biz?

Personal funds as well as a business line of credit. Our bank could see the potential in us and our product.

What was the biggest startup challenges?

Psi Bands are a medical device so we needed to obtain FDA clearance, and set up systems to maintain compliance.

How did you overcome those challenges?

We hired a firm who specializes in regulatory compliance consulting. As a business owner, it’s important to identify your strengths and capitalize on those, and also to know when to ask for assistance.

What has been the response/reaction?

Amazing! We are selling nationally at Rite Aid, Longs Drugs, REI, Pharmaca, Amazon, drugstore.com, TravelSmith, etc., and recently launched internationally with our CE certification. We have received considerable press, including the coveted “O, the Oprah Magazine”. www.psibands.com/press

Best advice you can give to a new startup?

Love what you do and believe in yourself and your idea.

Biggest lesson you've learned from all of this?

Take one step at a time.

What's the future look like for Psi Bands?

Great. We are landing new accounts both nationally and internationally, driving consumer awareness through the press, and adding on to our team.

In one word, what's the key to success?

Perseverance.

What inspires you to do what you do?

We are fulfilled by helping others. We do this by providing a product that provides relief to the very common and debilitating problem. We help to inspire entrepreneurs, especially female entrepreneurs (Romy has a blog on Savor the Success: http://www.savorthesuccess.com./member/romy-taormina/blog). And, we donate to our charitable partner, Fertile Hope, a national nonprofit that provides information, hope, and resources to cancer patients and survivors whose medical treatments present the risk of infertility. $1 of every Cherry Blossom Psi Bands set sold goes to support Fertile Hope. Psi Bands and Fertile Hope are working together toward a common goal – improving the lives of both cancer patients and those who parenting dreams are coming true. www.psibands.com/giving

How to Win a Free Psi Band

Winning a free set of Psi Bands really can't be simpler. All you need to do is tweet an @ Reply to Romy that says the following:

@RomyTaormina Saw you on Smallbizbee.com

and you will be entered into a drawing for one free set of Psi Bands. You need to be following @RomyTaormina and tweet the above no later than 12am, EST on January 12 to be entered. We will draw for the winner "semi-live" here at Smallbizbee.com on January 13, 2009. Not only is Romy the kind of entrepreneur you'll want to be following anyway, but free stuff is always good so it's a double win!