Meet Lisa Loyd: Co-Founder JJwinks

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

Hi Lisa, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I think risk is an essential part of life, without taking risks how would you know what you are capable of, to take a risky path is scary, yet exciting at the same time. To achieve great successes and even failures you have to put yourself out there and take the risk. I realize risks don’t always pay off and can be damaging, but when that happens you just need to get up and brush yourself off and start over. I have never wanted to live my personal or professional life without challenges and risks. I took a risk when I moved from my hometown of Ann Arbor, MI and headed off to the Windy City without a job. I was hired by a company that transferred me out to CA. It was an adventurous risk I was willing to take, I figured if it didn’t pan out I could pack my car and drive back to the Midwest. That was a little over 30 years ago, you could say the move worked out. When Kelly, my business partner and I started talking about JJwinks, I was leading a successful real estate career. I had to decide if I was willing to take the risk and venture into the unknown. Slowly I started shifting my time from real estate to JJwinks, I knew it was risky stepping away from a lucrative job to an entrepreneurial start up. Lucky for me, my husband was very supportive and here we are still in business years later.

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?
JJwinks was founded out of a lack of PJs available on the market. We wanted PJs that were appropriate to answer the door, or if the teenagers stormed the house, simply put no granny flannels or ratty tee shirts. Realizing the void in the market place we decided to start our own brand, and that is how JJwinks came to be. The first challenge was finding a name which you could also secure the .com. Once we came up with the name and our first design sketches we headed up to LA. We really knew very little, actually next to nothing so the learning curve was immense. We navigated our way through the garment district and purchased dead stock fabric from jobbers, keeping in the theme of sustainable. Finding the right manufacturer was a challenge and after two that didn’t work out we finally found a manufacturer we could partner with. We were determined to be made in LA and use sustainable fabrics, and eventually we had grown to the point that we could go directly to the fabric house and order exactly what we wanted. There have been many lessons along the way, and the biggest lesson is to dive in, no fear, talk to successful people in the business and follow your gut.

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.
Living in Southern California definitely has its perks. If my besties came to visit we would start the day by heading over for a walk at The Bolsa Chica Wetlands, soaking up the sun while watching Great Blue Herons, Osprey, American White Pelicans and hoping to get a glimpse of a stingray. Lunch is tough, there are so many great choices, I think I would opt for The Deck in Laguna Beach. Dining on the outdoor patio while noshing on crab cakes, a charcuterie board and sipping a glass of bubbly definitely makes for a relaxing lunch while watching the surf crash into the sand. There are so many gorgeous beaches in Laguna, I would take my besties to 1000 steps, it is worth all those steps. After the beach it would fun to take a stroll through all the local shops in Laguna and check out all the amazing art galleries. Time to head home with a drive up the coast with stunning views of the Pacific. Dropping into Pacific City on the way home to grab a cup of coffee at Philz. Dinner would have to be Javier’s in Newport Beach, one of my all time favorite restaurants. The Enchiladas De Mariscos are a must and it is a requirement to order a Javier’s Margarita, better make it a skinny after the very indulgent day we’ve had. Catching a classic SoCal sunset on the way home would be the perfect ending to a perfect day.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate my success to my loving husband, Patrick. Without his blessing and support I can say I would not be where I am today. My kids also deserve a shout out, to Tanner, Tatum and Trenton, thanks for always being patient for meals and even a simple response as I was engrossed in my efforts to build JJwinks. Lastly, my business partner Kelly, she rocks and I am the luckiest to be partnered with her.

Website: jjwinks.com

Instagram: jjwinks and jjwinkswedding

Linkedin: Lisa Loyd

Facebook: jjwinks.com