How garment innovator KNITit grew from concept to success

Liz Hilton is a designer, entrepreneur, and garment industry innovator. Using cutting-edge 3D knitting technology, Hilton’s company, KNITit, produces the inventive Swaddelini brand, which makes one-of-a-kind sleep sacks offer gentle compression, easy care, and a tailored fit for newborns. 

What’s unique about 3D knitted products is that they are manufactured as one piece and therefore don't show any seams. After a viral social media hit led the Allegan-based company to international sales, KNITit is now a resource for businesses big and small looking to invest in the advantages of 3D knitting.

Hilton is a member of Lakeshore Advantage’s SURGE program — an entrepreneurial support organization that provides programming, resources, and a shared workspace for early-stage product and technology startups. 

We connected with Hilton for a Q&A about her journey as an entrepreneur, and the future of KNITit. 

What is KNITit working on bringing to the market? 

We currently have our Swaddelini sleep sack for newborn babies, and we recently launched our arms-out Swaddelini for babies who can roll over, crawl, and walk. We plan to introduce a smaller option for babies who do not like being swaddled with their arms in. We are launching something every month, from now until 2025. You can expect to see us launch a seamless onesie and an adult Swaddelini. These are important for our brand because of the uniquely seamless quality of our product.

The lack of seams is special because we make it with flatbed technology, using quality soft-additive manufacturing methods. All our products are seamless, which is great for sensory-sensitive kiddos who do not like zippers or seams. We are making something completely seamless, and now we will have a wider array of products with this technology. 

What led you to the creation of KNITit? 

I was relocated to Holland to work at a company called TechKnit, where I did 3D knit solutions for office furniture companies. We used the same polyester nylon yarn every day. One day I asked my project manager if I could knit with carbon fiber or test other solutions, and he said no. He told me to get my own machines because he did not want me ruining valuable machines that were important for manufacturing client products. But I took him up on it and purchased my own machine, and now I owe him as to why I started KNITit. If he had told me to have at it on his machines, I would not have started my own business. 

So, I started my own business. I thought I could do both: have my W2 job and my dream on the side. We disagreed and parted ways. That was the first time I was fired from a corporate job, and I have since been fired from two other corporate jobs. The path to success is not a straight line, as I like to tell young, incipient entrepreneurs. There is no shame in getting a job to support your family and your dream while you are building it. 

In January 2021, I pulled the plug on contracts I had with big box stores for the product I had invented, the Swaddelini. I was just selling on my website—30 units a day. By January 7, 2021, I had stopped investing in my business, but I had not given up on it. I posted a video to TikTok, and within 24 hours it had a million views. I had sold 341 units across the world. I had zero inventory, one machine in my garage, two kids, and a full-time job. On the following Monday, I hired Eden, who is still here today, to work in my garage for six months. That month, we did 800 units and shipped them all over the world. 

I kept at it and eventually got fired from that day job, which would have happened regardless. A year and a half later, we moved into our current 6,000-square-foot space, a huge shift from my garage. I purchased another machine at that time to make two. Now, we have 13 machines on the floor with four more coming next month. 

What is one thing you wish you knew when you started your journey? 

I wish I knew that when hiring out responsibilities, you need to find trusted firms. When it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. I wish I had someone constantly reminding me of that fact. If something is too good to be true, it is. Entrepreneurs frequently get themselves into desperate situations. It is easy to convince ourselves something will work, and it will not. 

A lot of your success has ridden on social media, and specifically TikTok. How are you navigating a changing landscape to reach your audience?

This advice goes for any growth pillar for any business: TikTok today is not what it was three years ago. You cannot expect an entrepreneur to experience the same success I did by doing the same thing. This is why I warn entrepreneurs about advice from other entrepreneurs, because in most cases that entrepreneur achieved success because they were in the right place at the right time doing the right thing.

I am on other platforms and now have over 100,000 followers on YouTube. I started aggressively posting on Instagram about a year after my TikTok success and that has now grown to over 220,000 followers. My TikTok is still at 245,000. I have about 500,000 followers in all, which is necessary and crucial. You cannot just post on one. Social media has been such a helpful tool to succeed in business. If you are not using it, you are missing out. However, it depends on how you use it; every company must go on a unique journey for what works for their business and customers. 

With shifting trends in social media, how do you stay relevant? 

I do not do the trends; I do what works and what sells. The way you figure that out is doing a lot of it and seeing what sticks. I also have it easier than most founders because I am in the baby space. When you are scrolling on your phone and you see a cute baby, you stop because it is a cute baby. Babies and puppies are powerful marketing tools. Marketing 101: puppies and babies. I would say I have an advantage there. I also channel a calming voice for social media. I have heard feedback that people like to watch my videos because of my voice. 

But also, people are curious about new and innovative products. They see my product and they immediately have questions; the best videos answer those questions. I am constantly trying new things and when something sticks, I double down. 

The baby space is ever-so popular, but how do you see that landscape evolving with the decline in the number of babies? Are you looking to expand internationally? 

In 2019, 3.9 million babies were born. Now, the birth rate is barely 3.6 million per year. Fortunately, other areas of the world are growing. International sales are 20% of our business. We filed paperwork to establish our company in Australia, and we have a wholesale company in Finland selling direct-to-consumer everywhere in Europe. We chose Australia because it has a high growth potential, and we get a lot of visitors from Australia. We have a lot of interest in Australia; however, we do not have a way to ship economically. People are spending hundreds of dollars on a swaddle because of shipping and customs. We are trying to cut those costs by making relationships with a 3PL, short for third-party logistics, also known as order fulfillment. For the rest of the world, we are either doing direct-to-consumer or wholesale.

What is the best part of doing business on the Lakeshore and being part of the SURGE team? 

The impact. I feel aware of the impact I am having on my community as a business owner here, and I am aware of how this community has impacted and supported me. I do not think I could have grown this company in any other location in the world. West Michigan is so rich in community support, from Lakeshore Advantage to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, to Michigan Works!, The Right Place, SURGE, Start Garden, and the list goes on. Anytime I hire an employee, I view it as a continuation of the positive impact we have here. I know we are building an incredible place to work and that is going to have a lasting impact on our community. 

Not only that, but our product has a positive impact on our community. When we have a product that is slightly out of spec, we donate it to the maternal infant health program of Ottawa County, and they use Swaddelini as a conversation starter about safe sleep for parents who would not otherwise have access to this type of education or products. Our customers receive a positive impact because their babies can sleep better. It is a privilege to grow a company that impacts our customers positively, our community positively, and doing so in a sustainable way. 

Swaddelini has started exploring its relation to health care and completing clinical trials. What is that about? 

The Swaddelini is amazing. I want to get it to all babies. To do that, we donated hundreds of Swaddelinis to NICUs (neonatal intensive care units) across North America. We received feedback that babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (addicted to substances) experienced fewer tremors and were less stressed when they were in a Swaddelini. If we could get that into a clinical trial and prove that impact, what hospital would not buy that for all their babies in the NICU? I hope to see the Swaddelini being covered by insurance as a Class 1 medical device because of the compression therapy that it provides. 

What is next for KNITit?

We have a potential expansion on the horizon that would give us 50% more capacity. We are also excited about our onesie Swaddelini and our adult size Swaddelini. The machines I have been investing in have more width to accommodate the adult-size product, and we have not even sold one yet. I believe this is the pillar of growth that we need to get to the next stage. 

Sam Mitchell is a marketing and communications intern at Lakeshore Advantage, where he is documenting the journeys of West Michigan entrepreneurs as they navigate the startup path.