Luna Blanket: 250K Monthly Sales
The project currently has only two people. The founder originally worked in finance and happened to come into contact with Chinese pure cotton blankets when he came to China. After buying and trying them out, he found that they helped him sleep well. This reminded him that many people in the US suffer from anxiety and poor sleep, with reports showing that about 45% of people have sleep issues. So he did some basic design work and had a Chinese factory produce 500 blankets, which he took back to sell on Amazon.
The initial order was worth USD 10,000, but as the business grew, orders came in batches of USD 100,000 each.
In terms of marketing, he initially used his own savings to improve Amazon reviews and run ads, and also sent free products to bloggers. He collected their feedback, packaged it into an entrepreneurial story (a great startup story about helping people solve problems), and then submitted it to journalists at various media outlets in the format commonly used by news organizations. He pitched to over 400 journalists, and about a dozen replied and published content. Because the blankets genuinely helped many people sleep better, the business grew well.
The initial gross margin was only 15%, but after building a long-term partnership, the supplier became more cooperative, and the gross margin increased to 40%. Advertising spending has always been 10% of revenue. He monitors ad performance closely—if a USD 30 initial test meets targets, he scales up. Now he runs ads across multiple platforms and channels. Amazon accounts for 90% of revenue, and his own website accounts for 10%.
Here are the founder’s deepest reflections:
1. You must understand Chinese festival culture; otherwise, you may place orders only to find that factories are closed for holidays (Qingming, Dragon Boat Festival, May Day—it seems like there’s a holiday almost every month), causing shipment delays.
2. Always tell manufacturers that inspectors will be sent to check quality; otherwise, Chinese suppliers will find opportunities to cut corners.
3. Chinese partners are very enthusiastic. At the start, they proactively drove to pick me up to visit the factory, helped with design, invited me to lunch and dinner, and even drove me back to the hotel at night. This warmth also contributed to smooth cooperation.
4. For every shipment, make sure the supplier carefully checks the invoice and packing list. If the documents don’t match during customs clearance, the goods may be detained—sometimes seized, sometimes held for 7 days or even 30 days before release.
Books that deeply influenced the founderShoe Dog