Chelsea Malyon of Bend & Snap is a busy mom of three who also happens to run a booming hair accessories business in Cornwall, SDG, and beyond.
Chelsea didn’t plan to open a small business, but she absolutely found her niche! Bend & Snap continues to grow after Chelsea left her career to pursue making full-time earlier this year. Even after leaving her full-time job, the demand for her products is so high that she’s had to hire help. Currently, her shop has five employees that do piece work (and she’s looking to hire more!). Her store ships all over Canada and the US.
Bend & Snap’ website is full of adorable accessories, bows, clips, scrunchies, headbands, bow ties, necklaces, and more. Chelsea’s designs can be described as small, simple, elegant, and affordable.
How it all started:
When Chelsea started making bows four years ago, she wasn’t planning on starting a business. She just wanted cute bows for her daughters’ hair but couldn’t find a style she liked.
“I was having a really difficult time finding a bow that I liked. Just shape of the bow-wise,” she explains, “So I just took a piece of paper and hand drew a pattern that I liked. I was buying felt and hand cutting everything. It was my own pattern, so they were unique.”
From there she describes the experience as a snowball effect.
“I was making them for my kids, I had two daughters at the time. People were asking where I got them and I was making them for friends, then people were asking my friends where I got them.”
When she started making them by hand, it took Chelsea 17 minutes to make one bow. Since then, she has invested in an industrial machine so she can cut several at a time. About 90% of the products in Chelsea’s store are designed by her and exclusive to Bend & Snap.
How to shop Bend & Snap:
- Order online from the Bend & Snap website (either ship or pick up)
- In-person at Kids Korner
- Bend & Snap is stocked in about 20 stores in North America! Nashville – Tennessee, Texas, and Alberta are the farthest stores. Other places include Toronto, Kingston, and Hamilton
- You can also find Bend & Snap at vendors’ markets in the area
