As SEI celebrates 25 years of the Social Enterprise Track of the HBS New Venture Competition, we are connecting with alumni on their entrepreneurial journeys and what NVC meant for them. Shelly Xu (MBA 2021) is the Founder of Shelly Xu Designs (SXD) and won the Social Enterprise Track Grand Prize and Crowd Favorite Prize in 2021 for her venture.
Tell us about SXD. What was your inspiration for starting this venture?
My beginning was a 70 square foot home. I was born into this tiny space that could only fit one bed or one table at a time, not both. So, my parents taught me to rearrange furniture throughout the day to make living work. That was how I learned about creativity under constraint. Even in a room full of constraints, nothing should feel impossible.
Creativity under constraint is the foundation of SXD. In fashion, people have traditionally started with design. That design may be a beautiful idea, but it doesn’t account for the fabric and resources required to bring this idea to life. This is why we’ve been cutting up fabric the same way for centuries to accommodate designs, and wasting so much of the fabric. My childhood playground is now a fabric dumpster, and I’m not alone. I know that fabric, one of the most precious resources that require so much water, land, and energy to create, should never be left on the cutting room floor, burned, or landfilled. Instead, it should be made into beautiful things that respect every inch of the material.
So at SXD, we start by acknowledging what we have — the fabric or material at our disposal—and we then create zero fabric waste patterns that respect the creative constraint of these limited resources on our planet. The zero waste designs are then scaled through our AI platform. This way, products across sizes, materials, and styles can be made without waste, with much lower emissions, and with about half the raw material used. This means material savings, cost savings, and the ability to save our planet.
How has SXD evolved?
SXD’s AI platform is now the first real-time solution to eliminate material waste at scale by design, achieving up to 69% material savings, over 10x more than any other technology. We’ve partnered with about 20 global companies to reimagine their iconic products as zero waste. Together, these partners produce over a billion units annually. And this year, we’re expanding beyond fashion—entering the automotive industry to turn car components zero waste by design.
How did the New Venture Competition help further your exploration and venture?
The New Venture Competition helped me think critically about how to maximize SXD’s impact. It's not about making more things even if they are zero waste. Instead, it's about converting as many existing product lines in the world to zero waste as possible through partnerships. Through NVC, I also got to meet Sarah Kauss (HBS 2003, Founder and Former CEO of S'well), who has become an amazing mentor. I still speak with her regularly and have learned so much over the years—from team building to navigating challenging situations to product storytelling.
Did you take advantage of any other social entrepreneurship resources while at HBS?
Yes! I was a Cheng Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School and part of the Harvard iLab’s Social Impact Fellowship Fund (SIFF) community. These experiences taught me how to build a business that prioritizes impact.
What changes have you seen in the social entrepreneurship landscape since you were a student at HBS?
Now more than ever, I do feel that it's important to have a strong business model behind the social venture -- one that can allow the venture to scale sustainably with impact.
What advice would you give to aspiring social entrepreneurs?
Start now! There will never be a perfect time, and the world needs your ideas.
