Conversations with Brandon Weil

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Weil

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Back in 2019, when my fur family grew to four golden retrievers, I was struggling to manage leashes, poop bags, treats and other gear on our walks. After trying different styles of bags, I remembered that I had a few musette bags in my basement cycling gear bins. Musettes are light, flat fabric bags with a shoulder strap used to deliver water and food to cyclists in long bike races. I attached a poop bag dispenser to the musette and the poo-sette was born! It made my life better in an instant as I was able to carry my gear and manage my dogs.

My homemade Puzette worked great for years, although I constantly thought about how I could improve it. Then, over the holidays in December 2022 I got hooked on Shark Tank reruns, and the entrepreneurial spirit took hold. I realized I had created something useful that could benefit a lot of dog owners, and decided to go for it. I took a sewing class at SewBo in Boulder and relearned to sew (my grandma taught me 30+ years ago), so that I could make the newer, better Puzettes I had in mind.

I started sewing bags in the basement and testing them on neighborhood walks, and after a few iterations shared them with friends for feedback. I realized that my sewing was good for prototyping but not production, so I went looking for a sewing shop, and found a great one, Colorado Contract Cut & Sew in Denver. With their help, we iterated a few more times until we arrived at the current design with all the features to make it the ultimate bag for dog owners. The Puzettes went into production in June, and in July received the first batch of bags.

While this was happening, I was also establishing other parts of the business – LLC, bank accounts, brand logo and designs, website, trademarks and even a design patent. This was all made possible by a generous loan from my mom, who gave me funds to get going, but also the push I needed to set it in motion and not let it be another “I could have” idea. So I owe her immensely for that!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The design process had some hiccups but nothing I couldn’t manage. I’ve been solving problems as a database developer for years, and while databases and bags are quite different, my geometric/problem solving skills translate between both quite well. I call it “innovative pragmatism” – finding the simple solutions that dissolve previous barriers.

What’s been a struggle is learning the marketing side of things. I was gung-ho in building the business around the Puzette, thinking “if you build it, they will come.” I’ve since learned that creating something is one thing, but marketing and selling are entirely new challenges.

The silver lining here, maybe, is that by going heads down in my own development (sew, test, repeat without thinking about the market), I was able to make something innovative and different. Now I’m working on telling this story in a way that resonates. This Spring I took a Digital Marketing Course through the Boulder Small Business Development Center that has really helped me figure out the ABCs of marketing (I highly recommend the Colorado SBDCs to anyone trying to run and grow a micro or small business).

My other obstacle is balancing everything! Working full time, taking care of my dogs, and growing Puzette. My partner Uli is the owner of Mosaic Golden Retrievers, breeding beautiful, wonderful goldens. I assist daily, mostly in the exercise and care of our older dogs – the fun stuff like walks and throwing the tennis ball.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Puzette is still my side business as I have been a full-time database developer and architect, specializing in Microsoft SQL Server, for 14 years. I actually fell into that in a funny way too.

Back in 2011, I was working in bike shops after college when a friend called and told me to apply to “SQL University” at his company, Wall Street On Demand. It was a four week boot camp to learn SQL (Structured Query Language), and if you did well you were offered a full-time role at the company. I did not have prior experience and the interview team was hesitant to bring me in, but thankfully I was accepted.

Within half a day, I knew this was for me. I loved everything about it and was completing the daily assignments in record time. By the third week I was working on real company problems and at the end of the program I transitioned into a fulltime role and my database career officially began.

I’ve enjoyed working within the database world for the last 14 years, across the financial, construction, health care and bicycle industries. I’ve met many great people in this career and gotten to work on some cool, impactful products.

However, the spirit of discovery that I felt in those first weeks, months and years has waned recently, and it’s in Puzette where I’m finding that spark. Everything from designing bags to building the website to formulating marketing has been a great learning exploration, and I feel like I’m just getting going.

We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
During Covid-19, I was just starting to use my makeshift Puzette while working full time remote as a database developer. I was fortunate in that I had an increasing workload during that time as I was working with health care data, while I know many other people were struggling.

Pricing:

• Original Puzette – $60
• Rugged Puzette – $65

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.puzette.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/PuzetteBags
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@puzettebags