We Constructed a $7 Million Enterprise Whereas Traveling the World

This as-told-to essay relies on a dialog with Tricia Redulla, cofounder of Sky and Sol. It has been edited for size and readability.

In 2023, my boyfriend Max hiked Mount Kilimanjaro. We had each been centered on bettering our well being, and the hike was a serious accomplishment for him. On it, nevertheless, Max could not discover a sunscreen that protected him with out irritating his pores and skin.

When he got here again to our Austin residence, we began brainstorming concepts for a tallow-based sunscreen. At the identical time, we had been contemplating touring when our lease ended. Somewhat surprisingly, the 2 concepts went hand in hand: we may construct our enterprise remotely whereas touring the world.

We established our working-travel routine in Hawaii

We had at all times wished to see Hawaii, in order that was our first cease. We had been there for a month, staying in a number of completely different Airbnbs. That’s once we determined to take care of a typical work schedule, although we had been in a trip location.

We would get up, sightsee a bit, then work for an prolonged time. Although we had been on our computer systems, it was attention-grabbing to be in new cafés and areas. We lived on our financial savings, however we additionally began promoting our merchandise rapidly.

We additionally started promoting sunscreen to the US market earlier than we left, and Sky and Sol instantly began producing gross sales — about $7 million throughout 2024 whereas we had been touring. A 3rd-party logistics firm shipped merchandise for patrons, and when wanted, we had product samples shipped to our household properties. We could not see these samples, however we may ask our household about them and get footage.

We booked a transatlantic cruise as a result of it was low-cost

After coming house for the vacations, we booked a transatlantic cruise from Miami to England. At the time, cruise costs had been actually low. The cruise taught us to be versatile: we had been working collectively in a tiny room, although we frequently went to the on-ship Starbucks for a change of surroundings.

At the time, I used to be centered on constructing our affiliate applications, which meant contacting influencers, onboarding them, and dealing with affiliate pay. Max was engaged on our paid promoting technique and dealing with enterprise mentors to assist us scale rapidly.

The cruise wasn’t the very best expertise, particularly since I did not really feel nicely for many of it. By the time we landed in England in January, we had been glad that a part of the journey was over.

We had been in a position to evaluate sunscreens in several markets

After exploring England, we flew to Tokyo, the place we stayed for about two weeks.

Traveling in Europe and Asia gave us the chance to check sunscreens that we did not have entry to within the US. We typically purchased all of the sunscreens we may in a retailer, finding out their aesthetics and really feel. Many Japanese and Korean sunscreens aren’t offered within the US, so getting access to them helped us develop a greater product.

We discovered an entrepreneurship neighborhood in Singapore

In Japan, we determined to increase our travels since they had been going so nicely. We booked a three-month keep in Singapore. Instead of staying in an Airbnb, we selected a co-living house to attach with the town’s entrepreneurship neighborhood. We had been in a position to talk about technique and progress with expats from all around the world and discovered so much concerning the e-commerce house. Our private and work lives typically mix collectively.

In Singapore, we had some visa challenges. As Americans, we predict we are able to go anyplace, however this was reminder that we nonetheless must comply with the regulation. At that time, we would been touring for six months, and I used to be feeling a bit homesick. I went house to go to household, whereas Max visited Malaysia. We misplaced cash as a result of we weren’t in a position to keep within the Singapore co-living house for the entire period that we might booked.

I would not need to journey for a full 12 months once more

Next, we met in France and traveled all through Europe, together with to Iceland, Switzerland, and Portugal. This was one other likelihood to study pores and skin merchandise in several nations: for instance, in Iceland, individuals wrap their cleaning soap in wool to get further exfoliation. We additionally discovered about work-life steadiness and what we wished that to appear to be.

We ended our travels with a 12 months in Puerto Rico, the place we stayed for all of 2025. We selected the island due to its tax benefits.

Now, we’re again within the US. It’s good to have a house base and a spot to recharge. I would not journey for a whole 12 months once more, as a result of it was very tiring. Still, I’m glad we had the expertise and may now give attention to our long-term plans.