YaVaughnie WilkinsTaking the Business World by Storm with Innovative New Products (YAVAWI Enterprises)

Black inventors are a rare breed in our society and naturally, my interest was piqued when I heard about YaVaughnie Wilkins’ revolutionary bathroom tissue roller, ReJUVENESCENCE, which debuted online late last year. ReJUVENESCENCE is heading for store shelves in the next few months. YaVaughnie Wilkins, who served in the U.S. military for a short period of time, is no stranger to innovation.  She has several projects in the pipeline, including more products. I found YaVaughnie’s story riveting and wanted to share the very essence of this rising black female entrepreneur with our readers. In many respects, the issues she grappled with as a child and even in adulthood are similar to what many women faced growing up and even as adults themselves.

So, what is ReJUVENESCENCE? It is a tissue roller filled with beads soaked in “sophisticated, long-lasting essential oils.” “They are made in America of recyclable material and covered perforations on each roller allow users to control the amount of fragrance released.” The line also includes candles and scented kitchen towel holders, and both come in three natural scents, “Wild Orchid, Moonflower and Spice,” according to a recent press release.  YaVaughnie recently made waves at the 2012 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards when ReJUVENESCENCE took part in the Connected Gift Rooms’ pre-Kids’ Choice Awards suite. The products were part of the celebrity experience venue, part shopping mall and part teen radio show, with dozens of celebrities sampling products from over 30 vendors. ReJUVENESCENCE received the endorsements of former NFL player Matt Leinart, actor Scott Baio, “Modern Family” young actor Nolan Gould, “A.N.T. Farm’s” Sierra McCormick and many others.

YAVAWI Enterprises Presents ReJUVENESCENCETissue Rollers (YAVAWI Enterprises)

There is more to YaVaughnie Wilkins than her revolutionary bathroom rollers and I was in for a real treat when I spoke with her late last month. YaVaughnie juggles three enterprises under YAVAWI Enterprises LLC umbrella. The companies are:  Follow Thru, LLC, which deals with product development and is the home of ReJUVENESCENCE™; Free Spirit Rider, which YaVaughnie describes as an ”open forum for research and discussion on public affairs for politics, social issues, economics and current laws.”  Next up is 21 Yellow Tulips, an independent production and publishing company. She is currently working on a feature-length documentary “The Glamorous Lie,” which tells her story of overcoming adversity. YaVaughnie rose like a phoenix from the seemingly insurmountable obstacles she faced,  stepping out of the shadows of notoriety, from an irretrievably broken relationship influenced by her childhood, and from the long struggle to find happiness and success. She is also working on her second book, a non-fiction thriller, AUGUST, which details “how the liberty and career of a Wall Street executive are saved at the great sacrifice and expense of those deceived into loyalty and conspiracy.” YaVaughnie also has a children’s book in the works, as well as another documentary, Dot.Com, which focuses on the period leading up to the tech industry meltdown from 1996-2000.

So, who is YaVaughnie Wilkins? She is a role-model and a mover-and-shaker for not just black women, but all women. She embodies what America is all about, from her rich biracial heritage, to her business acumen and her determination to succeed and innovate. That is the reason why I reached out to YaVaugnie Wilkins. Her story is compelling and speaks to the power of hard work and the will to succeed in the face of adversity. We need more INNOVATORS in the black community and we salute YaVaughnie Wilkins for her accomplishments. When I asked her about being a role model, YaVaughnie was modest, but realized this was an awesome and powerful responsibility. She said, she has a handful of women in her life and doesn’t know where she would have been without these women. She said it is a daunting responsibility and wants to do the right thing because so many people are watching.

YaVaughnie  exuded so much enthusiasm when we talked about turning an idea into a product, as she did with ReJUVENESCENCE. She is very proud of the products she has taken to market and has more exciting things in the pipeline. Black innovators are a rare breed, particularly black female innovators. YaVaughnie has learned a great deal from the process of taking of applying for a patent, which can be quite daunting, but rewarding once it comes to fruition.

I was especially interested in the process of moving a concept from idea to product. She said she thought of the product and went to a patent attorney to ascertain what the process entailed. She said she decided to do the research herself, to reduce the cost, and included a review of prior art, meaning conducting a thorough research of all the different types of air fresheners, scented toilet paper rollers, etc. The lawyer then files the patent application and then the rest is on the U.S. Patent Office, which could take from one to three years to grant or reject the patent application. She said the process is daunting and expensive, but if you do the research yourself, that reduces some of the costs. Next up is the prototype and then the actual product will be produced once everything falls into place. Once that’s all done, you are ready to take the next step, to find a manufacturer and then get it to market.

Kudos to YaVaughnie for sticking to the “Made in America” mantra that has eluded us in recent years. Her products are manufactured in the U.S. and not in China or any other country, and the products uphold the highest levels of social responsibility to the environment. YaVaughnie and her team are working to get ReJUVENESCENCE into stores such as Bed Bath & Beyond and Nordstrom, but her “ultimate goal is to license” the products to other companies such as hotels, customized to their needs. She is also working to get on “Shark Tank” to get promotional backing from one of the “sharks” at the end of May.

The current political landscape also  featured prominently in our discussion, from a business perspective. She said she was very disappointed that the two people we have to choose from aren’t people she would readily support on the ballot. She said the process of choosing a candidate has turned her off because the decision will have been made for her once it gets to California, due to the primary process. Many voters have expressed the same reservations about both President Obama and the presumptive GOP candidate Mitt Romney.

YaVaughnie also gives a portion of her proceeds to charities such as the Rape Trauma Services of San Mateo County, the Gay and Lesbians Alliance Against Defamation, Big Brothers, Big Sisters of America, the National Society of Black Engineers and the National Black Child Development Institute, because most represent issues she dealt with while growing up. She recalled being molested as a child and said that dogged her for many years, even playing a role in how she viewed herself and the relationships she had with men. Though the molestation was horrific, she has grown from it as a person and won’t allow herself to be abused by anyone. She also talked about her mother and the domestic violence she endured, as well as the woman she became, largely shaped by those experiences. YaVaughnie Wilkins is the embodiment of the American dream and what one can achieve with hard work, dedication, tenacity and surrounding oneself with the right people. We urge you to listen to this riveting interview and tell your friends about YaVaughnie Wilkins and what she’s doing. She’s one bad Sistah!