GalenÄlva | Purple is the Bravest Color

Based in the heart of Europe, our company is creating premium quality, durable harnesses for dogs and long lasting outdoor apparel for dog owners.

Designed with the comfort and safety of you and your dog in mind, our products can empower your dog to reach new heights.

Currently, we are in the product development phase and our very first line of products will be available in late 2020.

If you would like to join us on our beautiful journey, follow us on social media now and be a part of the process.

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From the Rubik’s cube to the legendary footballer Ferenc Puskás and the adorable dog breed Hungarian Vizsla, Hungary is famous around the world for all that and much more. It is also the land of geniuses and creatives with great potential in terms of quality materials and products.

We are a Hungary based company with products that are built and sourced within various parts of EU. By incorporating talent from within EU into our work, we are able to build a business that is true to our roots.

Our love for dogs began when we were kids but it was only when we bought our Doberman “Bo” in 2016 that we got involved in the quintessential dog owner lifestyle. Bo was meant to be a show dog but we started training him at a local dog school and we were instantly blown away by his talent.

However, we always felt that something important was missing from the equation. Apart from the fact that the training gear I wore to dog school was not my style at all, we also struggled to find a good harness that would be the right anatomical fit for Bo while making him look stylish as well. So, we decided to fulfil our need for comfort and style by inventing our own harness and human apparel to provide maximum comfort to me and Bo during training.

Bo is not only a champion in training, he is an integral part of our family who goes everywhere with us. Our dog has opened up a whole new world of exciting possibilities for us and given us new friendships, hobbies and a whole new lifestyle. He is also the inspiration behind our new canine sport and lifestyle brand.

The happiness of our dog is important to us and our brand is dedicated to sharing this happiness with dogs and dog owners all around the world.

THE PRODUCT

Inspired by the difficulties we and our dog faced, we have created the ultimate product to ensure safety and comfort during outdoor activities, training and in everyday life. Our range of harnesses and human apparel are designed with the utmost care using sustainable materials that are made to last. Now you and your dog can look good, feel good, and train better!

Our first line of products will be available in late 2020 and we would love to have your support in the process. Want to find out more? Head over to our Instagram page now and get all the latest updates on our products.

SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainability is one of the core values of our business and we believe that it starts with a timeless design and durable materials. By sourcing premium top quality materials from well-renowned companies within EU, we are aspiring to build a sustainable supply chain from the ground up.

We have a strong focus on sustainable production and consciousness of our impact on the environment. Our products do not promote fast fashion and are meticulously sourced, built and designed within EU to encourage environmentally friendly practices.

Got any questions? We are all ears!

Phone: 0036305520274

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Slowly, but surely, things are moving forward 😊🥰 #apparelbranding #galenalva

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Currently, my biggest challenge is to find the best possible fabric for my collection. 🧐It has to be soft, silent, durable, washable as well as dirt and oil repellent. Lately I’m considering the idea to use waxed cotton either for base material or as reinforcement parts, so I asked for a few samples and did some experiments at home. 🧪🦠You can see the results in the video, I’m pretty impressed. 😲😊Let’s see how that would look in real life 💪🏻@halleystevensons #waxedcotton #dirtrepellent #oilrepellent #testing #businessoffashion #emergingbrand

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Choosing the right manufacturer is not an easy task to do.... …..especially if you are looking for a specialised one within the EU.
Specialised means, that they have all the machines that are able to produce your garment from pattern design to the last stitch, including the latest technologies. Also, the setup of the machines are done in a way that they can handle strong materials.
I wanna keep the production in Europe. It’s easier to keep the control and European factories usually take smaller quantity orders. No need to mention the obvious - I got turned down by most of the factories I contacted. 😩The garment is simply too complicated and it’s not worth the effort for them, not even if I’m willing to pay a surcharge.They all asked for a prototype - so how do you produce a prototype if you don’t have a manufacturer? 🤯Catch 22. And this is where my decision at the beginning to hire a professional designer with experience in the outdoor industry was proven to be worthwhile. She managed to get a prototype done in Russia and put me in contact with a German factory owner whose factory happens to be located two hours drive from my home city.

The factory itself is beautiful, spacious and clean, they are using the most advanced technologies and they are working for premium brands (mostly German, Austrian and Swiss). The work itself is effectively organised and the end results are stunning. Even though this is not cheap, I believe that the price you pay for a premium service worth it in the end. It saves your time and probably even money if you count the rounds for prototyping and possible quality issues.

So in summary, my checkbox looks like this: ✔️Experience in outdoor apparel manufacturing
✔️Reference for working for premium brands
✔️Fair working conditions
✔️Fair business partner
✔️Modern technology
✔️Understanding of functional fabrics
✔️Understanding of the concept of premium ✔️Small MOQ
✔️Located in the EU

These conditions didn’t come clear to me overnight. The more factories I visited, the more experience I gathered the more I realised what I was actually looking for.
Anything to add to the list?

