Life Change: Selling T-Shirts With a Twist

"I graduated college knowing I wanted to go into PR. That's what I did, and I didn't look up for 18 years," Laura Beck says. Working for a big public relations firm, she opened an Austin office, grew it to a staff of 16 and $3 million in billings. Along the way, she married and gave birth to two little girls.

And there's the rub. "I was the classic working mom," Beck says. "I did the 11-hour work days, all the travel." When her older daughter was starting kindergarten and the younger one was one and a half, Beck's job was more demanding than ever. "In 11 months, seven employees resigned. With a hiring freeze, I couldn't replace them."

All Signs Say "Change Your Life!"

It was the perfect storm: work was demanding more and more of her at a time when she wanted to be with her girls. "I didn't want to send them to day care after school. I wanted to drop them off and pick them up." Beck resigned her job in favor of a life of PTA meetings, homework and permission slips. "I had been at the whim of my clients; now I wanted to be at the whim of my children," Beck says. It was scary to walk away, but a year and a half later, Beck is so grateful she thanked the woman whose resignation forced her hand.

At home with her kids, the obvious question was, what next? "Staying home full-time is not my thing. Then I had an aha moment in the shower. For years I'd had the idea for striped shirts in my head. It started when I worked in Boston. Every Friday for dress-down day at my agency, I'd wear a striped T shirt. It was such a fixture a local bartender invented a striped-shirt drink for me.

The Spin That Makes Her Idea Sing

Beck, who calls herself a big sports fan, gave her simple idea a marketing twist. "My concept was supporting your favorite team by wearing a shirt in the team colors. I'm a proud alumna of Boston College, but I don't want to wear a big eagle on my chest. Why not a maroon and gold shirt?"

She launched her company with a focus group of one – herself. "I wanted to try something outside my comfort zone. I didn't write a big business plan. I'd worked my tail off and saved money. This was my dream; I had to do it my way and see if it would fly."

StripedShirt sells tees for men, women, babies and kids. There are 10 color combos with four more on the way, including red-and-green for Christmas. The colors can celebrate a cause like breast cancer, commemorate a family reunion or holiday, or represent a school or sports team. "People are taking matching shirts to Disneyland so they can spot each other easily in the park. Three of us went to Sea World in red-and-white stripes, and we never lost each other."

Beck is having a ball, and cheerfully admits she's not making any money yet. She has devoted year one to getting the shirts made, building the website, making sure quality is high and delivery speedy. This winter, she'll put on her public-relations hat and start promoting like crazy. "We're a two-income family, so we're fortunate. I'm working with a few PR clients independently, so we can make the money work."

She's clear-eyed about her prospects. "I don't need to be the next Target brand. I will be happy if my shirts are in 40 boutiques across the U.S. And if this bombs, I'll donate my inventory to victims of the next hurricane. You'll see a lot of stripes. I'm grateful to be able to take my time and let the business flourish."

"Until you leave a job, you don't realize how life-sucking it is. It was scary to make the leap, but everyone in my life is happier and better off for it."