How this Charlotte entrepreneur ended up on ABC’s Funderdome

You can thank a Charlotte-area mom for classing up your summer outing with a cute and functional beverage dispensing bag. Lake Wylie resident Tracy Luebbers recently showed off her business creation, The Swankey, on ABC as a guest on Steve Harvey’s Funderdome.

The Swankey and the Bender (the “manlier” version of the bag) holds up to 5 liters and keeps beverages cold for over 8 hours. (That includes wine.)

Luebbers, 53, was in her late 40s when she found herself looking for a new challenge as a first-time empty nester. It took three years to develop a prototype for her idea, which began with a wine-loving friend.

A lot of people come up with good ideas while drinking wine with a friend, but most of them don’t go anywhere. So I talked to Luebber’s to get some insight.

How did you come up with the idea for the Swankey?

“Actually I was just at the pool one afternoon with a friend of mine. She enjoys box wine and she had pulled the bag out of the box of wine and had it in the cooler. It’s an issue trying to fish it out of the cooler and dispense it.”

What made you take the idea seriously?

“It was my turn in my life to really do something that I wanted to do. I did my research and every direction was pointing toward this. Really, it was all about me needing a new direction in my life.”

What was the hardest thing about making your idea a reality?

“I would say the hardest thing was finding someone to make (the product). Being a woman in a manufacturing world, which is dominated by men, people didn’t take me seriously at first. I just kept hitting roadblocks. After being called ‘honey’ and things like this I felt totally out of my comfort zone. That was really difficult.”

What was the biggest lesson you learned?

“Persistence. I mean just keep picking up that phone. There were a lot of moments I felt like giving up. The other thing is believe in yourself. Stay true to what you believe in. I also learned that, and this is one thing that surprised me, is that I can figure anything out. Primarily being a mother, a lot of times when you are in that world you think less of yourself but I learned I can figure anything out if I put my mind to it.”

How did you end up on Steve Harvey’s Funderdome?

“Last August I had just quit my job that I had been at for over five years to pursue this full-time. About four days after I quit my job, I got a call one evening from a casting director at ABC and they said they went online and saw my product and read my story and invited me to send some casting videos. I knew then that I made the right decision.”

Luebbers says her experience with ABC led to more steady sales. She’s proud the products are made at a women-owned and operated factory in Missouri.

Right now the average price is $130 but she has two new products coming out at a lower price point. The Swankette and the Tailgate Tote will be out next month.

Photos: Tracy Luebbers

This story was originally published July 13, 2017 at 11:00 PM with the headline "How this Charlotte entrepreneur ended up on ABC’s Funderdome."