I recently had a chance to catch up with Alison Leddy, founder of Bust a Move to learn about their relaunch. Alison attended GiveBackHack Columbus in 2017 after attending Startup Weekend and developing her idea to empower young women of all body types with the confidence to stay active.
“Bust A Move is an athletics equipment company dedicated to keeping all girls active, regardless of body type. Using mechanical engineering principles, they have designed a supportive, patent-pending sports bra to meet the specific needs of busty athletes. They believe sports bras are sports equipment™ and that, with the right equipment, girls can tackle any challenge and face any competitor with comfort and confidence.” (Source: www.bustamove.com)
www.bustamove.com
At GiveBackHack, the Bust A Move team took their momentum from Startup Weekend to the streets to validate. Luckily enough, there was a cheerleading competition happening at the Columbus Convention Center. Talking to these athletes helped Alison and the team to really understand their perspectives and the lengths to which they were going to compete. Some young women were wearing as many as 6 sports bras to stay secure.
After a few years in the Venture for America program, Alison decided to pick Bust a Move back up in 2020.
“Once I decided to go all-in on Bust A Move, I revisited the work our team had done during GiveBackHack and found a goldmine of information: surveys, interviews, and marketing strategies,” Alison said.
With that information in hand, they went through Venture for America’s Accelerator and now they’re launching an IndieGoGo campaign to carry them to their manufacturing stage.
When asked about competition, Alison says that they aren’t too worried about sports apparel giants like Nike, Adidas, and Lululemon. She’s been watching them closely since 2017 and they have not made any efforts to address the needs of busty athletes. Bust a Move’s differentiator is that they view sports bras as sports equipment and create sports bras for sizes D cup and up. There is a niche market of girls who need more support and Bust a Move’s mission is to create equipment for them so they can stay off the sidelines and in the game.
Support Bust a Move on IndieGoGo.
About GiveBackHack
GiveBackHack gives people the power to transform their communities for the better, starting with events that bring together passionate doers and experts to create solutions to real problems through a Lean Startup and Design Thinking Framework. The organization provides the framework, access, resources, and support needed to impact our communities for the better. Visit givebackhack.com to learn more about how GiveBackHack serves as the launchpad for social innovation.
