Umbrella Company Found Their Niche: Rain

Find a need and fill it; it’s the basic building block of any real business. That’s exactly what Cheeky Umbrella founder Jen Zurowski did:

When she learned Vancouver would host the 2010 Winter Olympics, Zurowski teamed up with a designer and founded Cheeky Umbrellas, tackling what she considered a major gap in the umbrella market.

“People coming from international locations to the Winter Olympics would think that it was going to be snowy here, but February in Vancouver was going to mean rain,” Zurowski said.

“We realized that everyone was going to need umbrellas and no one was going to be prepared.”

Zurowski and her partner bid to become an official supplier of Olympic licensed and branded umbrellas, a victory that kicked off a frantic three-year period in her life, culminating in a successful Olympics and a company that now sells to over 100 stores across the country.

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