Why can’t cleaning products smell the way a dad would want them to smell? Resist the urge to insert a cheap joke. Think sandalwood and suede over lavender or spring mist and then we’re on the right track.
That was the idea of our Lead Dad of the week, Sean Busch. Born on Long Island he grew as a businessman and dad in Austin, Texas. He’s recently settled with his wife and two children in Westport, CT, where his dad-focused line of cleaning products, called Dad Mode, is set to launch in the new year.
Sean came to this from the traditional world of consumer packaged goods, which are aimed at women.
“It’s not like dads don’t do household cleaning,” he said. “It’s that 100 percent of the household products are targeted at 50 percent of the population. What if we took a page out of Yeti and made them more masculine?”
That’s what he did – matte black bottles, with cleaning products that work and don’t smell like flowers. Enter the sandalwood and suede scent, which gets made in Detroit.
“I was always doing the cleaning in the house,” Sean said. “I enjoyed it. I’m a super neat freak.”
Sean also learned a lesson from building Puracy, his previous company. That would be delegation equals more family time.
“I’ve found people to take over so I can be there to take them to school and be home for dinner,” he said. “I was working crazy hours before, but it wasn’t paying dividends. I was a control freak. Now I realize it’s important that I have the real time with my kids. Over the past year, I’ve been doing things where I’m the only dad doing it.”
He’s also been doing the key thing for any parent: showing his kids how to be a working dad, not just telling them what to do.
“As a father I want to set the standard for them,” he said. “I say to them, I’m going to be with you today. But then I have to go take this call. They get to see that. That will continue to be a theme in my life.”
Welcome, Sean, to The Company of Dads. No doubt you’re set to clean up!
