Baltimore resident and avid runner Susan Clayton based WhitePaws RunMitts, an out of doors gear and attire firm finest recognized for its patented, convertible, thumbless mittens with inside pockets for hand heaters.

Susan initially conceived the thought for her glove design whereas serving as a coach with Again on My Toes, which organizes early morning runs with folks experiencing homelessness throughout the town of Baltimore. Throughout harsh winters, Susan’s arms bought extraordinarily chilly on runs. Someday, she noticed a buddy working with socks on their arms and thought, “I may make one thing higher than that!”

And that’s precisely what Susan did when she created WhitePaws RunMitts.

In 2020, Susan noticed a serious uptick in her enterprise. George Floyd’s homicide and the Black Lives Matter motion created a rallying cry for shoppers to help Black-owned small companies. As one in every of solely two Black-owned gear firm homeowners within the U.S. on the time, she garnered extra consideration from media and potential prospects.

Nonetheless, it wasn’t till main out of doors retailer REI expressed a want to promote Susan’s product at choose shops that the necessity to scale her enterprise operations grew to become obvious.

In February 2022, Susan turned to the Empower by GoDaddy program and Impression Hub Baltimore for assist. She quickly discovered to leverage GoDaddy merchandise to ascertain her firm’s digital presence and on-line retailer. Launched in 2017, Empower by GoDaddy equips entrepreneurs in underserved communities with coaching, instruments and peer networks to speed up their enterprise journeys.

As Susan continued to develop and spend money on her enterprise, 2022 introduced an thrilling alternative to meet an order placing RunMitts on the cabinets in 80 REI shops. However provide chain points and the shortage of capital to buy all the material she wanted to fulfill demand posed main challenges.

The occasions of this yr have been pivotal for the expansion of my enterprise,” mentioned Susan. With a mammoth order from REI, I wanted funding badly and so I competed in Baltimore Homecoming’s Crab Tank pitch competitors for $25,000. There was a lot driving on this competitors; it might change my life. I may acquire financing for manufacturing and scale my enterprise to new heights.”

It was additionally throughout this time that GoDaddy began filming Susan’s journey for the fourth season of its award-winning docuseries Made in America. As a part of GoDaddy’s dedication to creating alternative extra inclusive for all, Made in America’s objective is to showcase tales of on a regular basis entrepreneurs, notably those that have overcome a scarcity of entry to assets and different boundaries to enterprise success. The fourth season instructed the inspiring tales of Baltimore entrepreneurs, together with Susan.

“The talents I discovered by Empower Baltimore gave me the boldness to advocate for my enterprise,” mentioned Susan. “My funding in myself paid off, and I efficiently gained the pitch competitors and obtained the funding I wanted to succeed.”

Reflecting on Girls’s Entrepreneurship Day earlier this month, Susan wished to remind small enterprise homeowners like herself that you simply don’t want an enormous, world-changing thought to begin an organization. It could merely be about constructing a greater future for your self and people round you.

“All through my time working with Again on My Toes and now executing alone enterprise endeavors, I actually imagine that no one runs alone,” mentioned Susan. “Considering of a enterprise thought will solely get you thus far. You want a neighborhood of individuals to carry you up and help your journey.”

Watch Susan Clayton’s story and all episodes of Made in America, streaming now on YouTube.

Empower by GoDaddy Highlight Sequence: By partnering with numerous native nonprofits world wide, Empower by GoDaddy goals to succeed in those that haven’t in any other case had entry by providing expertise coaching, assets, and mentoring to assist speed up their enterprise journeys. This text is a part of the Empower by GoDaddy highlight collection that shines a lightweight on the people who make this distinctive initiative doable.