After landing $1 million in scholarships and a book deal, teen CEO Gabby Goodwin has also secured a major retail deal, she revealed on Instagram.
Together with her mother, Rozalynn, Goodwin created the first and only anti-slip double-face double-snap barrette, GaBBY Bows, when she was seven years old. She is the owner of three U.S. patents for the product.
They established and began selling the barrettes through their online store, gabbybows.com, in February 2014. Over the years, the mother-daughter team has sold over a million GaBBY Bows directly to customers in sixteen countries and all 50 U.S. states.
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Now, Goodwin’s product has landed a partnership with Claire’s. She said in an Instagram post that GaBBY Bows will be found across 600 Claire’s locations.
“BIG NEWS: GaBBY Bows are now in 600 Claire’s stores nationwide. This has been a dream in the making—and we need your help to keep it going!” her company wrote on its Instagram page. “Head to your local Claire’s and clear the shelves!”
Goodwin’s partnership with Claire’s comes as the jewelry retailer is selling most of its North American business to private equity firm Ames Watson.
The company filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month due to hefty debt and increased competition, according to a report by CNBC. The report said the deal will pause the liquidation process at most of Claire’s North American stores. Claire’s has over 2,300 stores across 17 countries in North America and Europe, and despite its challenges, Goodwin is hopeful that something positive will come out of this partnership.
“My family, friends, and village worked more than 600 hours to ship 14,000 packs of GaBBY Bows this summer. We had many hurdles, including increased tariffs that forced us to cancel manufacturing orders, lose a manufacturing partner, and change bow colors. But we did it.
“So despite the economic challenges now facing our new retailer, we will celebrate this dream deal,” she said on Instagram.
“I need your support, and I need it now. I honestly don’t know how much time we will have with this opportunity. Grab all four colors for your girls…Celebrate with us by clearing the shelves. Thank you as always for all of your support,” she added.
Goodwin recently revealed her decision to attend Vanderbilt University on Instagram after eight prestigious universities offered her merit scholarships totaling over $1 million, including four full rides.
The teen also signed a book deal with HarperCollins not too long ago, and Naturally Me at the Confidence Salon, her debut children’s book, was released on May 27 everywhere books are sold. The picture book, which draws inspiration from Goodwin’s actual Confidence Salon, encourages young readers to discover their own confidence, accept their inherent beauty, and pursue their goals.
“My mom used to spend 15-20 minutes every morning styling my hair in pigtails, braids and twists with barrettes before pre-school. When she picked me up from school, I was missing half of my barrettes and my hair was all out of place,” Goodwin once said of the idea behind her invention.
She and her mother decided to make a bow. “We sat, studied, tested and compared different barrettes and the idea came to create the first double-face double-snap barrette we would soon call GaBBY Bows.”
As reported by Canvas Rebel, Goodwin was the youngest recipient of the 2015 South Carolina Young Entrepreneur of the Year award.
The talented teen entrepreneur was also recognized as the 2022 U.S. Small Business Administration Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the state of South Carolina, a 2020 Women Founders Foundation Network Fast Pitch Junior Judge, the 2019 SpeakerCon Teen Speaker of the Year, and more. In 2021, Marcus Lemonis and Gayle King surprised her with a $200,000 investment.
