Lori-Ann Ravalier is redefining travel comfort with ComfeTravel, the first Black woman–owned portable air pad company

Please share a brief introduction about yourself and your business

I’m the first African American woman owned portable air pad company. I started the company in 2917 after being held on a 4 hour connecting flight with my two young daughters. It broke my heart watching my children sleep on their winter jackets while I laid on the chair.  As a former Flight Attendant I saw this frequently, but that was many years ago, so the fact that this was still happening told me that this was a problem. Fast forward to 2023, j introduced my first product, the adult pad and in early 2025, I introduced the kids pad. Both pads are lightweight, self inflates in under a minute and a half, equipped with a built in pillow, and small enough to carry on a carryon bag.

Who are your customers?

My customers are travelers which includes campers, truckers, emergency responders, and shelters

What was your background prior to starting your own business?

Prior to starting my business I worked in Healthcare Administration. I managed urgent care centers

What made you take the leap to start your own business?

I did not dream of starting a business. I experienced a problem and I wanted to fix it. It was never something that I intensionally decided on

Take us back to when you first launched your business; what was your marketing strategy to get the word out and did it go as planned?

My marketing strategy after listening to my daughters who were teenagers at the time was social media- especially Tik Tok.  I must say that I never wanted to be infront the cameras so I took a while to make my first post. I also did word of mouth- contacting people that I worked with who I knew had great business contacts. My marketing strategy did not go as planned because I just could not get into posting daily. It was too much trying to make content on a daily basis and do everything else. I was a one man company so it did not go well at all.

What is the biggest challenge you have encountered along the way so far and what have you learned from it?

The biggest challenge that I have encountered along the way is hiring talent. I had a narrow view of the talent I wanted and I learned that if I wanted to grow my business and succeed, I had to lay that mindset down, and hire the best person for the job.

What accomplishment are the most proud of to date in your business?

My proudest accomplishment to date is where I have taken this business on my own. No financial help because no one wanted to take a chance on me as a new business. So seeing what I have done without great financial backing and as a one man business, makes me extremely proud.

Do you have any recent wins from the last year that you'd like to celebrate with our community?

My Walmart sales are crazy. It started off very slow, but just took off like a rocket. That’s a great win for us

What's next for your business? What can we expect to see over the next few years?

What’s next for ComfeTravel is working with the airports. First starting with JFK and placing Kiosks and vending machines strategically throughout the airport and branching out to other airports around the country

What is your top productivity tip?

My top productivity tip is remembering the struggle years and not taking anything for granted. I cannot slack off because I remember how hard it was to grow this business.

On the flip side, how do you avoid burnout?

I haven’t figured that out yet. I try to take a vacation once a year but it’s not working because I’m still working just as hard when I’m on a vacation. But the bright side is that I’m aware that I have to change that

What is your approach to work-life balance / integration?

My approach to work life balance doesn’t always have to be a big vacation. It could simply be starting the work day a bit later once a week. Just refusing to look at my phone for an hour out of the day. It’s anything to calm my mind down at times

What is one thing you wish you had known when you started your Entreprenista journey?

How much work each step/stage of growing a business is. I thought the hardest part would be getting g the business off the ground and getting exposure. But no, each stage comes with its own level of newness which makes it challenging

When hiring, what is your go-to interview question?

Social media experience. I mean this is the world that we are in now. I mean, if I’m looking for an accountant then this will not be relevant, but social media expertise is my go-to interview question

Are you a Mamaprenista? If so, please share your best advice for simultaneously managing a business and a family

Well my children are grown and ofc yo college, so I’m a different Mamaprenista. But in the early stages of growing my business I was riddled with guilt. Traveling and leaving my children behind because they were at school was very hard for me. Now my guilt is leaving my husband behind when I travel because he also has his own business and cannot always accompany me.

Do you have a co-founder? If so, how did you find the right one for you and what are your best partnership tips?

I do have a co -founder, my husband. I am the face of the company but behind the scenes, he’s really pushing and doing a lot.  You know, there are times that I’ve said, what are we doing thinking we can do this, let’s just give this up. And he would say, absolutely not, are you crazy? We’ve sacrificed too much already.  Let’s go all the way with it and see what happens.

What's the one app on your phone you absolutely cannot live without and why?

My bible app. I need it when I feel overwhelmed and not sure of a decision. It’s my compass. Everything can fail, but when I have the word of God and his promises I feel that I can overcome anything.

What is your favorite business tool or solution and why?

My favorite business tool is the relationship that’s I’ve made over the years while in corporate America. There’s something about getting a sincere referral or advice from people who knew you before you were successful. People who believe in you and really want to see you win.

What advice do you have for aspiring Entreprenistas?

Don’t give up. I heard the founder of POPPI shared a quote from chris Jenner. If you hear a NO, then you are talking g to the wrong person. So, in all the MI’s that you’ll hear, push through until you get that first YES

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