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Working on some input for my graphic designer 😄 My drawing skills are obviously not the strongest, but I hope she will get the idea 😄. These sketches are for some of the accessories I will be sending for sampling. I need to make sure that I provide the factory with as many details as possible, otherwise I risk getting something completley different then what I asked for - or what was originally in my head. 😐So I take my time, do the sketches myself, then the graphic designer digitalizes it and creates a visual for the end result. Still...please keep fingers crossed...I already had some uncomfortable ‘wtf’ suprises.
Enjoy the rest of the weekend! ☺️😘😘☀️
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#outdoorbrand #productdevelopment #branddevelopment #branddesigner #identitydesign #beyourownboss #femalepreneur #womenwhodo #womeninbiz #emergingbrand #businessoffashion #fashionstartup #galenalva #galenälva #accessorydesign

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My very first pitch!…….was a disaster.😱 Have you ever had the experience, that you read through the material, felt easy…. the next day the teacher called you and you couldn’t recall a word? That happened. 😕
The university I attended started an incubation program for startups. It’s a wonderful opportunity - you receive mentoring form experts, develop relationships and, they also provide meet up platforms with investors.
I got an invitation to apply some weeks ago. I was full of confidence! 💪🏻GalenÄlva is the air I breath, I will sweep them off their feet - not a doubt!😎
Then I entered the room -15 people looking at me and I froze. I realised, that I have never spoken about GalnÄlva to people that are not dog lovers. These were finance, technology, marketing, business professionals…..they have no idea about the pet accessory industry. They can not relate to my project on any level other than the business case. I was not prepared and it showed. They asked me questions I have went through a million times - who will buy this? What is your pricing strategy? How can you scale it? I felt like a puppy in a lion cage…so disappointing!
How could I be so full of myself? Why didn’t I prepare? Why do I just expect people to fall in love with my idea? With a heavy heart, I let go of the though of getting excepted. 😔
The next day I went back to listen to a presentation, and as I was waiting on the corridor, one of the mentors came up to me. ‘Hey, listen, I was thinking about your project the whole evening’ 👀Then another guy showed up and said - ‘Edit! Congratulations! You were great yesterday!’. ‘What?! No, don’t say that! My presentation was a disaster.’ They laughed and said, ‘Yes, that’s true. The presentation was terrible, but regardless, your commitment came across. You didn’t put up a show, you were yourself the whole time, and it was visible how strongly you believe in this. This is the key. This what we are looking for here’. 🤭
I got letter of acceptance that afternoon. This was a painful lesson and a great reassurance at the same time. I can’t wait to start to work with them! ☺️❤️ Have you ever had a similar experience? 🙃
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#businesspitch #lessonlearned

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I just came across an article on a blog for women - 10 habits that change your life in 66 days 😏🧐 I find these constant life changer advices overwhelming at times, but as most things….if it comes around often, it will get into my head and I might consider changing a few habits – or picking up new ones.
Let’s see how I’m doing on their list –
1. Set 3-4 Priorities for each day – yes…ish… maybe I don’t do this every day. 😋 The article claims that if you don’t set priorities your will get lost in the small things - I agree. And I will be honest, I don’t do this regularly and I can get overwhelmed sometimes.
2. One hour of reading per day – ehhhhh, does audible count? I love reading, and I usually schedule reading time for weekends. I can’t fit it in with work, Husband time, Bo time, sports and sleeping and it stays like that. I’m good. 🥳🤓
3. Sleep 7-8 hours – check.
4. Walk 30 minutes per day – I walk at least two hours per day….looks like on the expense of my reading time. 😅 On a lazy day I walk one hour with Bo in the morning and one in the afternoon and I also rarely use the car in the city #savingtheplane ☺️🌲🌿
5. Work out – check 💪🏻
6. Start intermittent fasting – kidding right? 👀
7. Concentrate on something else – live in the present! Enjoy the small things in life! Does that contradict or complement the first advice?
8. Love without boundaries – How original.....😁....lucky I have a dog! 🥰
9. Write half an hour every day – 30 minutes for everything. Just enough though to check the box. 😕
10. Save money – From next month – pinky promise. 🤥😋 Just kidding, I actually take that one seriously. I haven’t really bought myself any new clothes since I’ve been working on GalenÄlva (this is also because now I’m aware of the fabric qualities and I just won’t buy fast fashion items anymore 😂). Three things I don’t compromise on are quality food, sports and Bo.
Let’s see if I can be more consistent with setting daily priorities 😌
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#galenälva #galenalva #doberman #successhabits #outdoorbrand #productdevelopment #branddevelopment #dogworld #paw

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Based in Hungary,
Built and Sourced in EU

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