Meet Catherine Horzen | CEO and Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Catherine Horzen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Catherine, what do you attribute your success to?
This is cliché, but honestly, making a quality product that the consumer can believe in and trust they are getting something of value is the primary factor behind Peligo’s success. Someone said to me early on, “it’s much harder to get a good review than it is a bad review. And it’s a lot harder to come back from a bad review.” This comment was made in a very casual conversation, but the statement held a great deal of weight for me. I immediately thought of every bad experience I had ever had with a company or a product and thought about how I had rarely revisited working with them or purchasing from them again. I knew I didn’t want that reputation for Peligo. When customers find themselves talking about Peligo, I want them to say how much they loved our products or what a great customer experience it was working with us. Our products won’t be a match for everyone, but we certainly can make their experience positive regardless. This approach has been wildly successful for us. We have gained referrals because of it from a personal consumer base as well as from our client base.

An important secondary element is making connections and reaching out to your existing connections. Everybody knows somebody. It can be incredibly difficult to break into an industry where you have no direct connections. In my case, when I started Peligo, one of the goals was to get involved with resorts and hotels. I came from a background in teaching and healthcare, so I didn’t have very many contacts in the hospitality industry nor in the surf/beach/pool community. General Managers of hotels are typically not interested in the make-shift flyer you created when you walk in cold trying to pitch your product. People want to help you. Reaching out to people I knew in the industries I was trying to break into has been key. Your contacts don’t have to be the person at the top, or the person making buying decisions. Your break-throughs can come through a variety of roles, and those people can help get you to the next step. Networking has also been key. Again, people want to help! Getting out and talking about the product with people has helped grow our network, sales, and also helped with ideas of other use for our product. Peligo has become involved in industries we hadn’t even considered as having a need for our chairs.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
The beach chair industry has been around for a long time, but Peligo has reinvented what it means to have a premium beach chair. Peligos aren’t plastic or aluminum. They are real wood, made of real materials that will never end up in a landfill. Our sustainable chairs also stand out because Peligos let you get a full beach experience every time you go, inviting the warm sand to cozy up next to your legs. With traditional beach chairs up off the ground, you don’t get the same experience.

The idea for Peligo was born at a yard sale. My parents were moving and we were having a yard sale to help clear things out. My dad was manning the yard sale while my mom and I were going through things in the garage and we stumbled upon an original version of what is now Peligo. I asked what it was and my mom explained that it was her old beach chair. I asked how to use it and I was hooked! I loved the idea of being able to be fully immersed in my day at the beach, feeling the warm sand against my legs and still have back support. With other beach chairs, I don’t have that option. I searched online for something like these old chairs and when I couldn’t find anything similar, my mom suggested we make them as Christmas gifts for my friends, to which I replied…”or we could make them for the world.”

We took the base idea and made some design modifications and started selling them. It turned out that I wasn’t the only person looking for this style of beach chair. A lot of people were looking for our style. But that was just part one. Fine tuning the design and utility of the chair was just part of the process. Running a business was its own lane of learning curves. It sounds easy, “we started building chairs and selling them.” Well, that’s not quite how it goes. Selling them. Ok, well, how do you sell them? In a store? Online? What are the differences in selling in a brick and mortar store versus selling online? If we sell online only, how do we get the word out? Decisions had to be made. Were we making the right ones? We opted to sell in an ecommerce setting exclusively to start. But then that streamed a whole new set of questions. How do I make a website? Every decision that you come up with bubbles up a whole new set of questions that usually need thoughtful research and consideration, which takes time…which you are usually short on. There have been many lessons learned, some more expensive than others. And the word “expensive” takes the shape of time and monetary value. Both are critical as a new business owner. Someone I have met along the way, who happens to be very successful in his own endeavors, said to me that you have to take big risks to get ahead, even if it is scary. He’s right. It doesn’t make it easier, and sometimes the punch-to-the-gut feeling you have when it doesn’t work out feels like it wasn’t worth it, but you have to try. I’ve primarily learned that I will always be learning and that there are a lot of other new entrepreneurs out there who have the same challenges of “wearing all the hats” to make a business run. I’m not alone. I’ve also learned that every time I want to quit, but choose to keep moving forward, I grow a little more and get a little better at something that was new to me in the not so distant past.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love the South Bay! I would recommend a beach trip to Hermosa or Manhattan Beach and if the weather was cooperative, maybe a drive up Pacific Coast Highway with all the windows rolled down heading up to Malibu for lunch at Dukes. If you’re staying in the South Bay, you should grab a sunset drink at Sandbar66. If it’s summertime, make sure you grab a spot at one of the Sunday beach or park free concerts in Hermosa or Manhattan Beach. If there is a great sports game going on, catch food, drinks, and great company at the North End Bar and Grill in Hermosa.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to dedicate this shout out to all of the people who have helped get Peligo to the next level – friends and family who have volunteered time and everyone who has moved us along with a recommendation, introduction, or connection.

Website: www.peligochairs.com

Instagram: peligo_chairs

Facebook: Peligo Chairs

Youtube: Peligo

Image Credits
Aleks Danielle