Candice Romo and Her Entrepreneurial Journey
With Hawk + Sloane, she and her partner Hollie Siglin hope to make parenting easier.
Entrepreneurs are a rare breed. They have the ability to take an idea, run with it and believe in themselves enough to turn it into reality. They creatively solve the problems they experience in their every day lives and capitalize on opportunities to share what they’ve discovered.
Candice Romo, a former sports broadcaster turned entrepreneur, fits that description.
Candice is married to former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. Upon starting a family, she shifted her professional life in the direction of philanthropy. In recent years, however, she made a bold move into the business world with the creation of Hawk + Sloane, a company focused on parent-friendly products, with her best friend Hollie Siglin.
The idea for Hawk + Sloane came from a conversation with Hollie about parenting.
“I mentioned to Hollie that I had read that a spoonful of Apple Cider Vinegar on the tongue would help against [kids] talking back. Then, we decided it would be easier to put it in a spray bottle, that way you could take it on the go,” said Candice.
From there, the two decided to create a line of sprays to help make parenting easier. Their business is named after their two firstborn children, who shared a due date, and centered on a family-first approach. Currently, the pair has six sprays on the market ranging from ones that help with sleep to ones that fight lice and repel monsters.
The company was built on friendship and as a way to “inspire other parents to use their family, friends and community to make parenthood just a little bit easier,” according to Candice.
Oftentimes, friendship can be a hindrance in business. There are more than enough stories of relationships souring once business gets involved. Yet for Candice and Hollie, that hasn’t been the case, in fact, the mere question of a strain in their relationship since the creation of Hawk + Sloane makes them laugh.
“I think because Hawk + Sloane was rooted in our friendship, we really have gotten to lean on each other even more during the process of building our brand. Like running any company, there are leaps and hurdles, but we have fun figuring how to best power through those highs and lows together — and the outcome has made our friendship even stronger,” said Candice.
This friendship has allowed them to support each other since the creation of Hawk + Sloane.
“I would be lying if I said we didn’t face doubt,” said Candice about starting the company. Yet, she and Hollie were clear about their goals.
“We didn’t create Hawk + Sloane to become a giant multi-million dollar company — rather [we created it for] the opportunity to share our products with other parents jumping through the same hoops of parenthood that we were,” she said.
Both are committed to their families, they have five children between the two of them with one more on the way (Candice is due to have her third child with Tony in September), and understand the strains of parenting.
For that reason, “we both knew that if we were helping just a few other parents and having fun doing so, then the foundation of our brand was a success,” explained Candice.
In the creation of Hawk + Sloane, Candice and Hollie created a parenting community, sharing tips and tricks for navigating the sticky (sometimes literally) situations that arise with the journey.
The community aspect is something that she recommends all aspiring entrepreneurs pay attention to.
“Utilize your community — no matter what the idea is, seeking opinions and thoughts of people relatable to the product/service is free.”
Another piece of advice?
“You have to be open to negative feedback. Some of our biggest critics actually ended up shaping and molding our brand today.”
As for the current state of the Hawk + Sloane brand, it’s still growing.
“Our next chapter is exciting and the pages are turning quickly,” claimed Candice.
She and Hollie are looking to expand their products into more retail stores and boutiques. By doing so, Candice believes they will be able to help others conquer parenting.
How will they do that? One spray at a time.
See what Hawk + Sloane is up to on social media. Instagram: @hawkandsloane, Facebook: Hawk and Sloane, Twitter: @hawkandsloane.
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