What’s Your MESS-age?
In February of last year, I was at home with Liam watching Harry Connick Jr’s talk show – HARRY. On this particular episode, he invited Mark Cuban to speak with entrepreneurs about their businesses and what they can do to improve them. Yet the business owner that caught my eye was Kalilah Wright – owner of Mess In A Bottle. I loved the witty sayings written across her shirts and the fact they always come packaged in a reusable bottle! I mean, it doesn’t get any cuter than that, right? Yet due to performing mommy duties at the time, I was unable to write down the site or follow her on social media.
Yet a few weeks after that, I saw a mutual friends of ours post something about her and I immediately sent her a friend request. It was just something about her demeanor that told me she had amazing energy and I wanted every part of that radiating down my news feed. And boy, am I glad that I did! Not only was I right in thinking she possessed humility and positivity, but she’s also very real and doesn’t apologize for it because it makes her who she is.
Below is our full conversation on the inspiration behind her company, how important her customers are, and where she sees her business going. And although it is brief, I hope that you all get as much out of it as I did.
What inspired you to create Mess In A Bottle?
I wanted people to have a voice and be able to speak without saying anything at all. And [I wanted them] to stand in solidarity while going through something traumatic in Baltimore.
Since your appearance on HARRY, how much has your life changed?
I saw a spike in sales, but I don’t think it’s what attributed to my success by any means, [because] those weren’t any regular sales.
I noticed that most of your customers leave raving reviews about your service and how much they appreciate you. So, how important is it to you that you have a relationship with them?
I try to give. I worked in customer service in high school & college…so it definitely means something to me and for my customers to feel personable when buying my product. I think it’s just the level of service [I give] when serving my customers.
How challenging has it been running a growing business and being a mom?
It’s very challenging….I was away from him a lot during 2017 going to different conferences and events, but thankfully, he’s been very flexible and I have family supporting me.
What can we expect in the future from Mess In A Bottle?
You can expect more dope messages! Hopefully our business expands and we have more celebrities wearing our product and more of a growing fan base wearing our product [as well].
What words of encouragement do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs?
I would encourage them to start [because] I think that a lot of times we don’t know where to start and how to start. And I would encourage them to keep going because there’s going to be a lot of things that will get in their way, but they need to keep going.
With celebrities such as Claire Sulmers, Rasheeda, Lena Waithe, and even Ty Hunter himself wearing her product – she has proven that she is on the rise and a force to be reckoned with as she spreads her MESS-ages everywhere! Just like the shirts above says, “KEEP CREATING DOPE ASS SHIT ‘TIL SOMEONE NOTICES”, I am more than sure it is something she will continue to do. Until next time…
Peace, Love, Blessings, & Hugs
Freddie G.