Today we’d like to introduce you to Tonya Michelle.
Tonya, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My story began with the need for a spark in my life. This spark, some may refer to as passion, was missing. Over three years ago, I realized that my current position at a Fortune 500 Corporation, although satisfying and by all accounts, I was lucky to have, wasn’t providing me with the one thing I that needed. I’ve always had an ability to forward think and to solve problems. Those were skills that were just innately in me. However, I began to realize that my current job wasn’t really allowing me to utilize them to their full capacity. For years, I had embedded in my mind product/service ideas that could potentially provide value to consumers and for years that’s exactly where these ideas stayed – in my mind.
In 2015, I had major surgery and was on leave of absence (LOA) from my job for a few months. During this time, while lying in bed, I began to think about my life and its fulfillment or lack thereof. Since I had nothing but time to think, I began to contemplate about life specifically the unwavering notion of feeling stuck. I wanted to be able to leave a legacy for my daughter/family and to push myself beyond my world of comfort. I quickly realized that my current job/profession wouldn’t allow me to do this. My job was secure and provided me with the means needed to live and to support myself/family. However, oddly enough, I wasn’t actually living out my dreams. This was scary to me.
The contemplation period honestly started to manifest itself years before my surgery, but I somehow unknowingly suppressed it. This was purely due to my unsubstantiated belief that I had very little ability to change the course of my life at this point. However, during the time of my LOA, I reached deep within myself bringing back to life the inspiration that once guided my every step. Once it was reignited, the idea for my company LEWSI was born. Today, however, I still have my corporate job while simultaneously working to build my business. So, I’m quite busy but very grateful at the same time.
LEWSI is an acronym for ‘Life’s Easier With Simple Innovation’. I wholeheartedly believe this. Innovation is not just in Silicon Valley where savvy tech enthusiasts cleverly create some world-wide and highly popular social media platform or an impressive autonomous vehicle that immediately gets press and grasps the attention of consumers. Anyone from anywhere can be an innovator. This person only has to possess an idealistic view of the world and develop creative ways to solve problems or bring value to people. I was excited and felt an instant bolt of enthusiasm which I hadn’t felt in a long time. I realized that my life and the way I viewed my life were about to take a 180-degree turn. I wanted LEWSI to be a company that looked at the world through an innovative lens with consumer purchasing behavior as the central focus. There was one main question that kept playing in my mind: What problem has consumers learned to live with simply because there wasn’t a viable solution? I knew if I had the answer to this fundamental question that my company would be on to something and it would have permanent staying power.
My urge to build something from the ground up is what keeps me focused and sparks the drive for my company. I’m glad that I revived my passion for life and decided to take my talents to a new level. I live with the mantra: Everything begins with just an idea.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It hasn’t been a smooth road on my way to business ownership. I believe the main struggle has been learning how to partner with other companies who have a stake in the success of my business. Bringing a product to life isn’t easy which is what I am striving to do. You must go from idea to proof of concept. This takes planning, strategic business decision making and most of all patience. One must learn the art of partnership and the ability to trust your business partners to complete tasks on time and with much attention to detail. I’ve become aware that not everyone has the same timeline as I do, that I must be mindful of how others work, and how they actually choose to get work done. This has been a slight struggle but I try to maintain focus on the end result, and of course, the reasons why I am going after this. What has been easy for me, however, is my pursuit of something better. This internal fire, although it may have turned into a faint flicker at times, thankfully has never died.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the LEWSI LLC story. Tell us more about it.
LEWSI can be coined as a technology-based solutions company. It was formed to provide alternative, innovative products/services that will solve everyday consumer problems. Our specialty is the creation of affordable new and creative product & service ideas. My corporate training was actually instrumental in my creation of LEWSI. I didn’t realize it at the time but the ability to use some of my problem solving skills was actually preparing me for where I am today.
We are considered a startup company and are in the infancy of creating a product that will solve the consumer package theft problem. As an avid online shopper, I was tired of worrying about my package being delivered while I was either at work or some other place other than home. Even when I would try to be home for the delivery, I would somehow miss the carrier. This was causing me angst and fear that my package would be stolen. So, I decided to solve this problem myself with the invention of what I have named the Wekipod. The Wekipod is LEWSI’s first product to market, whose name is short for ‘We Kindly Protect Online Deliveries’. In a nutshtell, it is a portable security porch package pod. It’s a proactive approach to protecting online deliveries and is designed to safely house small-to-medium sized packages. We’re excited about this product and we are confident that it will give consumers peace of mind while they are shopping online and optimistically anticipating their purchases to be delivered safely to their homes. Studies show that consumers are shopping more and more online. As a result of this, they are also likely to become victims of package theft. The current solutions to this problem simply highlight the problem but do very little to prevent it. The Wekipod does both. Consumers can visit our website for updates about this product including when it will be available for purchase.
As a company, I am proud that we are challenging the status quo of doing business, and by doing so, have come up with very creative ways to bring value to consumers. What sets LEWSI apart from others is our close connection to the consumer and a clear understanding that the needs of consumers will change as their purchasing behaviors change. There is not one product that is in our future portfolio that I wouldn’t use myself. I am, after all, a consumer. I look at my company through my “consumer” lens first and then the creativity manifests.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
The idea of luck is subjective. I believe that all experiences are chances to get better or to learn. With this understanding, luck is bound to happen whether good or bad. In life, embracing all experiences and learning from them makes you lucky because you’ve got another chance to get it right.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lewsi.com
- Phone: 469-387-2020 / 972-754-9300
- Email: hello@lewsi.com
- Instagram: @hello_lewsi
- Facebook: @LEWSILLC, @wekipod
- Other: www.wekipod.com
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