Sudbury Resident Aims to Help Others with Business Venture

Fifteen years ago Lissa Stevens was living her dream in Ohio, teaching ballet and modern dance to young kids, using the education she received while studying dance at the Boston Conservator School of music, dance and theater.

But the Maryland native's dream suddenly ended when, after years of pounding the dance floor while wearing toe shoes, she was forced to stop due to injuries.

Stevens, now a Sudbury resident, finally had surgery last year, and for 12 weeks while recovering she sat and wondered what would she do now? Her foot was so sore she could only walk wearing Uggs, the soft, insulated boot that rides halfway up one's shin.

"I became so aware of them," says Stevens, who has also been in retail cosmetics for most of her career. "They all looked the same everywhere I went."

Ten months ago, Stevens began to think what could she do to dress up her Uggs? How could she change the everyday look of something she was forced to wear daily?

That's when she came up with Bootloops, an adjustable fabric loop that can be worn on Uggs or boots made of leather or suede.

"One day I got a sketch pad to put down some ideas," she says from inside her home office. "I got some scissors and fabric and started designing. I got the idea from (adjustable) boys hats."

Stevens says it took her a while to come up with the name, but believes Bootloops is fun and catchy.

"I thought since I can't afford to buy designer boots with colors and patterns, why not make something I can do and easily change out?"

To test them out, she went to a very reliable source.

"I gave a dozen to my son, Robbie, to share with his friends at Lincoln-Sudbury," she says. "They loved them and asked where they came from."

Stevens, who says she can make seven Bootloops in an hour, planned to launch her line this weekend at a trunk show at Apparent Style and at Personalities, and at Sugarloaf Mountain in Maine.

"Students love them. I've gotten phone calls about them and I've had people coming up at work asking me about them," says Stevens, who works as a cosmetic manager in Northborough. "It's a neat, fun, affordable fashion accessory that will appeal to all ages, from 8-year-old girls to young women and everything in between. It's just a way to change your wardrobe a little."

But Stevens' drive for her new business goes beyond making a profit. She hopes some day she can expand and offer jobs to those who need it most.

"Part of this that is huge for me is that we're made in United States. I could have these made overseas in China for pennies, but that's not what this is about," she says. "Hopefully when this is large enough and I expand, I want to hire women in shelters."

Stevens says she's been in touch with the YWCA in Worcester and that they are enthusiastic about the employment opportunities she wants to offer.

When her website (www.bootloops.net) is completed, it will have a page for volunteers in local churches and schools, called "Loopers," who will collect gently used boots for those in need, too.

"I hope this gets large enough so I can do some good for women in shelters," she says, "We're ready to do it."

About Bootloops

• Patterns vary
• Adjustable up to 17 inches
• Website: www.bootloops.net
• Email: sales.bootloops@gmail.com
• Phone: 978-807-2725
• Suggested retail price: $24-$26 for a pair