Irish Women in Business: Donna Ledwidge, Owner of Dream Dots

For the latest in our series of editorials focusing on Irish Women in Business, we’re talking to Donna Ledwidge, the owner of Dream Dots. Dream Dots is an overnight patch treatment for spots and is sold in pharmacies throughout the country. Here, Donna talks about making her dreams a reality and having to make tough decisions in order to succeed... _______________________________________________ Have you always had an interest in the field of beauty? Yes, always. I started off in the beauty industry as a nail technician, providing a mobile acrylic nails service for my clients. I decided that I wanted to broaden my skills set so I signed up to study beauty therapy at Bronwyn Conroy beauty school. While I was studying I worked part time at a local beauty salon in Wicklow. From cleaning sunbeds to doing basic nail treatments, I wanted to get involved in all aspects of beauty so I did everything I could. When and how did Dream Dots come about? When I qualified from Bronwyn Conroys, I opened a beauty salon called High Maintenance. I ran this business for four years before the downturn. This is where my first false tan brand ‘Wow Brown’ was born. I partnered up and built the brand with my friend Frances. The first product that we made was a professional spray tanning kit called ‘Wow Brown - Business in a Box’. We had great success with the concept and after nearly five years of working on the Wow Brown brand in Ireland, I found it was time for me to create something new. I had designed the world’s first bling kit for sneakers called ‘Stickcons’. It was a new craze that was happening online where girls were sticking rhinestones to their sneakers with glue. I came up with an affordable way to achieve this by creating a kit that had self-adhesive rhinestones in strips that you could stick on. I showcased it on The Late Late Toy Show and Lifestyle Sports bought all of my opening stock and they sold out in record time after the show. Another year down the line after the Stickcons launch, I decided to take another big idea that I had and bring it to life. I knew however that this one would require a serious commitment from me. It would mean that I would have to leave Wow Brown and that was one of the hardest decisions that I have ever had to make. Frances agreed to take over Wow Brown and I left to start the ‘Dream Dots’ product development and branding. It was a very scary time because I had no idea what way Dream Dots would be received by the buyers and customers. I had an amazing contact in Johnson Brothers Distribution Company in Dublin. I met with a representative (Helena) with just a prototype and a brief presentation. She tried them out and absolutely loved them and now Johnson Brothers distribute Dream Dots to over 800 pharmacies in Ireland. At the beginning, what was your aim? I always wanted the freedom to try different ideas. The more freedom I have, the more inspiration I get. Mind you half of those ideas never worked! The ones that have however have made all the difference. My main aim is to be inspired, excited and happy in my both my work and personal life. Did you ever expect that Dream Dots would become such a success? Like anyone who starts a business, I hoped all of the major ideas over the years would work and thankfully they did. I feel that I have learned so much from the good and bad times and it has made me plan and formulate better for success. I have always had the passion and belief in my products and brands. You need to be 100 per cent committed to seeing them through from start to finish. How exactly did you got to this point in terms of building the business up from the ground? I built each business on a shoestring. My dad and mum always told us to only spend what we have and to never get into debt. So I worked with what I had. I built up each business slowly and over time. It doesn’t happen overnight by any means but seeing your business develop from its initial stages to becoming a nationwide and global success is one of the most rewarding things you could ever imagine. What is a normal working day for you? Every day is different. With my Dream Dots business, I could be doing anything from checking stock, pallets and orders going in or out in the warehouse; working in the office on designs; or flying somewhere to meet suppliers or distribution companies. It really depends on what needs to be done that day. One thing I’ve learned is that when running your own business you need to be flexible and resilient. What has been the biggest challenge? My biggest challenge was deciding that I had to move on from Wow Brown in order to throw myself fully into Dream Dots. It was hard to leave a brand and business partner that I had worked so long beside. Dream Dots required all of my time and effort if it was to become a success so I decided to throw all my eggs into one basket and work hard to bring Dream Dots to market. What has been your best moment? I am very lucky that I can say it’s very difficult for me to choose just one. I suppose watching orders for Dream Dots come in online from all over the globe has been incredible. The amazing blog & vlog reviews that have flooded in over the past month have also been fantastic. Hearing all of these people who feel the same way as I do about Dream Dots and the positive effects my product has had on their lives has made it so worthwhile. What do you think makes your business unique? Dream Dots can be used on all skin types with results showing after just one hassle-free application. Simply cleanse the affected area, secure the patch in place and wait for clear results. They have been designed to work overnight so as to ensure they won’t interrupt your daily beauty regime which means you can sleep your way to spot free skin. Unlike regular spot treatments, our advantage is that the skin and pore is protected at all times. It also prevents squeezing which can lead to further spreading and scaring. Dream Dots are a safe class 2A medical device which are CE, BSI, and FDA approved product that can be used as an add-on with any skincare routine. Whether you are prone to breakouts due to hormonal activity, stress, excessive make up-application or over- indulging in life’s sweet treats, Dream Dots is the solution to your problems. What comes next for you as a businesswoman? I am on a mission to make Dream Dots into a recognised global emergency spot and breakout treatment. I am teaming up with distributors in each country to bring Dream Dots to stores worldwide. I hope to continue to build new brands, challenge myself and be as happy as possible in my work and personal life. ___________________________________________________________________________ To find out more about Dream Dots (which are available to purchase in all Lloyds, McCabes, Sam McCauleys and Cara pharmacies), visit the website here or follow Dream Dots on Facebook and Twitter. To suggest other great Irish women to feature in this series, please do get in touch.